Learn Objective-C on the Mac

Take your coding skills to the next level with this extensive guide to Objective–C, the native programming language for developing sophisticated software applications for Mac OS X. Objective–C is a powerful, object–oriented extension of C, making this book the perfect follow–up to Dave Mark’s bestselling Learn C on the Mac, Mac OS X Edition. Whether you’re an experienced C programmer or you’re coming from a different language such as C++ or Java, leading Mac experts Mark Dalrymple and Scott Knaster show you how to harness the powers of Objective–C in your applications!

• A complete course on the basics of Objective–C using Apple’s free Xcode tools
• An introduction to object–oriented programming
• Comprehensive coverage of inheritance, composition, object initialization, categories, protocols, memory management, and organizing source files
• A brief tour of Cocoa’s foundation framework and AppKit
• A helpful “learning curve” guide for non–C developers

• Learn Objective–C programming, the gateway to programming your Mac or iPhone
• Write applications for the Mac OS X interface, the cleanest user–interface around
• Understand variables and how to design your own data structures
• Work with the file system
• Connect to data sources and the Internet

For anyone wanting to learn to program native applications in Mac OS X, including developers new to the Mac, developers new to Objective–C, or students entirely new to programming.

Take your coding skills to the next level with this extensive guide to Objective–C, the native programming language for developing sophisticated software applications for Mac OS X. Objective–C is a powerful, object–oriented extension of C, making this book the perfect follow–up to Dave Mark’s best–selling Learn C on the Mac, Mac OS X Edition. Whether you’re an experienced C programmer or you’re coming from a different language such as C++ or Java, leading Mac experts Mark Dalrymple and Scott Knaster show you how to harness the powers of Objective–C in your applications!

• A complete course on the basics of Objective–C using Apple’s free Xcode tools
• An introduction to object–oriented programming
• Comprehensive coverage of inheritance, composition, object initialization, categories, protocols, memory management, and organizing source files
• A brief tour of Cocoa’s Foundation framework and AppKit
• A helpful “learning curve” guide for non–C developers

What you’ll learn

• Learn Objective–C programming, the gateway to programming your Mac or iPhone.
• Write applications for the Mac OS X interface, the cleanest user–interface around.
• Understand variables and how to design your own data structures.
• Work with the file system.
• Connect to data sources and the Internet.

Who is this book for?

For anyone wanting to learn to program native applications in Mac OS X, including developers new to the Mac, developers new to Objective–C, or students entirely new to programming.

Mark Dalrymple has been a Mac developer since 1985 and a Unix programmer since 1990. Over the years, he has worked on projects ranging from cross–platform development toolkits, to high–performance web server software servicing hundreds of millions of hits per day, medical applications, and video products for Hollywood. He is the coauthor of Core Mac OS X and Unix Programming and Advanced Mac OS X Programming.

Scott Knaster is a legendary Mac hacker and author of such best–selling books as Hacking Mac OS X Tiger and Macintosh Programming Secrets. His book How to Write Macintosh Software was required reading for Mac programmers for more than a decade.