
iHasApp: detect installed apps on a user's device - gilles_bertaux
https://github.com/danielamitay/iHasApp
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galonk
Is it really necessary for an app to be able to query whether a URL scheme is
handled? It would be nice if Apple could make that API non-functional to put a
stop to this.

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e28eta
If you want to build a real, cross-vender multi-app workflow, it's really
handy: the initiating app can show different UI based on whether it's
available. Ex: only show "Open in Google Maps" button if it's installed.

I find it distasteful that it's being heavily used for analytics instead of
building great workflows. Look at all the apps that integrate with Facebook's
tracking: "fb..."

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stephenr
That strategy specifically relies on the app author to support specific apps
then.

A better solution would be using the share sheet, so any app that supports the
type of data you're sharing, can make use of it.

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21echoes
This system of open intent handling (for purposes other than sharing to
social-media-network-du-jour) is decent on Android devices, but is all but
non-existent on iOS devices. In other words: no, that solution is not
currently the better option on iOS given the environment.

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stephenr
iOS8 only came out 2 1/2 months ago. Give it time.

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scoot
Related-ish - can anyone explain how Chrome on iOS can apparently detect my
logged-in username in the GMail app (and suggests I log into Chrome with it)?

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speedyapoc
Could be shared keychain data between those apps.

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cmyr
This is a two-year old project. Is there any reason we're discussing it now?

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jamesbrownuhh
The technique and principle is specifically "in the news" at the moment given
that Twitter apparently intend to harvest and use this information in their
own app. So I'd guess that's probably why.

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cmyr
Ah okay, thanks. It doesn't seem like a behaviour that's very in line with the
general vibe of the iOS platform, but it's also hard to imagine a way of
removing this functionality without degrading the user experience. I wonder if
we might see the app store guidelines updated to specifically forbid this sort
of wide-net URL surveying.

