Developers can now start building apps for Windows 10
Developers can now start building apps for Windows 10
Well, we didn’t see this coming. Microsoft has just released tools for developers to write universal apps for Windows 10, which is set to arrive this summer.
Before downloading and using the SDK, you’ve to first sign up for the Windows Insider Program, install the latest Windows 10 Technical Preview, followed by Visual Studio 2015 CTP6. Instructions can be found here.
For the uninitiated, Microsoft is converging Windows into one core and one developer platform; more specifically, Microsoft is calling them one Windows core and the universal app platform. The end goal is to allow developers to write an app once, and then deliver it in one package to a single app store. And these apps will reach every device running Windows 10, be it a PC, a smartphone, an Xbox, a Surface Hub, or an IoT device.
The Windows core on the other hand is a common platform consisting of core OS components of each device family, along with runtimes, frameworks, and the necessary drivers. In fact, the Windows 10 device platform allows independent hardware vendors to create a single universal driver that will work across all Windows device families.
Of course, having a universal app doesn’t mean it’ll look and behave the same across devices; developers can still target platform or device-specific capabilities. You can read more about this universal app platform here.