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Cocoa is an object-oriented application environment designed for developing Mac OS X native applications. The Cocoa frameworks support rapid development and high productivity. Cocoa provides developers starting new Mac OS X projects the fastest way to full-featured implementations. Applications from other platforms can also be brought to Mac OS X quickly using Cocoa.

A guided introduction and learning path for developers new to Cocoa.   Essential information for developers using Objective-C.   Objective-C API references organized by framework.
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NSDecimalNumberHandler Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to specify the way an NSDecimalNumber object rounds off and handles errors.
Data Management 2007-04-30
NSMachPort Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class for managing Mach ports.
Interapplication Communication 2007-04-30
NSOperation Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the methods for managing encapsulated tasks.
Process Management 2007-04-30
NSOperationQueue Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the methods for managing operation objects.
Process Management 2007-04-30
NSRecursiveLock Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class for managing a recursive version of a mutex.
Process Management 2007-04-30
NSColorPickingDefault Protocol Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the protocol that color pickers implement to provide a basic user interface for color panels.
Graphics & Imaging, User Experience 2007-04-27
NSSound Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to load a sound into memory and play it.
Audio, Data Management, Resource Management 2007-04-27
NSSpellChecker Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that gives any application an interface to the Cocoa spell-checking service.
Text & Fonts 2007-04-27
NSSpellServer Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to make your particular spelling checker a service available to any application.
Text & Fonts 2007-04-27
NSTextView Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class instantiated as the front-end, primary user interface object of the Cocoa text system.
Text & Fonts 2007-04-27
NSWorkspace Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that provides an application access to Finder services.
Interapplication Communication 2007-04-27
Mac OS X ABI Mach-O File Format Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the data structures that make up the Mach-O file format.
Runtime Architecture 2007-04-26
NSAlert Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to display a message and obtain the user's response to it.
Events & Other Input, Graphics & Imaging, User Experience 2007-04-25
NSApplication Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that provides the central framework for a Cocoa application's execution.
Runtime Architecture 2007-04-24
QLPreviewRequest Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the API related to the QLPreviewRequest opaque type of the Quick Look framework.
User Experience 2007-04-20
NSInvocation Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class whose instances ecapsulate Objective-C messages for use in store-and-forward mechanisms such as distributed objects.
Interapplication Communication, Objective-C Language 2007-04-19
Interface Builder Kit Framework Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the classes, types, and contants in the Interface Builder Kit framework.
Tools 2007-04-18
NSLayoutManager Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that coordinates the layout and display of characters held in an NSTextStorage object.
Text & Fonts 2007-04-16
NSTextFieldCell Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to support setting text and background color in the NSCell class.
User Experience 2007-04-16
Quick Look Framework Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the Quick Look framework classes and functions used for creating Quick Look generator plug-ins.
User Experience 2007-04-13
NSGradient Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the methods for creating gradient fill patterns.
Graphics & Imaging 2007-04-12
NSInvocationOperation Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the methods for implementing an invocation-based operation.
Interapplication Communication, Objective-C Language 2007-04-12
NSPageLayout Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that instantiates a dialog to query the user for printing information such as paper type.
Printing 2007-04-11
NSPathCell Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that implements the user interface of an NSPathControl object.
User Experience 2007-04-11
NSPathCellDelegate Protocol Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the protocol optionally implemented by the delegate of an NSPathCell object to customize a pop-up-style path.
User Experience 2007-04-11
NSPathComponentCell Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to display a component of a path.
User Experience 2007-04-11
NSPathControl Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the control that represents a file path or virtual path.
User Experience 2007-04-11
NSPathControlDelegate Protocol Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the protocol optionally implemented by the delegate of an NSPathControl object to support dragging and pop-up menu cusomization.
User Experience 2007-04-11
NSTextTable Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that represents a text table as a whole.
Text & Fonts 2007-04-11
NSToolbarItemGroup Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that encapsulates a group of items in a window's toolbar.
User Experience 2007-04-11
NSAppleEventDescriptor Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to access the basic data structures in an Apple event.
Scripting & Automation 2007-04-10
NSKeyValueBindingCreation Protocol Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the informal protocol that provides methods to manage bindings between view objects and controllers or controllers and model objects.
