With a single, free IDE, Visual Studio, developers can build a fully functioning Android, iOS, and Windows applications. One of the best aspects is limiting the difficulty of entry. Not having to be proficient in Java to develop an Android application and similarly, SWIFT for iOS is a major advantage. The idea a programmer can use a matured language like C# and leveraging power of .NET with all previously published .NET standard libraries right out of the box to build a modern and efficient application is a fantastic opportunity.
Some of the benefits for developers are listed below:
- The biggest one for developers is putting effort into learning .NET framework and Azure helps them minimize the learning curve and the number of things to keep up-to-date on, all while giving them the opportunity to create just about anything. For example, with .NET, one can create mobile applications with Xamarin, websites with ASP.NET and .NET Core, games for all types of platforms with Unity3D, IoT with Azure Cloud, and more.
- Xamarin provides native UI interface and material design out of the box. This means nothing additional needs to be done in most cases to achieve a native looking app.
- Xamarin has always promised access to native APIs. This means, the developer has the power to access the same things that native developers would have.
- There is a vast collection of free knowledge and learning available at https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/
- Learning and becoming proficient in the .NET technology stack by getting certifications can help grow careers while uniquely qualifying for a variety of applications from a vast number of companies.
What’s New
Xamarin.Forms 4.4 and 4.5 are the newest stable versions available at the moment. They were released in December 2019 and February 2020 bringing some much requested support and improvements like Animated GIF, Carousel View, AndroidX libraries to name a few.