Xcode 4 available to all on Apple's Mac App Store for $4.99

Posted:
in Mac Software edited January 2014
Apple on Wednesday released Xcode 4 for free to its registered developers, while everyone else can purchase the development environment for Mac OS X and iOS from the Mac App Store for $4.99.



"Xcode 4 has been streamlined to help you write better apps," Apple said. "It has unified user interface design, coding, testing, and debugging all within a single window. The Xcode IDE analyzes the details of your project to identify mistakes in both syntax and logic, it can even help fix your code for you."



The release of Xcode 4 for $4.99 on the Mac App Store will allow non-registered developers to tinker with the development platform, or create their own Mac applications outside of the App Store. However, to submit a Mac or iOS application to the App Store still requires membership to the Mac or iOS Developer Program. Testing an iOS application on a mobile device also requires a developer subscription.



The Mac Developer Program was discounted a year ago to $99 per year. The price change remodeled Apple's Mac program after the wildly successful iPhone Developer Program.



Xcode 4 runs on Mac OS X Snow Leopard and includes the Xcode IDE, Instruments, iOS Simulator, and the latest Mac OS X and iOS SDKs. Features of Xcode 4, according to Apple, include:



Innovative tools to help you create great apps

Interface Builder is fully integrated as a design canvas within the Xcode IDE

The Assistant shows files related to what you're editing, such as the header, superclass, or controller

The Version editor shows a live source code comparison through Git or Subversion history

Live Issues display errors as you type, and Fix-it can correct the mistakes for you

Apple LLVM compiler now includes full support for C++, in addition to C and Objective-C

The new LLDB debugging engine is faster and more memory-efficient than GDB

Instruments adds System Trace and new iOS instruments including OpenGL ES



Streamlined interface that is faster and easier to use

Design your interface side by side with the backing source code

Create connections from your GUI design directly to the related source code

Use tabs to organize your workspace, or double-click to open files in a new window

Schemes let you customize exactly how your app will build, run, profile, and deploy

Debugging and console views slide in without disturbing your place in the editor

Professional editor keeps you focused on your code

Click the Jump Bar at the top of the editor to instantly go to another file

View message bubbles to see errors, warnings, and other issues right beside the code

Use the ribbon on the left of the editor to fold your code, or highlight scope

Embedded Apple LLVM technology finds and fixes bugs for you

Analyzer travels countless code paths looking for logical errors before they become bugs

Live Issues underlines coding mistakes as you type with no need to build first

Fix-it can confidently correct mistakes for you with just a keystroke

Code completion for C, C++, and Objective-C is incredibly fast and accurate

Instruments for visual performance analysis

Compare CPU, disk, memory, and OpenGL performance as graphical tracks over time

Identify performance bottlenecks then dive deep into the code to uncover the cause

Monitor your app directly, or sample the entire system, with very little overhead
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 94
    postulantpostulant Posts: 1,272member
    5 finger gestures - hint*



  • Reply 2 of 94
    blastdoorblastdoor Posts: 3,277member
    Can anybody recommend a resource for someone who wants to try programming for the Mac or iDevices using Objective-C, but who has never programmed in any flavor of C before?



    I have written programs before, but always in higher level languages like BASIC (yuck) or, more recently, R (which is a statistical programming language derived from S, which in turn was based on, I think, LISP).
  • Reply 3 of 94
    jbrunijbruni Posts: 29member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Blastdoor View Post


    Can anybody recommend a resource for someone who wants to try programming for the Mac or iDevices using Objective-C, but who has never programmed in any flavor of C before?



    I have written programs before, but always in higher level languages like BASIC (yuck) or, more recently, R (which is a statistical programming language derived from S, which in turn was based on, I think, LISP).



    I would suggest one of the following:



    1) Take a C programming course at a university. Being able to bounce questions off an instructor and other peers is a good way to go. And, depending on the quality of the instructor, you might get far more insight than you would from just reading a book.



    2) "C Programming Language" by Kernighan and Ritchie. http://www.amazon.com/Programming-La.../dp/0131103628



    Actually, #2 might end up being your textbook for #1.
  • Reply 4 of 94
    blastdoorblastdoor Posts: 3,277member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jbruni View Post


    I would suggest one of the following:



    1) Take a C programming course at a university. Being able to bounce questions off an instructor and other peers is a good way to go. And, depending on the quality of the instructor, you might get far more insight than you would from just reading a book.



