Beginning iOS 4 Application Development

Appendix C. Getting Around in Interface Builder

Interface Builder is one of the tools included with the iPhone SDK. It is a visual design tool that you can use to build the user interface of your iPhone applications. Although it is not strictly required for the development of your iPhone applications, Interface Builder plays an integral role in your journey of learning about iPhone application development. This appendix covers some of the important features of Interface Builder.

.xib Window

The most direct way to launch Interface Builder is to double-click any of the .xib files in your Xcode project. For example, if you have created a View-based Application project, there are two .xib files in the Resources folder of Xcode. Double-clicking either of them launches Interface Builder.

When Interface Builder is launched, the first window that you see has the same name as your .xib file (see Figure C-1).

Figure C.1. FIGURE C-1

Within this window are several items; and depending on what you have double-clicked, you should see some of the following:

• File's Owner

• First Responder

• View, Table View, Window, and so on

• Some View Controllers and delegates

By default, the .xib window is displayed in icon mode. But you can also switch to list mode, where you can view some of the items in more detail. For example, Figure C-2 shows that when viewed in list mode, the View item displays a hierarchy of views contained ...