Are there any issues with Processing when used on a Mac computer vs Windows?

edited February 2017 in Using Processing

I've never used Mac before and am considering using it for development (at work I may have an option of using one). When it comes to Processing I wondered if the transition would be seamless and if all my old code would work fine?

Any thoughts?

Answers

  • edited February 2017 Answer ✓

    @Patakk -- a number of regulars on the forum (and I believe some core Processing developers) are Mac users, and it works fine. I've been very happy with Processing on OS X 10.7 - 10.12. Some platform-dependent things you should consider:

    1. Many sketches may contain OS-specific file paths. These are very easy to update (e.g. / vs \)
    2. On a Mac, you can File > Export Application to Mac or Windows (or Linux). On Windows, you can only Export Application to Windows (or Linux).
    3. Mac sketches running on Retina displays may saveFrame() output frames at 2x resolution. Resolution can be adjusted for in code, e.g. with pixelDensity() https://processing.org/reference/pixelDensity_.html
    4. If your sketch code uses launch() or exec() to run OS level programs then it probably depends on Mac or Windows installed software or shell script / batch files etc. Most sketches do not use launch / exec.
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