Re: [Fsfe-uk] An ignorant question?

[Chris Croughton]

On Mon, Jun 09, 2003 at 11:55:27AM +0100, Robert (Jamie) Munro wrote:

> It's like when I say "I need a database front end to replace access" and
> people tell me to use MySQL. MySQL is useless as a replacement to access. It
> does a tiny subset of the functions of Access - storing and retrieving data
> in tables (and it does it arguably less well - no sub selects etc.). When
> people need a replacement for Access, they need a front end.

Exactly, and that is a major area in which Free Software falls down very
frequently.  Good functionality, crap interfaces because the programs
are mostly designed by and for geeks who are more interested in writing
the code than in making it easy for other people who just want to get a
job done.  (And before people get mad, this describes me as well, my
idea of a good interface for a program I write ususally takes all of the
alphabet for command line switches!)

As another example, I really want a version of Visual Basic, or
something as easy to use, for X.  I want to be able to knock up simple X
GUI apps without having to code in all the position stuff, message loops
etc., I want to just say "I want a button <here>" then right-click to
get to the code for that button with whatever events it handles.  And
before people say "If you want it then write it", the whole point is
that if I knew enough about X programming to write it I wouldn't need
the thing!

> Of all people, Microsoft used to have a program called LiquidMotion that
> produced animated web pages in Java and Javascript that would run on a
> variety of browsers, without the need for a plugin like flash. A free
> software program like this, possibly based on adding animation features to
> sodipodi would be great.

I'm not at all surprised that MS had such a thing, they always have been
good at writing stuff for ordinary people to use -- VB (and don't forget
that MS BASIC was /the/ standard BASIC for many machines for many
years), Excel, Word, Access, several others.  The Free Software has been
getting better, but there are many areas where it is nowhere near as
easy to use as the proprietary alternatives.

Chris C