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WinDev or WebDev
Posted by JP
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WinDev or WebDev January 14, 2019 03:23PM |
Registered: 5 years ago Posts: 234 |
Hi All
Looking for some suggestions and opinions:
We need to develop a new project. The project/application will have quite a complex user interface. The best way to describe it briefly would be:
Users must be able to create "documents" which will have a "spreadsheet" type layout to them. They are not actually XLS files but will look similar to that i.e have rows and columns and users will edit these documents, enter text into cells and so forth. Table and looper controls should do the trick I think.
In addition the project will require charting options, exporting content to various formats, interaction with MS Office tools, and even requiring interaction with 3rd party tools and data (import/export).
The application will need to be multi-user compatible with possibly multiple users viewing and/or editing a document.
The user will want to view/edit multiple of these documents at the same time (sort of like an MDI interface i.e. like looking at several Excel files open at the same time inside the same parent window.
So the question becomes: given you could choose any platform delivery option including using VMWare, Citrix, TSPlus, etc. for delivering desktop applications via the web (or running it locally on a LAN/WAN) OR developing a WebDev solution which do you think is a better choice?
Assume hardware costs are not an issue.
Thanks for any feedback.
Looking for some suggestions and opinions:
We need to develop a new project. The project/application will have quite a complex user interface. The best way to describe it briefly would be:
Users must be able to create "documents" which will have a "spreadsheet" type layout to them. They are not actually XLS files but will look similar to that i.e have rows and columns and users will edit these documents, enter text into cells and so forth. Table and looper controls should do the trick I think.
In addition the project will require charting options, exporting content to various formats, interaction with MS Office tools, and even requiring interaction with 3rd party tools and data (import/export).
The application will need to be multi-user compatible with possibly multiple users viewing and/or editing a document.
The user will want to view/edit multiple of these documents at the same time (sort of like an MDI interface i.e. like looking at several Excel files open at the same time inside the same parent window.
So the question becomes: given you could choose any platform delivery option including using VMWare, Citrix, TSPlus, etc. for delivering desktop applications via the web (or running it locally on a LAN/WAN) OR developing a WebDev solution which do you think is a better choice?
Assume hardware costs are not an issue.
Thanks for any feedback.
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Re: WinDev or WebDev January 14, 2019 08:03PM |
Registered: 5 years ago Posts: 38 |
Hi JP,
this is an easy one
Start with WINDEV - it is a great "prototyping tool".
Just make sure you separate all your business logic code from the UI code.
When you are satisfied with your WD "prototype", try to move it to WEBDEV.
If the UI can't be replicated in WEBDEV, try another approach in WEBDEV (different UIs but NO changes to the business logic code).
Depending on how complicated your project is, you may NOT be able to move to WEBDEV.
Just go on with your WINDEV prototype _AND_ use something like VMWARE, TSPlus etc ..
Regards
Steven Sitas
www.alpha360.biz
this is an easy one
Start with WINDEV - it is a great "prototyping tool".
Just make sure you separate all your business logic code from the UI code.
When you are satisfied with your WD "prototype", try to move it to WEBDEV.
If the UI can't be replicated in WEBDEV, try another approach in WEBDEV (different UIs but NO changes to the business logic code).
Depending on how complicated your project is, you may NOT be able to move to WEBDEV.
Just go on with your WINDEV prototype _AND_ use something like VMWARE, TSPlus etc ..
Regards
Steven Sitas
www.alpha360.biz
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Re: WinDev or WebDev January 17, 2019 03:47PM |
Registered: 5 years ago Posts: 234 |
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stefan.kern
Re: WinDev or WebDev January 17, 2019 11:20PM |
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Re: WinDev or WebDev January 18, 2019 07:56PM |
Registered: 5 years ago Posts: 166 |
Hi JP
For many reasons I would definitely go with web apps …… except for this little problem: - you wrote:
Users must be able to create "documents" which will have a "spreadsheet" type layout to them. They are not actually XLS files but will look similar to that i.e have rows and columns and users will edit these documents, enter text into cells and so forth. Table and looper controls should do the trick I think.
The spreadsheet layout side of things may be a problem. If you are expecting the user interface to emulate a spreadsheet exactly, specifically with lockable rows as and columns and have headings that follow the columns around then you are in trouble. Using WD first and then going to WB you will be met with show stoppers. Tables in WB do not support navigation between rows in "edit in place" mode. You can get a looper to handle this but loopers do not support column headings that follow the column around as you navigate. We have been grappling with the need for a decent spreadsheet control since V16 - nada. In desperation we have been collecting javascript spreadsheet controls to see if we can use the new web component functionality of WB to get around this, for us, very serious problem. In fact, if anyone out there wants to make a quick buck drop me an email. I just need a leg up with integrating one of these javascript libraries. If you get the navigation and headings and locking of columns and rows with a spreadsheet type of look and feel with tables or loopers I would be very interested indeed. WD supports this stuff out of the box. WB does not.
I would never take the Citrix/TSPlus route on account of scalability issues alone. Browser based is a much better medium to long term option.
With respect to WB though we have done the most extraordinary things with the product - documents and graphs [charts] and all manner of eye candy. It really is a remarkable product. And when you combine all three [WD, WB, WDM] and use them together for different forms of access and usage against the same database repository it really starts coming into its own. The only disappointment is a lack of a native spreadsheet control for WB, and perhaps WDM [have not even looked there yet].
Cheers
Andre
For many reasons I would definitely go with web apps …… except for this little problem: - you wrote:
Users must be able to create "documents" which will have a "spreadsheet" type layout to them. They are not actually XLS files but will look similar to that i.e have rows and columns and users will edit these documents, enter text into cells and so forth. Table and looper controls should do the trick I think.
