This may go against my better judgment, but I'm thinking of getting back into programming. I used to write free software for Windows around 2000 to 2006 in MS Visual BASIC (not .net) and REALbasic (now known as Xojo). I released software that was free in the sense that you did not have to pay money for it, but it was not GNU-free because I never released my source code. I was still firmly in the Microsoft World. My post popular app was a multi-file renamer known as RenameStar, which I have not developed for some time. I originally planned to also learn C++ and had books on it for those times when VB was not enough. However, VB always proved to be enough and I never got any good at C++.
To get back into programming, the logical choice would seem to be Gambas, the Linux-based BASIC language and IDE that's a lot like Visual BASIC. I could re-develop RenameStar if I wanted to. However, Linux already has plenty of good multi-file renaming tools available. Plus, I don't know that all that much has been written about Gambas or how much sample code is available. VB had its warts and got slammed by programming gurus who objected to some of the ways VB did things, but there were a few of things that made it a great choice for me: 1. Not as steep a learning curve as some languages 2. Really good debugging IDE 3. Extremely well documented. That last one was key, and I'm not just talking about VB's own documentation, known as MSDN. I'm talking about the multitude of books written about it. I had a shelf of VB books, a VB library, and there was tons of source code available in the Internet. That language had some squirly and weird things about it, but it had enough going for it that I was able to make good things happen with it.
Maybe Gambas is what I ought to use since it's very VB-like. Another option would be Xojo, which is VB-like and can develop for Linux, but I would have to pay money for. However, I'm leaning toward neither. The reason is I'm itching to pull up the hood of LibreOffice Writer to modify its source code. Specifically, I'd like to make a few changes to its macro system. Right now, in LO Writer, there are a lot of hot keys available for your macros, but it lacks the ability to assign a macro to a two-letter hot key. It only does one-letter ones. I wouldn't even have to set it up to assign absolutely any two-letter hot key. Specifically, I want these ones:
Ctrl+QD
Ctrl+QS
Ctrl+QR
Ctrl+QC
Ctrl+KS
Ctrl+KD
Ctrl+OS
Ctrl+QL
If you've been computing since the early 80s and you've noticed the name of the multi-file renamer that I wrote, you might have figured out what I'm doing. What language is LO Writer written in, specifically whatever modules have to do with its macro system?
I might go on and write standalone apps, maybe even re-writing RenameStar for Linux, but modifying LO Writer's macro system is my primary goal. If I write standalone apps, maybe Python would be a good choice simply because so much of the Linux community uses it. But first things first. Neither Gambas nor Xojo are going to do it for me. What do I need to learn to be able to modify LO Writer's macro system to do what I want?
To get back into programming, the logical choice would seem to be Gambas, the Linux-based BASIC language and IDE that's a lot like Visual BASIC. I could re-develop RenameStar if I wanted to. However, Linux already has plenty of good multi-file renaming tools available. Plus, I don't know that all that much has been written about Gambas or how much sample code is available. VB had its warts and got slammed by programming gurus who objected to some of the ways VB did things, but there were a few of things that made it a great choice for me: 1. Not as steep a learning curve as some languages 2. Really good debugging IDE 3. Extremely well documented. That last one was key, and I'm not just talking about VB's own documentation, known as MSDN. I'm talking about the multitude of books written about it. I had a shelf of VB books, a VB library, and there was tons of source code available in the Internet. That language had some squirly and weird things about it, but it had enough going for it that I was able to make good things happen with it.
Maybe Gambas is what I ought to use since it's very VB-like. Another option would be Xojo, which is VB-like and can develop for Linux, but I would have to pay money for. However, I'm leaning toward neither. The reason is I'm itching to pull up the hood of LibreOffice Writer to modify its source code. Specifically, I'd like to make a few changes to its macro system. Right now, in LO Writer, there are a lot of hot keys available for your macros, but it lacks the ability to assign a macro to a two-letter hot key. It only does one-letter ones. I wouldn't even have to set it up to assign absolutely any two-letter hot key. Specifically, I want these ones:
Ctrl+QD
Ctrl+QS
Ctrl+QR
Ctrl+QC
Ctrl+KS
Ctrl+KD
Ctrl+OS
Ctrl+QL
If you've been computing since the early 80s and you've noticed the name of the multi-file renamer that I wrote, you might have figured out what I'm doing. What language is LO Writer written in, specifically whatever modules have to do with its macro system?
I might go on and write standalone apps, maybe even re-writing RenameStar for Linux, but modifying LO Writer's macro system is my primary goal. If I write standalone apps, maybe Python would be a good choice simply because so much of the Linux community uses it. But first things first. Neither Gambas nor Xojo are going to do it for me. What do I need to learn to be able to modify LO Writer's macro system to do what I want?
Comment