pcb@cacs.usl.edu (Peter C. Bahrs) (10/09/90)
Where is it??????????????? About 2 months ago two people volunteered to start a faq monthly posting. We need it so we don't have to wait 20-30 minutes on long distance trying to talk to MS only to hang up in frustration (and of course repetitive questions could be answered). I wish I had the time!!! If some does this, can you do it better that the counterpart in comp.graphics? I think some answers should accompany the questions. Some categories I can think of that I know people have solved include: 1) ftp sites 2) How to configure com ports 3) C++ vs Smalltalk vs Actor vs SDK development 4) My card, monitor, diskdrive, memory woes and solutions 5) Software like QEMM 6) Programming questions 7) Texts, publications, ... Just a thought... /*----------- Thanks in advance... --------------------------------------+ | Peter C. Bahrs | | The USL-NASA Project | | Center For Advanced Computer Studies INET: pcb@swamp.cacs.usl.edu | | 2 Rex Street | | University of Southwestern Louisiana ...!uunet!dalsqnt!gator!pcb | | Lafayette, LA 70504 | +-----------------------------------------------------------------------*/
patrickd@chinet.chi.il.us (Patrick Deupree) (10/12/90)
In article <16131@rouge.usl.edu> pcb@cacs.usl.edu (Peter C. Bahrs) writes: >Where is it??????????????? About 2 months ago two people volunteered >to start a faq monthly posting. We need it so we don't have to >wait 20-30 minutes on long distance trying to talk to MS only to hang >up in frustration (and of course repetitive questions could be answered). >3) C++ vs Smalltalk vs Actor vs SDK development Well, now that I'm an impartial Windows programmer I can post my impartial answer to this question (and someone can use it in a common facts posting if they like). Here's the story on each tool. C++ for Windows first. At this time the only complete solution that works reasonably well is C++ from Zortech and C++/Views from CNS. There is another product out called CommonView, but I've heard bad reviews on it frequently so I've not taken the time to explore it yet. This world is growing and it's very likely that there will be other C++ compilers and Windows libraries that work with MS Windows 3.0 in the near future. I would recommend this for the developer that has the time to develop the application (since it will take more time to develop using this than the other tools that I'll talk about later). The Windows libraries so far are pretty good, but they still leave a lot up to the programmer so you've still got room to, well, mess up. Personally, though, this is the route that I shall be taking in my future Windows development since I believe in C++ as the solid tool (as in, you know it will exist 10 years from now and it's relatively standard between companies and platforms). Smalltalk, at this time, is somewhat high priced and does not create a native application for the Windowing environment you're using. That is, it creates a Window that runs their own windowing system (it's usually necessary to maximize the main window in order to really work with the system). However, it has the advantage of binary code compatibility between Windows 3.0, MacIntosh, XWindows and DOS. So, if you want an application to run on different platforms, this is the best way to go (at this time). The disadvantage to this is that SmallTalk is somewhat different that using Pascal or C (for those used to these languages) so it might be tricky to learn at first. Actor is a good tool for creating first apps or complete prototypes quickly. If you just want to create prototype screens, forget it. I'd buy ToolBook or Spinnaker Plus to do that (Spinnaker Plus having the advantage of running on both Windows 3.0 and the MacIntosh). However, if you want to create a first version of an application that you want out quickly with the plan to convert it into C later, Actor is very good. It will run a bit slower than C (although the performance is surprising for a system that does what it does) and the application has a minimum "size" of 250K. My recommendation for developers is to use Actor to get an application "to market" for testing and recommendations, and then to convert to C once the application is out. This way you get an app out quickly, you get users to use it (which, most importantly, gives you valuable input as to what people like and dislike about the system) and then you can create the "sleaker" C app from a more educated perspective. Finally, C and the SDK straight. I have to use this right now and, while it's easy enough to do once you get the hang of it, it can get a bit ugly. It's tough to "unlearn" object oriented programming and go back to the sequential world again, but it works. If you're short on cash, but insist on doing the app in C this is the way to go. You can get quick C for around $99 and you can get the SDK for $300 (or $350), and at this time that's the cheapest way to create Windows apps that I know of (excluding tools such as ToolBook and Spinnaker Plus, of course.) I think that in the next few months you'll see a lot more Windows development tools coming out also. So, there's the complete view. Oh, one side note for all those interested in Actor. They've raised the price again. It is now $895 for Actor (however, they have included the previously separate product Language Extensions with the basic package). The old package deals (e.g. $1495 for Actor, Object Graphics and a Gold Support plan) still hold, though (the last I heard). -- "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet." William Shakespeare Patrick Deupree -> patrickd@chinet.chi.il.us (708) 328-3800 (Please note there are both a patrick and a patrickd at this site)