[REBOL] Re: Visual development tool for Rebol/view
From: greggirwin::mindspring::com at: 18-Aug-2001 14:21
<< I have talked about this before on the list, but no one seemed to even
care,
so....>>
I'm very new to REBOL, being a VB guy by trade.
I like the idea of an IDE (it's what I'm used to from the days of QuickBASIC
4.5) for project management and navigation. A long time ago I started on a
character mode screen layout tool for DOS, so I've always liked the idea of
visual
development. What I haven't figured out yet is what the best
approach would be for a REBOL implementation.
A drag-and-drop layout tool which generates view code containing pairs for
size and offsets could certainly be done. Being new to REBOL, I'm struck by
the elegance of the View layout engine, particularly in light of how much
work can be involved when locations are hard-coded and you have to update a
screen later. Once I'm up to speed with REBOL, it shouldn't be too difficult
to write a tool to convert VB FRM file layouts to View layouts using that
approach.
For a character mode screen designer that same approach is the logical one
because you have a fixed size screen (unless we write a character mode
windowing system as well).
Now, if we can come up with a good visual designer that generates elegant
layout code, it would be awesome as a teaching tool as well. Trying to
visualize the results for Tabs, Guides, and Returns isn't always easy
(speaking as a newcomer). Fortunately, it's so quick to make a change and
see the results, that it isn't a serious hindrance. Maybe that's why there
hasn't been a great outcry for a visual layout tool.
Maybe Tabs could be displayed on an edge-bound ruler, Guides and Returns
could be just other controls in the toolbox, along with Across and Below.
When you add a control by clicking it in the toolbox, it would appear at the
location highlighted on the form (which tells you where the next control
will appear in the layout). If you drag it from the toolbox, then it would
be set with an offset pair where you drop it. Each sited control could have
a visual indicator telling you if it's placed by the layout engine or by
offset with an option to switch from one to the other.
Gosh, sorry for rambling. I'm just so excited by the possibilities I see in
REBOL that I'm getting way ahead of myself.
--Gregg
