Feature List of MonoDevelop IDE

Feature List with MonoDevelop IDE

In this section you will come to know the various features available for each platform. MonoDevelop features not shown in the list are available for all platforms.




IDE Workbench

Solution Pad

• Shows the file structure of the opened solution. Most of project operations can be done in this pad:
  • Project building
  • Management of project files and folders
  • Version control
  • Editing project references
  • Running custom tools
• Available display options: Show all files, show code-behind files.
• To display the solution pad, click on the View/Solution menu option.

Class Pad

• Shows namespaces, types and members defined in the solution.
• Available display options: Nested namespaces, group by access/member type, show public members only.
• To display the solution pad, click on the View/Classes menu option.

Files Pad

• Allows browsing the file system.
• Basic file and folder management commands.
• To display the solution pad, click on the View/Files menu option.

Error List Pad

• Supports message filtering by type.
• The context menu provides direct access to error documentation.
• To display the solution pad, click on the "View/Error List" menu option.

Task List Pad

• Support for user defined tasks.
• It shows tasks specified in source code using comment tags (FIXME, TODO, ...). Comment tags can be customized (Edit/Preferences/Task List).
• To display the solution pad, click on the "View/Task List" menu option.

Build Output

Support for output window pinning (avoids overwriting of the output if the project is built again).

Application Output

Support for output window pinning (avoids overwriting of the output if the project is run again).

Message Load Pad

Log of internal MonoDevelop messages.

Welcome Page

Recents list.

Documentation links.

Create/Open project command

Customization

Layouts

• Supports the definition of new layouts of workspace pads and toolbars (View/Layouts).
• Quick layout switch using a selector in the toolbar.

External Tools

• The user can define custom tools to be shown in the Tools menu (Edit/Preferences/Tools/External Tools).
• Support for project variables such as project directory, current file name, etc.
• Prompt for arguments.

Configurable Key Bindings

Support for configurable key bindings (Edit/Preferences/Key bindings).

Emacs and Visual Studio key bindings schemes.

User defined key bindings.

Support for multi-state key binding

Project Management

Building

• Support for 1.1, 2.0 and Moonlight Mono runtimes (Project/Options/General/Runtime Options).
• Support for multiple build configurations.
• Builds required project dependencies.
• Clean and Rebuild commands.
• Assembly signing.
• Command line tool for building: 'mdtool build'.

Run

Option for running in internal or external console.

Export

• Export a project to a different folder using a different file format:
  • MonoDevelop native file format.
  • Visual Studio 2005.
• Command line tool for exporting projects: 'mdtool project-export'.

Custom Commands

• Custom commands can be defined for projects and solutions
• Command hooks: after/before build, clean, execute
• Command replacement: build, clean, execute
• Custom commands: shown in the context menu of the solution pad.

Generic Projects

• Project type not bound to any language.
• Can be used together with Makefile Integation and Custom Commands.

Visual design

GTK # Designer

Integrated visual designer for building GTK# interfaces.

• Allows targeting GTK# 2.4, 2.6 and 2.8.
• Supports visual design of custom widgets.
• Support for reusable widget libraries. Custom widgets are shown in the toolbox.
• Dynamic reloading of custom widgets. After compiling a change in a custom widget, all design windows where the widget is being used will be automatically updated.
• Widget library reference tracking. When new widgets are added to a design surface, the required assembly references will be added to the project.
• Visual editing of stock icon factory.
• Glade project import.

ToolBox                                   

• One single toolbox for all designers (GTK#, ASP.NET, etc.)
• New items can be added by registering new assemblies.
• The toolbar is dynamically updated to show the items available for the active file and project.
• Two display modes: normal and compact (with no labels).
• Widget search

Property Grid

• One single property grid for all designers (GTK#, ASP.NET, etc.)
• Allows editing project file properties.

Packaging & Deployment

Package Generation

• Sources package: MD and Visual Studio formats (zip or tarball).
• Binary package: Linux and Windows targets (zip or tarball).
• Tarball based on Autotools
• Tarball w/o Autotools (simple makefile with a basic configuration script and dependency checking).

Generation and Deployment of Support files

• .pc file for libraries.
• .desktop for applications.
• launch script.

Packaging Operations

• Packaging project: bundles together a set of packaging sources and targets.
• Create package command: allows creating a package of any of the supported types.
• Install command: installs a solution to the local file system.

ASP. NET

Web Projects

• Create web application for any supported language.
• Compile web application and view in browser using xsp.
• Project GAC references are synchronised to web.config.
• Add new ASP.NET files:
  • Page (.aspx) with/without CodeBehind class (partial if language supports it).
  • User control (.ascx) with/without CodeBehind class (partial if language supports it).
  • Web Service (.asmx) with/without CodeBehind class.
  • Web Handler (.ashx) with/without CodeBehind class.
  • Web.config (application or subdirectory depending where it's added).
  • Master page (.master) with/without CodeBehind class (partial if language supports it) for 2.0 runtime only.
  • Global.asax file with/without CodeBehind class.
• ASP.NET server controls added to aspx files have corresponding members automatically added to the CodeBehind class at compilation time (in the *.designer.* part if using partial classes).

Web References

• Browse for a web service and create web service proxies.
• Update web service proxies.

Database Management

• Explore databases
• Execute queries and display the results inside MonoDevelop
• Create new databases
• Create new tables, procedures and views
• Alter procedures and views
• Drop databases, tables, procedures and views
• Rename databases, tables, procedures and views

Project Templates

C#

• GTK# project.
• Empty project
• Library
• Web application
• Empty web application.
• NUnit library

Visual Basic

• Console project
• Empty project
• Library
• Web application
• Empty web application.
• NUnit library

Boo

• Console project
• Empty project
• Library
• Web application
• Empty web application.
• NUnit library

Java (IKVM )

• Console project
• Empty project
• Library

C/C++

• Empty project
• Shared library
• Static library
• Console project

Other Projects

• Translation project
• Generic project
• Blank solution

COMMAND LINE TOOLS

Project build tool: mdtool build.

Project conversion tools: mdtool project-export.

Makefile generator tool: mdtool generate-makefiles.

Add-in setup utility: mdtool setup.

Graphical add-in setup utility: mdtool gsetup.