    2) "C Programming Language" by Kernighan and Ritchie. http://www.amazon.com/Programming-La.../dp/0131103628



    Actually, #2 might end up being your textbook for #1.



    Thanks -- is a book on generic C the best way to learn Objective C? Are there books that focus just on Objective C?
  • Reply 5 of 94
    eno12eno12 Posts: 2member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Blastdoor View Post


    Thanks -- is a book on generic C the best way to learn Objective C? Are there books that focus just on Objective C?



    Objective-C is more or less just C with a smalltalk like interface for OOP. You NEED to understand how to program in C before you can learn Objective-C. That said, Apple has decent documentation on their Objective-C environment.
  • Reply 6 of 94
    doh123doh123 Posts: 323member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Blastdoor View Post


    Can anybody recommend a resource for someone who wants to try programming for the Mac or iDevices using Objective-C, but who has never programmed in any flavor of C before?



    I have written programs before, but always in higher level languages like BASIC (yuck) or, more recently, R (which is a statistical programming language derived from S, which in turn was based on, I think, LISP).



    There is a really nice entry level ObjC/Cocoa book i like... its called "Beginning Mac Programming" by Isted. Its really nice and simple and explains programming concepts, and all its examples are in Xcode 3. It was a great beginners book in my opinion if you take it slowly and do all the examples... they build on top of each other through the book as you learn to do new things and add more features to the example programs.



    its pretty cheap at amazon.

    http://www.amazon.com/Beginning-Mac-.../dp/1934356514



    you can use C code inside of ObjC, but they are not all that similar, and you do not really need to learn C first.
  • Reply 7 of 94
    cimcim Posts: 197member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Blastdoor View Post


    Can anybody recommend a resource for someone who wants to try programming for the Mac or iDevices using Objective-C, but who has never programmed in any flavor of C before?



    I have written programs before, but always in higher level languages like BASIC (yuck) or, more recently, R (which is a statistical programming language derived from S, which in turn was based on, I think, LISP).



    http://developer.apple.com/library/mac/navigation/
  • Reply 8 of 94
    Does anyone know if you can update xcode 4 via the mac app store if you got it via the developer portal? I would love to update it via the mac app store instead of hunting down a new download on the developer portal on apples site.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    Apple on Wednesday released Xcode 4 for free to its registered developers, while everyone else can purchase the development environment for Mac OS X and iOS from the Mac App Store for $4.99.



    "Xcode 4 has been streamlined to help you write better apps," Apple said. "It has unified user interface design, coding, testing, and debugging all within a single window. The Xcode IDE analyzes the details of your project to identify mistakes in both syntax and logic, it can even help fix your code for you."



    The release of Xcode 4 for $4.99 on the Mac App Store will allow non-registered developers to tinker with the development platform, or create their own Mac applications outside of the App Store. However, to submit a Mac or iOS application to the App Store still requires membership to the Mac or iOS Developer Program. Testing an iOS application on a mobile device also requires a developer subscription.



    The Mac Developer Program was discounted a year ago to $99 per year. The price change remodeled Apple's Mac program after the wildly successful iPhone Developer Program.



    Xcode 4 runs on Mac OS X Snow Leopard and includes the Xcode IDE, Instruments, iOS Simulator, and the latest Mac OS X and iOS SDKs. Features of Xcode 4, according to Apple, include:



    Innovative tools to help you create great apps

    Interface Builder is fully integrated as a design canvas within the Xcode IDE

    The Assistant shows files related to what you're editing, such as the header, superclass, or controller

    The Version editor shows a live source code comparison through Git or Subversion history

    Live Issues display errors as you type, and Fix-it can correct the mistakes for you

    Apple LLVM compiler now includes full support for C++, in addition to C and Objective-C

    The new LLDB debugging engine is faster and more memory-efficient than GDB

    Instruments adds System Trace and new iOS instruments including OpenGL ES



    Streamlined interface that is faster and easier to use

    Design your interface side by side with the backing source code

    Create connections from your GUI design directly to the related source code

    Use tabs to organize your workspace, or double-click to open files in a new window