Data Management 2007-04-10
NSScriptCommandDescription Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to provide a description of a script command.
Scripting & Automation 2007-04-10
NSScriptSuiteRegistry Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used as the top-level repository of scriptability information for an application at runtime.
Scripting & Automation 2007-04-10
NSTableDataSource Protocol Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the informal protocol that a class must implement to provide the data used to populate a table view.
User Experience 2007-04-10
NSTreeController Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that is used with Cocoa bindings to manage a tree of objects.
Data Management, Design Guidelines 2007-04-10
NSArrayController Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that is used with Cocoa bindings to manage a collection of objects.
Data Management, Design Guidelines 2007-04-09
NSFontManager Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class instantiated as the controller object for the font conversion system.
Text & Fonts 2007-04-06
NSFontPanel Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that implements the Font panel--a user interface object that displays a list of available fonts.
User Experience 2007-04-06
NSFontPanelValidation Protocol Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the informal protocol used to tell the Font panel to display some or all of its elements.
User Experience 2007-04-06
NSProxy Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the root class of Objective-C classes used in distributed objects.
Interapplication Communication, Objective-C Language 2007-04-06
NSBrowser Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that implements a user interface for manipulating one-dimensional or two-dimensional data sets.
Events & Other Input, User Experience 2007-04-05
NSInputStream Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that implements a read-only stream.
Data Management, File Management, Networking 2007-04-05
NSOutputStream Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that implements a write-only stream.
Data Management, File Management, Networking 2007-04-05
Foundation Constants Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the constants defined in the Foundation framework not described in individual classes.
Data Management, Objective-C Language 2007-04-03
NSOpenPanel Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to allow users to browse the file system to locate a file.
Events & Other Input, File Management, User Experience 2007-04-03
NSSpeechRecognizer Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to identify and perform spoken commands.
Accessibility, Events & Other Input, User Experience 2007-04-03
IBDocument Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the Objective-C API for manipulating Interface Builder documents.
Tools 2007-04-02
IBPlugin Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the base methods for managing plug-ins in Interface Builder.
Tools 2007-04-02
Interface Builder Kit Constants Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the constants declared in the Interface Builder Kit framework.
Tools 2007-04-02
Interface Builder Kit Data Types Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the C types declared in the Interface Builder Kit framework.
Tools 2007-04-02
NSController Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the abstract class that implements the informal protocols required by controller classes used with Cocoa bindings.
Data Management, Design Guidelines 2007-04-02
NSInputServerMouseTracker Protocol Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the protocol implemented by text input servers to handle mouse events.
Events & Other Input, Text & Fonts, User Experience 2007-04-02
NSInputServiceProvider Protocol Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the protocol implemented by text input servers to handle application and text field events.
Events & Other Input, Text & Fonts, User Experience 2007-04-02
NSMetadataQuery Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to query Spotlight for file metadata.
File Management 2007-04-02
NSMetadataQueryAttributeValueTuple Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to define metadata queries and to examine query results.
File Management 2007-04-02
NSMetadataQueryResultGroup Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that represents a group of metadata query result objects.
File Management 2007-04-02
NSMovieView Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Deprecated - Describes the class used to play and edit a movie in a view. Deprecated: Use QTKit instead.
QuickTime 2007-04-02
NSNetServiceBrowser Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to find published services on a network using multicast DNS.
Interapplication Communication, Internet & Web, Networking 2007-04-02
NSNotification Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that represents a notification to be broadcast through a notification center.
Events & Other Input, Interapplication Communication 2007-04-02
NSNotificationQueue Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to asynchronously broadcast notifications within a task.
Events & Other Input 2007-04-02
NSBrowserCell Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to display data elements in a browser.
User Experience 2007-04-01
NSButton Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that implements controls that react to clicks and maintain state.
Events & Other Input, User Experience 2007-04-01
NSColorPickingCustom Protocol Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the protocol that color pickers implement to provide a customized user interface for color panels.
Graphics & Imaging, User Experience 2007-04-01
NSDistributedNotificationCenter Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to post notifications between tasks.
Events & Other Input, Interapplication Communication 2007-04-01
NSIndexSpecifier Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to represent the position of an object in a collection.
