Microsoft's Visual Studio has been a platform for developers to code computer programs. However, it does not work well with Mac users. Microsoft is looking to address the issue. The tech giant has recently announced that a full version of Visual Studio IDE will be coming to Mac.
According to CNET, the blog post of the news has been pulled from the web. But you can visit here for the cached copy of Microsoft's announcement.
Microsoft's Visual Studio
Microsoft revealed that it will launch a preview of the Visual Studio for Mac during its Connect event this week. It became evident that the Visual Studio for Mac is not entirely new. Apparently, it has elements of the Xamarin Studio IDE.
Tech journalist Tim Anderson described it as a "rebranding" of the software company's Xamarin own integrated development environment. The company was acquired by Microsoft back in February 2016.
Visual Studio For Mac And For Windows
The Visual Studio for Mac is said to be the macOS counterpart of the Visual Studio for Windows. The two IDE still have some similarities. For instance, its user experience design is obviously inspired by the Visual Studio for Windows. At the same time, it is designed to give a unique macOS feel.
Furthermore, the Visual Studio for Mac is also complemented by Visual Studio Code. This will allow developers to work on a lightweight yet still rich standalone source editor. The Visual Studio for Mac also has the same debugger engines for Xamarin and .NET Core apps. Its designers for Xamarin.iOS and Xamrin.Android is similar to the Visual Studio for Windows.
Both Visual Studio IDEs have IntelliSense and refactoring that use the Roslyn Compiler Platform. Likewise, their project system and build engine utilize MSBuild. Their source editor supports Textmate bundles.
It Still Has Limitations
Microsoft admitted that the Visual Studio for Mac is yet to support all of the IDE's project types. Though the tech giant is working on achieving that full compatibility. They assured developers that they can seamlessly share their projects between the two platforms.
Microsoft said that developers won't need to convert or migrate. This is caused by the same MSBuild solution and project format that the two Visual Studio IDEs are using.
