DotPurple

Forget Memorizing Command-Line Parameters

Don't worry about mistyping .NET command-line parameters. DotPurple has UI elements for building, cleaning, running, and publishing your projects. You can even create new solutions, projects, and items within a project without leaving DotPurple.

Cross Platform

DotPurple runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux. The macOS and Linux apps are powered by Avalonia, a cross-platform framework for building apps in C#. The Windows and macOS apps have built-in software update systems, and the Linux app will let you know when there's an update available so that you're always running the latest and greatest version of DotPurple.

Install and Manage .NET Templates

View and manage all of your installed .NET templates on a single screen. Install new templates from disk. Browse a list of over 950 one-click-install templates. Uninstall with just a few clicks. Use these templates when creating new solutions, projects, and project items. If you have a paid license, you can even download and install a template straight from a git url!

Downloading and installing tools from a git url requires git to be available on your system and in your system path.

Install, Manage, Update, and Run .NET Tools

See all of your .NET tools at one time. Install new tools to global locations. Browse a list of many one-click-install tools. Install to custom locations with a paid license. Update your tools in a single click, and uninstall your tools at any time. Limited support for running tools within DotPurple is also available.

Create macOS .app Files with Ease

Users with paid licenses can create macOS .app files in just a few clicks once all the parameters have been setup appropriately. DotPurple gives you a UI for setting up your Info.plist file, and you can create these .app files on any operating system!

On macOS, with a paid license, you can also output to DMG and setup your .app code signing and notarization -- all with an intuitive GUI! No more reading pages of documentation on how to code sign and notarize your macOS app for distribution outside the app store. There are some pre-DotPurple steps involved, so make sure to read the notarization info page here.

Note: if you're on Windows, you must run "chmod +x" from a Unix system on the executable inside the .app file for it to run properly on macOS. This is a limitation of Windows and its file system. You could also have your macOS .pkg installer handle this operation.

Dark Mode Ready

DotPurple has built-in light and dark modes on all operating systems that you can switch between at any time. On Windows 10, the app's accent color will match your system accent color, too!

Manage NuGet Package References

DotPurple Pro users can manage their NuGet package references on one screen. Install new packages, update your outdated packages, remove packages, and even search for nuget.org packages to add!

Free License Limitations

• Maximum of two projects/solutions at one time
• Maximum of three open tabs on the project management screen
• Some features aren't available without a paid license

Paid License Benefits

• No restrictions on number of projects/solutions or open tabs!
• Download a project template in one click from a git URL!
• Create macOS .app files!
• Install and manage .NET tools in custom locations!
• Import and export your project profiles (saved settings)!
• Install, update, and remove your NuGet package references for your projects!
• Search nuget.org for new NuGet packages to add to your projects!
• Search nuget.org for .NET CLI tools to add to your projects!
• Help support further development of the application!

Who is this app for?

Any .NET Core 3+ or .NET 5/6/7/8 developer who doesn't want to memorize command-line params or who doesn't want to read all the docs on the CLI. Or anyone who wants to use any of the pro features we offer, like notarizing your apps on macOS!

Why a GUI? The terminal is fine! We can read the docs!

We actually offer more features outside of the 'dotnet' CLI (macOS app packing, for instance), but the CLI is our focus. Git GUIs are popular because people like GUIs sometimes. Some on our team prefer the command line for Git, but the popularity of things like GitKraken show there is a place for GUIs for command line tools. DotPurple is a great way to learn the 'dotnet' CLI outside of the docs themselves.

As an added example, this screenshot is an example of what the popular Boxed.Templates project templates look like within DotPurple. (Newer versions are solution templates rather than project templates, but DotPurple can handle them both!) The CLI output can be viewed here. It's complete, but rather verbose, and our opinion is that it's easier to use some checkboxes, dropdowns, and other UI elements to set your options rather than manually parse everything the CLI shows you!

As far as docs go: There aren't necessarily readily available docs for third-party templates and all of their params outside of the command line interface itself (depends on the template authors, of course). You can use 'dotnet new "TemplateName" -h', to be clear, but we think a GUI is easier and quicker!

Doesn't Visual Studio do this natively?

Visual Studio, unfortunately, does not cover this with a GUI flow -- 'dotnet new' templates are not fully compatible with Visual Studio, although 16.8 on Windows allows for limited project template use. (You could make a VSIX extension for just your template, though, in which case you can do a lot more in theory.) Plus, Visual Studio is not currently available for Linux. See https://rehansaeed.com/what-dotnet-new-could-be/ for a great summary of where VS and the command line fall short here. (Granted, DotPurple does not have all the features he wants, but we're not far from being able to implement them!)

What other benefits does this app provide?

• You can save and load all of your options so that you don't have to remember everything each time you want to run a build/publish/clean command
• You can manage all of your .NET templates and tools without heading to your terminal again, including searching on NuGet (paid license benefit) for new tools and templates
• Checkboxes, dropdowns, file pickers, and other methods to easily set your options
• Create and notarize your macOS .app and DMG files in just a few clicks after initial setup (paid license feature)
• You can browse a list of one-click-install tools and one-click-install templates (the lists are open source on our GitHub page!)
• You get to learn the 'dotnet' CLI through a GUI rather than reading through pages and pages of documentation
• We don't do what you need? Tell us on our GitHub!