What is the best way to install ironPython on mono on mac? Should I just download the binaries, ngen, and move forward? Is there any specific plug-in I need for an editor? Everyone seems to think I should just ngen the source installs and use eclipse with the ironpython plugins, but that seems quite counter to using monodevelop, and it seems odd there isn't a native mac os x installer?
It seems as if you already know what to do - just download the binaries and run them. For people not aware of how to achieve this: download the most recent version of Mono for OS X and download the IronPython-2.6.1-Bin-Net20SP1.zip or other Net20 binaries (Net40 doesn't work as of this answering), then unzip the archive and invoke Iron Python by typing 'mono ipy.exe' or 'mono ipy64.exe' in the directory, or if trying to run a script 'mono ipy.exe script_name.py'.
The IronPython addition to MonoDevelop is scheduled, but doesn't seem to have a target date of any sort; if you want it you need to go to the MonoDevelop website and say so, or it won't be prioritized.