In this chapter, we learned about the MVVM design pattern and how it can be used to better architect cross-platform applications. We compared several project organization strategies for managing a Xamarin Studio solution containing both iOS and Android projects. We went over portable class libraries as the preferred option for sharing code and how to use preprocessor statements as a quick and dirty way to implement platform-specific code.

After completing this chapter, you should be able to speed up with several techniques for sharing code between iOS and Android applications using Xamarin Studio. Using the MVVM design pattern will help you divide your shared code between code that is platform specific. We also covered the three main options for setting up Xamarin Studio solutions and projects. You should also have a firm understanding of using the dependency injection and Inversion of Control to give your shared code access to the native APIs on each platform. In the next chapter, we will begin with writing a cross-platform application and dive into using these techniques.