Xamarin has announced the third version of its cross-platform tools, which use C# and .NET to target multiple platforms, including iOS, Android and Mac OS X. <\/p>\n
Xamarin 3.0 is a big release. In summary:<\/p>\n
Using a visual designer for iOS Storyboard projects, you can create and modify a GUI in both Visual Studio and Xamarin Studio (Xamarin\u2019s own IDE). The designer uses the native Storyboard format, so you can open and modify existing files created in Xcode on the Mac. The technology here is amazing, since you iOS controls are rendered remotely on a Mac, and transmitted to the designer on Windows. See here<\/a> for a quick hands-on.<\/p>\n Xamarin has created the cross-platform GUI framework that it said it did not believe in<\/a>. It is based on XAML though not compatible with Microsoft\u2019s existing XAML implementations. There is no visual designer yet. <\/p>\n Why has Xamarin changed its mind? It was pressure from enterprise customers, from what I heard from CEO Nat Friedman. They want to make internal mobile apps with many forms, and do not want to rewrite the GUI code for every mobile platform they support.<\/p>\n Friedman made the point that Xamarin Forms still render as native controls. There is no drawing code in Xamarin Forms. <\/p>\n \u201cThe challenge for us in building Xamarin forms was to give people enhanced productivity without compromising the native approach. The mix and match approach, where you can mix in native code at any point, you can get a handle for the native control, we’re think we’ve got the right compromise. And we’re not forcing Xamarin forms on you, this is just an option,\u201d<\/p>\n he told me.<\/p>\n Again, there is a quick hands-on here<\/a>.<\/p>\n F# is now officially supported in Xamarin projects. This brings functional programming to Xamarin, and will be warmly welcomed by the small but enthusiastic F# community (including, as I understand it, key .NET users in the financial world).<\/p>\n Xamarin now supports Microsoft\u2019s Portable Class Libraries, which let you state what targets you want to support, and have Visual Studio ensure that you write compatible code. This also means that library vendors can easily support Xamarin if they choose to do so.<\/p>\n The NuGet package manager has transformed the business of getting hold of new libraries for use in Visual Studio. Now you can use it with Xamarin in both Visual Studio and Xamarin Studio.<\/p>\n Perhaps the most interesting part of my interview with Nat Friedman was what he said about the company\u2019s partnership with Microsoft. Apparently this is now close both from a technical perspective, and for business, with Microsoft inviting Xamarin for briefings with key customers. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Xamarin has announced the third version of its cross-platform tools, which use C# and .NET to target multiple platforms, including iOS, Android and Mac OS X. Xamarin 3.0 is a big release. In summary: Xamarin Designer for iOS Using a visual designer for iOS Storyboard projects, you can create and modify a GUI in both … Continue reading Xamarin 3.0 brings iOS visual design to Visual Studio, cross-platform XAML, F#, NuGet and more<\/span> Xamarin Forms<\/h3>\n
F# support<\/h3>\n
Portable Class Libraries<\/h3>\n
NuGet Packages<\/h3>\n
Microsoft partnership<\/h3>\n