3 ms·

I don't get it. What am I looking at, exactly?

bryanrasmussen 10y ago
every now and then people get the idea to build a visual programming language, meaning that you don't have to write code but instead make a bunch of boxes and arrows to indicate programmatic flow ( and probably have to write some code inside of a box or something but at least the whole program flow is really clear). Dr Dobbs used to always have articles highlighting implementations - for example http://www.drdobbs.com/architecture-and-design/visual-programming-in-3-d/184409677 http://www.drdobbs.com/architecture-and-design/visual-progra... My comment might sound like I'm against it, not exactly though, it's a fascinating idea (the first time I saw anything about it I though wooooo, this is the future!!!) but whenever I get into it I just find it awful and confusing.
- groovy2shoes 10y ago
  Yeah... I've heard of visual programming before, even played with Scratch a bit some time ago, but I couldn't tell if that's what this was for or what. I don't really see any advantages to this. I feel like once you get familiar with your languages and libraries, typing is fast because you don't have to search for what you want, you can put it from your thoughts into your program directly, and everything you need to know is laid out before you. With this it seems like you'd have to hunt through menus to hunt what you want (and they're all white text in little blue boxes, none of them being visually distinct from any other), and then spend time targeting it with a pointing device (and they're small targets, which requires more precise movements and generally more time to position), and then you can't see the values of the parameters/fields unless/until you click on them (so, yes, I have a color stacked on top of a sphere... what color? what size? where? that's three separate clicks, as far as I can tell). I didn't find the demo videos impressive or even interesting, really... I couldn't tell if it was some kind of awful general-purpose programming environment or some kind of awful 3D modeling program (I still can't tell, actually, but it's got "CAD" in the name, so if I had to guess I'd go with modeling). Text also has the benefit of being a linear format, amenable to listings. It's also a simple and standard format, with hundreds if not thousands of powerful tools already available. It compresses well, and is decently small to begin with. In most programs, spatial relationships typically aren't meaningful, whereas linguistic ones are (or, at least, they can be). In non-trivial programs, a spatial representation of references can get ugly, messy, and confusing fast. I'm sure there's more, but I feel like I've made my point ;) Oh, and, as is customary on HN, I'd like to point out how terrible the web site is. I get the feeling this is supposed to be a product of some sort, not just a weekend project, and, in that light: I've literally seen Geocities sites that looked more professional. Text-to-speech narration in the demo videos will never sell me on any product. Now, I'm no good at designing web pages myself, so I can sympathize. But when you've got a product to move, that's when you need to call up a buddy who is good at it and make a polite request for assistance. The kind of impression your web page leaves on people does matter when it comes to making sales.

every now and then people get the idea to build a visual programming language, meaning that you don't have to write code but instead make a bunch of boxes and arrows to indicate programmatic flow ( and probably have to write some code inside of a box or something but at least the whole program flow is really clear). Dr Dobbs used to always have articles highlighting implementations - for example http://www.drdobbs.com/architecture-and-design/visual-programming-in-3-d/184409677 http://www.drdobbs.com/architecture-and-design/visual-progra... My comment might sound like I'm against it, not exactly though, it's a fascinating idea (the first time I saw anything about it I though wooooo, this is the future!!!) but whenever I get into it I just find it awful and confusing.

groovy2shoes 10y ago
Yeah... I've heard of visual programming before, even played with Scratch a bit some time ago, but I couldn't tell if that's what this was for or what. I don't really see any advantages to this. I feel like once you get familiar with your languages and libraries, typing is fast because you don't have to search for what you want, you can put it from your thoughts into your program directly, and everything you need to know is laid out before you. With this it seems like you'd have to hunt through menus to hunt what you want (and they're all white text in little blue boxes, none of them being visually distinct from any other), and then spend time targeting it with a pointing device (and they're small targets, which requires more precise movements and generally more time to position), and then you can't see the values of the parameters/fields unless/until you click on them (so, yes, I have a color stacked on top of a sphere... what color? what size? where? that's three separate clicks, as far as I can tell). I didn't find the demo videos impressive or even interesting, really... I couldn't tell if it was some kind of awful general-purpose programming environment or some kind of awful 3D modeling program (I still can't tell, actually, but it's got "CAD" in the name, so if I had to guess I'd go with modeling). Text also has the benefit of being a linear format, amenable to listings. It's also a simple and standard format, with hundreds if not thousands of powerful tools already available. It compresses well, and is decently small to begin with. In most programs, spatial relationships typically aren't meaningful, whereas linguistic ones are (or, at least, they can be). In non-trivial programs, a spatial representation of references can get ugly, messy, and confusing fast. I'm sure there's more, but I feel like I've made my point ;) Oh, and, as is customary on HN, I'd like to point out how terrible the web site is. I get the feeling this is supposed to be a product of some sort, not just a weekend project, and, in that light: I've literally seen Geocities sites that looked more professional. Text-to-speech narration in the demo videos will never sell me on any product. Now, I'm no good at designing web pages myself, so I can sympathize. But when you've got a product to move, that's when you need to call up a buddy who is good at it and make a polite request for assistance. The kind of impression your web page leaves on people does matter when it comes to making sales.