Developers, and some power users who are reading this have probably heard of launchd. It’s Apple’s “mama process,” responsible for launching other processes at startup, login, at regular intervals, or on demand. If you open the Activity Monitor application, and view “All Processes, Hierarchically,” you’ll see that there are only two top-level processes: kernel_task, and launchd. The kernel sits there and does its thing, while launchd spawns all the other processes that make up your Macintosh computing experience.

One big benefit of launchd to end-users is that most of what gets launched can be easily examined by perusing the configuration files. Launchd looks in five well-defined locations for launchable items:

/System/Library/LaunchDaemons
/System/Library/LaunchAgents
/Library/LaunchDaemons
/Library/LaunchAgents
~/Library/LaunchAgents

So all you have to do to get a feel for (most of) what launchd is up to is start poking around in those directories. For each independent “launch” that launchd controls, you’ll find a corresponding configuration property list file. For instance, you’re guaranteed to find a bunch of examples in /System/Library/LaunchDaemons, and depending on which third-party packages you’ve installed, you might find things in other places, as well.

Launchd In Context: FTP

Take a quick look at ftp.plist, one of the system launch daemons. Depending on how you’ve configured your system, you’ll either see that a “Disabled” key is present and set to “true,” or it is absent. This corresponds directly to the “FTP Access” item in the System Preference’s “Sharing” panel. Go ahead and toggle the setting in your preferences, and observe that the ftp.plist file is immediately updated to reflect the new setting. This tells launchd that it should no longer consider launching the ftp daemon when an incoming ftp connection is attempted.

What constitutes an incoming ftp connection? Look further down the ftp.plist and you’ll find an entry with key name “SockServiceName” and a value of “ftp”. Launchd uses this name to lookup the socket port/protocol information for the named service from /etc/services. In this case, when an incoming connection is attempted on port 21, launchd will, if this item is not disabled, launch the daemon at /usr/libexec/ftpd, in order to handle the incoming connection. Groovy, huh? Read more about network handlers and other on-demand daemons.

Boot-Time King

I said above that these configuration files reveal “most of” what launchd is up to with regard to running things on your system. Because launchd can’t handle all types of configurations, and because its introduction has been sort of gently staged, it’s responsible for running a lot of the older mechanisms like /etc/rc, StartupItems, etc. This means that launchd is basically responsible for everything from when the kernel gets loaded on. That includes booting your Mac!

Things have been in such flux over the past few years that it’s hard to keep a straight answer when it comes to exactly what takes place at boot time. Excellent overviews such as Mac OS X System Startup by Amit Singh, or The Boot Process by Apple, are liable to become outdated as launchd continues to evolve.

Fortunately, the entire process is transparently observable, because launchd is open source. If you’re ever in doubt about any nuance of the startup process, just look at the source code. The repository even contains the boot-time configuration file “/etc/rc”, and the source for antiques like SystemStarter. You can even check out how the boot process is going to look in Leopard. (Note: free registration on macosforge.com required). I couldn’t figure out how to check out those repository URLs from the command-line, but I discovered an alternate URL that works, and doesn’t seem to require registration.

Editing Launchd Configuration Files

It won’t take you long to discover that the launchd configuration files, while elegant and modular, are a bit of a pain to read, let alone edit. Fortunately, a couple of third-party solutions exist to ease this task.

Lingon, by Peter Borg, is a very powerful editor which also serves as a sort of browser for all the existing configuration files on your Mac. You can selectively start or stop any existing configuration, and it takes care of asking you to authenticate for editing those system-owned files (after warning you profusely not to do so!). It even sports a “wizard” interface that asks in relatively plain English what it is you’re trying to accomplish, and guides you through the creation of new, custom launchd configurations.

While Lingon is essentially easy to use, it has some rough edges which scream for refinement. I’d really like to see the application receive a UI overhaul. Lots of little awkward UI elements and poorly phrased dialog make it slightly less than a 100% success. But it sure beats editing in vi, or even Property List Editor.

One of Lingon’s nicest features is its “Expert” pane, which allows you to examine and edit the raw XML of a configuration at any time. This is so useful that I’d like to see if featured as a full-time view, perhaps in a hideable split view pane. It would be fun to be able to watch the changes live in the XML source while tweaking details in the UI. But Lingon is, in the spirit of launchd itself, open source. So any shortcomings that ultimately get me down can be remedied to my own (or your own) liking.

