Hocus Pocus Locus

Actually, all the credit goes to Ahmed Abdelkader for this code. All I did was stick it in an easy-to-use category.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License which basically means you can use it free for any purpose as long as you give proper attribution.

NSString+PhoneNumberFormatting.m

//
//  NSString+PhoneNumberFormatting.m
//
//  Created by Mike Manzano on 7/28/11.
//
//	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
//
//	Adapted from work by Ahmed Abdelkader on 1/22/10, whose work is
//  licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
//	http://the-lost-beauty.blogspot.com/2010/01/locale-sensitive-phone-number.html

#import 

// Supported locales
extern NSString *xPhoneNumberLocale_US ;
extern NSString *xPhoneNumberLocale_UK ;
extern NSString *xPhoneNumberLocale_JP;

@interface NSString (PhoneNumberFormatting)
- (NSString *)formattedPhoneNumberForLocale:(NSString *)xPhoneNumberLocale ;
@end

NSString+PhoneNumberFormatting.m

//
//  NSString+PhoneNumberFormatting.m
//
//  Created by Mike Manzano on 7/28/11.
//
//	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
//
//	Adapted from work by Ahmed Abdelkader on 1/22/10, whose work is
//  licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.
//	http://the-lost-beauty.blogspot.com/2010/01/locale-sensitive-phone-number.html


#import "NSString+PhoneNumberFormatting.h"

NSString *xPhoneNumberLocale_US = @"us" ;
NSString *xPhoneNumberLocale_UK = @"uk" ;
NSString *xPhoneNumberLocale_JP = @"jp" ;


@implementation NSString (PhoneNumberFormatting)

+ (NSDictionary *) sharedPhoneFormats
	{
	static NSDictionary *formats = nil ;
	
	static dispatch_once_t onceToken;
	dispatch_once(&onceToken, ^{
		NSArray *usPhoneFormats = [NSArray arrayWithObjects:
								   @"+1 (###) ###-####",
								   @"1 (###) ###-####",
								   @"011 $",
								   @"###-####",
								   @"(###) ###-####", nil];
		
		NSArray *ukPhoneFormats = [NSArray arrayWithObjects:
								   @"+44 ##########",
								   @"00 $",
								   @"0### - ### ####",
								   @"0## - #### ####",
								   @"0#### - ######", nil];
		
		NSArray *jpPhoneFormats = [NSArray arrayWithObjects:
								   @"+81 ############",
								   @"001 $",
								   @"(0#) #######",
								   @"(0#) #### ####", nil];
		
		formats = [[NSDictionary alloc] initWithObjectsAndKeys:
							 usPhoneFormats, xPhoneNumberLocale_US,
							 ukPhoneFormats, xPhoneNumberLocale_UK,
							 jpPhoneFormats, xPhoneNumberLocale_JP,
							 nil];
		});
	
	return formats ;
	}


- (BOOL)canBeInputByPhonePad:(char)c 
	{
	if(c == '+' || c == '*' || c == '#') return YES;
	if(c >= '0' && c <= '9') return YES;
	return NO;
	}

// Strips out invalid characters
- (NSString *)strip:(NSString *)phoneNumber 
	{
	NSMutableString *res = [[[NSMutableString alloc] init] autorelease];
	for(int i = 0; i < [phoneNumber length]; i++) 
		{
		char next = [phoneNumber characterAtIndex:i];
		if([self canBeInputByPhonePad:next])
			[res appendFormat:@"%c", next];
		}
	return res;
	}


- (NSString *)formattedPhoneNumberForLocale:(NSString *)xPhoneNumberLocale 
	{
	NSString *phoneNumber = self ;
	NSArray *localeFormats = [[NSString sharedPhoneFormats] objectForKey:xPhoneNumberLocale];
	if(localeFormats == nil) return phoneNumber;
	NSString *input = [self strip:phoneNumber];
	for(NSString *phoneFormat in localeFormats) 
		{
		int i = 0;
		NSMutableString *temp = [[[NSMutableString alloc] init] autorelease];
		for(int p = 0; temp != nil && i < [input length] && p < [phoneFormat length]; p++) 
			{
			char c = [phoneFormat characterAtIndex:p];
			BOOL required = [self canBeInputByPhonePad:c];
			char next = [input characterAtIndex:i];
			switch(c) 
				{
				case '$':
					p--;
					[temp appendFormat:@"%c", next]; i++;
					break;
				case '#':
					if(next < '0' || next > '9') 
						{
						temp = nil;
						break;
						}
					[temp appendFormat:@"%c", next]; i++;
					break;
				default:
					if(required) 
						{
						if(next != c) 
							{
							temp = nil;
							break;
							}
						[temp appendFormat:@"%c", next]; i++;
						} 
					else 
						{
						[temp appendFormat:@"%c", c];
						if(next == c) i++;
						}
				break;
				}
			} // build temp loop
		if(i == [input length]) 
			{
			return temp;
			}
		} // for each format
	return input;
	}
@end

I’ve been a fan of the Glif iPhone stand & mount since the original Kickstarter project was created to fund its development. I’ve had several case stands in the past and to date they’ve been flimsy, bulky or otherwise inflexible. The Glif is solidly constructed and has no extraneous hinges or attachments that could easily break. It’s a solid piece of molded, rubberized plastic. In a word, I’d call it elegant.

There are many other reasons to like the Glif:

• It works in portrait or landscape
• You can use it to attach your phone to a tripod using its standard 1/4”-20 threaded mount
• You can remove it easily when you’re not using it
• It doesn’t obstruct any ports or buttons
• The rubberized grip is sturdy but at the same time won’t scratch your phone
• It’s solid, well-made, and easily fits into your pocket

You can of course leave the Glif attached to your phone when you’re not using it, but for some reason I tend to remove mine when not in use. I like my phone to be as unadorned as possible. Its easy gripping mechanism makes this child’s play compared to other cases that require fiddling or even a coin to pry open.

One of the killer applications for the Glif is for hands-free FaceTime calls. Since you can attach the Glif anywhere along the side of your iPhone, you can effectively adjust your viewing angle. This comes in handy when you’re trying to point the camera so that you’re visible during the call.

One downside of the Glif is that it doesn’t work with thick, bulky cases. However, it does work with the thin screen protectors which I prefer to use on my own phone.

For $20, the Glif is a steal. Get yours at http://www.theglif.com.

Mashable recently posted an article entitled “Developers More Interested in Android than iPad”. If you actually read the article, you come across this little tidbit:

For this study (which you can download as a PDF) Appcelerator, a company that lets web developers create native mobile applications using a cross-platform toolkit, polled its developers to gage interest in developing on the various mobile platforms when the iPad was first announced and again last week.

(Emphasis mine)

Generalizing a limited subset of developers into the set of all developers, which is essentially what the article’s title does, is disingenuous at best. It’s a lie by omission. Unlike the title of this post, I don’t think theirs is intended as a joke.