5 ms·

You can write android apps in c# or JavaScript too. I'm not sure if you consider them "supported" but they both have pretty advanced tooling for the purpose.

kevingadd 9y ago
The C# tooling is good but it's partially closed-source and sold by a vendor (Xamarin). On that basis I don't think it really 'counts'. JS does, at least, since there are many ways to ship JS-based Android apps for free.
- Maarten88 9y ago
  Xamarin got bought by Microsoft, and they opened almost everything from Xamarin, except Xamarin Studio which got rebranded as Visual Studio for Mac.
StevePerkins 9y ago
If you write a C# app with Xamarin and have problems, then it's Xamarin's support problem. If you write a JavaScript app with Qt (I assume?), then it's Qt's support problem. Now, if you write an app with Kotlin, then it's Google's support problem. I can see how that would change the game for a lot of shops.
- AlphaSite 9y ago
  I'm not sure I trust google to support anything properly, I'm glad it's Jetbrain's problem. Atleast their tooling isn't garbage.
  - m_fayer 9y ago
    It is much easier to squeeze support out of Xamarin than Google.
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
- dragandj 9y ago
  What are you going to do if your Kotlin app has some problems? Call Google on the phone? Write and email and expect an answer?
  - pkolaczk 9y ago
    You can write a forum post. And then you'll get confirmations from another 100 developers, so you'll definitely feel a bit better and not alone in your pain. ;)
- pkolaczk 9y ago
  Google support - you mean this 50cm thick concrete wall developers and users are banging their heads on when they want some bugs fixed? Like e.g. this: https://productforums.google.com/forum/#!topic/hangouts/A5RpZ2VuUno https://productforums.google.com/forum/#!topic/hangouts/A5Rp...
on_and_off 9y ago
Not really. You don't have direct access to Android's API with C#, you use a dedicated runtime wrapping your calls and allowing you to interact with the framework. This comes with a very large variety of issues. With kotlin, you have 100% interop for free.

kevingadd 9y ago

The C# tooling is good but it's partially closed-source and sold by a vendor (Xamarin). On that basis I don't think it really 'counts'. JS does, at least, since there are many ways to ship JS-based Android apps for free.

Maarten88 9y ago
Xamarin got bought by Microsoft, and they opened almost everything from Xamarin, except Xamarin Studio which got rebranded as Visual Studio for Mac.

StevePerkins 9y ago

If you write a C# app with Xamarin and have problems, then it's Xamarin's support problem. If you write a JavaScript app with Qt (I assume?), then it's Qt's support problem. Now, if you write an app with Kotlin, then it's Google's support problem. I can see how that would change the game for a lot of shops.

AlphaSite 9y ago
I'm not sure I trust google to support anything properly, I'm glad it's Jetbrain's problem. Atleast their tooling isn't garbage.
- m_fayer 9y ago
  It is much easier to squeeze support out of Xamarin than Google.
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
dragandj 9y ago
What are you going to do if your Kotlin app has some problems? Call Google on the phone? Write and email and expect an answer?
- pkolaczk 9y ago
  You can write a forum post. And then you'll get confirmations from another 100 developers, so you'll definitely feel a bit better and not alone in your pain. ;)
pkolaczk 9y ago
Google support - you mean this 50cm thick concrete wall developers and users are banging their heads on when they want some bugs fixed? Like e.g. this: https://productforums.google.com/forum/#!topic/hangouts/A5RpZ2VuUno https://productforums.google.com/forum/#!topic/hangouts/A5Rp...

on_and_off 9y ago

Not really. You don't have direct access to Android's API with C#, you use a dedicated runtime wrapping your calls and allowing you to interact with the framework. This comes with a very large variety of issues. With kotlin, you have 100% interop for free.