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Xamarin Studio Changelog

What's new in Xamarin Studio 5.10.1 Build 6

Jan 23, 2016
  • Fixed: The iOS Designer was unable to open iPad xib files. Now these files will be correctly detected as 'xib' files and will render in the surface.
  • Fixed: Fixed an issue where some storyboards would not render when iOS9 or newer was selected.
  • Fixed: The Z-Order for individual ViewControllers was not being set/maintained correctly. It will be now!
  • Fixed: Incorrect (CloudKit) entitlement prevents distribution when using "Archive for Publishing”

New in Xamarin Studio 5.9 Build 431 (Apr 30, 2015)

  • New Project Dialog:
  • The window for creating new projects has been redesigned in this release. The new window has been designed as a wizard that allows creating a project in several steps: template selection, platform-specific options and generic project settings.
  • Template Selection:
  • The new window presents a new category hierarchy that makes it easier to find specific templates. Template categories are organized in two columns. The first column allows selecting the platform (iOS, Android, Mac or cross-platform) and also the kind of project (app, library or test). The second column shows the list of templates.
  • When a template is selected, a badge with the language name is shown in the template row. If the template supports more than one language, the badge allows selecting the language to be used for the new project
  • iOS Project Options:
  • Instead of having different sets of project templates for iPhone, iPad and Universal, the new window presents a single set of templates which can be used for creating projects for any device. The target device (or devices) can be selected in a configuration page of the project creation wizard
  • The wizard also allows selecting the target iOS version. Notice that the target version may also have an effect on the new project. For example if iOS 8 is selected as the minimum target, the code generated for the new project will use the new iOS 8 template using size classes. This allows to have only one storyboard instead of our previous two storyboard (iPhone/iPad).
  • WatchKit Project Options:
  • The new WatchKit wizard allows you to select the parent iOS project that will reference the two WatchKit templates created for you. Everything is now done automatically, from the references between the projects to the bundle .
  • You can also choose if you want to support Glance or Notification from the wizard. That will generate the storyboard views as well as the controller files for the selected scenes.
  • Android Project Options:
  • The Android wizard offers several configuration options, such as the target version and the theme, and it also allows adding a predefined set of commonly used components.identifiers fixed for you.
  • Xamarin.Forms Project Options:
  • The Forms (or Cross-platform) wizard allows selecting the platforms we want to support, as well as the kind of library to be used for sharing code.
  • Project Creation:
  • The final page of the wizard allows entering the name of the project and the solution, and its location on the hard disk. There are also options for initializing a local git repository for the project. The Preview pane at the right shows how files will be organized on disk after creating the project.
  • Publishing Workflow:
  • This Xamarin Studio Release includes a new integrated workflow for publishing iOS, Android and Mac apps.
  • The main goal of this new workflow is to provide a simple, straightforward, and consistent way to organize and publish app releases to the different app stores, with support for ad-hoc and enterprise packages.
  • Another goal is to reduce the number of build configurations that users have to manage by re-signing binaries instead of having to use a build configuration with different signing options. This means that the AdHoc and AppStore iOS configurations are not required anymore.
  • This new feature replaces the old iOS specific Archives view and the Publish to TestFlight command.
  • Creating an Archive:
  • The process of publishing an app starts by running the "Archive for Publishing” command on a project
  • This command is now available for iOS, Android and Mac projects. There is also an "Archive All” command in the context menu of the solution, which can be used to create archives for all projects of the solution. For this command to work, you must select a Release configuration.
  • The command will build the project and will create an archive, which will be shown in the new Archives View.
  • Archives View:
  • The Archives view shows all archives that have been created, grouped by solution. By default this view only shows the currently open solution. If you want to see all solutions that have archives, click on the "Show all archives” option.
  • The view can be opened by right-clicking on a project or solution and selecting the "View Archives” option, or using the same command from the Build menu in the main menu bar.
  • When a solution is selected, the view shows a list of all archives created for the solution, with information about the target platform, version, creation date. There is also an editable comment column.
  • When an archive is selected, the bottom section of the view shows information about the archive, and then the "Sign and Distribute” button can be used to publish the package.
  • The context menu of the archives list can also be used to distribute an archive, or to delete it.
  • An archive can be published by selecting it in the archives list and clicking on the "Sign and Distribute” command. You can also double-click on the archive.
  • The steps and information required for publishing a package depends on the target platform and channel, but in general in process involves the steps described in the next sections.
  • Channel Selection:
  • The following distribution channels are supported for iOS:
  • AppStore: generates a package.
  • AdHoc: generates an IPA.
  • Enterprise: generates an IPA.
  • Android distribution channels:
  • Google Play: generates a package and uploads it to a Google Play account.
  • AdHoc: generates an APK.
  • Mac distribution channels:
  • AppStore: generates an AppStore package.
  • Mac app bundle: generates a .app bundle.
  • Mac installer package: generates a .pkg installer.
  • Package Signing:
  • The wizard will show a list of signatures or profiles that can be used to sign the package for the selected distribution channel (notice that not all signatures are valid for all channels).
  • If the package is already signed, there will be an option for keeping the current signature.
  • For Android packages there is an option to create a new key, or add an existing key to the Xamarin Studio key storage. Keys can also be managed in the Android Signing Keys options panel in the Xamarin Studio preferences.
  • Channel parameters
  • Some distribution channels will require additional information.
  • Google Play distribution requires a Google Play account. If a Google account has not yet been registered, the wizard will ask for the account Id and secret, and this information will be stored so that it can be reused when distributing other apps. Accounts can be managed at any time in the Google Play Accounts options panel, in the Xamarin Studio Preferences.
  • It is also possible to select the track where to upload the package (Alpha, Beta, Rollout or Production).
  • Package publication:
  • Some channels (such as Google Play) have support for package uploading to registered accounts, so in this step the package will be generated and uploaded.
  • For channels that don’t have this possibility, the package will be generated and then saved to disk. The user can then manually upload the package.
  • Test Cloud:
  • Standalone UITest project templates provided for Android, iOS and Cross-Platform.
  • Android, iOS, Xamarin.Forms and Cross-Platform project templates now include a UITest project with a UITest that tests the main application.
  • UITest projects can be run locally with the iOS and Android device or simulator with the test results shows in the Unit Tests window.
  • UITests will run with the device or simulator (Android or iOS) selected in Xamarin Studio.
  • Run in Test Cloud menu added to the Unit Tests window to allow UITests to be uploaded to Test Cloud.
  • Improved Debugger Experience:
  • New Debugger Visualizers:
  • This release includes a new UI for quickly visualizing the value of a variable, field or property while debugging. The new Preview popup is supported for some specific data structures: strings, points, sizes, rectangles, colors, map locations, images, bézier curves, among others.
  • IEnumerable Expansion:
  • It is now possible to see the values returned by objects that implement IEnumerable. A new IEnumerator node is shown for those objects.
  • Xamarin.Android:
  • This release includes new build options for Xamarin.Android 5.1 features:
  • AOT Support (Ahead Of Time compilation) to reduce JIT startup overheads.
  • Multi-Dex Support: Multi-Dex support enables use of new Android SDK tools ("jack” and "jill’) to bypass the historical 64k method limit present within the .dex file format.
  • Arm64 Support: Xamarin.Android 5.1 adds support for targeting 64-bit Android platforms such as the Nexus 9.
  • ProGuard Support: ProGuard is an Android SDK tool which can be used to link and obfuscate Java code. The primary reason to provide ProGuard support is to permit smaller applications, so that gigantic libraries such as Google Play Services can be reduced in size.
  • Text Editor:
  • Partial C# 6 Support:
  • Mono 4.0 includes support for C# 6, and although Xamarin Studio doesn't yet fully support code completion and refactoring operations for all C# 6 constructs, it will now work for some of them.
  • Preview of editor settings changes:
  • When changing the configuration of the text editor in global preferences (such as the font, color, visible markers, etc), the changes will be immediately visible. This makes it easier to see what's the effect of some settings in the look of the editor.
  • Native Mac toolbar:
  • Xamarin Studio on Mac now has a toolbar with a native look and behavior. On Yosemite, the new toolbar blends with the title bar, thus providing more vertical space in the work area.
  • NuGet Support:
  • The Packages folder is now always visible in Solution pad.
  • Target Framework changes are now detected on project reload. The iOS Classic to iOS Unified migration tool changes the project’s target framework in the project file. Xamarin Studio will now detect this has been changed and the NuGet packages will be checked for compatibility with the new target framework.
  • Updated to NuGet 2.8.3: it allows NuGet packages that explicitly target NuGet 2.8.3 or use the new ASP.NET Core target frameworks to be installed into a project, such as xunit.
  • Configurable Components Directory:
  • A project can now specify a directory where Xamarin Components will be extracted to before being referenced by a project. This allows multiple solutions to use the same directory and prevents the assembly references from being modified when a project is opened within the context different solutions.
  • New View Options:
  • There is a new "Sketch" layout available in the View menu, which includes the new Sketch Properties pad. The pad can also be toggled from View → Pads → Sketch Properties.
  • You can toggle the display of the Console Output in the sketch timeline with View → Sketches → Console Output.
  • You can restore all CaptureValue visualizers for a sketch with View → Sketches → Restore CaptureValue Visualizers.
  • Resource Management UI:
  • In Xamarin Studio 5.7, we introduced the ability to add resources to your sketch files by creating a folder called "{yoursketch}.sketchcs.Resources". Now, this can all be managed from within Xamarin Studio.
  • The Sketch Properties pad shows the contents of your sketch's resources folder. You can add and remove resources right from the pad by right-clicking the Resources folder, or by dragging and dropping files into the folder.
  • If your sketch is in a project, you can also manage your resources in the solution explorer, by expanding the sketch file node to reveal the resources folder node within it. Be aware that if you delete a sketch in Xamarin Studio, the resources folder will also be deleted.
  • On iOS and Mac, resources are exposed via NSBundle.MainBundle. However, keep in mind that some Apple APIs cache resources. So, if you access an image using NSImage.ImageNamed(resourceName), and then modify the image, you won't see the changes in the sketch, because NSImage caches by name. To work around this, use NSBundle.MainBundle.ImageForResource(resourceName), or new NSImage(GetResourcePath(resourceName)).
  • Improved Security:
  • If you downloaded a sketch from the internet, we will not execute it until you approve it.
  • Xamarin.Forms Sketches Upgraded:
  • Xamarin.Forms 1.3.2 contains many bugfixes. Your Android and iOS Xamarin.Forms sketches can now use new features like element styles.
  • Other Changes
  • When a Mac sketch file is open, a dock icon now appears from the agent app (the process that actually evaluates sketch code). This makes it easy to bring the RootWindow back to the foreground, or quit the process if it's causing problems.
  • iOS Designer:
  • Fixed a crash caused by clicking on the 'Events' tab of a custom control when the corresponding source code for that class is missing
  • The labels have been restored to all the properties which were missing them
  • Improved support for unwind segues in the property panel
  • Improved the initial loading performance of large storyboards
  • Fixed more cases where incorrect resize handles were showing
  • Improved rendering accuracy when using NavigationBar or TabBar simulated metrics
  • WKInterfaceSwitch and WKInterfaceSlider will now have default 'click' actions in the Events panel
  • Improved property panel support for the 'Storyboard ID', 'Restoration ID' and 'Use storybosard id as restoration id' properties
  • The 'Identity' panel shows up for Custom NSObjects again
  • Many minor performance improvements for common situations like opening a storyboard, syncing the generated code and re-rendering after changing a property.
  • Improved rendering accuracy for NSNotificationCategory
  • It is now possible to use drag and drop on the design surface to re-order UITableViewCells
  • Other fixes and improvements:
  • The Welcome Page now shows a Start Trial button when a trial is available.
  • The Help menu now has links to the release notes of every installed Xamarin product.
  • Updated Japanese translation.

