These are extensions created by third-party developers. If the extension is a content extension that enables extra functionality in apps, you see an Actions checkbox below the extension. If it’s a Finder extension, you see a Finder checkbox. Select the checkbox to enable the extension. Content extensions installed on your Mac. Have you gone to the App Store and searched using the word, extension?Not that all apps listed in the search results may actually be an extension, e.g. With Xmenu it states 'Operates as a menu extra, requires no hacks or extensions' however with Stat is says, 'Finder extension now automatically updates icons in Finder if changes are detected.'
App extensions give users access to your app’s functionality and content throughout iOS and macOS. For example, your app can now appear as a widget on the Today screen, add new buttons in the Action sheet, offer photo filters within the Photos app, or display a new system-wide custom keyboard. Use extensions to place the power of your app wherever your users need it most.
Share
By providing more sharing options, iOS and macOS enable your app to share photos, videos, websites, and other content with users on social networks and other sharing services. Wrap mac app for windows.
Photo Editing
Embed your filters and editing tools directly into the Photos or Camera app, so users can easily apply your effects to images and videos.
Macos Why Does App Have Old Extensions
File Provider
You can now provide a document storage location that can be accessed by other apps. Apps that use a document picker view controller can open files managed by the storage provider or move files into the storage provider.
Document Provider
If you offer remote storage of a user’s iOS documents, you can create an app extension that lets users directly upload and download documents in any compatible app.
Audio
With Audio Unit Extensions, you can provide audio effects, sound generators, and musical instruments that can be used by Audio Unit host apps and distributed via the App Store.
Today
Your apps can now display widgets in the Today view of Notification Center, providing quick updates or enabling brief tasks — for example, posting updates on package deliveries, the latest surf reports, or breaking news stories.
Custom Keyboard
With iOS, you can provide custom keyboards with different input methods and layouts for users to install and use systemwide.
Actions
Macos Why Does App Have Old Extension Free
Create your own custom action buttons in the Action sheet to let users watermark documents, add something to a wish list, translate text to a different language, and more.
Finder Sync
Badge local macOS folders to let users know the status of items that are remotely synced. You can also implement contextual menus to let users directly manage their synced content.
Reference
Get details on implementing app extensions with Apple frameworks.
Videos
Watch technical presentations from WWDC to learn how to write an extension for your app.
Guides and Guidelines
Learn about creating app extensions with programming guides and review guidelines.
Sample Code
Download sample code that shows how app extensions work and how to add them to your app.
App Extensions Increase Your Impact
An app extension lets you extend custom functionality and content beyond your app and make it available to users while they’re interacting with other apps or the system.
You create an app extension to enable a specific task. For example, to let users post to your social service from a web browser, you can provide a Share extension. Or, to let users catch up on their favorite team, you can provide a Today widget that displays current sports scores in Notification Center. You can even create an app extension that provides a custom keyboard that users can use in place of the iOS system keyboard.
There Are Several Types of App Extensions
iOS and macOS define several types of app extensions, each of which is tied to a single, well-scoped area of the system, such as sharing, Notification Center, and the iOS keyboard. A system area that enables extensions is called an extension point. Each extension point defines usage policies and provides APIs that you use when you create an app extension for that area. You choose an extension point based on the functionality you want to provide.
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Table 1-1 lists the extension points in iOS and macOS and gives an example of tasks you might enable in an app extension for each extension point.