Scripting & Automation 2007-04-01
NSInputManager Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used by text views to communicate with the text input management system.
Events & Other Input, Text & Fonts, User Experience 2007-04-01
NSInputServer Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that interprets text view events and communicates them to the text input management system.
Events & Other Input, Text & Fonts, User Experience 2007-04-01
NSURLConnection Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that provides support for retrieving data from a server in response to a URL load request.
Internet & Web, Networking 2007-04-01
NSURLProtocol Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the abstract class that is used by subclasses that provide custom protocol-specific loading of URL data.
Internet & Web, Networking 2007-04-01
NSURLRequest Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that encapsulates a URL load request.
Internet & Web, Networking 2007-04-01
Objective-C 1 Runtime Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Deprecated - Describes the data structures and functions of the Objective-C 1.0 runtime support library.
Objective-C Language 2007-03-28
NSFileWrapper Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to represent the contents of a file in memory.
Data Management, File Management, Resource Management 2007-03-27
NSMovie Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Deprecated - Describes the class used to load a movie into memory. Deprecated: Use QTKit instead.
QuickTime 2007-03-26
NSMutableData Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to provide a mutable object-oriented wrapper for a byte buffer.
Data Management 2007-03-26
NSProcessInfo Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that provides access to information about the current process.
Interapplication Communication, Process Management, Resource Management 2007-03-26
NSTypesetter Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the abstract superclass that defines the interface for typesetter objects that perform text line layout.
Text & Fonts 2007-03-26
NSHelpManager Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to obtain and display online help.
Events & Other Input, Resource Management, User Experience 2007-03-24
NSHost Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to get information about a network resource.
Networking, Process Management 2007-03-24
NSIndexSet Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to represent an immutable collection of unique unsigned integers.
Data Management 2007-03-24
CIContext Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that provides an evaluation context for rendering a Core Image image through Quartz 2D or OpenGL.
Graphics & Imaging 2007-03-16
NSPrintPanelAccessorizing Protocol Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Printing, User Experience 2007-03-09
NSTrackingArea Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used for establishing view regions for mouse tracking and cursor updating.
Events & Other Input 2007-03-09
NSMenuItemCell Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Deprecated. Describes the class for handling the measurement and display of a single menu item in its encompassing frame.
User Experience 2007-03-07
NSMutableArray Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to manage a mutable ordered collection of objects.
Data Management 2007-03-07
NSTokenField Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that provides a control to display and edit an array of strings.
User Experience 2007-03-07
NSMutableString Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used to specify and operate on immutable strings.
Data Management 2007-03-06
NSResponder Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that defines the model for event and command handling, including the responder chain.
Events & Other Input 2007-03-05
NSStatusBar Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that manages a collection of status items displayed within the system-wide menu bar.
User Experience 2007-03-05
NSStatusItem Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that represents a status item displayed within the system-wide menu bar.
User Experience 2007-03-05
NSTokenFieldCell Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class that provides a cell to display and edit an array of strings.
User Experience 2007-03-05
NSBezierPath Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class for drawing path-based shapes.
Graphics & Imaging 2007-03-02
NSMatrix Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class used for creating groups of NSCell objects that work together in various ways.
User Experience 2007-03-02
NSMenuValidation Protocol Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the protocol used to update the enabled status of menu items.
User Experience 2007-03-02
NSMenuView Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Deprecated. Describes the class for handling the display of menus on the screen.
User Experience 2007-03-02
NSPrintOperation Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the class for initiating and managing print jobs.
Printing 2007-03-02
AMAction Class Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the abstract class that defines the interface and general characteristics of Automator actions.
Apple Applications 2007-03-01
NSDraggingDestination Protocol Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the informal protocol whose methods the recipient of a dragged image must implement.
Events & Other Input, Interapplication Communication 2007-03-01
NSDraggingInfo Protocol Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the protocol used to supply information about a dragging session to a dragging destination.
Events & Other Input, Interapplication Communication 2007-03-01
NSDraggingSource Protocol Reference (HTML) (PDF)
Describes the informal protocol whose methods the source of a dragged image must implement.
Events & Other Input, Interapplication Communication 2007-03-01