Apparently I wasn’t the only person to object slightly to the UI of Lingon. Launchd Editor is a $5, closed-source alternative that bites off a much smaller feature set, while trying to improve on the UI of Lingon. It’s clear by observing some of the configuration panes that Launchd Editor was inspired by Lingon (or vice-versa, I’m not positive which came first, but I’d guess Lingon did). Some of the control layout is almost identical to Lingon, but touched up a bit in alignment and wording, mostly for the better.

Launchd Editor is limited by its adoption of a document-centric model, such that the user has to specifically locate and open a configuration file. It also lacks the start/stop/load features of Lingon. Overall I’d say it’s worth using Lingon in spite of its rough UI, but minimalists might prefer Launchd Editor.

Launchd For Developers

So far I’ve talked about how the system uses launchd for its services, and sort of alluded to the fact that you might come up with your own configurations to suit your personal needs. But developers should also take heed of launchd as a mechanism for automating tasks on behalf of users. One example of this is Noodlesoft’s Hazel, which uses launchd configuration rules to periodically check the status of “watched folders” and perform housekeeping tasks on them. By saving configurations to the user’s LaunchAgents folder, and then loading them with the launchctl command-line tool, it pushes off timing responsibility to launchd. Nifty!

Summary

Launchd is a super addition to Mac OS X, and a stellar example of Apple’s commitment to improving Unix for both end-user and architectural benefit. Hopefully if you hadn’t gotten a chance to take a close look at it before, you’ll be encouraged to do so after reading this article.

Nintendo and Apple Announce Strategic Partnership

Nintendo Co. Ltd. and Apple Computer Inc. today announced a multi-year, strategic partnership had commenced earlier this year and will culminate in the January 9, 2007 launch of the partnership’s first product: Podfondo. The partnership aims to leverage the technologies, trademarks, and patented processes of each company to produce products that satisfy a growing consumer demand for elegant, usable products in the consumer electronics market.

Development of Podfondo, a combination mobile telephone, music player, and portable game system, was completed only 9 months after an exploratory meeting between Apple CEO Steve Jobs and Nintendo’s Satoru Iwata took place on April 1, 2006. Public rumors of the partnership have been minimal, thanks to strict secrecy policies already in place at both companies. Some analysts speculate that the two companies were inspired by Todd Ogasawara, who earlier this year suggested that Apple should buy Nintendo. While most observer agree that an outright acquisition will never happen, the idea of a strategic partnership has been explored in some detail. Now at last we can put the speculation to rest and take a look at what the companies have actually been doing.

The Macintendo alliance operates semi-independently, staffed by a core team of engineers, designers, and marketers from each company. While Macintendo personnel have full access to the technologies and workforce of the respective companies, it is expected that it will continue to operate as an independent and self-sustaining enterprise. In fact, the Macintendo enterprise is currently expanding its ranks, and is pulling a massive number of new recruits in from mainstream Apple and Nintendo employee pools. In order to ensure that the quality of Macintendo products remains high, the nascent partnership has compiled a list of “family values,” which serves to condense the shared priorities of Nintendo and Apple into a brief document – one that may be frequently referenced by members of the Macintendo team. By remaining focused on these key ideals, it is hoped the team will continue satisfying consumer demand for innovative entertainment products, even as it grows rapidly.

We at Red Sweater Software were lucky enough to be among the first to learn of this unbelievable development, when the popular Nintendo character Yoshi bounced into the office and delivered the news, along with a complete copy of the previously confidential family values document. We are pleased to be able to reproduce this document publicly, in its entirety. As an indie developer, I’m not sure I agree completely with the “Product Then Platform” family value, but I can sort of see the logic.

Welcome, Nintendo and Apple employees! This document was created to welcome you to the Macintendo family and to codify some of the values that make each of our companies as successful as they are. Working together as a team, we’ll be able to bring customers products so fantastic that even our retrospective companies could never dream of achieving them alone.

Please take a moment to review this document now. You may also refer back to it from time to time as you work through the design, engineering, and marketing issues that you encounter during the Macintendo product development cycle. Thank you for joining us in this exciting enterprise!

Manifesto: Macintendo is opposed to features for their own sake. Our products are designed to perform only the tasks necessary to fulfill the primary product goals. We are prepared to accept criticism for the relative lack of features our products possess, because we know that focusing on the functionality will ultimately astound our customers, generating insurmountable brand loyalty.

At Macintendo, be believe in a simple formula. Our product + our customer = primary product goal.

Apple Keystone: iPod. Apple entered an existing market, identifying “managing owned music” and “listening to owned music” as primary product goals. In an environment where existing market forces were furiously adding features such as voice recording and FM radio, Apple recognized the consumer’s desire to “manage and listen to owned music.” Apple underwhelmed the press with the iPod’s relative lack of features, but overwhelmed consumers through its simplified attention to their needs.

