Text Size

iPhone SDK to require Mac OS X?

updated 09:15 am EST, Thu March 6, 2008

iPhone SDK Mac OS-only?

More details of Apple's iPhone SDK announcement, scheduled today for 10AM Pacific time and 1PM Eastern, have allegedly leaked through anonymous sources. It is indicated that although the iPhone can be used on both Macs and PCs, developers will only be able to acquire the SDK for Mac OS X, leaving Windows developers stranded. The development environment is in fact said to be an enhanced variant of Xcode.

Xcode is included free with every copy of Mac OS X, and includes elements such as a graphical workbench, a debugger and a multiplatform GCC compiler. The software is also updated for free through the Apple Developer Connection, and it is believed that the iPhone SDK may be supported in the same way as well. Developers would only need to be members of the ADC program to obtain the iPhone kit.

Echoing Apple CEO Steve Jobs' suggestions of improved gaming, it is rumored that Electronic Arts and Gameloft will be among the first major companies to produce native iPhone titles. The two are already dominant in the area of standard iPod games, often releasing several titles per month.

 
Previous Comments

But of course

03/06, 09:26am reply

Is that a surprise, really?

XCode is a great development environment and the only one I know that supports Cocoa, the preferred toolkit for developing on OSX, which is the iPhone OS.

So, duh, the iPhone SDK will only run on OSX.

IF that was not teh case, then it would mean that Apple would have developed XCode for Windows, which would be a HUGE deal.

marmotton

Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jul 2004

0

Windows developers

03/06, 09:34am reply

"leaving Windows developers stranded" … or, leaving them to go pick up a Mac mini and KVM switch.

nemanirc

Dedicated MacNNer

Joined: Mar 2000

0

No surprise

03/06, 09:38am reply

As the iPhone runs OS X, that would mean the SDK is for OS X, and OS X development tools run on OS X (called XCode). I have Microsoft Dev tools for Windows Mobile and they required Microsoft Windows to run, which is fair enough.

I suspect that most iPhone developers will already be OS X developers and therefore have Macs, so I don't think that this is an issue at all.

mr.mouse

Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Feb 2008

0

ha ha

03/06, 09:55am reply

Guess it sucks to be a windows box, again. What's the big deal? Do people think that you can get a development environment for windows mobile for a mac?

Glasspusher

Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Oct 2000

0

Juvenile journalism

03/06, 09:55am reply

Well, does it require OS X, or doesn't it? This is Macnn, not Macrumors.com. Don't stick question marks at the end of a news headline posting! Either you guys have news to post, or you don't. Posting guesses just shows what an incompetent bunch of wannabe tech journalists you kids really are.

Grrr

Grizzled Veteran

Joined: Jun 2001

0

juvenile journalism?

03/06, 10:02am reply

so read another news site if it bothers you that much.

macmad

Dedicated MacNNer

Joined: Dec 2000

0

in other news...

03/06, 10:09am reply

.... Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 used to develop latest Windows Mobile applications, runs only on Windows machine, leaving Mac and Linux developers stranded.

ViktorCode

Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jan 2006

0

Stranded?

03/06, 10:44am reply

Yeah, I'd say 'stranded' is a bit strong.

'Enlightened' might be better, after they're finally pushed into seeing what mac development can be like.

It was sort of obvious that if there was going to be any kind of test capability, like a virtual iPhone, it was going to be running on a Mac, not a virtual copy of OSX running in windows...

Guest

Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Nov 1999

0

re: stranded?

03/06, 11:05am reply

Isn't it always better when developers have a choice of platform?

Roger@MacNN

Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: Jan 2008

+2

confused grrrr

03/06, 11:32am reply

To grrrr:

You seem to be a bit confused about what constitutes news. It is very clear from the article that MacNN is REPORTING a leak from a confidential source that SDK will only run on Mac OSX. Very similar to what Woodward and Bernstein did, oh some thirty-forty years ago about a break-in into offices of some political party, in Washington DC (I believe the office building name was Watergate). Not to compare the significance of the two (obviously), but the news reporting principles are the same. And your reaction was rude.

While it is pretty obvious to everyone out there that this is expected (why would Apple waste resources on developing Windows version of SDK?), this is important for another reason. There will be a large number of developers anxious to create apps for the iPhone, as the platform is rapidly becoming the dominant player in the smartphone market space. They will all have to buy a Mac. It may be a Mac Mini, but I can easily see many more iMacs getting sold to heretofore Windows-only developers.

Nice extra addition to the bottom line for Apple.

vasic

Fresh-Faced Recruit

Joined: May 2005

0

Popular News