Pitfalls of Using Cursor for iOS Development

#iOS App Development

1. Managing XCAssets

Basically, the XCAssets catalog is a bunch of directories with asset files and Contents.json configs with all properties. The problem is that VSCode/Cursor doesn't know how to handle them.

Solution: Use Xcode

The only solution I found is to keep an Xcode running and CMD + Tab into it when editing assets is needed.

Luckily, autocomplete for assets works fine in VSCode/Cursor.

2.Managing LocalizableStrings

If localized strings are stored in *.strings files, that works fine. Strings are barely manageable when *.stringsdict files are used.

I haven't tried using the Xcode strings catalog in VSCode/Cursor, but I expect the only way to handle it right now is to use Xcode.

3. Managing files of *.xcodeproj

When we add new files to the project Xcode makes sure that the *.xcodeproj is updated to include them in the right target and handle them properly depending on the file type.

Cursor/VSCode does not.

For now, it seems like Xcode is still the king for handling project configs.

Adding new *.swift files can be fixed in a few ways:

Option 1: Modularize the project with SPM packages

If the project itself is thin and all code is moved to local SPM packages there is no need to keep track of all files in *.xcodeproj.

Option 2: Use Tuist

Tuist makes the *.xcodeproj obsolete by generating it on the fly, based on the actual files.

Sweetpad has a setting that allows it to watch new .swift files and runs Tuist autogenerate.

Option 3: Use XcodeGen

The same solution as Tuist

Option 4: Use Xcodeproj Gem

Xcodeproj lets you create and modify Xcode projects from Ruby. Script boring management tasks or build Xcode-friendly libraries. Also includes support for Xcode workspaces (.xcworkspace), configuration files (.xcconfig), and Xcode Scheme files (.xcscheme).

So the solution could be:

More details: [[Cursor. Script to Add Files to Xcode Project]]

Option 5: Use Xcode

Keep Xcode open and use CMD+Tab to switch to it whenever a new file needs to be created. Weird, but why not?