XCode, why aren't the programmers here salivating over it?

ipeonipeon
Posted:
in Mac Software edited January 2014
One part of the Keynote that impressed me was XCode. I'm not a programer, hence I have no idea what this means to programmers. Nonetheless, I got the impression that XCode was revolutionary. Yet I don't see any excitement about it here.



What's the deal? Will it make life easier for programmers or not? Will it invite programmers to the Mac platform or is it just an "oh-hmm" release?

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 15
    hmurchisonhmurchison Posts: 12,425member
    You're not looking in the right thread. Search for posts by Kickaha. You'll find some good comments.
  • Reply 2 of 15
    bartobarto Posts: 2,246member
    Who says they arn't? I haven't used it yet, but from the screenshots I think it will rock. It looks so much user friendly than MS Visual whatever or PB.



    Barto
  • Reply 3 of 15
    wjmoorewjmoore Posts: 210member
    XCode sounds good but it doesn't make programming easier. You still have to know what you're doing. It just makes the act of coding itself a more efficient exercise. So overall it will be nicer to work with and adds some nice features but doesn't really make the act of programming any easier. I feel it is unlikely that it alone will attract new developers to the OS X platform, of course I could be wrong and I am yet to use it.



    WM
  • Reply 4 of 15
    pbpb Posts: 4,255member
    Macbidouille has today some interesting info from an anonymous developer. Briefly it says:



    (1) IBM has the intention to port its own compilers to OS X. Surprise: Fortran included.



    (2) This will considerably boost code performance.



    (3) Fortran inclusion will apparently be important in scientific applications.



    (4) The compiler supports OpenMP.



    It doesn't says if the port has something to do with Xcode or if it is something independent. Neither says when this will happen. So, if someone has more precise info, please post here.
  • Reply 5 of 15
    pbpb Posts: 4,255member
    Oh, yes, and what about the alleged auto-vectorization features of future compilers? Do we have facts and details here or it is pure speculation?
  • Reply 6 of 15
    thuh freakthuh freak Posts: 2,664member
    the reason i'm not salivating is all the moisture in my body has spooged out muh pants. Xcode is godly; my only fear is that i've built up my expectations too high for it. distributed compiling, compiling WHILE writing source code and removal of (most) linking. linking, sometimes, can be a huge fvcking wait (especially on my slow ass computer, and my overly bloated projects). i'm puzzled as to how they dropped that doozy. and that editing code and notice changes in a RUNNING program: i have no words to express the joy that idea brings to me. the closest i can get is 'w007'. w007. w007.
  • Reply 7 of 15
    palterpalter Posts: 98member
    As a professional developer since 1974 (sigh), all I can say is it's nice to see Apple finally offering capabilities that were available over 20 years ago on Lisp Machines (modifying live applications) and Multics (true dynamic linking).
  • Reply 8 of 15
    amorphamorph Posts: 7,112member
    Yeah, that's the sad thing. I remember Smalltalk developers changing objects on the fly in running applications a long time ago. The combination of C++ and PC operating systems set the industry back about 20 years, and it looks like it's finally starting to catch up again. (And it looks like there's something good to say about Multics! Who knew? )



    Am I looking forward to Xcode? Heck yes. It looks sweet and clean and efficient, and it's great to see Apple leveraging the capabilities of their OS this well. I'll have to start playing with it before I truly begin salivating, but I'm looking forward to that day.
  • Reply 9 of 15
    airslufairsluf Posts: 1,861member
  • Reply 10 of 15
    stupider...likeafoxstupider...likeafox Posts: 1,618member
    For a first take on XCode check out the comments on June 23 & 24th from Mike Pinkerton, lead developer of Camino:



    http://weblogs.mozillazine.org/pinkerton/
  • Reply 11 of 15
    amorphamorph Posts: 7,112member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by stupider...likeafox

    For a first take on XCode check out the comments on June 23 & 24th from Mike Pinkerton, lead developer of Camino:



    http://weblogs.mozillazine.org/pinkerton/



    Ouch.



    Apart from one gripe that I can't make any sense of (Mike, when isn't the result of a single click different from that of a double click?! Been surfing too much lately?), it sounds like he's not at all pleased. And I have to say, the single text field for all your paths sounds like the kind of thoroughly bletcherous is-this-some-kind-of-practical-joke interface that graces Borland C++. Or MS Word. Certainly, the crashing problem sounds like the sort of thing that'll get cleaned up at least as well as it ever is in development environments.



    Well, they've got a few months to work on it yet. \ PB/IB is not bad at all, except for the build times, but it's missing enough that a downgrade would be... unwelcome.
  • Reply 12 of 15
    jante99jante99 Posts: 539member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by iPeon

    One part of the Keynote that impressed me was XCode. I'm not a programer, hence I have no idea what this means to programmers. Nonetheless, I got the impression that XCode was revolutionary. Yet I don't see any excitement about it here.



    What's the deal? Will it make life easier for programmers or not? Will it invite programmers to the Mac platform or is it just an "oh-hmm" release?



    Quote:

    At first, I thought the redesign of XCode was pretty cool. Now i'm almost positive it's one of the worst apps I've seen come out of apple in a long time. The UI is terrible, and developers are worse off in many ways than before.



    Mike Pinkerton
  • Reply 13 of 15
    ipeonipeon Posts: 1,122member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Amorph

    Yeah, that's the sad thing. I remember Smalltalk developers changing objects on the fly in running applications a long time ago. The combination of C++ and PC operating systems set the industry back about 20 years, and it looks like it's finally starting to catch up again.



    It's interesting that you say that... I do feel a definite rebirth at Apple. A decision has been made, and for the first time since it's very beginnings, Apple is able and whiling to do it... it's finally legally and mentally free from a "partner" that almost cost it's life - Microsoft. I'm sure Steve has kicked himself over and over and over for having made the terrible mistake of inviting Microsoft (Bill Gates) as the company to code it's software in the early days.



    Yes, around 1984 the computing world was about to take off when Bill Gates came along and put the breaks on progress. Today, Apple is finally able to get back to doing what it had intended to do 20 years ago!!



    Today Apple is no longer whiling to be bullied by Microsoft.



    I see the goal, I see the direction... Let's GO!!!
  • Reply 14 of 15
    ipeonipeon Posts: 1,122member
    Quote:

    At first, I thought the redesign of XCode was pretty cool. Now i'm almost positive it's one of the worst apps I've seen come out of apple in a long time. The UI is terrible, and developers are worse off in many ways than before.



    Whenever I see such grand negative statements about something Apple has done I become very suspicious of the source. Not that I feel Apple can't do anything wrong, but because I have discovered the tech world is 20% technology and 80% arrogance without a clue. Maybe he's right, I don't know him, but that statement just comes across wrong to me.
  • Reply 15 of 15
    kickahakickaha Posts: 8,760member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Amorph

    Yeah, that's the sad thing. I remember Smalltalk developers changing objects on the fly in running applications a long time ago. The combination of C++ and PC operating systems set the industry back about 20 years, and it looks like it's finally starting to catch up again.



    Indeed. 20 years from now, we'll all be using the final evolution of OO languages... and it'll be Smalltalk.



    Okay, it'll be called Fortran2020, but it'll be Smalltalk.
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