compileIt for revolution?

[Jim Bufalini]

Guess I'll add my two cents.

I'm a newbie to "Rev" (Revolution) but worked over 25 years in "Rev"
(Revelation), another similar, high-typed, extensible, flexible, run as you
program, script language. It's an implementation of Pick on the PC. I was
considered an expert. I also owned a company and employed programmers.

I too, have heard these discussions hundreds of times, over the years.

Speed of execution rarely relates to code, or the language, or whether it's
compiled, or in pcode or whatever. It always has to do with data, whether
the data is in arrays, or a database, or whatever object. Any language can
add 2 to 2 instantly, regardless of the syntax.

You don't get speed by changing languages, or writing lengthy workarounds,
or complaining about your tools. You get speed by designing, in advance, the
layout of your data.

This requires straight thinking. 1. Know what you are setting out to
accomplish before you type one character of code (what are your client's
(your) goals?). 2. Layout and optimize the data you are going to access
BEFORE writing any code. How are you indexing the data? Is it real indexing
or organization? 3. Now write your code. If you find yourself writing
spaghetti code, STOP, go back to step 1.

Jim

-----Original Message-----
From: use-revolution-bounces at lists.runrev.com
[mailto:use-revolution-bounces at lists.runrev.com]On Behalf Of Dan Shafer
Sent: Wednesday, June 22, 2005 12:12 PM
To: How to use Revolution
Subject: Re: compileIt for revolution?


This whole discussion has been revealing and intriguing to me.

My favorite programming language is Smalltalk. But before it was
possible to create UIs for Smalltalk without writing code, I found it
cumbersome. When a product called WindowBuilder came along, I felt
like we'd achieved the ultimate development environment. In many
ways, I still think that. Smalltalk had other problems,
unfortunately, that made it great to code in, difficult to impossible
to deploy.

Then my second favorite language was Python. The GUI-building tools
for Python are pathetic to non-existent. But the language is powerful
and elegant and extends naturally. If the PythonCard project I was
engaged in before I discovered Revolution had been on a fast track or
complete, odds are I'd have never used Rev.

Now I favor Transcript and RunRev. Building UIs is all but painless
and 95% of what I want or need to do in creating apps is simple
inside the elegance of Transcript. But Transcript isn't  object-
oriented.

Two aphorisms came to mind as I read this entire thread again today.

One is, "No good programmer uses only one tool for everything."

The other is, "It's a poor workman who blames his tools."




~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dan Shafer, Revolution Consultant and Author
http://www.shafermedia.com
Get my book, "Revolution: Software at the Speed of Thought"
 From http://www.shafermedia.com/revolutionbooks.html




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