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Integrating Maps into iOS 8 Applications using MKMapItem and Swift

1 byte removed, 17:51, 1 May 2018
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If If there is one single fact about Apple that we can state with any degree of certainty, it is that the company is fanatical about retaining control of its own destiny. One glaring omission in this overriding corporate strategy has been the reliance on a competitor (in the form of Google) for mapping data in iOS. This dependency officially ended with iOS 6 through the introduction of Apple Maps.
In iOS 8, Apple Maps officially replaced the Google-based map data with data provided primarily by a company named TomTom (but also including technology from other companies, including some acquired by Apple for this purpose). Headquartered in the Netherlands, TomTom specializes in mapping and GPS systems. Of particular significance, however, is that TomTom (unlike Google) does not make smartphones, nor does it develop an operating system that competes with iOS, making it a more acceptable partner for Apple.
As part of the iOS 6 revamp of mapping, the SDK also introduced a class in the form of MKMapItem, designed solely for the purpose of easing the integration of maps and turn-by-turn directions into iOS applications. This was further enhanced in iOS 9 with the introduction of support for transit times, directions and city flyover support.