Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ames!ncar!boulder!tramp!ewing
From: ewing@tramp.Colorado.EDU (EWING DAVID JAMES)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.programmer
Subject: Re: Prototyper
Summary: 2.0 better but not perfect
Keywords: prototyper mac programming
Message-ID: <7618@boulder.Colorado.EDU>
Date: 22 Mar 89 19:21:05 GMT
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Sender: news@boulder.Colorado.EDU
Reply-To: ewing@tramp.Colorado.EDU (EWING DAVID JAMES)
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Organization: University of Colorado, Boulder
Lines: 31

True, Prototype 2.0 is vastly improved, but it isn't complete (and may
never be).  First, it contains as many bugs as version 1.0.  However
SmethersBarnes has decided that they will fix them.  Registered users
can get a free update by calling there tech. support line.  I know this
update is coming because I am currently testing a prerelease version
of it (and I haven't crashed it yet).

The basic problems I have with Prototyper is its basic purpose (implied
by its name).  It is best for prototyping applications, not building real
ones.  There is no easy way of adding new user I/F features after you
have already generated code and modified it for your own purposes.  You
have go in and make all your changes again every time you generate new
code.  SmethersBarnes says they will probably fix this by calling routines
that you supply instead of having you insert code directly into the files
that it generates.  However, this won't be in the next update.

It needs to support scrolling views inside of windows.  Either text or
graphical.  It allows windows to be prototyped which look like they
should work, but they don't.

Also, it doesn't support MacApp.  Although I don't use MacApp, I would
consider it if Prototyper supported it.   Basically I'm sick of writting
the same code over and over again, and the combination of Prototyper and
an object-oriented language would be perfect ;-).

Minor problems include:  Its support of hierarchical menus is icky (for
lack of a better term).  Scrolling lists need to be filled with arbitrary
information of arbitrary lengths.

Oh well.  That's enough for now.
				-dave-