Nintendo Keystone: Wii. While Microsoft and Sony battled furiously to outdo one another’s graphics and video playback abilities, Nintendo clung to its famous reputation as funmaker. The Wii’s primary product goal is to “let the user have a fun time.” Costly video capabilities and high-definition DVD technologies have made the competing products money-losers, even at twice the retail price of the Wii. Nintendo focused on evolving the user interaction to include a kinesthetic controller. Underwhelming video and graphics, overwhelming fun.

Podfondo Example: Podfondo was a challenging product, being relatively feature-heavy by definition of its combined target audience. But by factoring common behaviors and applying a common user interface to each of the three primary functions, we achieved our primary product goal: “to provide users with a unified device for managing music, staying in touch, and having fun.” Consumers who participated in our confidential trial testing are already excited by the simplicity a single cohesive device has brought to their lives.

Manifesto: Macintendo appreciates the value of brand recognition, and strives to leverage the branding of its respective companies. To whatever extent existing trademarks or interactive metaphors may be leveraged to benefit the consumer, they shall be.

Apple Keystone: The Apple company logo is itself among the most recognized brand images in the world, having reached a status where even the silhouette shape instantly evokes an impression of quality and elegance.

Nintendo Keystone: Nintendo’s brand is helped immensely be a cast of recurring characters who never fail to entertain consumers. Nintendo’s beloved plumbers, mushrooms, dragons and elves bring with them an immediate expectation of fun.

Podfondo Example: The Podfondo logo seeks to capture audience recognition of both the Nintendo and Apple logos by incorporating them into an elegant design that embodies quality and innovation.

Manifesto: Macintendo believes that product innovation must serve one or both of these purposes:

1. To improve the user’s chances of achieving a primary product goal.
2. To reduce the complexity of a user’s interaction with the product.

Macintendo expects every team member will evaluate their own innovations in terms of these criteria. Innovations that add complexity to a product must be judged unanimously to greatly improve the user’s ability to achieve a primary goal. Innovations that do not satisfy these criteria are not welcome in Macintendo product designs.

Apple Keystone: iMac. Apple’s introduction of the iMac personal computer epitomized innovation for simplicity. In particular, one of the product’s primary goals, “getting connected to the internet” was famously described in television commercials as having “no step 3.” By innovating for simplicity, Apple encouraged adoption of a complex microcomputer by customers who might otherwise be intimidated by such a product.

Nintendo Keystone: DS Lite. With the DS Lite portable game system, Nintendo innovated for simplicity by looking beyond the conventional keypad input method commonly used in computer-human interfaces. The DS Lite comes standard with a microphone suitable for voice input, and with a stylus and touch pad suitable for handwriting. By adapting the computer to the user, instead of asking the user to adapt to the computer, Nintendo greatly expanded the accessibility of the product while adopting communication metaphors familiar to most users.

Podfondo Example: Podfondo innovates for simplicity by factoring the common interface metaphors of the iPod and Nintendo DS Lite into a single device, while drawing on the strengths of each to provide extremely intuitive voice, video, and live text messaging functionality. The iPod’s familiar hierarchical menu interface serves as the “front door” to a variety of context-specific functions and interfaces. A DS-inspired touch screen represents the familiar scroll-wheel of the iPod, which may be operated by thumb or with the supplied stylus in the usual way. In addition to conventional hierarchical menu, Podfondo takes advantage of advanced voice recognition and stylus gestures, borrowed from the DS Lite. Podfondo’s advanced motion analysis can quickly detect whether a particular movement is intended as circular scrolling motion, or as a more advanced gesture. A number of top-level complex gestures are pre-defined as shortcuts to the various functions of the Podfondo, and custom gestures may be defined by users to, for instance, call a particular phone number.

Although most Macintendo innovation comes from within the extensive Apple and Nintendo talent pool, on occasion we find it expedient to incorporate innovations from outside the two companies. In this example, technology was licensed from the industry-leading gesturing application, FlyGesture, to make the Podfondo as user-friendly and intuitive as possible.

By providing a consistent, familiar interface, Podfondo is simple for anybody to use. With the addition of voice and gestural shortcuts, it remains simple while still providing a great deal of customization.

Manifesto: Macintendo recognizes the value of products with extensible platforms, allowing other companies to expand the product’s offering and improving overall appeal to customers. To this end we make platform development a major, but secondary priority in the product development cycle. We insist on ensuring a product’s viability in its own right, if necessary at the expense of and detriment to third-party developers. Product then platform is our mantra when it comes to devoting resources to APIs, tools, and support for third-party development.

