As part of Apple's update goodness today, developers had to be tickled with one piece of software that saw a refresh, Xcode.  Not only did it add some new features, but it's price went from $4.99 to free for anyone who might have an Apple ID and access to the Mac App Store.

Originally Apple charged the general public $4.99 for Xcode upon its release back in March, but it was made free to Apple's registered developers.

Xcode 4.1 allows non-registered developers to play around with Apple's development platform, or even develop their own Mac apps outside of the Mac App Store.  Like always though, in order to submit a Mac or iOS application to the App Store, one still needs to be a member of the Mac or iOS Developer Program. 

The new version of Xcode, comes in at a sizable 2.96GB.  However, if you haven't made the switch to Lion yet, you'll be out of luck.  Xcode 4.1 requires OS X Lion. 

Xcode 4.1 includes all your favorites such as Xcode IDE, Instruments, iOS Simulator, as well as the newest Mac OS X and iOS SDKs.  Features added to the new edition include:

-Includes the SDKs for OS X Lion and iOS 4.3
-Interface Builder support for Auto Layout and new Aqua controls like NSPopover
-Full screen support in workspace, project, and organizer windows
-Project modernization to identify and resolve out of date build settings
-Behaviors can be customized and assigned to unique key bindings
-Source control enhancements to pushing, pulling, and management of remote servers.
-Assistant editor support for display of generated assembly and preprocessed output
-Additional bug fixes and stability improvements

"Xcode provides everything developers need to create great applications for Mac, iPhone, and iPad," reads the official Mac App Store description.  "Xcode 4 has been streamlined to help you write better apps."

So, if you have Lion, and feel like getting your app development creative juices going, hit up the Mac App Store!

via AppleInsider

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