2 C
New York
Friday, January 10, 2025

4 keys for writing cross-platform apps



Some languages have the tooling and options to make cross-compiling much less painful. Rust, as an illustration, gives cross-compiling as semi-native performance in its toolchain. However you’ll nonetheless want to usher in some further bits to finish the expertise—for instance, a correct linker.

One massive downside with cross-platform compiling is how asymmetrical it may be. If you happen to’re a macOS consumer, it’s simple to arrange and preserve Home windows or Linux digital machines on the Mac. If you happen to use Linux or Home windows, it’s tougher to emulate macOS on these platforms. Not unimaginable, simply harder—the largest motive being the authorized points, as macOS’s EULA doesn’t enable it for use on non-Apple {hardware}. The simplest workaround (although hardly the most cost effective) is to easily purchase a separate Macintosh system and use that. Another choice is to make use of instruments like osxcross to carry out cross-compilation on a Linux, FreeBSD, or OpenBSD system.

One other widespread possibility, one most according to fashionable software program supply strategies, is to make use of a system like GitHub Actions (by way of GitHub-hosted runners) or Azure Pipelines to construct your software program on any of their supported goal platforms. (Each GitHub and Azure assist macOS.) The draw back is paying for the usage of the service, however for those who’re already invested in both platform, it’s usually essentially the most economical and least messy method. Plus, it retains the burden of system upkeep out of your arms.

Related Articles

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Latest Articles