Learn Swift and SwiftUI in my old age?

Would an old guy (75) who is proficient in Obj-C, only codes for iOS/macOS/tvOS/web, and has spent the last 60 years promising himself “that’s definitely the last language I’m learning”, now find it pleasing/beneficial/productive to learn Swift/SwiftUI? Assume programming is relegated to a hobby and favorite pastime and I’ll live 10 more years :) Thanks.

Answered by DTS Engineer in 896466022
find it pleasing/beneficial/productive to learn Swift/SwiftUI?

Let’s break that down:

  • Pleasing That’s very much gonna depend on you.
  • Beneficial Yes. Regardless of any other factors, there’s solid evidence that learning new stuff is beneficial, especially as you get older.
  • Productive That kinda depends on what you intend to produce (-:

As someone who’s not exactly young myself, I’ve started to understand that the time I have left is limited, and that I need to focus on what I enjoy. I absolutely love playing around with computers, so if and when I retire there’s no doubt I’ll continue doing that.

Keep in mind that there’s a middle ground, namely using Swift to call the frameworks you already know. If you get pleasure from shipping stuff, that might be a good first step, rather than wrestling with Swift and SwiftUI at the same time.

Share and Enjoy

Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple
let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com"

Last year, at age 73, I decided to switch my hobby programming to Swift/SwiftUI from XOJO. I waited for SwiftUI to mature as UIKit made my eyes glaze over. After about 6 months of grinding, I successfully converted one of my XOJO apps. I now know there's a few things I did sub-optimally, so I'm continuing to learn. Jump in, the water's fine.

Accepted Answer
find it pleasing/beneficial/productive to learn Swift/SwiftUI?

Let’s break that down:

  • Pleasing That’s very much gonna depend on you.
  • Beneficial Yes. Regardless of any other factors, there’s solid evidence that learning new stuff is beneficial, especially as you get older.
  • Productive That kinda depends on what you intend to produce (-:

As someone who’s not exactly young myself, I’ve started to understand that the time I have left is limited, and that I need to focus on what I enjoy. I absolutely love playing around with computers, so if and when I retire there’s no doubt I’ll continue doing that.

Keep in mind that there’s a middle ground, namely using Swift to call the frameworks you already know. If you get pleasure from shipping stuff, that might be a good first step, rather than wrestling with Swift and SwiftUI at the same time.

Share and Enjoy

Quinn “The Eskimo!” @ Developer Technical Support @ Apple
let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@" + "apple.com"

I used to build desktop applications with Xojo. Those days, it was called RealBasic. There was a German vendor who tried to sell his add-on packages. Even after you say no, he comes back and try to sell one after a while. Since it didn't support iOS development, I eventually switched to Xcode.

They eventually added iOS Support and I used it for a bunch of apps. But the UIKit based system made it harder and harder to achieve a modern UI. Lots of limitations. So it was time to go.

Keep in mind that there’s a middle ground, namely using Swift to call the frameworks you already know.

Thanks, this is the route I’m taking.

Learn Swift and SwiftUI in my old age?
 
 
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