Introducing Xcode 4 - Xcode 4 - page 9

Xcode 4 is backward compatible with Xcode 3. You can load Xcode 3. x projects and save them again, and Xcode 3
should still be able to open them. Naturally, you can't open Xcode 4 projects in Xcode 3.
In Xcode 3, floating windows could proliferate uncontrollably, making them difficult to work with. Xcode 4
gathers every feature into a single window with multiple work areas and panes. The active areas can be shown,
hidden, split, or resized as needed. Every Xcode feature, including Interface Builder (IB) and the debugger, can
appear in this window. Features can be hidden when you're not using them. Hiding and revealing features adds
a small overhead, but is much more efficient and productive than a chaotic mess of windows. You can also cre-
ate your own workspaces to save and restore complete window layouts.
TIP
Compared to Xcode 3, Xcode 4 becomes more efficient with a larger monitor. Xcode 3 often wasted screen real
estate; for example, the right side of a code window was usually empty. With Xcode 4, you can have a console/de-
bugger, editor, file list, and IB open simultaneously in tiled panes. With a large monitor, these panes become large
enough to be truly useful without scrolling, resizing, or switching.
At the top of window, the toolbar area includes a new summary panel that displays project status. This gives
progress updates as a project builds and displays a count of warnings and errors after each build. The toolbar
has been simplified. Only build/run and stop buttons are available. In the first release of Xcode 4, it's no longer
possible to customize this area with your own selection of build/run/stop/clean options, as it was in Xcode 3.
Working with tabs
Xcode 4 introduces tabs— editor sub-windows that work like the tabs in a browser, allowing single-click
switching between selected files, as shown in Figure 1.4. Tabs replace the file list that appeared above the editor
pane in Xcode 3. The file list was an inefficient way to select files for editing. With tabs, you can add your
choice of files to the tab bar as you work and then save the tab bar with the project. You can also delete files
from the tab bar when you are no longer working on them.
FIGURE 1.4
The new tab bar replaces the project file list and appears under the main toolbar near the top of the Xcode 4 win-
dow.