macOS Compiling Objective C on Mac from PC

[openglguy]

Hi,

I am very new to Mac. Just curios to know this: I have a single Mac MINI, which four of our friends want to access simultaneously from PC (not mac). Is it possible? Basically we will be developing iPad Applications using Objective C and OpenGL.

We have been doing so on PCs where we used Putty for accessing a server. This way we were able to cut hugely in terms of cost as we installed expensive softwares and hardware only on one system, (but we accessed it from many).


Thanking you in advance.

openglguy

 

[maflynn]

The SDK for iPhone/OSX is mac only so the frameworks and such is not available on a PC. I believe you may be able to find an objective c compiler for the PC but since you don't have the SDK, it doesn't do you any good.

You need a mac to develop apps for OSX and the iPhone/iPad

 

[robbieduncan]

Assuming you are happy with putty you can still remote into a Mac OSX box using that. The compilers and entire build process can be run from the command line. In general though you will hit things that require the full XCode GUI. And OSX only supports 1 logged in GUI user at once.

 

[pinsrw]

Hi,

I am very new to Mac. Just curios to know this: I have a single Mac MINI, which four of our friends want to access simultaneously from PC (not mac). Is it possible? Basically we will be developing iPad Applications using Objective C and OpenGL.

Why not write your code first for Windows using C++ and OpenGL, get it working, and then port it to the iPad?

 

[maflynn]

Why not write your code first for Windows using C++ and OpenGL, get it working, and then port it to the iPad?

I suspect the work required to port C++ code will be sizable given how objective-c works.

 

[robbieduncan]

I suspect the work required to port C++ code will be sizable given how objective-c works.

Write all the core logic/data model/Open GL code in C++. Use Objective-C for the UI and wrap the C++ core (using Objective-C++).

 

[Sydde]

I would be interested to see if setting up GnuStep stuff might make Objective-C development a little easier on non-Mac machines.

 

[Giuly]

Make a user-account for everyone and let them VNC into the Mini (System Preferences->Sharing->Screen Sharing). Run fullscreen VNC on your PC - you have a really expensive terminal then.
Luckily, Mac OS X is Unix - which is multi-user by design.

 

[robvas]

Make a user-account for everyone and let them VNC into the Mini (System Preferences->Sharing->Screen Sharing). Run fullscreen VNC on your PC - you have a really expensive terminal then.
Luckily, Mac OS X is Unix - which is multi-user by design.

Does that work? How many people can you have connected at one time?

 

[openglguy]

Does that work? How many people can you have connected at one time?

This is exactly what I wanted to know. Did anyone try it?

 

[Cabbit]

Works on Solaris and FreeBSD, should work on Mac OS unless Apple significantly changed FreeBSD.

 

[larkost]

Works on Solaris and FreeBSD, should work on Mac OS unless Apple significantly changed FreeBSD.

Please refrain from posting when you evidently have little idea about what you are posting about. MacOS X is just a skin that Apple dropped on top of FreeBSD. The two platforms have about as much in common as FreeBSD does with Solaris... at least between those two platforms you share the same display model (X11). MacOS X's display model does not match FreeBSD's at all, and that is a vital bit of information in this conversation.

 

[MorphingDragon]

MacOS X is just a skin that Apple dropped on top of FreeBSD.

You should obviously refrain from talking about things you dont know either.

 

[chown33]

This is exactly what I wanted to know. Did anyone try it?

I did, and it works. For trivial values of "works".

I have three Macs here, so I tried it with two separate computers, each one connecting to a third via screen-sharing (VNC). Each originator (client) is able to control the target Mac, but there is only a single graphical session, so their actions combine into one sequence of events. It's as if you plugged in a second mouse and keyboard, and let someone else use them at the same time you're trying to do your own work. It doesn't seem too productive to me.

Xcode projects can be built using the 'xcodebuild' command-line interface. However, this will also probably have issues if two or more users are trying to do builds at the same time.

 

[balamw]

Xcode projects can be built using the 'xcodebuild' command-line interface. However, this will also probably have issues if two or more users are trying to do builds at the same time.

All Macs are fully multi-user from the command line via ssh. You just have to enable it, so if you can do what you want with emacs/vi and xcodebuild you can have multiple users connected separately to your Mac with no problem. Of course that won't help you run/test your app if it requires the GUI.

e.g. http://hints.macworld.com/article.php?story=20010401050833391

B

 

[robbieduncan]

All Macs are fully multi-user from the command line via ssh. You just have to enable it, so if you can do what you want with emacs/vi and xcodebuild you can have multiple users connected separately to your Mac with no problem. Of course that won't help you run/test your app if it requires the GUI.

e.g. http://hints.macworld.com/article.php?story=20010401050833391

B

Yep, that's basically what I said in post #3 but with more detail

 

[balamw]

Yep, that's basically what I said in post #3 but with more detail

Just bringing it full circle since we got off on the VNC "detour".

B

 

[robbieduncan]

Just bringing it full circle since we got off on the VNC "detour".

B

The VNC route can still be used: but only by one user at once. So a couple of users could be logged in via ssh and compiling code/running unit tests etc whilst one user uses Interface Builder/Simulator via VNC. Ultimately it would seem easier just to buy a few of the cheapest Intel Mac Minis off eBay...