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I have a very simple app that just displays a block of text every time you touch the screen. I have a graphic behind the text, that the basics of it.

I made it back in 2010 using a .xib file to create the text field and the image.

I'm now attempting to make it fit both iPhone 5 and both iPad and iPad Retina.

I can't simply stretch out the existing .xib layout because it just accepts and renders the last one I do. (If I stretch to iPhone 5 resolution it goes off the screen on an iPhone 4S).

Is there anyway to reference different .xib files based on the iOS device?

Thank You.

hey_suburbia
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1 Answers1

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According to the documentation, you can use:

  1. myNibName~ipad.xib and

  2. myNibName~iphone.xib

and the correct xib will be loaded depending on the device.

You can read iOS Supports Device-Specific Resources.

EDIT:

how do you distinguish between iPhone 3.5" vs iPhone 4.0"

there is no device modifier specific to the iPhone 4". You will have to define your nib in a way that it can "stretch" vertically.

The only mechanism is a iPhone 4" specific Default-586@2x.png file. If you provide it, then the whole screen area will be available to your app.

If you do not provide it, then the app will run in a special mode whereby its content is presented in a 3.5" area. The remaining area is filled with a top and a bottom black band.

iPad vs iPad Retina?

nothing special here, since the 2 devices share the same "logical" resolution of 768x1024 pixels. As usual, you can use @2x modifier to supply specific retina-resolution images; and, if you need it, you can use ~ipad@2x modifier to supply retina iPad-only images.

E.g.:

iconImage.png          -> non-retina iPhone version
iconImage@2x.png       -> retina iPhone version (also retina iPad version if no ~iPad is given)
iconImage~iPad.png     -> non-retina iPad version
iconImage~iPad@2x.png  -> retina iPad version

EDIT:

To make your UI stretch, go to the metrics pane in IB and set the vertical spring for the view height (this is the inner vertical double arrow in the picture below).

You will have to find your way through this a bit, especially if you have a lot of subviews.

enter image description here

sergio
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  • Yeah, I just discovered that. My apologies for posting too quickly. I guess my follow up question is how do you distinguish between iPhone 3.5" vs iPhone 4.0" and iPad vs iPad Retina? – hey_suburbia Jan 31 '13 at 15:20
  • Gotcha. I guess my question boils down to how do you define your nib to "stretch"? I have a simple text field, is there a 100% height option as oppose to defining it in pixels? – hey_suburbia Jan 31 '13 at 15:45