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→‎Software available through Cydia: rm synthesis (general text about benefits of jailbreaking but not specifically about influence of cydia)
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== Purpose and function ==
== Purpose and function ==
{{multiple issues|section{{buzzwords|section|date=December 2012}}{{synthesis|section|date=December 2012}}}}
{{multiple issues|section{{buzzwords|section|date=December 2012}}{{synthesis|section|date=December 2012}}}}
Cydia provides a [[graphical user interface]] to [[iOS jailbreaking|jailbroken iOS]] users using [[Advanced Packaging Tool]] (APT) repositories to install software unavailable on the App Store. Cydia is based on APT, ported to iOS as part of Freeman's Telesphoreo project.<ref name="apt-iphone">{{cite web |url= http://www.saurik.com/id/1 |title= Bringing Debian APT to the iPhone |author= Jay Freeman (saurik) |date= February 2008 |work= |publisher= saurik.com |accessdate=August 2, 2011}}</ref>{{self-published source|date=December 2012}}
Cydia provides a [[graphical user interface]] to [[iOS jailbreaking|jailbroken iOS]] users using [[Advanced Packaging Tool]] (APT) repositories to install software unavailable on the App Store. Cydia is based on APT, ported to iOS as part of Freeman's Telesphoreo project.<ref name="apt-iphone">{{cite web |url= http://www.saurik.com/id/1 |title= Bringing Debian APT to the iPhone |author= Jay Freeman (saurik) |date= February 2008 |work= |publisher= saurik.com |accessdate=August 2, 2011}}</ref>


Software packages are downloaded directly to an iOS device, to the same location as [[Apple Inc.|Apple]]'s pre-installed applications, the <code>/Applications</code> [[directory (file systems)|directory]]. Jailbroken devices can also still buy and download apps normally from the official App Store.<ref>{{cite book |title= Learning the IOS 4 SDK for JavaScript Programmers: Create Native Apps with Objective-C and Xcode |last= Goodman |first= Danny |authorlink= |coauthors= |year= 2010 |publisher= |location= |isbn= |page= |pages= 6–7 |url= http://books.google.com/books?id=a09NMFdA6m0C&lpg=PA7&pg=PA6#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=}}</ref>
Software packages are downloaded directly to an iOS device, to the same location as [[Apple Inc.|Apple]]'s pre-installed applications, the <code>/Applications</code> [[directory (file systems)|directory]]. Jailbroken devices can also still buy and download apps normally from the official App Store.<ref>{{cite book |title= Learning the IOS 4 SDK for JavaScript Programmers: Create Native Apps with Objective-C and Xcode |last= Goodman |first= Danny |authorlink= |coauthors= |year= 2010 |publisher= |location= |isbn= |page= |pages= 6–7 |url= http://books.google.com/books?id=a09NMFdA6m0C&lpg=PA7&pg=PA6#v=onepage&q&f=false |accessdate=}}</ref>

Revision as of 22:00, 7 January 2013

This article is about the iOS application. For the moth genus, see Cydia (genus).
Cydia
Developer(s)Jay Freeman (saurik)[1]
Initial releaseFebruary 2008; 16 years ago (2008-02)
Stable release
1.1.8 / October 14, 2012; 11 years ago (2012-10-14)
Repository
Operating systemiOS
Available inEnglish, Italian, Spanish, Chinese, Greek, German, Hebrew, Dutch, Polish, Swedish
TypePackage manager
LicenseModified BSD License[2]
Websitecydia.saurik.com

Cydia (/[invalid input: 'icon']sɪˈdi.ə/) is a software application for iOS that enables a user to find and install software packages (including apps, interface customizations, and system extensions) on a jailbroken iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad. Cydia is a digital distribution platform for software on iOS.[3] Some of the software packages available through Cydia are free, and some require purchasing.

Cydia is developed by Jay Freeman (also called "saurik") and his company, SaurikIT.[1] The name "Cydia" is an allusion to the Codling Moth, with a scientific name of Cydia pomonella, which is the proverbial "worm in the apple."[4]

Purpose and function

Cydia provides a graphical user interface to jailbroken iOS users using Advanced Packaging Tool (APT) repositories to install software unavailable on the App Store. Cydia is based on APT, ported to iOS as part of Freeman's Telesphoreo project.[5]

Software packages are downloaded directly to an iOS device, to the same location as Apple's pre-installed applications, the /Applications directory. Jailbroken devices can also still buy and download apps normally from the official App Store.[6]

Cydia can be installed during the process of jailbreaking an iOS device.[4] Some Jailbreaking tools (each of them supporting a specific set of devices and iOS versions) install Cydia automatically, while others provide a choice to the user.

Software available through Cydia

Some of the packages available through Cydia are standard applications, while some packages are extensions and modifications for the iOS interface and for apps in the iOS ecosystem. [7] [8]

Cydia enables users to find and install open source packages as well as purchase modifications for jailbroken phones. These modifications are based on a framework called MobileSubstrate which makes it relatively easy to install and update said modifications.[4]

In March 2009, Tuaw announced that Cydia store is open. The announcement summarized an experience posted by a website that Amazon payments was the only option available.[9]

iOS "signature" feature

Main article: SHSH blob

Cydia caches the digital signatures called SHSH blobs used by Apple to verify restores of iOS (which Apple uses to limit users to only installing the latest version of iOS).[10] Cydia's storage mechanism enables users to downgrade a device to a prior version of iOS by means of a replay attack.[11] This means, for example, that a person with a jailbroken device who upgrades to a non-jailbreakable version of iOS can choose to downgrade back to a jailbreakable version.[12]

iOS 5.0 and later versions of iOS implement an addition to the SHSH system, a random number (a cryptographic nonce) in the "APTicket", making it more difficult to perform a replay attack.[13][dubious – discuss]

