#Where Shall I Start?
2 messages in this thread
I just want to thank Jim Butterfield and Peter Wade for thier replies. Your
info has been very interesting. I hadden't really thought about how hard it
would be to write a GFX interface for the IBM. I know from experience that
many ships computers run from Dos menus. Would I be able to write a nice
looking GUI for use in Dos, which wasn't dependent on the type of GFX card
installed.
To be honest I'd rather use a Windows like GUI than Dos. Well, I'd
really prefer to do the whole thing on the Amiga, but there just aren't any out
at sea. I have seen a Mac though. Is Windows hard to program in C? That is
to say, are there library's for C, or did Microsoft make Windows as confusing
to program for as they made it a pain to use?
The program wouldn't require a GUI, but I know the level of computer
ability out at sea. Some of these guys are literally afraid to touch the
computers. Others aren't, but have no idea what they are doing. With a GUI, I
think I could make the steps for solving sight reductions easy to follow, and
perhaps even interesting to watch. At any rate, the program really needs to be
simple to use. The current navigation software is the worst piece of software
that I have ever seen! The Mates really do need something new. Thanks for
your advice. I'll just forget about assembler for now.
Oh, just out of curriosity, does anyone know if C on the Mac is similar
to the Amiga with respect to interface?
Thank You and Merry Christmass
Craig C Randall
Motorollin A4000/040 @ USMMA
Craig
Seems like Jim & Peter got in there before me! I'd go along with everything
they say. Only consider Assembler if you need very high speed (like in an
arcade game).
If you stick with the standard ANSI C functions, and avoid the Amiga specific
stuff, you will have a program that can be ported in minutes to another
platform. I have done conversions of games written mainly in C for PC, Mac and
Sega Genesis to the Amiga and CD32, and have had all the C level stuff running
within a day. If you are programming on the Amiga, I would advise getting SAS
C, as I have never had any compatibility problems with it.
If you want to add a graphic interface, you will need to do specific versions
for each platform. Try to keep the GUI stuff seperate from your main program,
so that you can just slot in the Amiga/PC/Mac specific code to make the
required version.
Windows can be extremely complex, and unfortunately thats just life when you
want to use any Microsoft products. It is well worth learning, though, as
Windows experience can be a valuable asset in getting a job! As for libraries,
there is a Windows SDK (software development kit) available in most good
computer stores that allows you to write windows programs in C.
Mal
Binary Dreams