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Microsoft will release Visual Studio for the Mac (update: it's here)
If you needed any further proof that Microsoft is welcoming cross-platform development with open arms, you just got it. In a prematurely revealed blog post, the company has revealed that it's working on Visual Studio for Mac -- yes, one of the mainstays of the Windows world is headed Apple's way. This isn't really intended for Windows development (you'd need Boot Camp or a virtual machine to run your creations), but you can write Android, iOS and Mac apps (thanks to Xamarin) as well as server software through .NET Core. And importantly, Mac and Windows users can share projects. You won't have to convert your work just to make sure that everyone in your team can use it.
Microsoft bought a company that makes porting apps easier
Microsoft is taking its relatively new role as a mobile app maker pretty seriously. So much so that it's bought Xamarin, a company that specializes in cross-platform application development. The platform uses a shared C# codebase to "write the full set of native APIs and mobile capabilities provided by each platform," according to Microsoft's Scott Guthrie. In English, that basically boils down to "apps that run really well across Android, iOS and Windows." Satya Nadella and Co. have utilized Xamarin before, of course, on the likes of the Azure cloud platform and Office 365.
Xamarin's XobotOS opens prospect of Android port to C#, can of worms
Would it be ironic if Android developers did an end-run around Microsoft patents by using Microsoft's own C#? Or if Google kiboshed its Oracle brouhaha with the aid of none other than Redmond? We're asking because Xamarin, the wacky open source implementer of .NET, has ported Android to Microsoft's C# with its XobotOS project. Although just an experiment and unlikely to solve Google's issues, the team showed that running the robot on C# instead of Java gave fewer coding limitations, better battery life and direct graphics access. Additionally, Xamarin reports "massive" speed gains on its HTC Flyer and Acer Iconia when running the side-project port -- no surprise given C#'s machine heritage. Sure, it's pure speculation that Mountain View and its developers would ever change their Java MO, but a little patent relief and faster Android devices in one kill shot? That's a sweet idea.
