Spring Board - History

History

In 2008, with Apple's release of iPhone OS 1.1.2 and the January App Pack, the Springboard underwent some substantial changes. Holding a finger on any application for a few seconds causes all of the icons to wiggle. From this view, you can rearrange your icons, delete web apps and web clips, and create multiple pages by dragging an application to the side of the screen. If the Home button is pressed, the icons will stop wiggling and apps can be opened again.

In July 2008, third-party applications were introduced with iPhone OS 2.0. These applications are installed through the App Store and deleted with the traditional "wiggle mode" method.

In June 2009, in iPhone OS 3, Spotlight Search was added to the Springboard. This allowed the user to search for applications and other files stored in the iPhone.

In June 2010, in iOS 4, home screen wallpapers were introduced to the Springboard. Folders were introduced as well: dragging an application on top of another application while in "wiggle mode" will result in a folder being created. After that, more applications may be added to that folder by dragging an application on top of the folder. Applications can be removed from a folder by simply dragging it out into the main home screen. Folders can be removed by removing every application from the folder.

On jailbroken devices, unsigned applications (applications installed through Cydia) cannot be deleted by the traditional method of holding a finger on the application and selecting delete. Instead, they need to be removed through Cydia, unless CyDelete is installed, which allows for that method to be used.

Researchers found that on mobile devices users organize icons on their SpringBoards mainly based on usage-frequency and relatedness of the applications, as well as for reasons of usability and aesthetics.