Hey friends,
I have decided to take up coding in objective C. My mac is a bit outdated and I really would prefer not to purchase another one at this point ESPECIALLY since they charge so much for flash memory and allow no upgrades. I really despise that. Anyway, my PC's are really great and I would like to know if it is possible to learn how to code on a hackintosh or unbuntu running an OSX virtual box, or if the downsides would warrant purchasing another mac. If it looks like I need a new mac, what would you recommend for BEST bang for buck? I have my PC's for raw power so this purchase would be used exclusively for coding. THANKS!

RobHere are some observations made on my personal experience.
I have worked as a professional programmer years ago. Since then my interest in the PC has been just personal for my own USE.
My feeling is that if I wish to learn something new, I do not put out any money unless it is absolutely necessary. The exception would be if somebody pays me in advance for project, then I'm willing to shell out some money. Otherwise, for my own educational needs, I make use of all the free stuff that's now available over the Internet.
You can find many good tutorials on the Internet about objective C and similar programs. One of the most important skills you need as a programmer is the ability to read somebody else's tutorial and understand what they're getting at. Of course, hands on experience is very important.. Yet you have to read the tutorials to understand what something really does. And there are lots of tutorials.
There is a bit of mystique about programs and hardware that Apple produces. I understand that. That is part of their cult, loops, I meant to say market strategy. They promote the idea that their stuff is better and maybe a little bit more sophisticated than the average person can take.
And yes, I really do like Apple products that I have had in the past. But I could not afford to keep using them.
Another avenue of approach might be to consider alternatives to Objective-C.
You can Google this key phrase and see what you come up with:
alternatives to objective C.
In my opinion, this would be easy to set up on a PC then going the virtual machine route. Furthermore, the alternatives to Objective-C are either freeware or shareware and don't cost a thing. If you get to the point where you actually have a usable program that she would like to distribute in the Apple Store, you could just fire up your old Mac and test the program out on it.
When developing programs usually speed of the processor is not really a critical issue, unless you're trying to debug a very large file. Just simple editing and compiling should not take up a lot of time. If you find your projects tend to be time-consuming, you might want to reconsider making your program more granular. More granular means that the program is a little modules that can be compiled and tested by themselves in the debugger that once you have a large part of your program debug and tested, you can make that into a library and any further testing and developing you do justly sent to the library you already created.
I suppose you already know that, but I'm surprised at how many people start out in computer programming don't understand some of the traditional tools that have been used to speed development. One of the things is the idea of divide and conquer. If you can divide up your project in a separate little pieces, and actually goes faster and easier than what you might think.
Anyhow, that's my opinion. But I do believe it is based on years of practical experience.

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Wow thanks for that reply. I will do what I can to find an older version of Xcode that actually runs on my old macbook. I will also look into alternatives. I suppose the reason I was thinking about going the xcode route is because my friend gave me a highly acclaimed book on it that I wanted to use. Unfortunately, its almost entirely from a mac, xcode perspective. I am very new to coding, with only one introductory computer SCIENCE class under my belt. But I am very motivated to learn a new marketable skill. Thanks again.GNUStep Looks like one possible route you might consider exploring. I'm not sure if it would 100% replace XCode; XCode is in many ways to Objective C what Visual Studio is to C#. It's possible to write programs in the LATTER without the former but it's an uphill battle against convenience.