    Schemes let you customize exactly how your app will build, run, profile, and deploy

    Debugging and console views slide in without disturbing your place in the editor

    Professional editor keeps you focused on your code

    Click the Jump Bar at the top of the editor to instantly go to another file

    View message bubbles to see errors, warnings, and other issues right beside the code

    Use the ribbon on the left of the editor to fold your code, or highlight scope

    Embedded Apple LLVM technology finds and fixes bugs for you

    Analyzer travels countless code paths looking for logical errors before they become bugs

    Live Issues underlines coding mistakes as you type with no need to build first

    Fix-it can confidently correct mistakes for you with just a keystroke

    Code completion for C, C++, and Objective-C is incredibly fast and accurate

    Instruments for visual performance analysis

    Compare CPU, disk, memory, and OpenGL performance as graphical tracks over time

    Identify performance bottlenecks then dive deep into the code to uncover the cause

    Monitor your app directly, or sample the entire system, with very little overhead



  • Reply 9 of 94
    mdriftmeyermdriftmeyer Posts: 7,503member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Blastdoor View Post


    Can anybody recommend a resource for someone who wants to try programming for the Mac or iDevices using Objective-C, but who has never programmed in any flavor of C before?



    I have written programs before, but always in higher level languages like BASIC (yuck) or, more recently, R (which is a statistical programming language derived from S, which in turn was based on, I think, LISP).



    You need a C and Objective-C curriculum designed to work together before going onto advanced exploration of Cocoa.



    Here:



    http://www.amazon.com/Programming-3r.../dp/0672326663



    http://www.amazon.com/Programming-Ob...ref=pd_sim_b_2



    http://www.amazon.com/C-Programming-...9703936&sr=1-4



    Kochan has been entrenched in both technologies for decades.



    King's book brings C up to C99 which is required if you ever want to learn OpenCL.



    A lot of time will be spent learning the Compiler Suites. Whether it's GCC or LLVM you need to read their documentation thoroughly--it's always updating and in the Mailing Lists for Developers is where the real meat lies.
  • Reply 10 of 94
    columbuscolumbus Posts: 282member
    That's just cheeky.



    It will be interesting to see if it comes on the Lion DVD/Flash Drive.



    It's a sign of the times. When Mac OS X 10.0 shipped Apple gave away all dev tools to encourage anyone to write for Apple's platforms. Now they don't need to, people will pay them to write for their platforms.





    Still £2.99 for Xcode 4 is better than the £709.99 for Microsoft's equivalent Visual Studio.
  • Reply 11 of 94
    MarvinMarvin Posts: 15,322moderator
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    Testing an iOS application on a mobile device also requires a developer subscription.



    The Mac Developer Program was discounted a year ago to $99 per year.



    I hope they aren't offering a subscription outside of an app without also allowing the option to subscribe inside the app, tsk. Bundling emulators too.



    I think $100 a year is a lot to ask just to test apps. How do they even come up with that price? If you jailbreak, you can get it for free and it feels so much better knowing you are free to develop for your own hardware without one day Apple stopping your license.



    I could understand a fee for publishing to the store or even for support but not just to allow you to do hardware debugging.
  • Reply 12 of 94
    fyngyrzfyngyrz Posts: 61member
    Quote:

    while everyone else can purchase the development environment for Mac OS X and iOS from the Mac App Store for $4.99.



    No, "everyone else" cannot purchase it, because a large portion of the user base never upgraded to Snow Leopard due to the huge range of compatibility problems (see snowleopard.wikidot.com), and the App Store is Snow Leopard only.



    That's why The App Store and a whole bunch of other things have been artificially limited to Snow Leopard; they're trying to accumulate enough reasons to force the holdouts to switch -- unfortunately, this mechanism abuses their customers.



    The correct path would to have been to ensure compatibility for the huge range of applications and drivers they broke with Snow Leopard. When they chose not to do that, they hard-forked the user base. No, not a typo.
  • Reply 13 of 94
    revilrerevilre Posts: 67member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jbruni View Post


    I would suggest one of the following:



    1) Take a C programming course at a university. Being able to bounce questions off an instructor and other peers is a good way to go. And, depending on the quality of the instructor, you might get far more insight than you would from just reading a book.