New in Xamarin Studio 5.8.2 (Apr 30, 2015)

  • General:
  • Fixed: Breakpoints cause iOS Simulator to freeze
  • Fixed: Error while saving json when editing LaunchImage.launchimage
  • Removed WatchKit launch images (not supported anymore in Xcode 6.2)
  • Updated WatchApp App Icons asset catalog UI for Xcode 6.2 final
  • Fixed: WatchKit app submission fails.
  • iOS Designer:
  • Fixed a performance regression which could cause reloads to take multiple seconds to complete
  • Restored the 'Identity' panel for UIBarItem and several other widgets
  • Fixed an issue triggered when using UISplitViewController on Yosemite and Xcode 6.2
  • The editor for the Constraint 'Multiplier' property has much improved support for values in the form `1:2` or `3/4`
  • Fixed several cases where incorrect resize handles appear when an item was selected on the design surface
  • Several property panel related default values have been fixed for UIDatePicker and countdown timer
  • Resizing a UITableViewCell now works as expected using either the resize handle or the property panel
  • UISegmentedControl.ContentOffset is taken into account on the design surface
  • WKGlanceControllers can now be made custom classes.
  • WKInterfaceTimer now renders correctly when it's properties are changed
  • The arrow representing the 'Notification Category' now shows up on the design surface
  • WKInterfaceSwitch and WKInterfaceImage tint colours render on the surface now
  • Added support for WKNotificationCategory sash color

New in Xamarin Studio 5.8.1 (Apr 30, 2015)

  • Added support for fast build checks. This feature reduces the time it takes to check if a project needs to be built, so starting an app is much faster when no code changes are made.
  • Fixed issue that caused breakpoints to be ignored in some cases on Windows.
  • Fixed: Tapping on a file or folder in the solution pad of a shared project causes the project to collapse
  • Fixed: On adding a XAML file to a Forms Shared project, Xamarin Studio gives error message
  • Fixed: Find and Replace in files changes the wrong strings
  • Fixed: Publish Android package should sign with SHA1 on 4.2 and below
  • Minor fixes in the WatchKit app templates

New in Xamarin Studio 5.8 (Apr 30, 2015)

  • The Xamarin Studio 5.8 release adds full support for iOS 8.2 and WatchKit. You can now visually design, launch, and debug WatchKit apps in App, Glance, and Notifications mode.
  • We've added full documentation in the Xamarin Developer Portal. The Visual Studio toggle is available in the appropriate guides at the top right of the screen to customize your docs experience for XS.
  • Sample code for Xamarin Watch apps is available from the Xamarin Samples Repository.

