Building an iMessage Extension with Rork Max to Bring Your App's World into Messages — Notes on Distribution as Code
A walkthrough of adding an iMessage extension to the native Swift project Rork Max generates, sharing your app's assets right inside Messages. Covers compact/expanded presentation, sending messages, and diagnosing why the extension won't appear in the drawer — from an indie developer's distribution lens.
Designing CloudKit Sync in a Rork Max Native App — Handling Conflicts and Deletes
You want the same data on iPhone and iPad. When you add CloudKit to a Swift app generated by Rork Max, the hard part is not saving — it is conflicts and deletes. Here are the design decisions I settled on.
Building a WeatherKit App with Rork Max — The Auth and Attribution Pitfalls
When you add WeatherKit to a native Swift app generated by Rork Max, the first walls are authentication and attribution. Here is the workflow I confirmed: token handling, rate limits, and the mandatory data-source display.
Controlling HomeKit Accessories from Your Rork Max Native App — Permission and State-Sync Lessons from Indie Shipping
A walkthrough of adding HomeKit to the native Swift app Rork Max generates: listing and controlling accessories, from the permission dialog wording to the state-sync traps. Covers the territory React Native struggles to reach, from a working indie developer's perspective.
Adding SwiftData to a SwiftUI App Generated by Rork Max
Rork Max can produce polished SwiftUI screens, but persistence often stops at @State. Here is how I layer SwiftData onto generated code: model design, wiring the container to views, and a schema migration pattern that survives shipping.
Building a Room-Measuring App with Rork Max and RoomPlan — Absorbing Scan Variance by Design
Now that Rork Max generates native Swift, a LiDAR-based RoomPlan scanning app is a realistic project for an indie developer. Scan results drift depending on device and how you hold it. This walks through how to absorb that drift in your app design and export stable dimensions.
Exposing Your Rork Max App to Siri and Shortcuts with App Intents
How to add App Intents to a Swift app generated by Rork Max so Siri and Shortcuts can invoke your actions, from registering an AppShortcut to the production gotchas, with real code.
Adding NFC Tag Reading to a Rork Max App with Core NFC
How to add Core NFC to a Swift app generated by Rork Max and read NDEF tags, covering the entitlement and Info.plist setup through the production gotchas, with real code.
Rork's Growth Story: From a Viral Tweet to a16z Backing and the Birth of Rork Max
Rork went from a viral tweet to $2.8M from a16z, then on to a $15M seed. From an indie developer's view, here's what that growth actually means for the apps we ship and maintain.
Drawing the Line Between Rork Max's Swift Output and the Expo Build
Rork Max now generates native Swift, while the standard Rork keeps producing Expo (React Native) apps. Here is how to split responsibilities between the two engines inside a single app business, viewed from real maintenance cost.
Showing Live Progress in the Dynamic Island from a Rork Max Swift App
How to add an ActivityKit Live Activity to a Swift app generated by Rork Max so progress shows in the Dynamic Island, plus the update-related pitfalls I hit in production.
Don't Show Overseas Users a Hardcoded '$3.99' — Localizing Your Rork Max Paywall with StoreKit 2
Localizing the paywall in the native app Rork Max generates: never hardcoding price, letting StoreKit 2's displayPrice handle every currency and locale, computing the yearly 'savings' so it never breaks across currencies, and handling the production drift from regional pricing and exchange-rate changes.