    2) "C Programming Language" by Kernighan and Ritchie. http://www.amazon.com/Programming-La.../dp/0131103628



    Actually, #2 might end up being your textbook for #1.



    Don't waste your money on "higher education", after 30 years of life I've determined education in the US exists solely for status and enriching endowments.
  • Reply 14 of 94
    jschuurjschuur Posts: 7member
    You can actually still get Xcode 4 for free, if you're a registered (for the free plan) member of the Apple developer portal.



    Paying members will presumably get access to future betas, just like before Xcode 4 went final.



    Edit: Scratch that. Free members are linked to the $4.99 app store download. Can't get it for free after all.
  • Reply 15 of 94
    bcodebcode Posts: 141member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Blastdoor View Post


    Can anybody recommend a resource for someone who wants to try programming for the Mac or iDevices using Objective-C, but who has never programmed in any flavor of C before?



    I have written programs before, but always in higher level languages like BASIC (yuck) or, more recently, R (which is a statistical programming language derived from S, which in turn was based on, I think, LISP).



    My suggestion is start with the free Stanford courses on iTunes U (http://itunes.apple.com/ca/instituti...rd/id384228265). You can take everything from Intro to Programming, all the way up to Developing Apps for the iOS.
  • Reply 16 of 94
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Blastdoor View Post


    Can anybody recommend a resource for someone who wants to try programming for the Mac or iDevices using Objective-C, but who has never programmed in any flavor of C before?



    I have written programs before, but always in higher level languages like BASIC (yuck) or, more recently, R (which is a statistical programming language derived from S, which in turn was based on, I think, LISP).



    This was helpful to me. http://www.cocoalab.com/BecomeAnXcoder.pdf



    The author basically teaches you to write C code that uses some of Apples API's.



    Apple's own tutorial on objective C was also very helpful. http://developer.apple.com/library/m...tiveC/ObjC.pdf
  • Reply 17 of 94
    blastdoorblastdoor Posts: 3,277member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mdriftmeyer View Post


    You need a C and Objective-C curriculum designed to work together before going onto advanced exploration of Cocoa.



    Here:



    http://www.amazon.com/Programming-3r.../dp/0672326663



    http://www.amazon.com/Programming-Ob...ref=pd_sim_b_2



    http://www.amazon.com/C-Programming-...9703936&sr=1-4



    Kochan has been entrenched in both technologies for decades.



    King's book brings C up to C99 which is required if you ever want to learn OpenCL.



    A lot of time will be spent learning the Compiler Suites. Whether it's GCC or LLVM you need to read their documentation thoroughly--it's always updating and in the Mailing Lists for Developers is where the real meat lies.



    Thanks all for the recommendations!
  • Reply 18 of 94
    diddydiddy Posts: 282member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jschuur View Post


    You can actually still get Xcode 4 for free, if you're a registered (for the free plan) member of the Apple developer portal.



    Really? I logged in using my free credentials and It pointed me right to the App store to get X-code and not allowing it to download from the web interface.



    ETA: It said explicitly that I had to be a iOS developer or Mac Os Developer member to download for free - I just have a free account.



    I believe that you can still get X-Code 3 for free though...
  • Reply 19 of 94
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by revilre View Post


    Don't waste your money on "higher education", after 30 years of life I've determined education in the US exists solely for status and enriching endowments.



    This. If you're learning something you can get done with just a computer then the only real skill you need to develop is Googlefoo.
  • Reply 20 of 94
    mbarriaultmbarriault Posts: 237member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by jschuur View Post


    You can actually still get Xcode 4 for free, if you're a registered (for the free plan) member of the Apple developer portal.



    Paying members will presumably get access to future betas, just like before Xcode 4 went final.



    Edit: Scratch that. Free members are linked to the $4.99 app store download. Can't get it for free after all.



    Unfortunately false.



    "Hi Michael,

    You must be an iOS or Mac Developer Program member to download Xcode 4 or you can purchase Xcode 4 from the Mac App Store."
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