New in Xamarin Studio 5.7.2 Build 7 (Mar 11, 2015)

  • iOS Designer:
  • Fixed one cause of the designer not reliably starting the first time a storyboard is opened.
  • Android Designer:
  • The default memory settings for the rendering process have been updated. Addresses #26026.
  • Added a way to adjust the memory settings for the rendering process. Please refer to the KB article for more information.

New in Xamarin Studio 5.7 Build 661 (Jan 21, 2015)

  • GENERAL:
  • Xamarin Studio on Windows now uses the Taskbar icon to display global task progress.
  • Improved organization of global preferences. The C# options for source analysis have been moved from the Soruce Code section to a node below Text Editor / Source Analysis.
  • Improved the edit reference dialog. The tab for selecting an assembly now shows a list of recently selected assemblies instead of the file selector. There is now a Browse button which can be used to select new assemblies.
  • The startup project name is now stored in the user solution settings file instead of the .sln file.
  • Find in Files command is now much faster and uses less memory when there are many hits.
  • Application output (and other output pads) now have a Search command.
  • ANDROID:
  • Android Package Signing - Property Page:
  • Package signing properties for an Android application project can now be set without having to manually edit the .csproj. This is only for Release configurations, as the "Create Android Package” and "Publish Android Application” commands are only available for Release configs.
  • Android Designer Improvements:
  • Auto-completion support for layout XML files.
  • Preview support for some XML layout attributes.
  • Rendering support Wear round.
  • Fixed crash when opening a lot of layout files.
  • Fix "jumping” visual glitches when selecting items.
  • Aapt errors are now correctly handled and double-clicking them will bring you to the right file/line combination
  • Version chooser will now show values between manifest's minimum API level and target API level
  • Other Android fixes and improvements:
  • Android Apps fail to launch on Lollipop devices when in Release mode with Shared Runtime/FastDevelopment on.
  • CLASSIC TO UNIFIED API CODE MIGRATION TOOL:
  • The Project / Migrate to Xamarin.iOS and Xamarin.Mac Unified API menu item now also (partially) migrates project source code to the new API. The following types of changes will be made to the project source code:
  • Statements such as ‘using MonoTouch.Foundation;’ will be modified to ‘using Foundation;’.
  • Usage of System.Drawing types (RectangleF, PointF, and SizeF) will be migrated to their respective CoreGraphics equivalents (CGRect, CGPoint, and CGSize).
  • Method overrides on subclasses of MonoTouch classes will be migrated to match their new prototypes.
  • CFRunLoop constants will be migrated to their new names.
  • Calls to DismissModalViewControllerAnimated() will be updated to call DismissModalViewController().
  • Calls to PopViewControllerAnimated() will be updated to call PopViewController().
  • Calls to CGContext.SetShadowWithColor() will be updated to call CGContext.SetShadow().
  • Calls to CGContext.SetRGBFillColor() will be updated to call CGContext.SetFillColor().
  • iOS:
  • Fixed archiving of iOS apps with App Extensions (dSYMs and the archived-expanded-entitlements.xcent files are both archived now).
  • iOS Simulator configurations now default to i386-only for Unified API projects rather than i386+x86_64 to improve build times.
  • Added support for choosing vector images (.pdf’s) for Image Assets.
  • The Info.plist LaunchImage editor now defaults to requesting full-screen images for iOS >= 7.0 instead of the image sizes with room for the status bar.
  • When syncing back from Xcode, *.build directories are now ignored.
  • Fixed Asset Catalog compilation for iOS Library Projects w/o an Info.plist
  • Fixed archiving to pick the correct icon to use in the Archive Organizer window.
  • Fixed the Asset Catalog editor to properly serialize the json for image sizes. (bug #24164)
  • Fixed the Info.plist scheme for NSExtension (for use with the Source tab of the Info.plist editor).
  • Launch file dropdown in project properties is now alphabetically sorted.
  • Application bundle names and the native executable names now use the AssemblyName value (from the .csproj file) as opposed to a sanitized version of the MSBuildProjectName value. This means that if the AssemblyName has periods, then so will the application bundle directory name and the native executable name within the app bundle. (bug #1532)
  • iOS Designer Improvements:
  • Full support for Xamarin.iOS Unified projects.
  • SCNView, UIScreenEdgePanGestureRecognizer, UIVisualEffectView, UISplitViewController are all fully supported now.
  • Significantly improved support for UICollectionView and UICollectionViewLayout.
  • Added support for aspect ratio based constraints.
  • UITabBarController will no longer randomly disappear when creating new Tab segues.
  • Removed the ability to delete the NavigationBar from a UINavigationController. iOS will crash at runtime if you try this.
  • Constraints can now be exposed as an Outlet or custom class.
  • Fixed an issue changing the style of a UITableViewCell when constraints are disabled.
  • Fixed several issues where the property panel would write incorrect Xml to the storyboard.
  • Custom fonts are fully supported by the design surface and font picker.
  • Fixed a case where old assemblies were sometimes used to render custom controls.
  • Embed segues can now be created from Container Views.
  • Fixed an rare issue where views with zero width or zero height could break the designer.
  • Fixed a crash when deleting the segments inside a Segmented Control.
  • Custom properties of type 'float' and 'double' should work now.
  • Elements inside a UIScrollView will no longer change their position every time we render the storyboard.
  • Added support for UITextAlignment.Justified and UITextAlignment.Natural
  • Fixed an exception when right clicking on a Size constraint
  • The localization ID for UIView/UIViewController is displayed in the property panel now.
  • Improved support for UIViewController.PreferredStatusBarStyle.
  • SKETCHES:
  • Note that Sketches is still considered an early preview. It is by no means complete or necessarily stable, even though we have made scores of stability and feature improvements since the Evolve release. Sketches will be an ongoing preview bundled within Xamarin Studio for many months to come.
  • New visualizations:
  • Many new quick look visualizations are supported:
  • Mac/iOS: CGPoint, CGRect, CGSize, CGPath, NSBezierPath, NSFont, CGFont, NSColor, CGColor, NSUrl, NSAttributedString, NSGradient, CGGradient, CGLineCap, CGLineJoin, CGImage, NSImage, NSView, NSButtonType, CIColor, CIImage, CICrop, UIImage, UIView
  • System.Drawing: Point, PointF, Size, SizeF, Rectangle, RectangleF, Color, Image, Brush, Font, Pen
  • Android: Point, PointF, Rect, RectF
  • BCL: Uri, enums
  • Resource bundling:
  • Resource bundling is now supported. Resources can be accessed in iOS and Mac directly from the main NSBundle (e.g. direct use of say NSImage.ImageNamed is now supported).
  • There is not yet a UI available for embedding resources, however if a Sketch has the name MySketch.sketchcs, then you can create a directory next to the file called MySketch.sketchcs.Resources, and any files in that directory will be available within the sketch. A general purpose API for all platforms is GetResourcePath(string resourceName). This will return a full path to a resource, and is the only way to access a named resource on Android currently. NSBundle.MainBundle can be used as expected on Mac and iOS.
  • File format changed to Markdown:
  • The file format for a Sketch is now Markdown. While there is no immediate benefit to this, we will be taking advantage of Markdown features in the future and wanted to stabilize sooner than later on the basic file format.
  • Metadata (e.g. resource information) is stored within an XML code fence, followed by C# or F# in respective code fences. While arbitrary Markdown content outside of fences should be preserved, it will not be displayed inside Xamarin Studio. We still recommend only editing Sketch files in Xamarin Studio.
  • Classic iOS API not supported:
  • The Classic iOS API is no longer supported. Sketches will focus only on the Xamarin iOS and Mac Unified API going forward as Apple will be phasing out 32-bit iOS applications completely soon. Xamarin.Forms sketches are now available under the Unified iOS API.
  • Other fixes and improvements:
  • Android support is much more stable: we fixed a networking issue that was very apparent under Android while much less so under Mac and iOS.
  • Mac support now has a RootWindow property defined for exploring live Cocoa UI.
  • Multiple Sketches with the same platform target (e.g. iOS) may now be opened at the same time within Xamarin Studio
  • sketchcs and .sketchfs files are now registered to open with Xamarin Studio
  • VERSION CONTROL:
  • Fixed crash when opening a project that uses an incompatible Subversion Working Copy format.
  • Several optimization and fixes in the Version Control status view.
  • Version Control Log view now displays a default icon for emails which aren’t linked on Gravatar.
  • Fixed: Xamarin Studio crashes when viewing SVN log on Mac OS.X 10.10.
  • NUGET:
  • Menu options for add-in NuGet packages have been renamed to make them easier to discover, so for example instead of "Add Package" we now have "Add NuGet Package".
  • Error and warning icons applied to packages are now more consistent with other icons in the solution pad.
  • Fixed: Xamarin Studio doesn't recognize that files exist after NuGet Update.
  • Fixed: Update all Packages in Solution not Updating Dependencies.
  • Fixed: Unable to add NuGet package again after removing it.
  • PROFILER:
  • Profiling works for F# apps
  • Integration with Xamarin Profiler has been added for iOS and Android applications. To start profiling an application, you can use either the Run menu or Right click on a project and select Start Profiling. You can also launch the profile as a standalone application from Tools -> Launch Profiler.
  • New options to enable developer instrumentation have been added into Android and iOS projects’ Build Options. These are not retroactive and you will be asked to enable them if the project’s build configuration doesn’t have them when profiling is requested for it.
  • DEBUGGER:
  • Hex debugger visualizer now shows a wider range of characters.
  • Fixed: Cannot use typeof operator with type parameters.
  • Fixed: New breakpoint dialog shows Unix filepath example on Windows.
  • Fixed: Debugger reports a 'System.NotSupportedException' exception when using Set Next Statement command.
  • Fixed: Variable called dynamic confuses debugger.
  • SOURCE CODE EDITING:
  • Fixed: Unable to remove custom code template.
  • Fixed: Semicolon is put at the end of line instead at the position of cursor.
  • Fixed: Sort usings yields strange result
  • Fixed: Navigate Forward/Backward may cause a crash when used in rapid succession.
  • Fixed: Editor tooltips overlay new windows.
  • Fixed: Completion is not working for 'is' statement.
  • Fixed: Rename refactoring command fails with InvalidCastException on generic class name after 'new'.
  • Fixed: Xamarin Studio not recognizing reflection extensions in PCL when Microsoft.Net.Http is present.
  • Fixed: #define code showing as comments if symbol is not declared in build options.
  • Fixed: Folding markers not correctly shown when the columns for #region and #endregion differ.
  • Fixed: C# string property in object initializer autocompletes to #if.
  • Fixed: Cannot open .cshtml files.
  • OTHER FIXES AND IMPROVEMENTS:
  • Fixed: After the Update was installed, Windows did a forced restart.
  • Fixed delay when opening the project context menu.
  • Fixed: Deleting a folder in the solution pad does not result in the folder being removed from the tree.
  • Fixed occasional crash when deleting a solution folder while the properties pad is visible.
  • Fixed: Copying info in the test output window results in wrong text being copied.
  • Fixed: Xamarin Studio throws exception on doing Export Policy to specific file.
  • Fixed exception while creating VBNet->NUnit Library Project.
  • Fixed: Cannot change font of the Test Results pad (e.g. to monospace font).
  • Fixed: Nunit runner has trouble when class with TestFixture is defined without a namespace.
  • Fixed: Time summary not correctly shown in Unit Tests pad.
  • Fixed T4 TextTransformation interface issue with Initialize.
  • Fixed: T4 ignores output directive if PreprocessTemplate() is used.
  • Fixed: 'Load previous solution on startup' option breaks loading projects from the command line.
  • Fixed: Removing reference to a shared project from project references causes UI freeze.
  • Fixed: Enabling MSBuild Support in a Xamarin.Forms Shared Project doesn't build.
  • Fixed: [Windows] Xamarin Studio Updater window displays wrong number of installing updates.
  • Fixed: Go to Definition opens the assembly browser, but does not show the correct type.
  • Fixed: File appears twice when searching.
  • Fixed: "Add Package Source" popup window should remain at top.

