In Which Languages Can I Develop For Windows Mobile?

Question

Hello,

Today my new HP iPAQ was delivered at my home, but now I want to know two things before I start any project:

• In which languages can I develop for it(Windows Mobile 5)?
• Where can I download this softwares?

Thanks.

Answer 1

I used Visual Studio 2008 to learn about Windows Mobile programming. Visual Studio 2008 comes with everything you need to get started with programming for Windows Mobile phones. I wrote my application with C#, not sure of any other languages for Windows Mobile, but a good link to get started is Windows Mobile Development Center.

Answer 2

From Microsoft you generally have 3 language options: C#, VB.NET or C/C++. These are all done using Visual Studio 2008 Professional (or higher).

For non-Microsoft offerings you have a few others such as:

• NSBasic
• Delphi

Answer 3

Windows Mobile runs the .NET Compact Framework, which will support development in C# and VB.NET. You can also develop for Windows Mobile using MFC/Win32 APIs in C++ or Embedded Visual Basic. At the end of the day it's a stripped-down Win32-based OS, so there are other options, but these are probably the most popular.

Depending on your experience, it will probably be easier to get Visual Studio 2008 and develop in a .NET language, the development experience is pretty nice and there is a built-in emulator in Visual Studio, so you don't need to have a device plugged in unless you are working with device-attached or embedded hardware.

Unfortunately, Visual Studio 2008 Express editions (the free versions) do not support Mobile development, you would need to run a trial version or purchase a license.