Programming with the M1 Mac

[TimStone]

It would appear that ARM architecture is certainly going to dominate a lot of hardware sales in the future. As Windows developers, we write code designed for the Intel x86/64 operating systems. However, now even Microsoft is embracing this new chip technology that consumes far less power, and runs very quickly.

Yesterday I obtained a new MacBook Air with the M1 chip. True, tomorrow the M2 will be released for sale, but I saved a lot of money by getting this model, and the newer features we not essential. My new computer has 8 GB of RAM, and a 512 GB SSD. It runs Mac OS with the ARM architecture. My essential question was, can this actually be used to write full programs.

After much research, and some experimenting, I decided to install the latest version of Parallels Desktop Pro ( 17 ). I already had the license. The installer will assist you in downloading an ARM version of Windows 11 Home. Then I entered an existing Windows 10 PRO license key, and it activated, displaying that I was now running Windows 11 Pro. Of course, I had gone the Insider option so I could get the ARM preview.

I then installed a copy of my Ultra Edit. Next I transferred all of my build and data files for my primary application. Without hesitation, the program I built on my Windows 11 computer ran on the MacBook Air without hesitation. I even put the startup icon in the Dock of the Mac, went into coherence mode, and of course the program now runs just like it's Mac counterparts.

The next step was to build new .exe files with Visual Studio. I am using FWH and Harbour - both 64 bit versions. I downloaded, and installed Visual Studio Community 2022, Version 17.3 PREVIEW 2. This is the one designed for ARM 64 bit programming. I made some minor path adjustments to the necessary files, in my previous project file, and then told it to rebuild the program. IT WAS SUCCESSFUL.

I will have a lot of testing to be sure all is working well, but at least now I now we can do this for our clients who elect to purchase an ARM based computer. Maybe some of you have already traveled down this path and would like to share. Others may have thought about it. The bottom line is that it is something we can do if that is the right solution for our clients.

[Antonio Linares]

Dear Tim,

thank you so much for sharing your experience about it with us

[ramirezosvaldo2]

Hello guys

I Would like to shared about it.

Last year I gave my son an m1 for his 15th birthday, and I told him to lend it to me, well, I installed the harbor from git, downloaded, and all its components, build it and then run a couple of examples, and the truth is, the speed it's amazing, ... "he won't let me use it anymore"

Best Regards
Osvaldo Ramirez