New in Xamarin Studio 5.6 (Jan 21, 2015)

  • Sketches:
  • Experiment and learn with a live, interactive Sketch file. Create C# code, and see the results right next to each line. You can even test your code right in the simulator, without even creating a project.
  • Cool bonus features:
  • Try using the built-in static CaptureValue(string groupName, object value) method to build a graph.
  • In Android and iOS (Classic), try adding Xamarin.Forms pages to the static RootPage property (it's a TabbedPage, so you can do RootPage.Children.Add (new ContentPage { Title = "empty" }); for example)
  • In iOS (Unified), try out RootView
  • In Android (with the Android toolkit selected), try out RootActivity.

New in Xamarin Studio 5.5.4 Build 15 (Nov 28, 2014)

  • ANDROID:
  • Android Lollipop support
  • Fixed: when editing the android application settings via the property page it sets the manifest encoding to windows-1252.
  • If your Android project was targeting the Android L Preview, you'll need to update your Android XML manifest to change version information from L to 21. Additionally, you should retarget your project's framework to use version 5.0 or, alternatively, set it to use the latest available framework version.
  • iOS:
  • Fixed iCloud issue that caused failures when deploying to device.
  • Fixed occasional crash in the assets editor.
  • Fixed crash when opening image set.
  • Fixed: Xcode quits when Xamarin Studio is trying to sync with Xcode.
  • Fixed: size property in xcassets incorrectly created.
  • XAMARIN DESIGNER FOR IOS:
  • Constraints can now be made 'Outlets' and they can also be made Custom Classes.
  • The 'Indicator Insets' property of UIScrollView can now be edited correctly in the property panel
  • Several property panel issues with UITextField have been fixed
  • Prevented selection markers from being left permanently on the design surface
  • Improved layout guide support in UIContainerView
  • Fixed an issue changing a segue to be 'Model' via the property panel
  • Fixed a bug where setting UITableViewCells to Left Detail, Right Detail or Subtitle would prevent Xcode from opening the storyboard.
  • Fixed a bug opening legacy storyboards which have not been upgraded to at least Xcode 5.0 format.
  • VERSION CONTROL:
  • Fixed error when adding a new folder to a Subversion controlled project.
  • Fix crash when opening a project with an unsupported Subversion working copy format.
  • Fixed crash when creating a Subversion commit
  • OTHER BUG FIXES AND IMPROVEMENTS:
  • Fixed gravatar images not showing on retina screens
  • Fixed: Really wide "The Debugger Is Busy" dialog
  • Fixed: In External Tool, make ${FileName} resolve to the file name without extension, as in VS
  • Fixed: Shared Projects do not work unless you readd reference (Windows)
  • Fixed: Format XML document which has duplicated attributes removes all text
  • Fixed crash in Assembly Browser
  • Fixed occasional freeze when showing the editor context menu.

