Apple Supports 'Hour of Code' Campaign for Students with Free Workshops in U.S. Retail Stores

hour_of_code_iconApple today announced that it will be participating in the "Hour of Code" initiative this Wednesday by offering free workshops in its U.S. stores introducing students to computer programming. Apple is setting aside the 5:00-6:00 PM hour at all of its retail stores for its workshops, and reservations are required.

The broader initiative is sponsored by the non-profit Code.org with the backing of a wide variety of political, corporate, and personal supporters. The goal of the campaign is to introduce 10 million students to computer programming, with the ultimate goal of every student learning a basic level of programming.

Learn about the campaign to get students involved in a one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify code and show that anyone can learn the basics of programming. Visit code.org or attend a special Hour of Code workshop at any U.S. Apple Retail Store on December 11, 5 p.m.

Steve Jobs makes a brief appearance at the 1:47 mark of the promotional video for the event, by way of a 1995 clip from "Steve Jobs: The Lost Interview".

Popular Stories

apple launch feb 2025 alt

Here Are the New Apple Products We're Still Expecting This Spring

Thursday February 20, 2025 5:06 am PST by
Now that Apple has announced its new more affordable iPhone 16e, our thoughts turn to what else we are expecting from the company this spring. There are three product categories that we are definitely expecting to get upgraded before spring has ended. Keep reading to learn what they are. If we're lucky, Apple might make a surprise announcement about a completely new product category. M4...
prioritize notifications ios 18 4

Everything New in iOS 18.4 Beta 1

Friday February 21, 2025 1:08 pm PST by
Apple finally released the first beta of iOS 18.4 to developers for testing purposes, and while the beta is lacking some of the Apple Intelligence features we were hoping for, there are some notable new additions. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Priority Notifications - Apple Intelligence There is a new Priority Notifications feature that can show you your most...
Apple iPhone 16e Feature

Apple Announces iPhone 16e With A18 Chip and Apple Intelligence, Pricing Starts at $599

Wednesday February 19, 2025 8:02 am PST by
Apple today introduced the iPhone 16e, its newest entry-level smartphone. The device succeeds the third-generation iPhone SE, which has now been discontinued. The iPhone 16e features a larger 6.1-inch OLED display, up from a 4.7-inch LCD on the iPhone SE. The display has a notch for Face ID, and this means that Apple no longer sells any iPhones with a Touch ID fingerprint button, marking the ...
ios 18 4 ambient music

iOS 18.4 Adds New Ambient Music Feature

Friday February 21, 2025 11:06 am PST by
In iOS 18.4, there's a new Ambient Music option that can be added to Control Center. There are four different sound categories, including Sleep, Chill, Productivity, and Wellbeing. Each category can be added to Control Center separately, and tapping one plays a random selection of sounds or music from that particular category. You can't choose what's playing from Control Center, but if...
iphone 17 pro asherdipps

iPhone 17 Pro Models Rumored to Feature Aluminum Frame Instead of Titanium Frame

Tuesday February 18, 2025 12:02 pm PST by
Over the years, Apple has switched from an aluminum frame to a stainless steel frame to a titanium frame for its highest-end iPhones. And now, it has been rumored that Apple will go back to using aluminum for three out of four iPhone 17 models. In an investor note with research firm GF Securities, obtained by MacRumors this week, Apple supply chain analyst Jeff Pu said the iPhone 17, iPhone...
iPhone 16e Feature

Apple Denies Speculation Surrounding iPhone 16e's Lack of MagSafe

Friday February 21, 2025 8:01 am PST by
Apple has confirmed that its custom-designed C1 modem in the iPhone 16e has nothing to do with the device's lack of MagSafe support, according to Macworld. Following the launch of the iPhone 16e, there was some speculation online about how MagSafe magnets might have interfered with the C1 modem's cellular connectivity performance, and this was considered to be a potential reason for the...
Generic iOS 18

Here's When Apple Will Release iOS 18.4

Wednesday February 19, 2025 11:38 am PST by
Following the launch of the iPhone 16e, Apple updated its iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia pages to give a narrower timeline on when the next updates are set to launch. All three pages now state that new Apple Intelligence features and languages will launch in early April, an update from the more broader April timeframe that Apple provided before. The next major point updates will be iOS ...
oppo find n5 fingers

World's Thinnest Foldable Phone Launches in Europe and Asia

Thursday February 20, 2025 8:55 am PST by
Oppo has launched the Find N5, the world's thinnest foldable phone yet. When closed, the book-style foldable measures 8.93mm. That's less than a millimeter thicker than an iPhone 16 Pro, and thinner than the Honor Magic V3, which was the previous record holder. The device is barely thicker than its USB-C port. Indeed, Oppo has suggested that the obstacle to making it any thinner is now "the...

Top Rated Comments

tigres Avatar
146 months ago
One hour?

That should cover the time it takes to install and configure Xcode.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
troop231 Avatar
146 months ago
Pretty cool initiative. Just please teach them about memory management lol. :)
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hansonjohn590 Avatar
146 months ago
Care to explain why? We'd love to hear the reasoning.

Absolutely horrible syntax and all but useless outside Apple's environment.
There's a reason CS programs don't use it to teach students, high school kids would hate it even more.

Java and C++ are far better to teach OO principles. And far more useful in the real world.

That's not even diving into the technical aspects of the language, which is beyond the scope of this thread.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hansonjohn590 Avatar
146 months ago
Objective-C is a **** language to begin with and even moreso for an introductory class on programming.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
craig1410 Avatar
146 months ago
Absolutely horrible syntax and all but useless outside Apple's environment.
There's a reason CS programs don't use it to teach students, high school kids would hate it even more.

Java and C++ are far better to teach OO principles. And far more useful in the real world.

That's not even diving into the technical aspects of the language, which is beyond the scope of this thread.

Java is marginally easier to understand than Obj-C but only on a very superficial level. Anyone who has worked with enterprise Java knows just how hideous it can easily become. C++ may at first appear to be easy to understand but beginners will quickly come unstuck.

Obj-C has been improved a lot in recent years not just through the vast libraries and frameworks provided by Apple but also in terms of language features themselves. It is a hugely powerful language and one that opens doors to the world of iOS and Mac OS X programming. There are definitely worse choices these days for someone beginning to program.

I've been programming for 30+ years and have used many many languages. I currently use Ruby for most things but also work regularly with Java, Javascript and Objective-C. They all have their strengths, weaknesses and quirks. I was taught at school and university largely using Pascal but have never used that commercially so maybe that wasn't the "best" choice at the time. Then again, I don't think that matters as any programmer worth their salt can easily take onboard a new syntax as long as they understand the fundamentals and have an open mind.

C.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
losthorse Avatar
146 months ago
-- removed by user --
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)