Novell Releases Mono 1.2 With Enhanced Support for .NET on Linux

Novell (Nasdaq: NOVL) today announced the release of Mono(R) version 1.2, a significant advancement in the expansion of the Mono project and an important milestone toward compatibility with version 2.0 of the .NET framework. Mono 1.2 adds support for the Microsoft* Windows* Forms API to more easily port .NET client-side applications to Linux*. Other enhancements in this release include virtual machine upgrades and enhanced Java* support, significant performance, memory consumption and stability improvements, and support for many .NET 2.0 features. With this new release, traditional Microsoft developers can leverage their existing skill sets to use the Mono framework to effortlessly make their .NET desktop and server applications available to the fast-growing Linux market.

With full Mono support for the Windows Forms API, the graphical user interface portion of the Microsoft .NET development framework, developers can now bring their existing Microsoft-based client applications to Linux while significantly minimizing the time and effort required to migrate these applications. The inclusion of Windows Forms capabilities in this version is an important milestone in the expansion of the Mono project. Not only does it provide corporate IT and ISV developers with operating system alternatives for hosting existing .NET applications, but it also opens up the possibility of new desktop applications on Linux. Novell's award-winning SUSE(R) Linux Enterprise Desktop 10, which debuted in July of this year, includes a number of new Mono-based desktop Linux applications such as the Banshee(TM) music player, F-spot photo management tool and the Beagle(R) desktop search tool.

"With this release, we've solved an important issue by making it easier to translate the Microsoft user interfaces to Linux, an important contribution in increasing the number of client-side Linux applications," said Miguel de Icaza, vice president of developer platforms at Novell and maintainer of the Mono project. "Now feature complete, Mono has matured to the point that we believe the migration from ASP.NET and Windows Forms to Linux is easier than ever before and gives developers access to all the added benefits of Linux."

Software Vendors Rely on Mono

OTEE used Mono to create their game development system, Unity, which was recently awarded a runner-up Apple Design Award for "Best Use of Mac OS X Graphics" at Apple's World Wide Developer Conference. "OTEE relies on Mono's cross-language capability," said Joachim Ante, CTO and co-founder of OTEE. "Unity's developer community comes from a wide range of backgrounds and Mono allowed us to give our developers a choice between JavaScript, C# and Boo, resulting in a very short learning curve and immediate familiarity with scripting in Unity. Mono version 1.2 represents a significant leap forward in stability and performance and will make it even easier to build feature-rich cross-platform applications."

Versora provides software products and professional integration services that yield a cost effective and seamless transition path from Microsoft Windows to Linux. Versora used Mono to migrate their flagship Progression Desktop product from Windows to Linux in record time. "Mono is really attractive for Windows developers because they can carry over their existing skills to Linux," said Jon Walker, CTO at Versora. "The feature and performance enhancements in version 1.2 will only bolster Mono's reputation as a mature, viable solution for Windows to Linux migration."

About the Mono Project

The Mono Project is an open source initiative sponsored by Novell to develop a UNIX* version of the Microsoft .NET development framework. Its objective is to enable UNIX developers to build and deploy cross-platform .NET applications. The 1.2 release of Mono is compliant with and provides full support for .NET 1.1 and partial support for .NET 2.0. In addition to Window Forms API support, Mono version 1.2 includes numerous feature upgrades including full support for C# 2.0, generics and significant updates to the .NET 2.0 API. The Mono framework supports a variety of platforms, including Linux, Mac* OS X, Solaris*, BSD and Windows, and a variety of hardware options, such as x86, AMD* 64, IA-64 (Itanium* 2), EMT 64, PowerPC, ARM, s390 and S390x, SPARC and SPARC v9, and numerous languages. Developers can download the Mono framework at http://www.mono-project.com/downloads .

About Novell

Novell, Inc. delivers Software for the Open Enterprise(TM). With more than 50,000 customers in 43 countries, Novell helps customers manage, simplify, secure and integrate their technology environments by leveraging best-of-breed, open standards-based software. With more than 20 years of experience, 4,700 employees, 5,000 partners and support centers around the world, Novell helps customers gain control over their IT operating environments while reducing costs. More information about Novell can be found at http://www.novell.com .

NOTE: Novell, Beagle, Mono and SUSE are registered trademarks, and Banshee and Software for the Open Enterprise are trademarks of Novell, Inc. in the United States and other countries.

*Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds. All other third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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