Microsoft has introduced it’s retiring Visual Studio for Mac and that help for the newest model, 17.6, will proceed for an additional 12 months, till August 31, 2024.
During the help interval, customers of the built-in growth setting (IDE) will obtain safety updates that handle essential points.
Microsoft will proceed to offer runtime and workload updates, so builders who depend on the .NET 6, .NET 7, and the Mono frameworks could proceed to construct and ship apps as regular for an additional 12 months.
Alternatives exist
Visual Studio is an IDE that builders use to jot down and debug code, primarily for Windows purposes. Over the years, the product expanded to incorporate help for extra programming languages and platforms.
Equipped with wealthy options, easy-to-use GUI, the plethora of capability-enhancing extensions, the cross-platform potential of .NET Core, and the help for Android and iOS app writing via Xamarin made Visual Studio for Mac a flexible alternative for builders.
The discontinuation of the Mac model comes considerably as shock, as a result of the product went via a main overhaul final 12 months to present it native UI, improved efficiency for Apple Silicon processors, and help for macOS accessibility options.
However, Microsoft says the choice to discontinue Visual Studio for Mac shouldn’t be taken as an indication of abandoning the platform solely, since there are options in its portfolio.
Other choices for macOS customers to proceed utilizing Visual Studio embody working the IDE in a digital machine or choosing up a cloud-based occasion. Microsoft says the latter alternative would additionally include higher efficiency.
Alternatives to Visual Studio for Mac, particularly for .NET growth, embody the cross-platform JetBrains Rider, the lightweight VSCode, the open-source MonoDevelop, and the extremely customizable Atom editor with the OmniSharp plugin.