C++/CLI and Compact Framework?

Reader Bal asks:

I am very surprised that the Compact Framework does not support CLI/C++. We use it heavily for a number of reasons and not having it for devices seems a serious limitation.

Is there any plan to add this immensely useful feature to VS05/Compact Framework?

I get this question on my blog a lot.  First, the direct answer: no, we don't have any immediate plans to support C++/CLI on the .NET Compact Framework.

However, if you think it's important for us to support C++/CLI on .NET CF, I'd like to hear your thoughts on this.  Is it a language preference thing? Are you expecting to be able to use IJW interop on .NET CF? Are there problems you don't feel you can adequately solve with C#? I'd really like to better understand why this scenario is important to some folks.

Comments

• Anonymous
  November 02, 2006
  Here's something I didn't know:

• Anonymous
  November 02, 2006
  The comment has been removed

• Anonymous
  November 02, 2006
  dls, I definitely appreciate the need to reuse code.  As things stand today, this is possible to some degree since .NET CF does support p/invoke interop from C#/VB.NET to native C++ DLLs.  Is your desire to take this further such that you might be able to reuse your standard C++ code as unverified .NET code (i.e., like the "/clr:pure" switch) or that you would interop with this code using IJW (i.e., like the "/clr" switch)?

• Anonymous
  November 03, 2006
  As I already mentioned on this blog besides personal preference of C++ to C# there are more important reasons. First is the code reuse. There is a need to use .Net types from within "legacy" code. Second is inability to migrate to managed world instantly because of a large investment in the exisiting code and a lack of free resources. Currently there is no migration path but complete rewrite. p/invoke will save maybe 5% of our code. Third is that with C++/CLI you can easily use code written by C++ devs which are not aware of .Net existence. No learning curve for them at all.

• Anonymous
  November 03, 2006
  Vyacheslav, I've tried to address the issues you raise here: http://blogs.msdn.com/texblog/archive/2006/11/03/c-cli-and-compact-framework-additional-clarity.aspx     -steve

• Anonymous
  November 05, 2006
  > However, if you think it's important for us to support > C++/CLI on .NET CF, I'd like to hear your thoughts on this. Again?  OK, you got it.  Another iteration of this infinite loop, complaints from customers and won't-fixes from Microsoft. > I get this question on my blog a lot. Gee I wonder why.  After all customers want to be given what they want not what they ask for.  I guess Microsoft has the power to make something that will be called C++/CLI for .Net CF but will be so unusable that customers will regret that they asked for it.  (Historically the same power was demonstrated by other companies.)