[Pythonmac-SIG] Mac User Python newbies

[Bob Ippolito]

On Feb 9, 2005, at 6:28 PM, Chris Barker wrote:

> Just a slight clarification:
>
> Roger Binns wrote:
>> If you look at open source graphical toolkits that support at least
>> two platforms, you won't find any that started on the Mac.  These
>> are the ones I know of that can be used from Python and where they 
>> started.
>>  - QT (Unix)
>>  - wxWidgets (Windows)
> >  - Fox (Unix)
>
> Actually, I know wxWidgets was designed, from the beginning, to be 
> cross platform, specifically targeting Windows and Unix (X, originally 
> Motif). I think that's where the "w" and "x" comes from.
>
> I think QT and Fox were designed that way from the start as well.
>
> You're certainly correct that none of them had the Mac as a target at 
> the beginning. If only Apple would port Cocoa to Unix and Windows.

They did when they were called NeXT -- but sadly, it was pulled when 
WebObjects moved to Java.  With access to an old enough version of 
WebObjects, you can actually install Project Builder, Interface 
Builder, the runtime, etc. on Windows, but the license doesn't allow 
you to redistribute.

> Bob Ippolito wrote:
>> I think we're probably going to have real GNUStep support for PyObjC 
>> sometime in the next few months.
>
> Cool. How usable is GnuStep on Windows now? and how compatible are 
> GnuStep and Cocoa?

Foundation (gnustep-base) is supposed to be fine on Windows, AppKit 
still needs a lot of work (they accept donations now 
<http://gnustep.org/information/donate.html>).  GNUStep and Cocoa seem 
mostly API compatible as long as you're not using anything new.  
Interface Builder nibs are not platform agnostic, but GNUStep 
Renaissance is available on both platforms, and GNUStep has tools to 
convert nibs to gmodel (not Renaissance, and the translation isn't 
perfect).

So, when we have GNUStep support, it will only really be a solution for 
X11.  Decent Windows support will happen, eventually.

-bob