Extension point | Typical app extension functionality |
---|---|
Action (iOS and macOS; UI and non-UI variants) | Manipulate or view content originating in a host app. |
Audio Unit (iOS and macOS; UI and non-UI variants) | Generates an audio stream to send to a host app, or modifies an audio stream from a host app and sends it back to the host app. |
Broadcast UI (iOS and tvOS) | |
Broadcast Upload (iOS and tvOS) | |
Call Directory (iOS) | Identify and block incoming callers by their phone number. To learn more, see CallKit Framework Reference. |
Content Blocker (iOS and macOS) | Indicate to WebKit that your content-blocking app has updated its rules. (This app extension has no user interface.) |
Custom Keyboard (iOS) | Replace the iOS system keyboard with a custom keyboard for use in all apps. |
Document Provider (iOS; UI and non-UI variants) | Provide access to and manage a repository of files. |
Finder Sync (macOS) | Present information about file sync state directly in Finder. (This app extension has no user interface.) |
Game App (watchOS) | Provide a game app for Apple Watch, as described in App Programming Guide for watchOS. (The Game App template is a version of the WatchKit App template, configured for game content.) |
iMessage (iOS) | Interact with the Messages app. To learn more, see Messages. |
Intents (iOS) | Handle tasks related to supporting Siri integration with your app. To learn more, see SiriKit Programming Guide. |
Intents UI (iOS) | Customize the Siri or Maps interface after handling a task related to supporting Siri integration with your app. To learn more, see SiriKit Programming Guide. |
Notification Content (iOS) | |
Notification Service (iOS) | |
Photo Editing (iOS and macOS) | Edit a photo or video within the Photos app. |
Share (iOS and macOS) | Post to a sharing website or share content with others. |
Smart Card Token (macOS) | |
Spotlight Index (iOS) | Index content within your app while it isn’t running. To learn more, see Index App Content. |
Sticker Pack (iOS) | Provide a set of stickers that users can use within the Messages app. To learn more, see Messages. |
Today (iOS and macOS) | Get a quick update or perform a quick task in the Today view of Notification Center. (A Today extension is called a widget.) |
TV Services (tvOS) | |
VPN (iOS and macOS) | Create clients for your business’s custom, remote-access VPN servers using the Packet Tunnel Provider or App Proxy Provider extension points. Create content filtering for managed devices, such as for school environments, using the Filter Control Provider and Filter Data Provider extension points. |
WatchKit App (watchOS) | Provide an app or a notification UI for Apple Watch, as described in App Programming Guide for watchOS. |
Xcode Source Editor (macOS) |
Because the system defines specific areas for app extensions, it’s important to choose the area that best matches the functionality you want to deliver. For example, if you want to create an extension that enables a sharing experience, use the Share extension point, starting with the Share Extension Xcode template.
Important
Each app extension you create matches exactly one of the extension points listed in Table 1-1. You don’t create a generic extension that matches more than one extension point.
Xcode and the App Store Help You Create and Deliver App Extensions
An app extension is different from an app. Although you must use an app to contain and deliver your extensions, each extension is a separate binary that runs independent of the app used to deliver it.
You create an app extension by adding a new target to an app. As with any target, an extension target specifies settings and files that combine to build a product within your app project. You can add multiple extension targets to a single app (an app that contains one or more extensions is called a containing app).
The best way to start developing an app extension is to use one of the templates that Xcode provides for each extension point on both platforms. Each template includes extension point–specific implementation files and settings, and produces a separate binary that gets added to your containing app’s bundle.
To distribute app extensions to users, you submit a containing app to the App Store. When a user installs your containing app, the extensions it contains are also installed.
After installing an app extension, a user must take action to enable it. Often, users can enable an extension within the context of their current task. If your extension is a Today widget, for example, users can edit the Today view in Notification Center to enable your extension. In other cases, users can use Settings (in iOS) or System Preferences (in macOS) to enable and manage the extensions they install.
Users Experience App Extensions in Different Contexts
Although each type of app extension enables a different type of task, there are some parts of the user experience that are common to most extensions. As you think about designing an extension, it’s important to understand the user experience that’s intended by the extension point you choose. At a high level, the best user experience for all extensions is quick, streamlined, and focused on a single task.
Users open your app extension by interacting with some system-provided user interface (UI). For example, a user accesses a Share extension by activating the system-provided Share button in an app and choosing the extension from the list that’s displayed.
Although most app extensions provide at least some custom UI elements, users don’t see your custom UI until they enter your extension. When users enter your extension, your custom UI can help to show them that they’re shifting into a new context. Because users can distinguish your extension from the current app, they can appreciate the unique functionality that you provide. Users’ awareness of extensions as separate entities also means that they can identify and remove extensions that misbehave or don’t perform well.
To give users a smooth transition into your app extension, you generally want to balance your custom design with the UI that’s associated with the extension point. For example, it’s a good idea to make your widget look like it belongs in the Today view. Similarly, in your Photo Editing extension, it works well to create a UI that harmonizes with Photos in iOS.
Note
Simple stock control software for mac. Even if your app extension doesn’t display any custom UI (other than an icon), users still understand that your extension is different from the current app because they took a specific action to activate it.
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