4 ms·

This may be off-topic but I'm wondering if there is any chance to see cross platform and cross language toolkits any time soon. Something based on WebAssembly s

This may be off-topic but I'm wondering if there is any chance to see cross platform and cross language toolkits any time soon. Something based on WebAssembly so that we don't have to worry or bash about programming languages. Dart is cool but should we all learn Dart now?

grey-area 9y ago
Here is what developers want: Platform independence Choice of tools/language Control of customer data Hardware independence Here is what corporate platform owners (Google, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon etc) want: Platform lockin Minimal support costs (one language, one SDK) Control of customer data Control of the ecosystem Hardware independence A vig on every transaction There are very few intersections between the interests of developers and the interests of platform owners (be that Apple with iOS or MacOS, Google with Android, or MS with Windows). This is why the web will win IMO, it's one of the few platforms focussed on what customers and developers want, and not owned by a single corporation (though Google has come close).
- iiiggglll 9y ago
  > focussed on what customers and developers want I would hardly agree with the modern web being focused on what "customers" want. How many web pages today hijack scrolling, fill the screen with ads that lie on top of the content and don't scroll with the page, and so on? How much bloat is there? How many MB of unnecessary JS frameworks must be downloaded, often on a metered data plan, to support all of that? The web is a horrible mess these days. It may be a rip-roarin' good time for (some) developers, but it's absolutely awful for users.
  - grey-area 9y ago
    Compared to app platforms, I think it is more open and more focussed on readers and devs. The problems you list are annoyances of some websites, not even the majority. For example they don't apply to the site you are currently on not hard limitations. In contrast iOS forbids other payment systems (see deliberately limited kindle app) and browser engines. Android forces manufacturers to prominently feature lots of google products.
nathan_f77 9y ago
I'm developing a game with React Native [1], and I have a single codebase that works on iOS, Android, Windows, and web (via react-native-web, although it needs a lot of work.) I've had to write a few 'native modules' for various platforms, but it has to be platform-specific code anyway (e.g. ad networks, in-app purchases, game services) I've been looking for a way to write some native code that I can compile to JS, and have decided to use C (or C++) with emscripten [2]. Rust or Kotlin might be fun, but I'm comfortable with C and it's easy to compile for iOS, Android (NDK), and Windows. [1] https://sudoblock.com https://sudoblock.com [2] http://kripken.github.io/emscripten-site/ http://kripken.github.io/emscripten-site/
- steveklabnik 9y ago
  Rust should be just as easy to compile for those platforms. Using something you're comfortable with is good though!
  - nathan_f77 9y ago
    Yeah, that recent post [1] gave me a bit more confidence. Ooh, and it looks like I can compile Rust to wasm with emscripten! [2] I might have to reconsider Rust. [1] https://michaelfairley.com/blog/i-made-a-game-in-rust/ https://michaelfairley.com/blog/i-made-a-game-in-rust/ [2] https://users.rust-lang.org/t/compiling-to-the-web-with-rust-and-emscripten/7627 https://users.rust-lang.org/t/compiling-to-the-web-with-rust...
jdesjean 9y ago
I don't know how good it is, but there is a company called RemObjects Elements http://www.elementscompiler.com/elements/ http://www.elementscompiler.com/elements/ which cross compile Windows (.NET), Android (Java), iOS (Object C / Swift), Linux/Android (C++).

grey-area 9y ago

Here is what developers want: Platform independence Choice of tools/language Control of customer data Hardware independence Here is what corporate platform owners (Google, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon etc) want: Platform lockin Minimal support costs (one language, one SDK) Control of customer data Control of the ecosystem Hardware independence A vig on every transaction There are very few intersections between the interests of developers and the interests of platform owners (be that Apple with iOS or MacOS, Google with Android, or MS with Windows). This is why the web will win IMO, it's one of the few platforms focussed on what customers and developers want, and not owned by a single corporation (though Google has come close).

iiiggglll 9y ago
> focussed on what customers and developers want I would hardly agree with the modern web being focused on what "customers" want. How many web pages today hijack scrolling, fill the screen with ads that lie on top of the content and don't scroll with the page, and so on? How much bloat is there? How many MB of unnecessary JS frameworks must be downloaded, often on a metered data plan, to support all of that? The web is a horrible mess these days. It may be a rip-roarin' good time for (some) developers, but it's absolutely awful for users.
- grey-area 9y ago
  Compared to app platforms, I think it is more open and more focussed on readers and devs. The problems you list are annoyances of some websites, not even the majority. For example they don't apply to the site you are currently on not hard limitations. In contrast iOS forbids other payment systems (see deliberately limited kindle app) and browser engines. Android forces manufacturers to prominently feature lots of google products.

nathan_f77 9y ago

I'm developing a game with React Native [1], and I have a single codebase that works on iOS, Android, Windows, and web (via react-native-web, although it needs a lot of work.) I've had to write a few 'native modules' for various platforms, but it has to be platform-specific code anyway (e.g. ad networks, in-app purchases, game services) I've been looking for a way to write some native code that I can compile to JS, and have decided to use C (or C++) with emscripten [2]. Rust or Kotlin might be fun, but I'm comfortable with C and it's easy to compile for iOS, Android (NDK), and Windows. [1] https://sudoblock.com https://sudoblock.com [2] http://kripken.github.io/emscripten-site/ http://kripken.github.io/emscripten-site/

steveklabnik 9y ago
Rust should be just as easy to compile for those platforms. Using something you're comfortable with is good though!
- nathan_f77 9y ago
  Yeah, that recent post [1] gave me a bit more confidence. Ooh, and it looks like I can compile Rust to wasm with emscripten! [2] I might have to reconsider Rust. [1] https://michaelfairley.com/blog/i-made-a-game-in-rust/ https://michaelfairley.com/blog/i-made-a-game-in-rust/ [2] https://users.rust-lang.org/t/compiling-to-the-web-with-rust-and-emscripten/7627 https://users.rust-lang.org/t/compiling-to-the-web-with-rust...

jdesjean 9y ago

I don't know how good it is, but there is a company called RemObjects Elements http://www.elementscompiler.com/elements/ http://www.elementscompiler.com/elements/ which cross compile Windows (.NET), Android (Java), iOS (Object C / Swift), Linux/Android (C++).