14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has announced at the Build developer conference that Visual Studio for Mac is out of preview, so Apple users can now download a new version of the coding platform that has been developed natively for their systems.
Visual Studio for Mac obviously comes with Xamarin integration, so it allows developers to create macOS and iOS applications without the need for emulation software or a Windows system. The Redmond-based software giant purchased Xamarin last year, and the team is now being integrated into the company, with all projects gradually becoming part of Microsoft products.
Apple developers are getting integrated support for a series of code hosting services, like GitHub and Microsoft’s Visual Studio Team Services, as well as integration with Azure, which is Microsoft’s cloud service that’s becoming the top priority for the company.
Accessibility improvements
The list of changes included in Visual Studio for Mac is huge, and you can check it on the official website here, but one particular thing that needs to be mentioned is that this version comes with accessibility features as well, though Microsoft admits that more improvements in this regard are still needed.
“This version of Visual Studio for Mac contains support for assistive technologies such as Voice Over. Many parts of the user interface, such as the editor and solution explorer, have been made accessible through these technologies. However, it is still a work in progress and further improvements will be made in coming releases,” the firm says.
Microsoft is offering three different versions of Visual Studio for Mac, namely Visual Studio Community, Visual Studio Professional, and Visual Studio Enterprise. The good news for students is that Visual Studio Community is offered free of charge, so they can start coding immediately.
Cloud subscriptions are also offered starting at $538 per year in the case of Visual Studio Professional, while the Enterprise version is the most expensive and costs $2,999 per year.