QT4 Portable C++ Programming System

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

I've been making mud pies with QT4, which is a drop-in replacement for Visual Studio C++ with a big library of goodies. The authors claim it is portable between many systems without recompilation.

So far, I've learned to make GUIs with it, and monkeyed around a little with event procedures, but would like to find a kindred soul or two if possible to chat with on this Very High Level programming Language. There is an animation pack I want to explore.

[Ocram's Razr 963]

I did not know that GUIs could be made in C++. My friends just used SFML or OpenGL and used sprites for the GUI in the game we were working on. Right now, I am taking a C++ class so I can refresh my memory and learn more advanced things.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

I did not know that GUIs could be made in C++. My friends just used SFML or OpenGL and used sprites for the GUI in the game we were working on. Right now, I am taking a C++ class so I can refresh my memory and learn more advanced things.

If you have the right set of classes in C++, e.g. encapsulating OpenGL, you can do anything. If you need a good C++ reference,

For QT4, you might like to look at this. The version I have (QT4) is a free version that downloads from the distributor for UBUNTU. Looks rather complete since I added a bunch of libraries to round it out. Objects in the GUI are called gadgets, so don't let that throw you. They are the same beasts as Visual Studios controls, but with a lot of portability and language capability thrown in.

I may (just may) start working on a new version of SimCity (with a different name, of course, and updated to modern times) using this product, but it will be a long haul, probably five years at least (I should live so long). Just getting the proper classes set up is going to be a chore. I'll be a programmer/librarian for quite a while doing class definitions and testing them out. What would you think of a hexagonal grid (many more angles)? And yes, you do have to have a grid or how can you loop around the city?

The program will be Open Source, of course.

[Ocram's Razr 963]

Sounds cool, there are several projects I remember. There are Urbs Urbis (status unknown, possibly dead), Metropolis Project (in design phase, currently no developers), CityMania (currently 2 main programmers, very early), OTTD, and Simutrans. By the way, my class uses Microsoft Visual Studio and gives everyone in the class access to a key (and thus a free download from Microsoft store) even though I am used to Code::Blocks.

[A Nonny Moose 8,261]

Well, I am not even at the Data Flow Diagram stage with this, and it will be strictly a background project. Just playing around, and I have several other irons in the fire. I am simply attracted to modern VHLLs, and am curious as to what can be done with them vs. the effort without them. I know the latter well enough, having started with machine code. I have used, and helped to sell, some of the early rapid prototyping systems, but this seems to be a whole row or more of Christmas trees neater. Comes with its own IDE and Object builder, etc. There is a ginormous library of new classes. The learning curve here will be not only to learn all this but to catch up to the new stuff in the C++ standard as well. I am sort of rusted shut.

Good luck with Visual Studio's C++. I taught it when I was working at a college. Used VS VB as an intro to OOP, then dumped them straight in to C++. Can't really do much with adult students in one 14 week, 3 hours per week, course except make mud pies. The younger people in the course were much more on the ball, due to stuff they got in high school.

So far as the project goes, I know the name of the main loop: Simulate. It will return non-zero until told to stop somewhere in there so the main line is:

{

SetUp();

while (Simulate());

TearDown();

return 1;

}

So, I guess I have the last six lines of code. Did I say I write from the bottom up?