Author: junrue Date: Sun Oct 1 17:17:15 2006 New Revision: 282
Added: trunk/docs/website/faq.html Modified: trunk/docs/website/docs.html Log: added project FAQ
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<h3><a href="reference/index.html">Programming Reference</a></h3>
- <h3>FAQ</h3> + <h3><a href="faq.html">FAQ</a></h3>
<h3>Articles</h3>
Added: trunk/docs/website/faq.html ============================================================================== --- (empty file) +++ trunk/docs/website/faq.html Sun Oct 1 17:17:15 2006 @@ -0,0 +1,179 @@ +<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> +<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> + +<head> + <title>Graphic-Forms Frequently Asked Questions</title> + <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="style.css"/> + <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1" /> +</head> + +<body> + + <div class="header"> + <h3>Graphic-Forms Frequently Asked Questions</h3> + </div> + + <div class="faq_header"> + <h5><a name="FAQ_INDEX">Index</a></h5> + <ol> + <li><a href="faq.html#FAQ1">Why implement another user interface library?</a></li> + <li><a href="faq.html#FAQ2">Common Lisp is obscure, shouldn't we stick with popular programming languages?</a></li> + <li><a href="faq.html#FAQ3">Why focus solely on Windows at the expense of portability?</a></li> + <li><a href="faq.html#FAQ4">What is the status of Graphic-Forms?</a></li> + <li><a href="faq.html#FAQ5">Please compare Graphic-Forms to libraries X, Y, and Z.</a></li> + <li><a href="faq.html#FAQ6">How can I contribute?</a></li> + <li><a href="faq.html#FAQ7">That's an unusual project name.</a></li> + </ol> + </div> + + <div class="faq_header"> + <h5><a name="FAQ1">1. Why implement another user interface library?</a></h5> + </div> + <p>I don't think the space of GUI development has yet been explored adequately, + particularly where declarative and dynamic approaches are concerned. I also + don't think Windows-based Common Lisp developers have enough options for GUI programming. + Finally, I think more open-source code is better than less, arguments about + balkanization and limited resources notwithstanding.</p> + + <p>The argument could be made (and I believe has been, although right now I can't + find the link to <a href="http://ometer.com/">Havoc Pennington's</a> blog + entry where I think I remember him doing so) that the industry doesn't need + another GUI API; who am I to think people will adopt my API, and why should + they be bothered to try?</p> + + <p>First of all, there always will be people willing try new things -- and they are + great people from whom to get feedback. Secondly, there is no physical law of + the universe saying innovation in the GUI API space is at an end, especially + if you consider how many dynamically-typed, code-is-data libraries there are + compared to the statically-typed, Algol-based so-called <i>popular</i> choices. + Third, every one of the existing incumbents started with 0 fans (or 1 if you + count the original designer). Fourth, I wanted (and still want) to provide + Windows developers more options -- less reason to give up on Common Lisp. I'll + spare you reasons 5, 6, and 7 since I think (and hope) you've gotten the gist. + If not, oh well I tried.</p> + + <div class="faq_header"> + <h5><a name="FAQ2">2. Common Lisp is obscure, shouldn't we stick with popular programming languages?</a></h5> + </div> + <p>I got interested in Common Lisp initially after reading Paul Graham's + <a href="http://www.paulgraham.com/lisp.html">essays on Lisp</a>, + then grew more serious after buying a copy of + <i><a href="http://gigamonkeys.com/book/">Practical Common Lisp</a></i> by + Peter Seibel. I have grown to appreciate Common Lisp as a superior programming + language for the kind of development I want to do in the long-term.</p> + + <p>Compared to current popular languages and their associated frameworks, + it's tempting to think of Common Lisp as being obscure. In reality, it has a long + <a href="http://www-formal.stanford.edu/jmc/history/lisp/lisp.html">history</a>, + and there are + <a href="http://www.paulgraham.com/carl.html">well-known</a> + <a href="http://lib.store.yahoo.net/lib/paulgraham/bbnexcerpts.txt">success</a> + <a href="http://www.franz.com/success/customer_apps/animation_graphics/naughtydog.lhtml">stories</a>. + One of the attributes of Lisp making GUI programming a real joy is the ability + to easily define powerful domain-specific languages, such as the <code>DEFMENU</code> + language in Graphic-Forms. I don't regret shifting my focus to Common Lisp at all.</p> + + <p>You can find more information about Common Lisp on the web + <a href="http://www.cliki.net/">here</a>, + <a href="http://cl-user.net/">here</a>, and + <a href="http://common-lisp.net/">here</a>. Or just read + <a href="http://www.paulgraham.com/iflisp.html">this essay</a> and think about + it for a while. In any case, if you're comfortable and productive using the tools + you already have available, more power to you.</p> + + <div class="faq_header"> + <h5><a name="FAQ3">3. Why focus solely on Windows at the expense of portability?