Swift Student Challenge: How two Germans shine at Apple’s competition

Anyone who takes part in Apple’s programming competition for young developers who take part in Swift Student Challenge will quickly learn that the brilliance in various disciplines is important: Knowledge and the correct use of the programming language Swift are of course one thing. A sparkling idea for an app with utility value and a feel for good user interface design are completely different challenges. And if you end up in the end, you are not a duty, but it is invited to present yourself and your app to the public, so it also learns something about marketing. In short: multi -talents are required.

Among the 350 global winners this year there are again several students and students from Germany, including Jan Steinhauer from Würzburg. 50 participants worldwide, including Carl Seifert from Dresden, were even selected as a distinguished Winner – they not only receive prices in kind and for one year a free Developer Account, but also invited by Apple to the WWDC developer conference to Cupertino. In conversation with Heise Online, the two questions about their apps, their motivation and how they got to program.

The entry into the programming

It was with Jan Steinhauer (22) A YouTube video by the influencer Alexibexi about the WWDC 2017which impressed him sustainably and brought him to program. “I just found it so blatant to see that people like you and I, who don’t have ten years of programming experience, could do so cool things,” he recalls. The enthusiasm was so great that the teenager at the time was still wrote his first lines of code with his father’s iPad and the Swift Playgrounds app on the same night. And when he tried his first small app after only a few hours, he couldn’t stop, he recalls.

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At Carl Seifert (22), entry was more pragmat: at the age of 14 he wanted to automate the Christmas lights at home. “It is fascinating if you somehow enter a few characters in the computer and in the end the computer does exactly what you said,” Seifert describes his first point of contact with the programming. “These are already key experiences that motivate you to continue.”

Swift: More than just a programming language

Both developers are enthusiastic about Swift, the programming language that Apple introduced 2014. For Steinhauer, Swift is even “like a little brother” with which he grew up together. “I think Swift is one of the languages ​​where you can start but can also expand a lot. For me, Swift is a language in which I can live creatively completely.”

Carl Seifert is particularly impressed by the versatility: “You can do so much with Swift. The source code is open and freely available. Swift supports a range of operating systems. It is not just Macs that are supported.” He particularly emphasizes that Swift can now also be used on microcontrollers: “The whole thing is called Embedded Swift and is, so to speak, a somewhat reduced variant of Swift, but completely optimized on small microcontrollers that do not have much computing capacity and storage.”

The projects: from dyslexia help to interactive periodic system

Jan Steinhauer developed “Dylexaid” for his competition participation, an app that supports people with dyslexia. The app offers various ways to enter texts- be it through direct input, photo or PDF upload. An algorithm tries to find easier words for the input and to slim down set structures. In addition, the texts are read out by text-to-speech and difficult words are visually highlighted.

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Carl Seifert, on the other hand, developed an interactive period system for chemistry lessons. His motivation arose from his own school experiences: “Especially in physics and chemistry, I always had the feeling that some things are not really intuitive. And I thought that apps could be the right way to make the whole thing more tangible.” He finally implemented the idea of ​​getting more information about the respective element by tapping.

The challenges in app design

Steinhauer, who studies Human-Computer Interaction at the University of Würzburg, brings his knowledge into this area into his apps: “I also tried to bring my knowledge from the HCI, i.e. from Human Computer Interactions, and to give the app a good user interface and a good user experience.”

Visionos and the future of spatial computing

Jan Steinhauer is particularly enthusiastic about Apple’s Vision Pro and the possibilities of Spatial Computing. During his semester abroad at the University of Texas at Austin, he developed the “Viva Monarch” app, which deals with the migration of monarch falters. “It caught me like that because I just think it is completely different from other VR glasses, since this pass-through mechanism is simply much better, this immersion,” he enthuses about the Vision Pro.

When asked about the future of spatial computing, he explains: “As a working student, I also have to do with a lot of other people who develop apps, I see that in my opinion there are two major problems: Many people are not yet so familiar with VR and do not understand the gestures so quickly. The second problem is that the Apple Vision Pro is still a bit difficult.” With a vision per 2 and later generations that become easier and cheaper, spatial computing will gradually prevail, he predicts.

It is noteworthy that both young developers are already passing on their knowledge to others. Jan Steinhauer operates TikTok and YouTube channelson which he brings other visionos closer: “I just wanted to show: What is possible with the Apple Vision Pro? What kind of input options are there?”

Carl Seifert is involved as a mentor at Educational project “Youth hacked”: “I think it is by no means a lack of interest, but simply the initial spark that arouses interest. And my consequence that I draw from it is that young people have to give a space to develop their interests freely and to implement their ideas, especially when it comes to further promoting diversity in computer science courses.”

Tips for future Challenge participants

For everyone who wants to take part in the Swift Student Challenge, Jan Steinhauer has an important advice: “The first point is: you have to find something that fits you. In the end, the heart has to burn.” The attention to detail and the finishing touches are also particularly important: “Many have a good idea, but with me in the two times in front of it, where I did not win, this fine grinding simply lacked.”

The dream of the WWDC

The Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) from Apple is a highlight a year for both developers. Carl Seifert, who was invited to Cupertino as a distinguished Winner after two winnings this time this time, is particularly looking forward to the personal exchange: “The most I look forward to the contacts and the people you will meet. In the end it is also a network event. I am very happy about that, but also the sessions on the WWDC are really interesting.”

Jan Steinhauer hopes to be among the distinguished Winners next year – he has already made the new participation: “I have never been to Cupertino or California myself.” He would be happy to connect with other people who think similarly. “It’s just a big option and chance.”

Future plans: from studying into practice

The two students also have clear ideas for their professional future. Jan Steinhauer is already working as a working student at SAP in the field of iOS/Visionos development and would like to publish his apps, including Dylexaid and Viva Monarch, in the App Store as soon as he has set up his development opera account.

Carl Seifert, who has just completed his Bachelor in computer science at the TU Dresden, works as a research student at the Chair of Distributed and Networked Systems and deals with the Internet of Things, especially with resource -limited devices. “My main motivator is to improve the life of everyone in any way,” he explains his motivation. “And I would like to work with people who stand up for their cause who are committed. And my next step in this way is to complete my master.” He also plans to bring his periodic system project into the App Store.