Cross-Platform Development With .NET 8: Building for Windows, Linux, and macOS

Migration is always daunting but that should not be the case when you follow best practices and hire .NET 8 migration experts

Microsoft’s .NET framework supports app developers by continuing the tradition of releasing annual updates. The new one is .NET 8, released in November 2023, with significant changes to the way developers use the cross-platform development feature.

Statista data shows that the percentage of .NET frameworks and libraries in development is approximately 25 %. For that, cross-platform plays a big role. Cross-platform development with .NET 8 means developers need to write code once and deploy it on Windows, Linux, and macOS. This method is gaining popularity among developers due to its efficiency and cost-effectiveness.

.NET8 has become the first choice of developers in versatile and high-performing app development. And why not be popular? The human race has always embraced progress.

Why Choose .NET 8 For Cross-Platform Development?

There are multiple reasons for cross-platform development with .NET8. Let us dwell on each one of them.

Significant Improvement in Garbage Collector

The Garbage Collector (GC) improvements are the most effective updates made in .NET 8. Its GC now supports dynamic adjustment of an app’s memory limit, which particularly benefits cloud-native apps.

When we talk about its advantages, GC can manage memories more efficiently in different environments. As the memory is better managed, performance increases with reduced resource consumption.

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning with ML.NET

.NET 8 is a way to empower both AI and machine learning with ML.NET, an open-source, cross-platform framework. Developers working on cross-platform development with .NET 8 can easily build, train, and deploy models for tasks like predictive analytics or image classification within the .NET environment.

It helps to integrate machine learning with the .NET applications, and the amazing fact is developers do not need to learn new programming languages to do this.

JSON Improvements

The new version has brought JSON serialization and deserialization for cross-platform development with .NET 8. The main purpose behind these enhancements is to make cross-platforms more interconnected through seamless data exchange.

JSON updates become more beneficial where applications use hardware accelerators and Neural Processing Units (NPUs). Developers are also getting new numeric types such as half struct, when using cross-platform development with .NET8.

We can expect seamless data exchange among various platforms. So, this interconnectivity and synchronization will assist developers in having apps with less time and resources.

Randomness Tools

.NET 8 introduced new tools by which app developers can add randomness to the code. This improvement is nothing less than a blessing because developers know very well that randomness is a critical factor in the algorithm. This feature lets them use randomness directly to pick things, making machine-learning apps work better and more reliably on different devices.

Silicon-Specific Features

.NET 8 features are all built on the Intel AVX-512 instruction set; these silicon-specific features provide high-performance data processing for heavy applications in cross-platform development.

Cryptography Enhancements

Security enhancement is one of the most important aspects of the app development framework. With time, cyber threats are becoming more sophisticated, and to maintain security with it cross-platform development with .NET 8 implemented SHA-3.

It will provide security updates regularly and keep the entire system safe from cyber-attacks. This SHA-3 is an updated version of the widely used SHA-2, dedicated to cross-platform development’s diverse security threats.

Time Abstraction

.NET 8’s has time abstraction features that are to deal with time-related bugs. This feature also provides local time providers with worldwide time data further facilitating operations in different time zones. Time abstraction is great for developers working on global apps.

Microservices Architecture with Docker

.NET 8 simplifies the building and deploying process of microservices with the help of Docker. The benefits of this enhancement include better scalability, resilience, maintenance, and faster deployment. Docker integration eases container management for seamless deployment across diverse environments.

Comparative Overview: Cross-Platform Development with .Net 8 Vs. Flutter, React Native, and Xamarin

A quick comparison of cross-platform development using .NET 8 with other technologies like Flutter, React Native, and Xamarin may be helpful to understand where it stands.

Compatibility

.NET 8: Runs on macOS, Android, iOS, Windows, and Linux
React Native: Operable on Windows (with extensions), macOS (with extensions), Android, iOS, Web
Xamarin: Compatible with Windows, Android, iOS, macOS
Flutter: Works across Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, iOS, Web

Primary Coding Languages

For .NET 8: Utilizes C#, F#
In React Native: Employs JavaScript, TypeScript
Xamarin’s Choice: C#
Flutter’s Choice: Dart

Support Ecosystem

.NET 8: Boasts a comprehensive suite of NuGet packages catering to various needs
React Native: Gains significantly from the vast NPM package ecosystem
Xamarin: Enjoys a broad library encompassing all .NET libraries and Xamarin-specific options
Flutter: Offers a vibrant set of packages specifically tailored for it

Operational Performance

.NET 8: Delivers exceptional, native-level performance across all platforms with AOT compilation for mobile and JIT for web and desktop
React Native: Delivers solid performance, albeit with some limitations due to the JavaScript bridge
Xamarin: Provides respectable performance with native API access, mildly impacted by the mono runtime layer
Flutter: Achieves high performance through AOT compilation and an optimized rendering engine

Learning Difficulty

.NET 8: Presents a moderate challenge, particularly for those versed in C# and .NET frameworks
React Native: Demands a moderate understanding of JavaScript and React
Xamarin: The learning curve ranges from moderate to high, necessitating a grasp of C#, .NET, and mobile development principles
Flutter: The learning process is moderate. Dart is approachable for those with JavaScript or Java experience, though mastering widget and state management demands effort

Interface Development

.NET 8: Offers flexibility in creating both native and custom interfaces across platforms
React Native: Leverages a component-driven approach with an extensive collection of community-created UI libraries
Xamarin: Employs native UI controls for an authentic platform-specific appearance
Flutter: Utilizes a widget-based system for highly customizable and intricate UI components

Development Tools

.NET 8: Supported by Visual Studio, Visual Studio Code, JetBrains Rider, among others
React Native: Uses React Native CLI and Chrome DevTools for debugging purposes
Xamarin: Integrates seamlessly into Visual Studio with Xamarin tools and supports Visual Studio for Mac
Flutter: Incorporates Flutter SDK, along with command-line tools and Dart DevTools for debugging and profiling

Community and Support

.NET 8: Supported by a vast array of documentation, tutorials, and community forums
React Native: Enjoys robust support from a huge community and Facebook
Xamarin: Benefits from significant support, being a part of the wider .NET framework
Flutter: Experiences rapid growth in community support, bolstered by ample resources

Conclusion

Developing an application that is dependent on the framework and yet capable of running on multiple platforms is simple when developers choose cross-platform development with .NET 8. It requires only the installation of the .Net Core runtime for operation.

As the need for cross-platform developers increases, the .NET 8 release is timely with all the advanced features and enhancements. We’re confident of delivering the much-needed speed, safety, and reliability along with meeting the challenges of the development process.

As you get more comfortable with .NET 8, refine and enhance your application. Continuously improving your code can improve performance, easier maintenance, and stronger security.