When we talk about crossplatform, we're talking at the application
source code level, and not at the library implementation level. The
vast majority of software is using some kind of operating system
service or native library at some point in time.
Of course you'll never have total native fidelity or have the full
range of desktop level services, but that's the price you pay for not
using the native GUI code for each and every platform.
···
On 4/6/06, Martin Coxall <azrael@cream.org> wrote:
On 5 Apr 2006, at 22:06, Carl Woodward wrote:
> No one is intending a flame war but I have seen java do a lot of good
> thick client work and I have had it running (with speed) on linux,
> windows and osx. This includes swing and SWT. I'm not saying that java
> is great but I am saying that the ideas that they have work really
> well for certian situations.
Ah, me to. But my point is, that even when you use SWT, a supposedly
cross-platform toolkit, you still end up having to support 3+
similar, but slightly different GUI codebases and polish each one to
the expecations of users for Linux/Mac/Windows.
It's a lot of work; the notion of a cross-platform gui is something
of a myth.
"Open Source Development Labs is previewing work that will attempt to
make life easier for software companies by bridging GNOME and KDE. The
effort, called Portland Project, began showing its first software
tools on in conjunction with this week's LinuxWorld Conference & Expo.
Using them, a software company can write a single software package
that works using either of the prevailing graphical interfaces.
Working with Freedesktop.org on unifying interface issues, they plan
to release a beta version of the software in May and version 1.0 in
June. Ultimately, advocates hope that it will be part of a larger but
separate effort called Linux Standard Base, which is designed to make
the operating system easier for software companies to use."
Does anyone think that this direction is relavent for ruby?
···
On 4/6/06, Martin Coxall <azrael@cream.org> wrote:
> You are right for sure, but why limit this to ruby, should we not
> at this
> point in time foresee the need of something more abstract.
This has already happened at least three times in XML; Mozilla's XUL,
GNOME's libglade and Microsoft's XAML.
Of course somebody else has thaught about this before me, shame ;). Thank
you for the link it seems very interesting indeed.
I thaught something more general might be needed, more clearly abstracting
from the lower levels.
On the other hand it will be crucial to get it working soon, so I am
probably wrong!
And I have not studied this enough anyway to make stupid statements (well it
has some rewards of its own to make stupid statements, it gets you smarter
when reading the replies).
Does anyone think that this direction is relavent for ruby?
Well I am not qualified to answer this question :(. But if it evolves into a
standard it will be, don't you think?
···
On 4/6/06, Carl Woodward <cjwoodward@gmail.com> wrote:
Not sure if anyone saw this today on slashdot:
OSDL to Bridge GNOME and KDE
"Open Source Development Labs is previewing work that will attempt to
make life easier for software companies by bridging GNOME and KDE. The
effort, called Portland Project, began showing its first software
tools on in conjunction with this week's LinuxWorld Conference & Expo.
Using them, a software company can write a single software package
that works using either of the prevailing graphical interfaces.
Working with Freedesktop.org on unifying interface issues, they plan
to release a beta version of the software in May and version 1.0 in
June. Ultimately, advocates hope that it will be part of a larger but
separate effort called Linux Standard Base, which is designed to make
the operating system easier for software companies to use."
--
Carl Woodward
0412218979
cjwoodward@gmail.com
Cheers
Robert
--
Deux choses sont infinies : l'univers et la bêtise humaine ; en ce qui
concerne l'univers, je n'en ai pas acquis la certitude absolue.