Software
Review of: |
 The
incredible increases in CPU speed, massive hard drives, video cards with
as much memory as the mainboard, and more and faster RAM, have given rise
to "if it compiles, sell it" attitudes and policies among the software
industry. Consumers are getting great hardware, but the software used to
operate the equipment is becoming more bloated than government budgets,
and more 'buggy' than an east Texas swamp. Fortunately, that is more than
offset by the mind numbing speed with which they crash! I suggest that
the single common factor between mainstream applications, is Microsoft
Windows. Most of you, like me, have wasted far too many of our limited
hours of life trying to keep this buggy, and defective application running.
Windows (fill in the blank) all have more patches than the streets of San
Antonio. Why can't they simply give us applications that do only things
we actually need and can use? An application that claims 100 functions
is useless if it crashes on 90 of them. I can visualize you nodding in
agreement, and also asking 'what can be done about it'?
The best current solution is to change to an operating system that is less crash prone than Windows. There are several versions of Linux, BSD, and Be to try, and all seem to fill the desired qualities. Fair enough, but what about applications? All of the major software vendors have committed to porting their products over to run on Linux, BSD already has many apps, and Be has received excellent reviews, so will doubtless join in application developments. You can also take the route more and more businesses are; create your own. Don't laugh. If you think about it, what good does it do to spend years learning to program if you have to run your creations on an unstable operating system? I think the main reason applications crash is bad code, caused by work arounds, trying to bypass defective, flawed code in the operating system. I assume you read the 'rumor' that Microsoft admits to some 63,000+ "problems" in Windows 2000? Whether or not the numbers are accurate, it doubtless is a continuation of more of the same. Instead of wasting time with Windows, why not try creating for Linux? People who have been collaborating in building Linux have mostly used tools they created for their own use. Products for rolling your own apps for Linux are beginning to enter the consumer mainstream. One of these is Code Fusion by Cygnus. Code Fusion is similar to MetroWerks CodeWarrior in that it uses an IDE (Integrated Development Environment) with both internal and external tools. It combines Cygnus latest open_source development infrastructure (compilers, debuggers, utlities and libraries with the world's most advanced browsing environment, the Source_Navigatoe source code comprehension tool. Source_Navigator is a graphical, advanced source_code comprehension and analysis tool that enables developers to understand code code structures and relationships. It makes migrating, re_engineering, reusing code, or understanding Y2K problems easier. ( Linux uses a different method for reading dates, and is good until 2037, at which time you simply reset the counter). With source browsing, you can easily analyze your source code for an application. Cross_references, class heirarchy views, symbol browsing and an include file browser give a global picture of a project's source. It shortens the development cycle by connecting all the components necessary to edit, compile, and debug a project. A Project and Build manager allow generating target build information for a project database or Makefile. The graphical debugger allows for debugging native executables linked with C, C++, and compiled Java to be debugged at the source level with mixed language call stacks. When the cause of a bug is found, the matching line in the editor is a button click away. It inckudes C and C++ compilers, as well as compilers for Java, C++ libraries, Java libraries, and a source level debugger. There are also a macro_assembler, a linker/loader, a Source Comprehension tool, a make/build utility, binary object file utilities, and both printed and online documentation. You also get 30 days installation support. I almost cracked a rib laughing when I read that. Think about that — 30 days for installation — hahahahahahahahaha!! Installation was uneventful, and only took about three minutes. Of course, this was after spending some time with the 222 page manual beforehand. I did not install it from the command line, but rather from Gnome. For those not familiar with Linux, Gnome is a Windows like GUI (Graphical User Interface) you can run your programs from. As with many Linux apps, Gnome is a work in progress, and has some problems, but I find it already the equal of Windows in ease of use, and runing under Linux, far more stable. You do need to use the command line to properly set the path for Code Fusion, and there are a few other item that needed attention, but all in all, the install went pretty smoothly. I have not had sufficient time with Code Fusion to do much other than begin learning the structure of the IDE, and the many commands involved It is not really like working with Windows programmng tools. Since the source code for Linux is freely available, along with that of the applications that run under it, you can far better prepare and plan out your ideas for your application. As with most programming packages, a demo project is included. Following the tutorial uses this demo to familiarize yourself with the interface and command structure. The real nice part of this program is again the ability to create a clean application due to the available source code. It is unnecessary to depend on the programming application to attempt to generate usable (non crashing) code. Since you can follow the operating system source code, you can see potential problems, and avoid them. If you still make a mistake, it is infinitally easier to find and correct the problem. The bottom line is, I am new to Linux, and the creating of Linux apps, but am very enthused over having a solid foundation to work with. I was unable to find Code Fusion in stock locally, but it can be ordered. You can purchase it from Cygnus for $299.00. NEWS UPDATE
System requirements
1325 Chesapeake Terrace Sunnyvale, CA 94089 408_542_9600 E-mail: info@cygnus.com I am a semi_professional curmudgeon. The pay is low, but the work is steady. You can e-mail me at: arben2@swbell.net |