Mono for OSX viable for learning C #?

Question

I need to learn C #. All my computers are Macs that have the latest version of OS X installed. I can't choose to use Windows, but I will if I have to.

As the saying goes, as a new programmer, can I effectively learn C # with this Mono platform on OS X?

Change I am looking to learn C # in order to gain programming knowledge and start developing indie games. Once a reasonable understanding has been reached, I will then look at some game frameworks / platforms and / or a more OS-specific language.

Answer 1

In a word: Yes.

First of all, thanks to Jonathan Pobst for updating What Is Mono . With that said, Mono supports all versions of C # at the moment, i.e. from 1.0 to 4.0.

Since your plan is to learn the language first before considering other things, such as frameworks and tools, you should be fine with Mono. After you start developing the platform (i.e., the Windows GUI), you may need to switch to a Windows computer.

http://mono-project.com/What_is_Mono http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C_Sharp_ (programming_language) #Versions

Answer 2

If you intend to develop Windows, it is best to use a Windows machine. If you're just trying to learn a language, Mono should be fine.

Answer 3

You should be able to, but just keep in mind that although most of the sample code will work, some may not work in the Mono environment, since the implementation is not 100% compatible with the .NET Framework. Also, of course, some things like WPF are not supported by Mono.

I used Monodevelop on Linux, and basically it works, but because I am also developing Windows with VS2010, I am delaying using the bottom Monodevelop, but as a newbie, it doesn't really matter to you.

Answer 4

Yes, it should be clearly visible how MonoMac came out. http://www.mono-project.com/MonoMac

If you want to use it for games with OpenGL, download this repo and look at the openGL stuff to get started. Then go to places like NeHe to learn more about GL ect ..

You will need to download and install git to pull out repo :: http://git-scm.com/download

MonoMac Samples :: https://github.com/mono/monomac/tree/master/samples/

NeHe :: http://nehe.gamedev.net/

Code Sampler :: http://www.codesampler.com/

Answer 5

It depends.

To just learn the C # language and the main CLR libraries that are not related to graphics, C # / MonoDevelop is fine.

To learn graphic programming, game programming for OS X, I suggest you first study Objective-C, Cocoa, and then MonoDevelop / MonoMac. The reason is that the Cocoa API is designed around the Objective-C language, which has fundamental differences from C #. Using Cocoa through C # is easy to get started, but it makes no sense quickly if you don't understand Cocoa patterns and Objective-C.