New in Xamarin Studio 5.5 Build 227 (Oct 7, 2014)

  • Components and NuGet Packages:
  • Support NuGet package dependencies in Components:
  • A Component from Xamarin's Component Store can now declare a dependency on one or more NuGet packages which will be installed into the project when the Component is installed.
  • The NuGet packages a Component depends on are displayed in the Packages tab on the Component Details page in Xamarin Studio.
  • Support package version constraints in NuGet packages.config file:
  • NuGet allows you to define a range of package versions that are allowed in your project. Xamarin Studio now supports these constraints when updating your NuGet packages or checking for package updates. Updating NuGet packages from the Solution window will now only update to a NuGet package that meets the version constraints. Similarly the Solution window will only show NuGet package updates being available for those updates that meet the constraints.
  • iOS:
  • New SceneKit Game project templates.
  • Basic migration support from Classic API projects to Unified API projects.
  • Several fixes in iOS 8 project templates.
  • Fixed iOS unit test projects referencing an iOS application project.
  • Android:
  • Virtual devices are now shown in the Run With menu, so it is possible to launch the application with a specific device (just like if it was selected in the targets combo in the toolbar).
  • Fix errors with launching emulators with spaces in the name.
  • Xamarin Designer for iOS:
  • Actions, Outlets and new types are now generated for projects based on the Xamarin.iOS Unified API.
  • Custom properties should always show up in the correct section in the property panel.
  • The PreferredStatusBarStyle value for custom UIViewControllers is respected by the designer.
  • Fixed a potential crash when changing a segue from a custom type to a built in type.
  • Much improved support for constraints made against the margin of a superview/sibling view.
  • Some checkbox based properties did not display the correct initial value in the property panel.
  • Changing the 'Breaking mode' in WebView should work correctly now
  • Altering the text traints in UITextField should work correctly now
  • Setting the 'selectedImage' property of UITabBarItem correctly updates the storyboard
  • Changes to custom control rendering:
  • Over the last several months we have realised that the majority of custom controls are unsafe to execute by default inside the designer. They typically rely on data provided by the application, but that data is not available when run inside the designer and so they just throw exceptions.
  • To provide a better experience for people we have made custom control support opt-in rather than than enabled by default. To load up a specific UIView or UIViewController as a custom control you must either implement System.ComponentModel.IComponent or annotate the class with [DesignTimeVisible (true)]
  • Other Improvements and Bug Fixes:
  • Mac] Menu items now show a description of the command in the tooltip.
  • Fixed Xaml completion when using shared asset projects
  • Fixed crash in Subversion support ("Another Subversion operation is already in progress" error).
  • Fixed an IndexOutOfRangeException when opening a file with custom added encoding.
  • Fixed an issue where shared asset project references would be forgotten between Xamarin Studio restarts.
  • Fixed an crash that would occur rarely when reloading a file that changed outside of XS.
  • The text editor doesn't lose focus anymore when switching shell layouts.
  • Fixed occasinal crash when changing from 2 to 1-column mode.
  • The full Xamarin.Android version is now available in the about box.

New in Xamarin Studio 5.4 (Oct 7, 2014)

  • Xamarin Designer for iOS:
  • Improved support for Xcode6 Beta GM
  • Rendering support for the new 4.7" and 5.5" resolutions has been added
  • Added support for the new @3x style images
  • Images with ~iphone or ~ipad appended to their name should be handled correctly by the property panel image selector now.
  • Fixed a crash when using Xcode 6 and selecting a UIActivityIndicatorView on the surface
  • Fixed a rendering glitch where controls could not be made smaller than 88 pixels in height in certain circumstances.
  • Initial support for unified storyboards. This is also known as 'Size Class' support.
  • Fixed many property panel issues with UISearchBar, UITableView, AttributedStrings and more.
  • Enhanced error logging when custom controls cause issues.
  • Fixed a bug whereby autoresizingMask values could be incorrectly applied when in constraint mode
  • Improved handling of 'Modal' segues when rendering simulated metrics
  • The TabBar inside a ProxiedTabBarController is now selectable with the mouse
  • A failed drag/drop of a view will correctly restore the ViewController to it's original state. This was just a cosmetic issue.
  • TableView Headers/Footers do not set 'translatesAutoResizingMaskIntoConstraints' to false anymore. iOS does not support this at runtime.
  • Double clicking on a Button to generate an action no longer makes the button jump around when you tab back to the design surface
  • The design surface should no longer jump when selecting items, creating constraints or using the embedded constraint editor
  • UITableViewSection elements can no longer be dropped in invalid locations
  • Custom Controls work correctly when using MonoTouch 7.9 or higher
  • View As iOS6.1 and earlier' now works with Xcode6
  • Some small rendering performance improvements
  • Several repainting issues have been fixed on the design surface
  • Implemented support for constraint multipliers in the form 1/2 or 4/9, etc.
  • The light style for UIStatusBar is now fully supported
  • iOS:
  • This release adds support for the iOS 8 SDK, including:
  • Support for the new 4.7" and 5.5" launch images has been added to the Asset Catalog editor.
  • Support for the new iOS 8 icon sizes has been added to the Asset Catalog editor.
  • Support for launch screen xibs and storyboards has been added to the Info.plist editor.
  • Support for the new Unified API (see Xamarin.iOS release notes for more details).
  • Support for iOS App Extensions. There are several new templates for creating extensions.
  • Support for compiling *.scnassets directories (files within a *.scnassets folder should have their BuildAction set to "SceneKitAsset”).
  • Support for compiling *.metal files (BuildAction set to "Metal”).
  • Components:
  • Added support for installing Components that target the new Unified API for iOS or Mac.
  • NuGet Support:
  • Added support for the new Unified target frameworks for iOS (Xamarin.iOS) and Mac (Xamarin.Mac).
  • Other Improvements and Bug Fixes:
  • Fixed crash when running the "Go to Declaration" command on types defined in packages.
  • Fixed Autocomplete (Intellisense) for XAML files in Xamarin.Forms project.
  • Fixed several editing issues in the Hex debugger visualizer.
  • Fixed display of list items in the debugger.
  • Fixed: XML Format document removes all undo history.
  • Control-shift-Z shortcut in the editor.
  • Allow copying text from the Tests Results pad.
  • Fixed "could not add packages" error while creating a Xamarin.Forms solution with a bad network connection.
  • Support for compiling standalone *.sks and *.scnp files (should all have their BuildActions set to "BundleResource”).
  • Support for building *.doa files (BuildAction set to "Collada”).
  • New file templates for creating *.metal files.
  • New SceneKit and SpriteKit particle system file templates.
  • Allow jpegs to be included in asset catalogs and also allow them to contain other folders
  • In order to build the new file types, the MSBuild engine must be enabled in the project options (Build/General section).

