derek@speedy.WISC.EDU (Derek Zahn) (08/11/87)
Hmm. PowerWindows, eh? I am about 1/3 through an implementation of a
similar tool that I was developing for my own use (being unfamiliar
previously with PowerWindows). Is anybody familiar with the features of
version 2.0? Could you give a description?
I'd really rather abandon this project if I can buy a good product (maybe
just cut the nearly finished Image editor out of it to run by itself -- I
HATE having to reboot my machine into DeluxePaint just to make a gadget
image).
Features I would require: an emulation mode (where one can see exactly what
one will get, including gadget highlighting, etc), support for ALL gadget
types, menu features. Features I would like: Ability to size and position
things either by eye with the mouse or with coordinates. Ability to write
IntuiText into windows, draw lines, boxes, and other commonly-used presentation
graphics functions. Generation of IDCMP loop code, Menu handling switch
statement, perhaps even the calls to open the window, set menu strip, add
gadgets, etc.
derek
Derek Zahn @ Wisconsin
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BITNET: derek at wiscvm
ARPA INTERNET: derek@cs.wisc.edu
"It's much much much too hot in here."lachac@topaz.rutgers.edu (Gerard Lachac) (08/12/87)
In article <4080@spool.wisc.edu.WISC.EDU> derek@speedy.WISC.EDU (Derek Zahn) writes: >Hmm. PowerWindows, eh? I am about 1/3 through an implementation of a >similar tool that I was developing for my own use (being unfamiliar >previously with PowerWindows). Is anybody familiar with the features of >version 2.0? Could you give a description? I'll try to keep this from sounding like an advertisement, but since I have the latest AmigaWorld in front of me, I'll just repeat what it says. Disclaimer: I have no association with Inovatronics, the company that makes Power Windows. I'm just an active reader, and a budding programmer whose looking for info :-) * edits multiple windows simultaneously * creates string, integer, proportional and BOOLean gadgets * reads in IFF brushes for gadget imagery * allows easy menu positioning * design custom screens with extensive palette control * includes menu mutual-exclude support * generates optional event handler * supports Modula-2, C, 68000 assembler * lets you read in and edit any existing window with its unique "Grab A Window" function The ad goes on to give quotes from William Volk (Aegis Draw Plus), John W. Bittner, Jr. (Zuma Group: TV*Text), and some other people who used PW in the development of their programs. -- "Truth is false and logic lost..." - Neil Peart (who at the time didn't realize he was talking about RU) lachac@topaz.rutgers.edu <--------OR--------> {seismo|ames}!rutgers!topaz!lachac
peter@sugar.UUCP (Peter da Silva) (08/15/87)
> I'd really rather abandon this project if I can buy a good product (maybe > just cut the nearly finished Image editor out of it to run by itself -- I > HATE having to reboot my machine into DeluxePaint just to make a gadget > image). Use Deluxe Paint II. So long as you have a minimal amount of RAM free it will load in overlay mode... something like 200K free will do it. DPII is the first EA product I've seen that recognises that people might want to multitask once in a while. Way to go, EA! -- -- Peter da Silva `-_-' ...!seismo!soma!uhnix1!sugar!peter (I said, NO PHOTOS!)
karl@sugar.UUCP (Karl Lehenbauer) (05/22/88)
A few quick words about Power Windows:
I've been using it for about two weeks, and it's a very useful tool for
creating windows, gadgets and screens interactively, then generating source
code to define all of this for Manx, Lattice, assembler or Modula.
(Interestingly, they had trouble with Modula: It's hard to do static
initializers in Modula. Gross, eh?)
Anyway, it works OK, but with the following problems:
It gurus if there are too many files in the directory.
It locks up the machine if certain gadget bits are selected.
The user interface is pretty unpleasant.
Launch from CLI should let the file requesters assume current
directory. The existing "/Parent" entry works for those who
want to "go up."
Other random gurus correlated with its operation.
--
..!{bellcore!tness1,uunet!nuchat}!sugar!karl, Unix BBS (713) 438-5018matt@beatnix.UUCP (Matthew D. Shaver) (03/17/89)
Would anyone care to recommend PowerWindows? (or not?)
Thanks, Matthew.