Apple Keystone: OS X Bundled Applications. Apple’s standard bundle of included applications includes everything the average user needs to fulfill the primary product goals for a personal computer. Mail, web browsing, simple text editing, an address book, and calendar are all included for free with any Macintosh computer. Additionally, most computers include a standard package of “iLife” applications, which allow simple video editing, music recording, etc. On the platform end of the spectrum, Apple makes a reasonable effort to encourage third-party development by providing free development tools, documentation, and code examples.

Nintendo Keystone: In-House Development. Nintendo guarantees a complete product for their customers by taking responsibility for the most iconic products for the platform. In this way, their approach is similar to Apple’s, but more comparable to the for-sale products that Apple offers such as iWork, Final Cut, Filemaker, etc. By controlling the hardware, operating system, and a great deal of the software, Nintendo ensures a passable experience for any customer who buys their product. In the development tools department, Nintendo is less giving than Apple but still supportive of third-party development through a kit that costs upwards of $2000. By limiting access to the development kit, Nintendo ensures that for the most part only serious development companies are allowed access to the platform, thereby setting a high standard for products that appear on the market.

Podfondo Example: Podfondo was lucky in that a majority of the hard development work had been done by the respective companies, for the products that preceded it. Development of the Podfondo was largely a feature-management and integration job, and it gained the “product-making” features of its ancestors. Thanks to this, the team was allowed to give an unprecedented amount of thought to the question of third-party development.

In the end the team decided, with the permission of top executives at Apple and Nintendo, to take a much more open approach to supporting platform development than with previous products. Starting with Podfondo, the iPod operating system has been standardized with a completely extensible third-party API. The software has been developed in such a way that existing iPods (4th generation or higher) may be upgraded to the modern, extensible version of the iPod/Podfondo firmware. Nintendo management has also agreed that for all products developed under the Macintendo joint venture, game development kits will be made freely available to developers registered with a free Apple Developer Connection membership.

Macintendo believes that the Podfondo product is so strong, than an open, highly extensible platform for third-party development can only increase customer acceptance and the overall quality of the brand.

We’re glad to have you on board at Macintendo, and we look forward to building the future of consumer electronics with you. Making it real, and making it really good, are the most important family values of all. In 2007 we’ll invent the unexpected, and then we’ll perfect it. Thanks to you. It’s going to be a heck of a year!

I was excited to hear about Cocoa Duel earlier this week, just as I was racing off to a hotel-based life of zero time for anything nerdy. But I got a moment of inspiration when I realized I could very cheaply adapt an existing project to suit the terms of the contest/charity.

Check out my blog at Cocoa Duel for more details and a link to the download. Then, whether you like my project or not, vote for it by donating cash to the American Cancer Society via the Cocoa Duel voting page. Or, vote for one of the other participants by donating to their worthy cause, instead!

I think the site itself is a pretty amazing act of instant development. Congrats and thanks to Jason Harris for putting it together. I think we can grant him a little lenience on the time limit, since he’s been busy hacking Ruby instead of Cocoa.

A few months ago, Cameron Hayne told me about his nifty AppleScript Shell (ash), which offers an interactive command-line interface to AppleScript, and lets you do some nifty tricks like “tracing” a script’s execution, printing the resulting value for each executed statement.

But I just discovered something about ash that’s truly magical. Think “Remote Script Editor”! I’m in a hotel when I realize I need to access some information from an Address Book entry back home. So I ssh into my home computer, and start slogging through the Address Book data folder. Ugh! If only I could easily ask for the scripted information I need. Of course, there’s osascript, which is where I started heading. But ash makes this process so much easier, because of its interactive and forgiving interface:

iBook> ./ash
Welcome to ash (AppleScript Shell) version 0.60
Type: -help for help, type -exit to exit
ash> tell application "Address Book"
tell application "Address Book"
ash tell> set myPerson to first person whose name is "John Doe"
tell application "Address Book"
    set myPerson to first person whose name is "John Doe"
ash tell> value of phones of myPerson
tell application "Address Book"
    set myPerson to first person whose name is "John Doe"
    value of phones of myPerson
ash tell> end
tell application "Address Book"
    set myPerson to first person whose name is "John Doe"
    value of phones of myPerson
end tell
{"(415) 555-1384", "(415) 555-4424"}
ash> 

See how ash takes one line at a time, and then when I end the “tell” block, it shows me the results of my query. Now I can call my friend even though I’m nowhere near my Mac.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Or I could run VNC, or ya know, put phone numbers on my iPod. But this is just one example of a scenario where interactive scripting could be handy through a remote ssh connection.

AppleScript Shell, check it out!