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Graphical Programming - You have an ever increasing number of people needing to perform computational tasks but lack education in coding. As WYSIWYG/GUI transfo

by 1-6 7y ago

Graphical Programming - You have an ever increasing number of people needing to perform computational tasks but lack education in coding. As WYSIWYG/GUI transformed personal computers, the GUI will eventually transform the way we program as well.

jhallenworld 7y ago
This exists, it's called LabVIEW. I make a money by replacing horrible LabVIEW-based systems with nice text-based ones (Python / C / whatever- all are better than LabVIEW). LabVIEW is ok if your virtual instrument fits on one screen. Anything larger and you are better off using a conventional programming language. So here is one program with graphical programming: how do you make it compatible with GIT / source control? I'm not saying it's impossible, but I am saying it's not easy. [There is a 3d CAD system called OnShape that does it].
- Delk 7y ago
  I don't know LabVIEW, but I can see how a naive or even a somewhat informed attempt at something like that could lead to, ahem, suboptimal results. I guess you could, in principle, replace text-based code with visual diagrams, but the essential requirement for logical rigor would remain. That's just part of the essential complexity in software. Replacing code with visual diagrams might make things easier for some people since understanding strict logical rigor and the ability to write code aren't the same thing, but in the end I don't think the difficult part of programming is actually learning to write code. I'm also not sure at all that you'd get very good productivity setting all those details right in the diagram through a GUI unless the interface were really well designed, with a liberal employment of keyboard shortcuts. GUIs are faster than CLIs at many things, but I'm not sure setting programming-level details is one of those. You'd probably need to employ keyboard shortcuts or something similar quite liberally, and learning those well wouldn't be too far from learning to write the code.

by 1-6 7y ago

jhallenworld 7y ago

This exists, it's called LabVIEW. I make a money by replacing horrible LabVIEW-based systems with nice text-based ones (Python / C / whatever- all are better than LabVIEW). LabVIEW is ok if your virtual instrument fits on one screen. Anything larger and you are better off using a conventional programming language. So here is one program with graphical programming: how do you make it compatible with GIT / source control? I'm not saying it's impossible, but I am saying it's not easy. [There is a 3d CAD system called OnShape that does it].

Delk 7y ago
I don't know LabVIEW, but I can see how a naive or even a somewhat informed attempt at something like that could lead to, ahem, suboptimal results. I guess you could, in principle, replace text-based code with visual diagrams, but the essential requirement for logical rigor would remain. That's just part of the essential complexity in software. Replacing code with visual diagrams might make things easier for some people since understanding strict logical rigor and the ability to write code aren't the same thing, but in the end I don't think the difficult part of programming is actually learning to write code. I'm also not sure at all that you'd get very good productivity setting all those details right in the diagram through a GUI unless the interface were really well designed, with a liberal employment of keyboard shortcuts. GUIs are faster than CLIs at many things, but I'm not sure setting programming-level details is one of those. You'd probably need to employ keyboard shortcuts or something similar quite liberally, and learning those well wouldn't be too far from learning to write the code.