Use getters/setters (manual and synthesized), dot syntax, and local vs instance variables
About the free online course
Strengthen your foundation in Apple development by learning Objective-C from the ground up in a practical, beginner-friendly way. This free online course guides you from setting up your workspace in Xcode to writing real programs that compile, run, and evolve as your skills grow. If you want to understand how classic iOS and macOS codebases are built, or you are preparing to maintain legacy apps, Objective-C remains a valuable language to know.
You will start by getting comfortable with the tools and workflow on a Mac, including installing and launching Xcode and understanding how a basic program is organized. From there, you will learn how code communicates intent through clear structure and helpful comments, and how to work with essential data types so your programs can store and manipulate information accurately.
As you progress, you will gain confidence with the core logic used in app development: arithmetic and operators, comparisons, and decision-making with if, else, and else if. You will also practice controlling program flow using loops, including for, while, and do-while patterns, and learn how break and continue change execution. Along the way, you will see how user input can influence what your program does, making your code more interactive and realistic.
The course then brings you into an object-oriented mindset, introducing objects and methods in Objective-C and helping you understand how behavior and data work together. You will learn why getters and setters matter, how accessors can be generated, and how the dot syntax is used to set and retrieve values cleanly. By comparing instance variables with local variables, you will develop a clearer mental model for scope and state, which is crucial for debugging and building maintainable apps.
With short videos paired with quick checks and exercises, you can measure progress as you learn. Finish with a stronger grasp of Objective-C fundamentals, an improved ability to read and write code in Xcode, and skills you can apply to app maintenance, coursework, or your next step into iOS development.
Course content
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.1 Installing Xcode04m
Exercise: _Where can you download Xcode 4?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.2 Running and Setting Up Xcode04m
Exercise: _Where can you find Xcode after installing it on your Mac?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.3 Explaining Basics of Program08m
Exercise: _What is the purpose of the import statement "foundation/foundation.h" in Objective-C programming?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.4 Basic Variables pt108m
Exercise: _What is an integer in Objective C programming?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.5 Basic Variables pt207m
Exercise: _What is the difference between integers and floats in Objective C?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.6 Commenting04m
Exercise: _What is the purpose of commenting in Objective-C programming?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.7 Basic Math Operators05m
Exercise: _What are the five primary standard operators for performing arithmetic in Objective C?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.8 Basics of Modulus Operator05m
Exercise: _What is the modulus operator in Objective-C programming?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.9 Compound Operators04m
Exercise: _What are the basic operators in Objective-C?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.10 Comparison Operators05m
Exercise: _What does the exclamation point equal sign (!=) do in Objective C programming?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.11 Basics of If and Else05m
Exercise: _What is the purpose of an if-else statement in Objective-C programming?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.12 Nested If Else07m
Exercise: _What message will be displayed if the rank is 11 and the age is 35 in the game being developed in the tutorial?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.13 Else If05m
Exercise: _What is the message that will be displayed if the percent grade variable is greater than or equal to 80?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.14 Intro to For Loop07m
Exercise: _What is looping in Objective C?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.15 Integrating Scanf with Loop07m
Exercise: _What is the purpose of the scanf function in Objective-C programming?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.16 Nested For Loops da Doops06m
Exercise: _What is nested looping in Objective-C programming?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.17 While Loops04m
Exercise: _What is the definition of a while loop in Objective C programming?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.18 Do While03m
Exercise: _What is the main difference between a do-while loop and a while loop in Objective C programming?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.19 Break Statement07m
Exercise: _What is the purpose of the break statement in Objective C programming?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.20 Continue Statement06m
Exercise: _What statement is used in Objective C to continue with the next iteration of a loop?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.21 Intro to Objects pt105m
Exercise: _What type of project are we creating in Xcode for this tutorial?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.22 Intro to Objects pt208m
Exercise: _What is the correct way to declare a method in Objective C?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.23 Getters/Setters Long Way08m
Exercise: _What is the purpose of using getters and setters in Objective C programming?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.24 Synthesized Accessors (auto setter/getters)04m
Exercise: _What are synthesized accessor methods in Objective-C?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.25 Dot Operator to Set/Get Instance Variables02m
Exercise: _What is the dot operator in Objective-C used for?
Video class: Learn Objective C Tutorial 1.26 Local Variables04m
Exercise: _What is the major difference between an instance variable and a local variable in Objective-C programming?