Updating developer tools

Question

This is going to sound like a really basic question, maybe even dumb, but is there a way to update all of your developer tools? I was just on a thread where Xcode 3.1 vs. 3.2 was being discussed, and I checked my version only to see that I still have 3.0. I've always relied on Software Update to update all my software, but I guess it doesn't update the developer apps. Now, I know I could go online and download the new version of Xcode, but then what -- do I have to go and one at a time do the same thing with Interface Builder and Dashcode and Quartz Composer and all the utilities and what not, or is there a way to update them all at once? Thanks!

Answer 1

Tron55555 wrote:
So to make sure I have this right, I would simply go and download the Developer Tools from Mac's web site just like I would do if I were installing them for the first time, and then install them on my computer and it will do the rest for me?
Yes, if all goes well. You pretty much just click Install and it's the installer's job to get everything in the right place.
How does that work -- does it just overwrite the apps that need to be updated and leave the rest alone or what?
An installation tool is often more complex than the software it installs. The process can be extensive, and usually is for a dev tools upgrade. Some installation programs tell you what they're doing, and you'll see that they first scan the environment to determine whether you have the correct hardware and OS. Then they'll look to see if an older version is installed. If so, the installer might move some files, delete others, and leave some unchanged just as you surmised. Most of that work will be completed before any new files are installed.
One word of caution:... Always wait until you have a real need for some feature in a newer version.
... the only thing I worry about is that I don't know enough about the features available to know if a newer version might have something that might be helpful
A lot depends on what you're building with the tools. If you were currently developing iPhone apps, you'd probably have a need to upgrade your tools every few weeks because the target system is changing so rapidly. If you were developing OS X apps, you would be watching for new features, but OS X is a relatively mature system, so it's not changing as fast as iPhone OS. This means that an OS X developer might consider an upgrade every few monthes instead of every few weeks.
If your primary purpose is to learn programming--perhaps first in C and then Obj-C--your work isn't likely to be affected by minor version numbers, or even major version numbers for that matter. For example, one of your recent threads was about C99. Implicit in that discussion was the fact that the most recent upgrade to the C language was 10 years ago. This tells you that a change from Xcode 3.1 to Xcode 3.2 will probably have zero effect on the work you're doing right now. Even when a new version of Xcode also brings in a new version of the C compiler, gcc, the kind of change involved isn't likely to interest you. You could learn C with a compiler that was 30 years old and do just fine. Obj-C might change a little faster than C, but for your purposes, it's not going to be a moving target.
When you start studying Cocoa and especially if you get interested in learning about iPhone programming you might need to worry more about upgrading simply because the Mac and iPhone Dev Centers are constantly purging the older guides, reference docs, sample code, etc., and replacing these with resources that apply to the newest systems. Similarly, you might buy a book on programming that refers to tools that are newer than yours. But you'll know when that happens.
Don't upgrade your tools every few weeks just to find out whether you're missing out on something. Right now, what you're missing out on is lots of time and effort spent making new installations work, and then learning how to use those new tools. Just about the time you discover what some little icon on your Build Results window does, it will be moved to a new hiding place in your new version of Xcode.
Btw, Xcode 3.2 is only for Snow Leopard. I think the newest version for OS X 10.5.x is 3.1.3. So if and when you get Snow Leopard you'll have to get new Dev Tools. Until then, I doubt you need to bother, especially if you like your current environment and--best of all--everything is working!
Hope that answers your questions.
\- Ray