Facebook Launches SDK 3.0 for iOS

Facebook SDK 3.0 for iOS is now out as a final release. The software development kit aimed at Facebook integration within third party apps now offers ready-to-use native UI controls, better session management, support for modern Objective-C language features, and improved support for calling Facebook APIs.

Facebook iOS SDK helps third-party developers create apps with Facebook ties for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

“The Facebook SDK for iOS is coming out of beta today and is ready for use in your iOS apps,” Jason Clark blogs for Facebook.

After enumerating the aforementioned enhancements, Clark adds that, “The SDK also includes a variety of pre-built user interface (UI) components for common functions, such as Login, Friend Picker and Place Picker.”

Developers are instructed to simply drop these components into their apps “for a fast, native and consistent way to build common features.”

Changes included since the beta release feature updated native UI components and added internationalization support; refined and simplified core APIs, including session and request objects; and the usual bug fixes and increased stability.

Clark outlines that Facebook SDK 3.0 is arguably the most important update yet, and the company pledges to keep the toolset up-to-date at all times.

Developers looking to code Facebook-enabled apps for iOS 6 (which tightly integrates with the social network) have a separate (beta) version to download and use.

Clark explains: “At this point, we’ll maintain two versions of the SDK: a master version that reflects our production codebase, and a beta version that also includes the forthcoming iOS 6 integration.”

“Start developing today to take advantage of these powerful new tools and resources,” Clark adds. “Share your feedback with us on Facebook's StackOverflow page with the tag: Facebook-iOS-sdk.”

Those who are looking to use the Facebook iOS SDK inside their iOS applications can find instructions here.

Download Facebook SDK for iOS (Free)