Asteroid brings live weather animations to the Home Screen, Lock Screen, and Status bar of iOS devices. This dynamic project utilizes private frameworks and incorporates a weather model with gesture interfaces for advanced customization. It is the result of a collaboration with Chip from iDeviceHacked and integrates frontend UI/UX design with robust backend systems, ensuring seamless interaction with Apple’s native environment. With contributions from international users, the project boasts localization in over 10 different languages.
Developed primarily in Objective-C++ for integration with iOS backend, Asteroid also employs Logos for tweak injection. During development, the tool Ghidra was used to navigate Apple’s private, minimally documented classes. This technical approach ensures a smooth and effective tweak implementation.
For organization of the project, we used GitHub’s Project panel (now called Tasklists) for a Kanban-style workflow. Given the small team size, this approach facilitated efficient task management and collaborative work. Initial releases underwent alpha/beta testing phases for robust bug identification and resolution.
Asteroid was deployed on Dynastic Development, a popular tweak code repository. Asteroid reached over 100,000 active users, contributing towards the total of 200,000 active users across all our jailbreak tweaks. Its significant user base highlights the success and scale of the project.
Navigating Apple’s private classes and the lack of public documentation presented significant challenges. However, our familiarity with the iOS backend from previous tweaks and the Springboard system enabled us to effectively deliver a functional and innovative product.
Inspired by the wake-up screen in iOS 12, Asteroid aims to fill the gaps left by Apple’s implementation, most notably through a live weather icon for the weather app. By integrating live temperature updates and glyphs, the project adds functional and aesthetic value, enhancing the user’s interface experience.
While some ideas from the jailbreak community have been adopted by Apple, the unique features of Asteroid are yet to be incorporated. Moving forward, we aim to refine the user experience, add more customizable features, and improve system responsiveness and accuracy. Continuous user feedback will guide further enhancements, ensuring Asteroid remains a preferred choice for users desiring a dynamic and informative iOS interface.