The spreadsheet layout side of things may be a problem. If you are expecting the user interface to emulate a spreadsheet exactly, specifically with lockable rows as and columns and have headings that follow the columns around then you are in trouble. Using WD first and then going to WB you will be met with show stoppers. Tables in WB do not support navigation between rows in "edit in place" mode. You can get a looper to handle this but loopers do not support column headings that follow the column around as you navigate. We have been grappling with the need for a decent spreadsheet control since V16 - nada. In desperation we have been collecting javascript spreadsheet controls to see if we can use the new web component functionality of WB to get around this, for us, very serious problem. In fact, if anyone out there wants to make a quick buck drop me an email. I just need a leg up with integrating one of these javascript libraries. If you get the navigation and headings and locking of columns and rows with a spreadsheet type of look and feel with tables or loopers I would be very interested indeed. WD supports this stuff out of the box. WB does not.
I would never take the Citrix/TSPlus route on account of scalability issues alone. Browser based is a much better medium to long term option.
With respect to WB though we have done the most extraordinary things with the product - documents and graphs [charts] and all manner of eye candy. It really is a remarkable product. And when you combine all three [WD, WB, WDM] and use them together for different forms of access and usage against the same database repository it really starts coming into its own. The only disappointment is a lack of a native spreadsheet control for WB, and perhaps WDM [have not even looked there yet].
Cheers
Andre
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Re: WinDev or WebDev January 22, 2019 05:36AM |
Registered: 5 years ago Posts: 151 |
Hello JP,
My 2cents.
WX versions above 20 support spreadsheet control. I think you need to give this a close look. In distant past (when I had not knowledge of WX) we had build an application that presented data from database in a spreadsheet control. We had used then famous and widely used VCF1 ActiveX.
If you are looking for a good web base spreadsheet we are currently using EtherCalc (https://ethercalc.net/) in a NodeJS project and it is working really well. Of course we are currently customizing it to suite our needs but overall it is worth using and its support for allowing multiple users to edit same sheet is just great.
HTH
--
Yogi Yang
My 2cents.
If you want interact with MS Office then building a web app will not do as Browsers cannot interact with local apps (due to security reasons) unless you build some kind of browser plugins or write JAVA applets for browsers.Quote
In addition the project will require charting options, exporting content to various formats, interaction with MS Office tools, and even requiring interaction with 3rd party tools and data (import/export).
WX versions above 20 support spreadsheet control. I think you need to give this a close look. In distant past (when I had not knowledge of WX) we had build an application that presented data from database in a spreadsheet control. We had used then famous and widely used VCF1 ActiveX.
If you are looking for a good web base spreadsheet we are currently using EtherCalc (https://ethercalc.net/) in a NodeJS project and it is working really well. Of course we are currently customizing it to suite our needs but overall it is worth using and its support for allowing multiple users to edit same sheet is just great.
HTH
--
Yogi Yang
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Re: WinDev or WebDev January 22, 2019 06:54PM |
Registered: 5 years ago Posts: 166 |
Hi Yogi
You wrote:
If you are looking for a good web base spreadsheet we are currently using EtherCalc (https://ethercalc.net/) in a NodeJS project and it is working really well. Of course we are currently customizing it to suite our needs but overall it is worth using and its support for allowing multiple users to edit same sheet is just great.
Was this easy to do with WebDev? Care to share? We are desperate to use the web component stuff but have no idea where to start. Got one SS to display but cannot pass data or anything to it.
Cheers
André
You wrote:
If you are looking for a good web base spreadsheet we are currently using EtherCalc (https://ethercalc.net/) in a NodeJS project and it is working really well. Of course we are currently customizing it to suite our needs but overall it is worth using and its support for allowing multiple users to edit same sheet is just great.
Was this easy to do with WebDev? Care to share? We are desperate to use the web component stuff but have no idea where to start. Got one SS to display but cannot pass data or anything to it.
Cheers
André
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Re: WinDev or WebDev January 23, 2019 06:54AM |
Registered: 5 years ago Posts: 151 |
André Labuschagné Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
>
> Was this easy to do with WebDev? Care to share?
> We are desperate to use the web component stuff
> but have no idea where to start. Got one SS to
> display but cannot pass data or anything to it.
>
> Cheers
> André
As I mentioned in my previous post we have integrated it in a project which is 100% on NodeJS we are not using WebDev.
We never develop any serious web apps in WebDev. We either use Python (ERPNext), NodeJS (Wakanda) or PHP (Laraval).
--
Yogi Yang
-------------------------------------------------------
>
> Was this easy to do with WebDev? Care to share?
> We are desperate to use the web component stuff
> but have no idea where to start. Got one SS to
> display but cannot pass data or anything to it.
>
> Cheers
> André
As I mentioned in my previous post we have integrated it in a project which is 100% on NodeJS we are not using WebDev.
We never develop any serious web apps in WebDev. We either use Python (ERPNext), NodeJS (Wakanda) or PHP (Laraval).
--
Yogi Yang
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Re: WinDev or WebDev January 23, 2019 02:35PM |
Registered: 5 years ago Posts: 166 |
Hi Yogi
Interesting - there are so many options out there these days it is difficult to keep up with them.
Not sure what you mean by serious. Been cobbling together code for going on 36 years now and have come to the conclusion that serious to one person is trivial to another and vice versa. Have not looked at NodeJS but have dribbled around in Python and PHP and have in our case discounted both for web apps.
Thanks for the reply.
Cheers
André
Interesting - there are so many options out there these days it is difficult to keep up with them.
Not sure what you mean by serious. Been cobbling together code for going on 36 years now and have come to the conclusion that serious to one person is trivial to another and vice versa. Have not looked at NodeJS but have dribbled around in Python and PHP and have in our case discounted both for web apps.
Thanks for the reply.
Cheers
André