New in Xamarin Studio 5.3 (Oct 7, 2014)

  • NuGet Support
  • Improved status messages when restoring packages before update
  • Do not check for updated packages if project has no packages
  • When opening a solution, missing packages are restored before updating
  • Add Packages dialog - Package sources could not be reached. Previously when All Sources was selected and if any package source could not be reached then no packages would be displayed. Now a warning message will be displayed and packages will be displayed even if one package source could not be reached.
  • Restore packages for selected project instead of the solution. When the Packages folder is selected in the Solution pad the Restore menu option now restores just the packages for the selected project.
  • NuGet package restore no longer uses NuGet.exe. The NuGet package restore is now a part of the NuGet addin. This allows the package restore to integrate with the Xamarin Studio credential provider.
  • Show packages added to solution in Add Packages dialog. Opening the Add Packages dialog will show the packages added to all projects in the current solution.
  • No updates found but warnings logged status bar message. When one of the package sources is unavailable or invalid then NuGet will report a warning when checking for updates and no updates are found.
  • Show "packages up to date" message in status bar. When the user updates a single package, all packages in the project or all packages in the solution, and all packages are already up to date then the status bar now displays a message indicating that the package or packages are up to date.
  • Fix empty source being selected in Add Packages dialog when package source disabled and All Sources selected.
  • Restore packages for single project when updating that project
  • Fix version shown as download count in Add Packages dialog when searching for package versions.
  • Fixed: Updating packages can mark packages.config as deleted by Git
  • Preview of Android L Support:
  • This release includes preliminary support for Android L preview and for Android Wear. Xamarin.Android 4.17+ is required for Android L and Android Wear support.
  • Java 1.7 is now required to be able to use the previews. It’s also required if using some of the new support libraries that were part of the same release.
  • Android Designer:
  • Added API level 20 (Wear) and 21 (L preview) rendering.
  • Support for Theme.Micro (Wear) and the new Theme.Material for L.
  • Support Wear Square, Wear Round device and TV device types.
  • Support for Action Bar menu icons and navigation style via the menu and actionBarNavMode XML attributes.
  • iOS Designer:
  • Made Xcode6 support much more robust. The designer should render reliably under all circumstances now. Support has been added for most of the new properties in iOS8.
  • Fixed an issue where the automatic reload of the design surface after rebuilding the solution could complain about custom controls causing errors.
  • Fixed an issue where UIViewControllers would sometimes render at the wrong size. i.e. one that should render as iPhone 4" might change to iPhone 3.5".
  • Optimised rendering is now working correctly when scenes are set to iPhone 4" size. This should improve drawing performance for large storyboards.
  • UITableViewCell.Style now always writes the correct value to the storyboard file.
  • The KeyboardType property of UITextField now works correctly.
  • Fixed many rendering issues with the Outline panel.
  • Added support for NSUnderline in attributed strings.
  • If a UIView inside a UICollectionViewCell is made an outlet, that outlet will be correctly generated on the UICollectionViewCell.
  • The drag images for items in the toolbox will now match the SDK set for the storyboard. For example if the storyboard is set to view as iOS6.1, the drag images will be themed using iOS 6.1.
  • Code generation will only generate C# code when in C# projects now.
  • A Deployment Target combobox has been added to the Storyboard properties so you can choose the minimum supported iOS version for each storyboard.
  • Other improvements and bug fixes:
  • Fixed crash when building a project that makes use of custom tools.
  • Fixed issue that caused projects unloaded to be removed from solutions.
  • Android) Changed the default value of "Preserve data/cache between application deploys" to true.
  • Fixed crash when selecting "Run with” for an android project when an iOS project is the start up project of the solution.
  • Fixed an issue where Xamarin Studio would launch a second instance of an Android emulator after changing projects.
  • Fixed an issue where Xamarin Studio would no longer see a connected Sndroid device after changing projects.
  • Fixed an issue where Xamarin Studio would not detect that an Android emulator had started up.
  • Fixed text truncation issue for "Manage Android Devices” command in target selection combo.
  • New commands "New Function Breakpoint” and "New Exception Catchpoint” which are under Run menu and inside Breakpoints pad.
  • Fixed Version Control issues with file renaming.
  • Fixed trimmed text in Version Control Log diff cell.
  • Fixed issue when parsing conditions in .csproj files.
  • Fixed an issue where Xamarin Studio would open a solution twice in the solution pad.
  • Fixed crash when double clicking on an axml file if it was already opened.
  • Fixed crash or hand when running custom tools on items of a .csproj file.
  • Fixed: Cannot change the case of folder names in OSX.

New in Xamarin Studio 5.2.1 (Oct 7, 2014)

  • Fixes:
  • Fixed random hangs of Xamarin Studio.
  • Fixed code completion in .xaml files.

New in Xamarin Studio 5.2 (Oct 7, 2014)

  • Side-by-side editing support:
  • This release add support for placing text editors side-by-side and for detached floating editors.
  • 2-column mode can be enabled by using the "2 columns" command (Command+Option+2 on Mac, Control+Shift+2 on Windows) or by dragging an editor tab to one of the edges of the editor area. Once the IDE is in 2-column mode, you can move editors between columns as you wish. Editor tabs can be dragged out of the document area to create floating editor windows. A floating window can contain several editors.
  • NuGet Support:
  • Added framework retargeting support
  • When the project’s target framework or PCL Profile is changed in the Project Options, Xamarin Studio will check whether that new project target framework / profile requires a different assembly from the NuGet package to be installed or if the NuGet package is incompatible with the new project framework. The results of this compatibility check are displayed in the Package Console and affected packages are highlighted with warning icon in the Solutions window.
  • To retarget the NuGet package, right click the package or Packages folder and select Retarget. This will reinstall the NuGet package so the correct assembly is referenced by the project.
  • Automatic Package Update Check
  • Xamarin Studio will check in the background for updated packages when a solution is opened. This can be disabled in Preferences via the Check for package updates when opening a solution option.
  • Updated package information is shown in the Solution window on the Packages folder and on each Package inside the Packages.
  • Support custom package repository path in NuGet.Config
  • In the NuGet.config file, the standard directory used to install packages can now be overriden. This can be useful if you have multiple solutions in different locations which you would like to share the same packages directory. By default directory is "packages” inside the solution directory.
  • Other NuGet improvements and fixes
  • Fixed Visual Studio compatibility for MSBuild imports added to a project with NuGet by adding a condition to the import that checks the imported file exists. This allows a project created by Xamarin Studio to be opened in Visual Studio when packages are missing.
  • Fixed repositories.config file not being properly restored.
  • All checked packages in Add Packages dialog are now installed even if they are not currently displayed.
  • Improved status bar message when updating packages. Previously Xamarin Studio would show a message indicating that the packages were updated successfully even when no updates occurred. Now when no updates are available the status bar message will display "Packages are up to date".
  • Fixed incorrect Add Packages button label when a single package checked in Add Packages dialog.
  • Package dependencies are now resolved from all enabled package sources and not just the currently selected package source in the Add Packages dialog.
  • Before updating NuGet packages Xamarin Studio will now check to see if any NuGet packages are missing for the project and restore them before attempting the update. Updating a package when packages are not restored can fail since the older NuGet package will need to exist so it can be uninstalled. Restoring missing packages before attempting to update the packages fixes this problem.
  • Debugger:
  • New unified exception, function and location breakpoints dialog
  • All kinds of breakpoints (based on location, function or exception) can now be created with the single command "New Breakpoint" in the Run menu. Also, all breakpoints can be managed in the Breakpoints pad.
  • As a result of this unification, some features which were previously only available for location breakpoints, are now also available for exception and function breakpoints, such as Hit count conditions, or the option to log a message when the breakpoint is hit.
  • Other debugger improvements and bug fixes:
  • Fixed a bug in resolving some variables in the debugger tooltips when "Allow implicit property evaluation and method invocation” is disabled. Fixed a bug caused by the use of UseShellExecute when running an application under a custom SDB debugger command. Fixed the completion-list logic to hide compiler-generated fields. Fixed the bug that sometimes caused the exception popup from going away in the editor.
  • Fixed the completion-list logic to hide compiler-generated fields.
  • Fixed the bug that sometimes caused the exception popup from going away in the editor.
  • ASP.NET Support:
  • ASP.NET MVC project templates have all been updated to ASP.NET 5.1.2.
  • ASP.NET MVC project templates now use NuGet references.
  • ASP.NET MVC projects are now compatible with VS2013.
  • ASPX CodeBehind is now only updated on saving the ASPX file. It is not longer updated when building the project.
  • HTML5 doctype is now used for new files.
  • Other Improvements and Bug Fixes:
  • Simplified the options panel for choosing the IDE fonts.
  • F#: fixed bugs in Android fragment templates, which were producing invalid code. Tooltips now display in F# scripts that are not part of the current project
  • Xamarin.Mac: fixed a bug preventing custom "Document Types” in the Advanced section of the Info.plist editor from loading the CFBundleTypeIconFile icons that the user had previously specified.
  • Version control: fixed an interface corruption caused by the Commit Dialog.
  • Fixed memory leak when reloading solutions
  • Fixed context menu positioning issue on Macs with retina display (bug 20938)
  • Fixed exceptions thrown by Windows Native File dialogs when working with encodings.