History

Freeman first released Cydia in February 2008 as an open-source alternative to Installer.app on iPhone OS 1.1,[14]

In August 2009, Wired reports that Freeman claimed about 4 million, or 10 percent of the 40 million iPhone and iPod Touch owners to date, have installed Cydia."[15]

In September 2010, SaurikIT, LLC, announced that it had acquired Rock Your Phone, Inc. (makers of Rock.app). SaurikIT and Rock Your Phone were the two largest providers of third party apps.[16][17]

In December 2010, Freeman announced plans to also release a Cydia Store for OS X as a supplement, not an alternative,[18] to Apple's Mac App Store.[19] However, on August 2, 2012, Freeman announced that Cydia for Mac would not be released in the near future, citing difficulties in the creation of "Substrate for Mac", a program with similar functionality to Freeman's "MobileSubstrate" for iOS.

On December 15, 2010, SaurikIT filed a dispute with world intellectual property organization against Cykon Technology Limited of Kowloon, Hong Kong over the rights to the domain name "Cydia.com", which was registered by its owner Cykon in 2002. SaurikIT contended that Cykon registered the domain name in bad faith and the domain name incorporates SaurikIT's trademark. SaurikIT initially attempted to purchase the domain, then demanded Cykon to forfeit the domain at cost asserting trademark rights followed by bringing a WIPO proceeding. The complaint was denied by WIPO.[20][21]

As of April 2011, Cydia had a $10 million in annual revenue and 4.5 million weekly users and according to Freeman $250,000 net annual profit.[22]

On August 18, 2011[23], SaurikIT filed a lawsuit against Hong Kong owner of Cydia.com regarding the same domain name.[24][25]

References

  1. ^ a b "Saurik's Homepage". Retrieved August 4, 2010.
  2. ^ http://pastebin.com/2mPzV21s
  3. ^ Jack Loftus (September 11, 2010). "Largest iOS Jailbreak App Stores Become One After Cydia Acquires Rock". Gizmodo. Retrieved August 2, 2011.
  4. ^ a b c Chris Foresman (December 13, 2010). "iPhone jailbreaker set to bring Cydia to Mac OS X". Infinite Loop. Ars Technica. Retrieved August 2, 2011.
  5. ^ Jay Freeman (saurik) (February 2008). "Bringing Debian APT to the iPhone". saurik.com. Retrieved August 2, 2011.
  6. ^ Goodman, Danny (2010). Learning the IOS 4 SDK for JavaScript Programmers: Create Native Apps with Objective-C and Xcode. pp. 6–7. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  7. ^ Adam Dachis (March 14, 2011). "How to Get the Most Out of Your Jailbroken iOS Device". Lifehacker. Retrieved August 2, 2011.
  8. ^ Jenna Wortham (May 12, 2009). "Unofficial Software Incurs Apple's Wrath". The New York Times. Retrieved August 2, 2011.
  9. ^ Michael Rose. "Cydia Store now open for jailbreak app sales". The Unofficial Apple Weblog. Retrieved 2009-08-02.[dubious – discuss]
  10. ^ Adam Dachis (April 25, 2011). "Save Your iDevice's SHSH to Avoid Losing the Ability to Jailbreak". Lifehacker. Retrieved August 2, 2011.
  11. ^ Jay Freeman (saurik) (September 2009). "Caching Apple's Signature Server". saurik.com. Retrieved July 28, 2010.
  12. ^ Nat Futterman (May 25, 2010). "Jailbreaking the iPad: What You Need to Know". Geek Tech. PCWorld. Retrieved August 2, 2011.
  13. ^ Oliver Haslam (June 27, 2011). "iOS 5 Will Halt SHSH Firmware Downgrades On iPhone, iPad, iPod touch". Redmond Pie. Retrieved November 12, 2011.
  14. ^ Erica Sadun (February 28, 2008). "Debian-style installation arrives on iPhone". The Unofficial Apple Weblog. Retrieved September 24, 2011.
  15. ^ Brian X. Chen (August 6, 2009). "Rejected By Apple, iPhone Developers Go Underground". Wired. Retrieved August 2, 2011.
  16. ^ Steven Sande (September 12, 2010). "Alliance of the jailbreakers: Cydia acquires Rock". The Unofficial Apple Weblog. Retrieved August 2, 2011.
  17. ^ Jay Freeman (saurik). "Cydia += Rock Your Phone?". Cydia.
  18. ^ 8bitjay (December 20, 2010). "4 Things We Know So Far About Cydia for Mac". iSmashPhone. Retrieved August 2, 2011.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)[dubious – discuss]
  19. ^ Steven Sande (December 10, 2010). "360 MacDev: Jay "saurik" Freeman on the jailbreak store for Mac apps". The Unofficial Apple Weblog. Retrieved December 9, 2010.
  20. ^ WIPO case
  21. ^ iPhone jailbreak App Store loses domain dispute for cydia.com Domainnamewire.com
  22. ^ Ian Shapira (April 6, 2011). "Once the hobby of tech geeks, iPhone jailbreaking now a lucrative industry". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 2, 2011.
  23. ^ lawsuit
  24. ^ 2011 8 22 Domainnamewire.com
  25. ^ The Next Web

External links

Template:Digital distribution platforms

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