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From: vlad@world2u.com (Vlastimil Adamovsky)
Subject: Re: Turkey days
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Date: Tue, 3 Dec 1996 02:54:36 GMT

Alan Lovejoy <alovejoy@concentric.net> wrote:

>Vlastimil Adamovsky wrote:
>> 
>> While eating turkey and keying in some very advanced program into my stupid
>> computer I realized one thing. It is not language that is the most important in
>> software development nowadays.
>> It is an environment. Delphi, Optima++ and others to name only few....
>> 
>> Smalltalk is a great language. One of the best. Its development environment is
>> one of the worst.

>Why do you say this? 

Because I love Smalltalk and I would like to see the development environment
improved.

> Are you speaking only of a particular vendor's product,
>or in general?  

I was maybe too quick. VA and VSE go in correct direction. 

>Do you include Envy in this criticism, or are you only referring
>to a "base image"? 

I understand Envy to be a source version control utility, am I right?

> What's wrong with the Smalltalk development environment
>that isn't also wrong with all the others?  How would you fix it?

I would like to see: 
  * packages (modules etc...)
  * better visual programming 
  * better GUI development tools
  * components (visual and non-visual), that have not to be "filed-in" into   '
    image in order to be used
  * GUI objects (composites, forms, dialogs etc..)  should be saved in special 
    "object-oriented resource files" instead of generating code for these.
  * Event handler should be able to execute "actions" written even in other 
    languages and located elsewhere. 
  * Application should be possible to be edited while executed.
   (Now we have to stop execution, switch to edit mode, fix GUI or some other 
    objects, then switch to run mode and so on)
  * Properties should be edited through a special Properties window, similar to 
    that of VB, Delphi, Optima++, Envelop and other
  * It would be nice to have an option to transform properties into instance 
    variables if I would decide to and vice versa

   etc... etc....

  Smalltalk is a great language, but its potential is not fully used. It makes 
  people wonder why to use Smalltalk.  Actually my well being depends on 
  success of Smalltalk, so don't think I am fighting against it. 
  I am simply trying to make some suggestions and show, that we should not fall 
  in sleep being under false impression, that Smalltalk will be always the best.

   

  

>--
>Alan L. Lovejoy		|==============================================| 
>Smalltalk Consultant	|	Beware of Geeks bearing GIFs!	       |
>alovejoy@concentric.net |==============================================|

 Vlastimil Adamovsky
 ** C++ and Smalltalk consultant **
 * http://www.stepweb.com *

