Mac OS X Programming [Paperback]

Dan Sydow (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 15, 2001 | Series: Landmark

This book provides the reader with definitions, details, and explanations of the various components that make up this new operating system. Understanding the operating system helps the reader use the programming tools and the Carbon application programming interface (API) - both of which are covered extensively in this book.Mac OS X is a blend of old and new. Much of the original programming API (now referred to as the Classic API) is still usable. But it's been revamped and renamed - it's now the Carbon API. This modified set of functions includes plenty of new routines that make a Mac programmer's work easier and more powerful - provided that the programmer knows how to make use of the new code. The reader learns about the all new Carbon Event Manager, as well as the changes and enhancements that have been made to existing managers (such as the Window Manager and the Menu Manager).Readers new to Mac programming will appreciate the journey that takes them from the start of a new Macintosh project to the final build of a standalone Mac OS X application. Readers experienced in programming the Mac will also find this same material of great interest - and these readers will also benefit from the lengthy section on porting existing Mac OS 8 and 9 applications to Mac OS X. Finally, all readers will appreciate the Carbon API reference section that provides information and example code for dozens of the most commonly used Carbon routines.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Mac OS X Programming assumes nothing on the part of its reader, other than common sense and an interest in learning how to use Carbon to write software applications for modern Macintosh computers. Therefore, it'll serve you well if you've chosen Mac OS X as the operating system under which you'll take your first steps as a novice programmer. You'll also find this book moderately handy if you're already a Mac programmer and want a gentle introduction to Cocoa, the new programming facilities that Mac OS X exposes. Even if you've used your experience to figure out Cocoa on your own, you'll probably like Dan Parks Sydow's coverage of porting old code to the new environment, and of new multimedia programming capabilities.

It's in explaining novice-level material that Sydow shines most. He starts, as is traditional, with a "Hello World" application that introduces Project Builder, Interface Builder, and nib resource files. He combines Carbon source code listings with lots of text and a fair number of screen shots, and though there's no companion CD-ROM, you can download the code from the Web (this approach increases the likelihood that you'll get error-free examples to learn from). Sydow explains everything he does with Carbon code--he frequently builds one application, then expands or modifies it--so time spent reading his explanations is well rewarded. Plan to experiment with the contents of the Mac OS Developer Tools disk (the one that came with your copy of the operating system) using this book as your guide. --David Wall

Topics covered: The fundamentals of programming in the Cocoa language for Mac OS X, as well as aspects of that operating system that will be new to experienced Mac OS developers. The author puts emphasis on creating projects (under Project Builder) and graphical user interfaces (under Interface Builder), as well as windows, menus, other user interface elements and the event handlers that react to their manipulation. There's excellent coverage of localization techniques, programmatic QuickTime movie manipulation, and techniques for porting Mac OS 8 and 9 apps to Mac OS X.

From the Author

I am the author of "Mac OS X Programming". If you want to write Mac OS X programs, this book may be for you. If you're new to Mac programming, this book helps you get started. If you've programmed the Mac using the conventional Macintosh Toolbox API, this book helps you make the transition to using the Carbon API and the technologies new to that API (in particular, writing programs based on the powerful Carbon Event model). This book is a tutorial - it presents short code samples and code listings for short programs, and then provides detailed walkthoughs of that code. It is not a reference, and does not cover advanced topics - once you know the basics, visit Apple's developer web site to see the _entire_ Carbon API. If you like to learn about new programming topic by reading thorough explanations of the basics, consider this book. If you're familiar with my best-selling 1996 "Macintosh Programming Techniques 2nd Edition", you'll recognize the approach I use here.

The source code files, resource files, and projects for all of the book's examples are in one stuffed file at my web sites: sydow.com or macosxprogramming.com. If those site addresses get omitted from this review, you should be able to figure out where to go (use my last name .com or the title of the book (no spaces) .com).

-- Dan Parks Sydow

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Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: New Riders Press; 1st edition (December 15, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0735711682
• ISBN-13: 978-0735711686
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,158,160 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

58 of 60 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Correction from Author, January 23, 2002

By 

Dan Sydow (Milwaukee, WI) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mac OS X Programming (Paperback)

I am the author of this book. I did *not* write the Editorial Review that says this is a Cocoa book. That review, at the top of this page, and by a David Wall, is not my doing. When I saw the references to Cocoa in that review of this book, I added my From the Author comment. In that comment I tried to clear things up by stating that this is a Carbon book. I also use that note to mention that it is a tutorial book (not an advanced reference). I would never misrepresent one of my books - it's not right, it leads to complaints, leads to returns, and, as John Clayton's review illustrates, bad reviews. Though I'm not responsible for the "Cocoa" review, I'll apologize for it. In the future hopefully readers will rate the book on its merits as a Carbon book. If you want to give it a low rating based on that criteria, that's one thing - but please don't review it based on it being a Cocoa book! Thanks, Dan Parks Sydow

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A hand-holding tutorial, January 22, 2003

By 

Robert Smith (VA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Mac OS X Programming (Paperback)

If you have a copy of OS X and the Apple Development tools, this book will get you started programming the Mac. Each new function call is abundantly explained and illustrated with first code fragments, and then a complete working program. Few of the example programs take more than two pages for their entire source code.

This is the book's strength and weakness. As an experienced programmer and someone who has dabbled with Mac programming for years I found the pace of the book plodding and repetitive. I wished for a little less coverage on each topic so there would be room for more topics. But this will certainly stay on my shelf since, for those topics that were covered, I know I will be able to turn back and find fully worked out examples and explanations for these routines basic usage.

But now I need to figure out what to read next to become a better Carbon programmer, besides, of course, Apple's reference documentation.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Carbon-based training wheels, February 4, 2002

By 

David M. Dantowitz (Millburn, NJ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mac OS X Programming (Paperback)

If you've written MacOS applications or used other event-oriented frameworks, this book will get you started with Carbon-based applications and the Mac OS X Project Builder Software.

The book is easy to read with great examples. It's the perfect starting point if you have a Mac OS application that needs to be converted to Carbon.