New in Xamarin Studio 5.1 Build 479 (Jul 3, 2014)

  • Shell:
  • The Xamarin Studio shell has been reviewed to make sure it looks awesome in retina displays. We have new beautiful icons and a number of other visual enhancements like the new welcome page, fine-tuned toolbar status bar, about dialog and Windows splash.
  • NuGet Support:
  • NuGet support is now included by default in Xamarin Studio, with a brand new user interface. The new Add Packages dialog allows NuGet packages to be searched for and installed into a project.
  • Add Packages Dialog can be opened using the Project → Add Packages menu option, or from the Solution pad by right clicking the project and selecting Add → Add Packages, or by right clicking the Packages folder and selecting Add Packages. Double clicking the Packages folder also opens the dialog.
  • In the top right of the dialog is the search text box. The Add Packages dialog will search for packages as you type. Alongside the normal free text search, the search text box supports searching for packages by the ‘tags’, ‘id’, ‘description’ properties if the package source supports these. For example: "id:NUnit", "tags:fsharp", "description:mono". Recently used packages are shown first in the packages list for the current Xamarin Studio session.
  • NuGet packages installed in a project are shown in the new Packages folder, under the project node in the Solution pad. References added by packages are shown in the new "From Packages" folder under the References folder, under the project node.
  • NuGet packages will be automatically restored on opening a solution. Automatic NuGet package restore can be enabled/disabled in Preferences / Packages / General. NuGet package restore can be started manually by selecting Project → Restore Packages, right clicking the solution and selecting Restore Packages, or right clicking the Packages folder and selecting Restore.
  • Package sources can be configured in Preferences / Packages / Sources. Double click a package source to update an existing source. To reorder the packages, drag and drop a source in the list. Package source credentials can be configured for feeds that require authorization. Invalid credentials or package source urls will be highlighted in the list of sources.
  • Xamarin Designer for iOS:
  • The Xamarin Designer for iOS is a visual designer for the iOS Storyboard format which is fully integrated into Xamarin Studio. The iOS Designer maintains full compatibility with the Storyboard format, so that files can be edited in either Xamarin Studio or Visual Studio in addition to Xcode's Interface Builder. Additionally, the Xamarin Designer for iOS supports advanced features such as custom controls that render at design-time in the editor.
  • F#:
  • F# support is now included by default in Xamarin Studio, with all templates for building Android and iOS apps. No external add-ins are required.
  • Projects:
  • Added Xamarin.Forms project templates.
  • Added Shared Assets Projects support.
  • The default PCL profile has been changed to Profile78 (.NET 4.5, Windows Phone 8, Windows Store 8, Xamarin.Android, Xamarin.iOS).
  • Added support for loading (not building) Windows Phone 8 and iOS projects in Xamarin Studio on Windows.
  • The “search for new files on project load” feature has been removed in favor of MSBuild wildcards in project files.
  • The resx file template is now available for all .NET project types.
  • Fixed resx codebehind generation for PCL projects.
  • The VS2012 solution format is now used by default, compatible with Visual Studio 2010 SP1 and later.
  • Source Editing:
  • Added simple code completion when editing MSBuild project files.
  • The source editor now recognizes defines set automatically by the build system such as __ANDROID__.
  • Improved visual appearance of Source Code Analysis.
  • Derived symbol finding is much faster now.
  • Usage highlighting is now displayed in source analysis bar.
  • Version Control:
  • Fixed ‘Subversion Operation is already in progress’ issues.
  • Fixed issues with being able to delete current branch in Git.
  • Fixed IDE hanging when managing tags in Git.
  • Added support for upgrading Subversion repositories and reporting if the Subversion working copy is too new to handle.
  • Fixed an exception thrown when double clicking on Log diff.
  • Improved experience with the Checkout Dialog when handling invalid URLs, non-empty checkout directories and invalid credentials.
  • Fixed an issue which allowed users to make a commit with an empty message.
  • Changed Version Control Remove command’s confirmation text to “Remove” instead of “Delete” to prevent confusion of what will happen.
  • Remote Status button has been removed from Review and Commit for Git.
  • Optimized Review and Commit diff loading.
  • Optimized switching to Changes View when double clicking a diff in the Log.
  • Android:
  • The AndroidAsset build action is now set correctly on new files.
  • Android Designer: Several fixes in alternative layout management.
  • The debugger now connects more reliably to the Android emulator.
  • iOS:
  • Added support for simulating app launch via Background Fetch.
  • Added check to ensure that Content and BundleResource files don't conflict with the native exe.
  • Mac:
  • Bundles are now codesigned with the Entitlements even if no provisioning profile has been specified.
  • Debugger:
  • Generic methods now can be invoked in the Immediate Window.
  • Win32 debugger
  • Fixed evaluation of private fields.
  • Implemented "Step over properties and operators" setting.
  • Fixed unnecessary stepping at beginning and end of methods.
  • Fixed unnecessary step when step finished on line with breakpoint.
  • Web References:
  • Added possibility to choose whether you want to generate Asynchronous methods when using Web References.
  • Fixed issues with PCL and Web References.
  • Added Delete All context action for Web References Folder.
  • Split Web References folder into Web References and Web Services.
  • Other Improvements and Bug Fixes:
  • Fix execution target list unexpectedly changing.
  • The Test Pad now only shows tests that will be built in the active configuration.
  • Added PublicResXFileCodeGenerator custom build tool
  • Improved french translation
  • Fixed crash when using the Hex debugger visualizer
  • Files in the solution are now sorted by file name without extension.
  • When grouped files are ungrouped in the solution pad, this change will now be persisted correctly.
  • MSBuild project loading errors are now reported back to the build output pad.
  • The correct font is now used in custom UI elements on Windows.
  • ASP.NET file templates are now usable from ASP.NET MVC projects.
  • It’s no longer possible to create custom policies with null or invalid names.
  • Component references can now be removed from projects even when they are corrupt/invalid.
  • Downloaded updates are now kept in the cache when switching updater channels, and the cache is periodically pruned.
  • Files in the update download cache now have user-friendly names.
  • VI status area no longer hangs on some systems

