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Technical Notes
Carbon is a set of APIs that enables C and C++ developers to take advantage of Mac OS X-specific features, including an advanced user interface tool kit, an efficient event-handling mechanism, the Quartz 2D graphics library, and multiprocessing support. In addition, other industry-standard C and C++ APIs are easily available to Carbon developers, providing access to such services as the OpenGL drawing system, the Mach microkernel, and BSD operating-system services. Because Carbon is a collection of C programming interfaces, developers can use virtually any Macintosh C development environment that supports PowerPC to build Carbon applications.

Carbon Resources
A guided introduction and learning path for developers new to Carbon.   Essential information for developers using procedural C.   Descriptions of procedural C programming interface elements.
Carbon Topics
View the complete Carbon Technical Notes List.
C APIs for creating scriptable applications (applications that can be controlled by AppleScript scripts) or applications that control other scriptable applications.   Programming interfaces for representing and manipulating various types of data.   Policies for streamlining development and improving the robustness and usability of Carbon applications.

Programming interfaces for gaining access to files and folders on physical storage devices.   A set of C programming interfaces for implementing graphics features in Carbon applications.   C APIs for implementing essential user interface features, namely, windows, dialogs, controls, and menus.

Facilities for sharing data between programs.   Programming interfaces for creating, processing, and playing high-quality sound content.   A set of APIs for adding full-featured, high-performance, highly reliable networking features to Carbon applications.

Tools, techniques, and programming interfaces for measuring, evaluating, and improving Carbon code performance.   Tools and programming interfaces to bring older Macintosh applications to Carbon and to adapt Carbon applications to new technologies.   A collection of system software functions that a Carbon application can use to print to any type of supported printer.

Facilities for programs to help manage their own scheduling and execution.   The QuickTime C API, with over 2000 functions developers can use to create multimedia applications for Mac OS X using the Carbon programming framework.   Support for locating, loading, and using various sorts of resources--such as memory allocations, feature availability information, and localized strings--in an application.

Conventions and services that prepare code for execution and control how functions and methods call one another.   Authentication, authorization, and cryptographic services that developers can call from Carbon applications to build security into their products.   C APIs for text input and display, managing fonts, converting text encodings, searching text, and performing sophisticated typography.

A full suite of developer tools for building Carbon applications, frameworks, and more. Apple's developer tools include Xcode, Interface Builder, and AppleScript Studio, as well as UNIX tools, debuggers, compilers, and optimization tools.   A set of C APIs for creating and handling user interface elements (such as windows, controls, and menus) on Mac OS X.  

View legacy technologies, including technologies, features, products, APIs, and programming techniques that are no longer supported or have been superseded.