</a></h5> + </div> + <p>This is a hard question to answer in a satisfactory manner, because the premise + is absolutely valid: developers prefer to support multiple platforms or + at least have the freedom to change their focus. There is quite a bit of + well-deserved ambivalence, if not hostility, towards Windows and the + <a href="http://www.microsoft.com/">company</a> that produces it.</p> + + <p>Having worked for the company once known as <i>XVT Software, Inc.</i> + in the early 1990's, I gained an appreciation for both the value of and the + incredible demands imposed by software portability. There are existing + Lisp-based GUI portability libraries, which I respect for their good + intentions, not to mention the huge effort they require. Relatively few Lisp-based + GUI libraries target Windows specifically, hence this is a niche I wanted to + try to fill.</p> + + <p>The bottom line is this: I want more people to write GUI applications for + Windows in Common Lisp, and I hope you use Graphic-Forms to do it. As for + the ABM crowd, if you don't like Windows, then you're welcome to ignore this + project. Don't bother flaming me about it, as I will ignore you.</p> + + <div class="faq_header"> + <h5><a name="FAQ4">4. What is the status of Graphic-Forms?</a></h5> + </div> + <p>Graphic-Forms is in alpha and will be for the forseeable future -- a user interface + library of this kind entails a large feature set. The code and documentation is + under constant development, with new features being added at a rapid pace. Public + interfaces have not yet stabilized, thus I cannot yet commit to backwards compatibility. + This is a project with which (I hope) early adopters can experiment.</p> + + <p>I will nevertheless point out how this project has gotten past the initial hurdle + where other projects often die out. There are key aspects of the + design (if not the implementation) of Graphic-Forms that I'm getting pretty happy + with, and most of all, I've proven to my satisfaction the feasibility of building + a user interface library in Common Lisp for Windows. I think a solid foundation + is forming.</p> + + <p>I expect to transition to beta when the majority of features are in place and + what remains is essentially testing -- but it's a grey area and none of us can + predict the future with any certainty.</p> + + <div class="faq_header"> + <h5><a name="FAQ5">5. Please compare Graphic-Forms to libraries X, Y, and Z.</a></h5> + </div> + <p>I'm generally not inclined to do so. Writing an accurate and thorough + comparison is a lot of work, whereas I'd rather spend the time and energy + directly on Graphic-Forms. Also, there is a risk of my making inaccurate + statements which might result in nasty email filling my in-box that I + could live without, and perhaps even legal troubles.</p> + <p>Also, as far as my personal attitude regarding criticism of other people's + work is concerned, I prefer to do so in the proper venue with more likelihood + of such feedback resulting in improvements. See + <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethic_of_reciprocity">The Golden Rule</a>.</p> + + <div class="faq_header"> + <h5><a name="FAQ6">6. How can I contribute?</a></h5> + </div> + <p>Constructive criticism, bug reports, and patches are always appreciated and + thoughtfully considered. Here are the main channels for participation:<br/> + <ul> + <li><a href="http://www.common-lisp.net/mailman/listinfo/graphic-forms-devel"> + Developer mailing list</a></li> + <li><a href="http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?group_id=163034&atid=826145"> + Bug tracking system</a></li> + <li><a href="http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?group_id=163034&atid=826147"> + Patch uploads</a></li> + </ul></p> + + <p>Bug reports should be accompanied by self-contained test cases whenever possible. + A quick note about your environment (Windows version, CL implementation, etc) + is also very important. + + <p>Graphic-Forms is <a href="http://home.earthlink.net/~jdunrue/license.html">BSD licensed</a>. + As project founder/lead developer, <b>I reserve the right to reject or modify patches + as I see fit</b>. But rest assured I am grateful to receive patches and will make every + effort to understand and preserve the intent of any contributions. Finally, for + any patch consisting of more than 2-3 lines of code, I will include your copyright + statement in the relevant source file(s) along with my own.</p> + + <div class="faq_header"> + <h5><a name="FAQ7">7. That's an unusual project name.</a></h5> + </div> + <p>I'm glad you think so! It's difficult to identify project names that are + meaningful and relevant, yet are free of trademark concerns. The name + Graphic-Forms is meant to be a play on words, since the library focuses + on <b>graphic</b>al features and <b>forms</b> is a term referring to + fragments of Lisp code.</P + + <div class="footer"> + <a class="footerleft" href="http://common-lisp.net">common-lisp.net home</a> + Copyright © 2006 by <a href="http://home.earthlink.net/~jdunrue/">Jack D. Unrue</a> + </div> + +</body> +</html>