New in Xamarin Studio 5.0 Build 878 (May 31, 2014)

  • Shell:
  • The Xamarin Studio shell has been reviewed to make sure it looks awesome in retina displays. We have new beautiful icons and a number of other visual enhancements like the new welcome page, fine-tuned toolbar status bar, about dialog and Windows splash.
  • NuGet Support
  • NuGet support is now included by default in Xamarin Studio, with a brand new user interface. The new Add Packages dialog allows NuGet packages to be searched for and installed into a project.
  • Add Packages Dialog can be opened using the Project → Add Packages menu option, or from the Solution pad by right clicking the project and selecting Add → Add Packages, or by right clicking the Packages folder and selecting Add Packages. Double clicking the Packages folder also opens the dialog.
  • In the top right of the dialog is the search text box. The Add Packages dialog will search for packages as you type. Alongside the normal free text search, the search text box supports searching for packages by the ‘tags’, ‘id’, ‘description’ properties if the package source supports these. For example: "id:NUnit", "tags:fsharp", "description:mono". Recently used packages are shown first in the packages list for the current Xamarin Studio session.
  • NuGet packages installed in a project are shown in the new Packages folder, under the project node in the Solution pad. References added by packages are shown in the new "From Packages" folder under the References folder, under the project node.
  • NuGet packages will be automatically restored on opening a solution. Automatic NuGet package restore can be enabled/disabled in Preferences / Packages / General. NuGet package restore can be started manually by selecting Project → Restore Packages, right clicking the solution and selecting Restore Packages, or right clicking the Packages folder and selecting Restore.
  • Package sources can be configured in Preferences / Packages / Sources. Double click a package source to update an existing source. To reorder the packages, drag and drop a source in the list. Package source credentials can be configured for feeds that require authorization. Invalid credentials or package source urls will be highlighted in the list of sources.
  • Xamarin Designer for iOS
  • The Xamarin Designer for iOS is a visual designer for the iOS Storyboard format which is fully integrated into Xamarin Studio. The iOS Designer maintains full compatibility with the Storyboard format, so that files can be edited in either Xamarin Studio or Visual Studio in addition to Xcode's Interface Builder. Additionally, the Xamarin Designer for iOS supports advanced features such as custom controls that render at design-time in the editor.
  • F#:
  • F# support is now included by default in Xamarin Studio, with all templates for building Android and iOS apps. No external add-ins are required.
  • Projects
  • Added Xamarin.Forms project templates.
  • Added Shared Assets Projects support.
  • The default PCL profile has been changed to Profile78 (.NET 4.5, Windows Phone 8, Windows Store 8, Xamarin.Android, Xamarin.iOS).
  • Added support for loading (not building) Windows Phone 8 and iOS projects in Xamarin Studio on Windows.
  • The “search for new files on project load” feature has been removed in favor of MSBuild wildcards in project files.
  • The resx file template is now available for all .NET project types.
  • Fixed resx codebehind generation for PCL projects.
  • The VS2012 solution format is now used by default, compatible with Visual Studio 2010 SP1 and later.
  • Source Editing:
  • Added simple code completion when editing MSBuild project files.
  • The source editor now recognizes defines set automatically by the build system such as __ANDROID__.
  • Improved visual appearance of Source Code Analysis.
  • Derived symbol finding is much faster now.
  • Usage highlighting is now displayed in source analysis bar.
  • Version Control:
  • Fixed ‘Subversion Operation is already in progress’ issues.
  • Fixed issues with being able to delete current branch in Git.
  • Fixed IDE hanging when managing tags in Git.
  • Added support for upgrading Subversion repositories and reporting if the Subversion working copy is too new to handle.
  • Fixed an exception thrown when double clicking on Log diff.
  • Improved experience with the Checkout Dialog when handling invalid URLs, non-empty checkout directories and invalid credentials.
  • Fixed an issue which allowed users to make a commit with an empty message.
  • Changed Version Control Remove command’s confirmation text to “Remove” instead of “Delete” to prevent confusion of what will happen.
  • Remote Status button has been removed from Review and Commit for Git.
  • Optimized Review and Commit diff loading.
  • Optimized switching to Changes View when double clicking a diff in the Log.
  • Android:
  • The AndroidAsset build action is now set correctly on new files.
  • Android Designer: Several fixes in alternative layout management.
  • The debugger now connects more reliably to the Android emulator.
  • iOS:
  • Added support for simulating app launch via Background Fetch.
  • Added check to ensure that Content and BundleResource files don't conflict with the native exe.
  • Mac:
  • Bundles are now codesigned with the Entitlements even if no provisioning profile has been specified.
  • Debugger:
  • Generic methods now can be invoked in the Immediate Window.
  • Win32 debugger
  • Fixed evaluation of private fields.
  • Implemented "Step over properties and operators" setting.
  • Fixed unnecessary stepping at beginning and end of methods.
  • Fixed unnecessary step when step finished on line with breakpoint.
  • Web References:
  • Added possibility to choose whether you want to generate Asynchronous methods when using Web References.
  • Fixed issues with PCL and Web References.
  • Added Delete All context action for Web References Folder.
  • Split Web References folder into Web References and Web Services.
  • Other Improvements and Bug Fixes:
  • Fix execution target list unexpectedly changing.
  • The Test Pad now only shows tests that will be built in the active configuration.
  • Added PublicResXFileCodeGenerator custom build tool
  • Improved french translation
  • Fixed crash when using the Hex debugger visualizer
  • Files in the solution are now sorted by file name without extension.
  • When grouped files are ungrouped in the solution pad, this change will now be persisted correctly.
  • MSBuild project loading errors are now reported back to the build output pad.
  • The correct font is now used in custom UI elements on Windows.
  • ASP.NET file templates are now usable from ASP.NET MVC projects.
  • It’s no longer possible to create custom policies with null or invalid names.
  • Component references can now be removed from projects even when they are corrupt/invalid.
  • Downloaded updates are now kept in the cache when switching updater channels, and the cache is periodically pruned.
  • Files in the update download cache now have user-friendly names.
  • VI status area no longer hangs on some systems

New in Xamarin Studio 4.2.2 (Dec 18, 2013)

  • Re-added a fallback to the XCode database for provisioning profiles. You will no longer be required to log into your Apple developer account in Xamarin Studio unless you are using entitlements.
  • Fixed Subversion support on Mavericks.
  • Fixed an issue seeing some toolbar options in the Android designer when using custom device definitions.