But don't expect developers on hand to spend much conference time mourning the man who guided Apple's vision for so many years before passing away in October. Instead, they're focused on the future--and want to see where the company is going with its hardware and software. It's CEO Tim Cook who has their attention now.

"I think everybody will miss (Jobs)," said Craig Hockenberry, senior software engineer for , which makes applications for iOS and Mac. "But I think we all feel the company leadership is more than up to the task at hand, [and] enjoy listening to Tim Cook speak--not as much as Steve Jobs, but there are going to be a lot of cool product announcements, and I look forward to hearing those."

Indeed, Hockenberry's comments were echoed by a half-dozen developers surveyed by in the runup to WWDC 2012. Each focused on possible product upgrades and simmering controversies about Apple's "sandboxing" requirements, dismissing any looming fallout from the company's transition to new leadership.

"As the quarterly statements show, that company is doing quite well," noted Paul Kafasis.

Here's a quick overview of what developers hope expect to see at WWDC: