Why does Apple use Objective-C?

Question

Why did Apple decide to use Objective-C for the iPhone SDK and not C++?

It seems strange to me that they would not have chosen a language more popular than Objective-C. Is it because wanted to have something unique in their application which is not otherwise in general use?

Answer 1

Apple answered this very question here in 2010:

The Objective-C language was chosen for a variety of reasons. First and foremost, it’s an object-oriented language. The kind of functionality that’s packaged in the Cocoa frameworks can only be delivered through object-oriented techniques. Second, because Objective-C is an extension of standard ANSI C, existing C programs can be adapted to use the software frameworks without losing any of the work that went into their original development. Because Objective-C incorporates C, you get all the benefits of C when working within Objective-C. You can choose when to do something in an object-oriented way (define a new class, for example) and when to stick to procedural programming techniques (define a structure and some functions instead of a class).

Moreover, Objective-C is a fundamentally simple language. Its syntax is small, unambiguous, and easy to learn. Object-oriented programming, with its self-conscious terminology and emphasis on abstract design, often presents a steep learning curve to new recruits. A well-organized language like Objective-C can make becoming a proficient object-oriented programmer that much less difficult.

Compared to other object-oriented languages based on C, Objective-C is very dynamic. The compiler preserves a great deal of information about the objects themselves for use at runtime. Decisions that otherwise might be made at compile time can be postponed until the program is running. Dynamism gives Objective-C programs unusual flexibility and power. For example, it yields two big benefits that are hard to get with other nominally object-oriented languages:

Objective-C supports an open style of dynamic binding, a style that can accommodate a simple architecture for interactive user interfaces. Messages are not necessarily constrained by either the class of the receiver or even the method name, so a software framework can allow for user choices at runtime and permit developers freedom of expression in their design. (Terminology such as dynamic binding, message, class, and receiver are explained in due course in this document.) Dynamism enables the construction of sophisticated development tools. An interface to the runtime system provides access to information about running applications, so it’s possible to develop tools that monitor, intervene, and reveal the underlying structure and activity of Objective-C applications.

Historical note: As a language, Objective-C has a long history. It was created at the Stepstone company in the early 1980s by Brad Cox and Tom Love. It was licensed by NeXT Computer Inc. in the late 1980s to develop the NeXTStep frameworks that preceded Cocoa. NeXT extended the language in several ways, for example, with the addition of protocols.

Answer 2

Objective C began life in 1983 I believe, created by Brad Cox and Tom Love. The idea of Objective-C was to take the purity and low-level control of C and merge that with true object-oriented features that would allow companies to customize system libraries that could communicate with the OOP layer of Obj-C. Essentially, it worked. Obj-C is a strict superset of C, unlike C++ which is most of C, but with many differences.

When Steve Jobs founded NeXT Computer (1985), he brought in some of his former Apple team and others. His best programmers were interested in using a language that expanded on C with the same speed benefits and system control. They chose Objective-C. NeXT eventually wrote many libraries and methods for the base language. These all begin with NS for Next Step. This was the name of the NeXT OS. By 1989 the Next Step OS was considered to be vastly superior to MS Windows or Mac OS, and many computer companies wanted to license it badly. Jobs simply didn't want to go in that direction.

Once Apple wised up and brought Steve Jobs back into the fold (1996), the infusion of Next Step OS into the new Mac OS X was really the key to Apple reviving its software and its programming strategy.

While C++ remains a truly excellent and powerful language, I find that Objective C has less flaws (just my opinion), and Apple's continued work on Cocoa libraries has made the Obj-C language a truly modern power with C underpinnings. Is it better than Java? Not sure. But for what it is primarily designed for (Mac OS, iOS) it is astonishingly good, if a bit overly verbose.

The greatest criticism of Obj-C is the syntactical styling, but any programmer that truly learns the language will quickly learn of its amazing power and seemless fit with all things Mac, iPhone, iPad.

Will any other platforms ultimately adopt Obj-C? not sure, but doubtful. But the Cocoa libraries are truly wonderful.

Answer 3

Note that Objective-C is not a new language. It's been around since 1986 - well before Java or C#!

It has been in general use ever since NeXT, many real-world applications are around that make use of it.

Answer 4

Apple merged with NeXT in the '90s and Mac OS X was made from NeXT's operating system, NeXTSTEP. Objective-C was the official language of NeXTSTEP's application frameworks, which became Mac OS X's Cocoa. Mac OS X was then adapted into the iPhone OS, and Cocoa was made into Cocoa Touch. Objective-C has held up pretty well all along the way, and a lot of Cocoa's features would be difficult to translate into C++.

So essentially, it all comes from NeXT.

Answer 5

Objective-C adds object oriented programming to C. It was used for NeXT, upon which a lot of OSX is derived. It supports all of C, and is simpler than C++.

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2091191

Answer 6

It's because Objective C has been the de facto language for Mac OS X development before it was Mac OS X. When Jobs left Apple to set up NeXT, the language Objective C was developed as a specific language that wasn't C++ and avoided many of its pitfalls. It therefore makes sense that any portable or consumer equipment (including Apple TV) use Objective C as their primary development language, and dropping down to the underlying C layer when needed for performance or interface issues.