What is better, to develop my Android app on a Windows PC or a mac?
+2
A:
Subjective question. It all depends on personal preference. Do you like Windows and Linux - use WinPC. Like MacOS - use the Mac. Applications for the Android development in the language of Java, so the development tools for different operating systems exist in sufficient quantity.
Anry
2010-04-14 10:48:59
Thanks Anry, you've been very helpful.
Allan
2010-04-14 23:02:00
+4
A:
Due to Apple's (to put it politely) "controlling" approach to development, you'll need a Mac to develop apps for the iPhone. So, if you think it's likely you'll be porting any of your Android apps accross to the iPhone in the near future, you might as well save yourself buying two lots of dev hardware and start with a Mac.
Also, emulating a Mac OS on a PC is hard work and against Apples ToS, but you can run a Windows OS natively on a Mac.
MatW
2010-04-14 11:25:25
You can run Windows on a Mac, fully supported by Apple - no emulation in sight. You could also purchase something like VMware Fusion or Parallels Desktop to run Linux on said Mac.
Andy Shellam
2010-04-14 11:44:23
There are some unofficial ways of running Mac OS on a PC, see www.hackintosh.com
tomlog
2010-04-14 12:11:40
@tomlog True enough, it is *technically* possible, but the amount of time (which = money) to get an out-of-date, severely hobbled version of a Mac OS working is just not worth it if you are a serious developer. Also, it's not just unofficial, it's downright illegal to emulate a Mac OS on a PC.
MatW
2010-04-14 12:53:40
Great! This is why I originally asked the question - I've developed my app on Windows and now I'll be developing it for the iphone and I thought maybe that having everything in one place (on one machine) would be less confusing and more organized. I plan on getting a mac-mini to start with. It'll hook up to a regular windows monitor and any other usb peripherals. (under $600 new too!) Great answer MatW - (you too tomlog and Andy).
Allan
2010-04-14 23:00:47
+2
A:
Because the API docs are not always complete, having access to the Android source code can be of great benefit. Unfortunately, setting this up for Windows is not currently supported by Android, but is for Linux or Mac OS. You can do it for Windows, but there is no procedure explained to do so, and it's not intuitive.
So in the case of easily being able to download and view the source, either Linux or Mac would be a better option than Windows.
JRL
2010-04-14 11:42:20
Surely you could *view* the source on any system with a text editor? Compile and run it may be different, but view?
Dan Diplo
2010-04-14 14:17:57
@Dan: getting the source is not that simple. If you have a script that lists what to pull it can be done. For Mac OS and Linux, Google provides a utility and setup instructions. Not so for Windows, you're left on your own.
JRL
2010-04-14 15:03:58
@JRL Fair enough, I stand corrected - never realised they made it so difficult.
Dan Diplo
2010-04-14 15:10:30
+1
A:
I've developed Android on OS X, Ubuntu Linux and Windows XP, and in my experience it makes very little difference. It's also easy to chop-and-change. Pick the OS you prefer.
Jim Blackler
2010-04-14 12:07:04
Hey, thanks Jim. But...wouldn't it be better to have all files, ideas, docs, etc. on a mac if a person knows that their going to develop for both Android and iphone? Thanks again.
Allan
2010-04-14 23:03:31
+1
A:
If you'll be using the eclipse IDE it will make little if any difference what OS you choose. Eclipse can run on a MAC Windows or Linux.
zerayaqob
2010-04-14 14:15:20
Thanks Zerayaqob - I sure do like Eclipse...I've often wondered what language Eclipse was programmed under?
Allan
2010-04-14 23:04:29