And C# has wxWidgets too? That library seems like it’s been ported to every language.

Mono actually has a bit of a step-up on regular .NET for Windows. The installation for .NET 3.5 is slow to the point of unusable for games – however 2.0 comes with Vista, so I just use that. Whereas Mono you can package the runtime itself (or a subset) to meet your needs.

(Aside: If you do need a cross-platform UI, and you need to go native, then my recommendation is wxWidgets.)

I also admit I’m a bit uncertain as to the cross-platform friendliness of C#. I develop on Macs, and these days I aim for cross-platform between Mac and Windows from the get go. I admit it isn’t straight-forward in C or C++ – libraries help, but there’s a bit of hacking – and I’m sure Mono might make that easier. But there’s still a strong impression I get that C# is a Microsoft OS language; it’s good for .NET in Windows and Xbox, but not so great a choice for Macs or Linux. I don’t know if that impression is unwarranted these days, but I do know there’s a very strong assumption you’re primarily aiming for Windows, using .NET and working in Microsoft Visual C#. That can be a thorn when you’re just starting out.

Eventually I’ll need some GUI tools. I’ll be using another language for those, as I’d be crazy to write my tools in C. I was thinking of writing the tools in Python, but I might use that as a method for learning C#; or at least, a way of trialling it against Python. I recently trialled some cross-platform wiki software which included Tomboy Notes, a Mono app, so I know it can work. More Mac native than WikidPad (written in Python), too (although I prefer WikidPad for functionality reasons).

Speaking of “C-with-higher-language” – C# can interop with C very capably, if that’s what floats your boat

I’m reviving C as my down-to-the-wire language mostly because, after a couple of years of working with higher level langauges, I’ve realised that I actually like C. It’s got a simplicity about it that I find helps when thinking through algorithms. For data types C only really has integers and floats; memory pointers are treated as integer addresses. You can get a feel for what the code is doing at any point of time. Of course, there’s a bit of nostalgia here too; C is the first app quality language I learnt (after BASIC variants), I’ve used it a fair bit in apps and games, and it’s probably the langauge I’d say I’m best at.

The big (big) downsides is that C doesn’t do any housekeeping for you by default, so you’ve got to put in error checks and be very careful about memory. And strings are a royal pain.

While I’m keeping C# in mind as an alternative, I’m not going to switch languages until I’ve done a proper test of this approach. If everything clicks into place, I’m hoping a C-with-higher-language approachis good for me to work on experimental algorithm ideas. If however everything falls into a heap and the combination proves unworkable, I’ll switch to something managed and scale back the algorithm ambition somewhat.

There’s no excuse for non-Microsoft platforms – Mono is just as solid. And there’s no excuses about bytecode/JIT either: http://arstechnica.com/open-source/news/2009/01/open-source-mono-framework-brings-c-to-iphone-and-wii.ars

C++ is a productivity time-sink due to all the extra stuff you have to worry about. But that doesn’t mean C is any better. Where you don’t have to worry about templates and so on, you now find yourself worrying about strings and re-implementing yet more of what a modern standard library should contain.

And scripting in Lua or Python is just a hack to overcome the limitations of C/C++. With a sensible language in the first place, you won’t need to bother. (AppDomains are useful if you actually care about 3rd party modding.)

Anyway – if you really, really must use C – it’s worth remembering that C and C++ are interoperable for a reason. And C++ is multi-paridgm – you don’t have to be all academic about orienting objects – leave that for the library developers.

There is no sense in giving up namespaces and std::string just to have the compiler stop you writing classes!