it:cross_platform
Table of Contents
cross platform development using Delphi
introduction
- Delphi now allows compiling your code into native code for Win32, Win64, MacOS, iOS and Android
- to allow this you cannot use the VCL components in your application, nor Windows-specific code (eg. Windows API calls, assembly machine code, etc) and instead just use the Firemonkey (FMX) platform and the Runtime library (RTL)
options for installing Delphi
traditional install
- install Delphi on Windows machine
- have a Mac machine on the network for testing and debugging (eg. a Mac Mini)
- have an Android device to connect to for debugging on Android (users report dissatisfaction with the Android emulator in Delphi XE6, thus better to debug on a physical device)
Windows virtual machine approach
- install Delphi in a virtual machine environment:
- could be on a Windows machine, Linux machine or on a Mac
- more complicated setup
- allows easier backup
- allows different version Windows OS to allow testing on each version
- may require a licence for Windows version and for Delphi and 3rd party components with each virtual machine
- virtual Windows on Mac:
- Macs are a great Windows machines:
- run Windows in VMWare Fusion VM
- need to get used to different keystroke combinations involving the Cmd key while in Windows which can be an issue when using the Delphi IDE in particular
- can manage most most keystroke issues using the key remapping options provided by VMWare Fusion
- virtual Windows on Windows machine or Linux machine
Mac OS in a virtual machine
- may not be legal in Apple licensing but it is possible
remote debugging
design issues
it/cross_platform.txt · Last modified: 2014/07/10 20:05 by gary1