==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==-==
Matthew D. Shaver --- UUCP: ..!{sun|lll-tis}!elxsi!beatnix!matt
USPS: ELXSI Ltd., 2334 Lundy Pl., San Jose, CA 95131
BELL: (408) 942-0900limonce@pilot.njin.net (Tom Limoncelli) (03/18/89)
I like it! It saves me a lot of time. Some people have given it bad
ratings because of crashing and because you can't do all the custom
stuff. I don't have the latest version (My current version does
"enough" for my needs) but the newest might have fewers bugs, etc. Of
course, even with the very rare crashes that I have it has saved me
tons of time. (It's also really great to be able to prototype your
user interface without even writing any code!)
IMHO, it's worth it!
-Tom
--
Tom Limoncelli -- tlimonce@drunivac.Bitnet -- limonce@pilot.njin.net
Drew University -- Madison, NJ -- 201-408-5389
Standard
Disclaim
er.shf@well.UUCP (Stuart H. Ferguson) (03/22/89)
+-- matt@beatnix.UUCP (Matthew D. Shaver) writes: | Would anyone care to recommend PowerWindows? (or not?) | Thanks, Matthew. Well, I don't like it, but it's more a matter of personal taste than anything else. One major reason is that the gadget hitbox for a button that you draw a border around isn't quite as big as the border, so there are these one-pixel gaps between the highlighted box and the border when it's selected. You can always recognize an interface made with power windows by looking for these gaps. Also, the source code it generates is nowhere near customizable enough for me, and I refuse to adopt someone else's coding style because of limitations of my tools. The only thing I've used it for is turning brushes into Images, and even then I had to edit the source code heavily. -- Stuart Ferguson (shf@well.UUCP) Action by HAVOC
alj@bilver.UUCP (arthur johnson) (03/24/89)
I would unreservedly recommend PowerWindows for any programmer who wants
custom screens, windows, menus, and gadgets in his/her/its programs. I've used
this program for a while now, and design all of the above structures with it.
I doubt if ShowFont would be as user-friendly if I didn't use this program.
Well, satisfied customer aside, the program does have a couple of faults.
For example, it still insists on not drawing borders around requesters (at
least when you translate it to Lattice C), the C code generated does not
include all the flags that you wanted (GADGHCOMP, for example - I think this
might be because it has a 0 value, but it should still be in there), and a
couple of other minor faults. I wrote the company with a list o' suggestions,
but haven't received any feedback.
Overall, though, the program is well worth the $79.95 (or so) that it costs.
It supports many languages (C, Modula, Assembly, etc.) for code generation,
and is just really nice to have when you need to make a nice fluffy interface
for your programs.
-Arthur
"Standard: I'm not affiliated with the company except as a satisfied etc."
--
Arthur Johnson Jr. -=> {uiucuxc, hoptoad, petsd}!peora!rtmvax!bilver!alj
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- -=> alj@bilver.UUCP
-=> PLink: DUNG
-=> GEnie: A.JOHNSONJRkarl@sugar.hackercorp.com (Karl Lehenbauer) (04/03/89)
(I tried to email to the original poster -- Send in your map entry!) A major bad thing about Power Windows is that it will crash the machine if the number of files in the directory you're using with the file requester exceeds an internal hard-coded limit -- tacky. (DPaint does too. It never was a problem when we only had floppies.) Also, watch the defaults it gives you in the file requester windows. If you start working on a new screen, it'll give you the last filename you saved as the file to save to -- it's easy to overwrite things. It's a useful program, though. -- -- uunet!sugar!karl | "Time is an illusion. Lunchtime doubly so." -- | -- Ford Prefect -- Usenet BBS (713) 438-5018
cmp8133@information-systems.east-anglia.ac.uk ("S. Hawes") (01/24/91)
Hello, I want to buy PowerWindows 2.5 for designing userinterfaces. However, I'd like to program in Modula2 using Benchmark's Modula 2 construction set. Does anyone know whether that's possible using PowerWindows? The local shopkeepers here didn't know and they didn't want to open the package. I know that Lattice and Manx C, as well as MC68000 can be generated, but I also heard that with the packages comes a 'translation utility'. Is this correct ? Thanks, Steve cmp8133@sys.uea.ac.uk University of East Anglia Norwich England