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> I think the reason why the "pro Obj C" lobby strikes such a nerve is that their personal preference is holding back the whole team.

What's holding back the team is Apple.

Apple could open-source Swift and Xcode (both really need the help) and port the relevant bits to Android and Windows. They could release Metal to the world or throw in with Vulkan.

The fact that they haven't tells you that all Apple is interested in is keeping you captive.

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Many parts of the Swift toolchain are already open source [1], there is a Windows and even a WASM port [2].

The caveats are:

- Xcode indeed isn’t, but you can use sourcekit-lsp for Swift development with some compromises. The experience has really improved the last few months thanks to the Swift Server Work Group [3].

- Apple platforms have their own Foundation implementation and the open-source one is incomplete.

[1]: https://www.swift.org/source-code/

[2]: https://swiftwasm.org/

[3]: https://www.swift.org/blog/vscode-extension/

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