Topics

1

General Discussion / The state of the Computer Workshop as of Oct 2023 !!!

« on: October 17, 2023, 11:22:49 am »

Hello to all who have been using EZGUI.

I want to thank you for all your support and it has been a pleasure providing you with a product such as EZGUI 5.0 Professional.

As of this year (2023) I am now partially retired. So what does this mean for EZGUI and its future ?

(1) EZGUI 5.0 Professional is so feature rich that there really isn't any need for an update (unless a bug fix is released).
Powerbasic has yet to provide a 64 bit compiler so it makes little sense to work on a next gen version (if that changes it may be done)

(2) My website costs me money, but for now I can afford to handle the cost, so my forums will still be here

(3) I will continue to sell EZGUI 5.0 and provide support (via the forums) to all new and old customers. For how long I can't tell, but no need to stop it currently.

(4) Be aware that because of no updates to Powerbasic, third party addons have had minimal sales for years now and EZGUI is no exception.
I still do get sales, but it does not even cover my website costs.

(5) Now being semi-retired, I plan on changing my website to a hobby status, rather than purely 100% commercial. What does that mean ?
My website is now open to be used for any hobby projects I am working on, so the forums will likely reflect this before long. I no longer need to use it only
for commercial work. That means it won't be a write off for my business and I will bear the costs purely for my hobby use. This does free it up to be used for anything I have
an interest, which includes:

Embedded:
- Arduino
- ESP32
- Tibbo
- Raspberry PI
- an other SOC boards

Basic programming languages (other than Powerbasic)
- BASCOM AVR
- GreatCow Basic
- XOJO
- B4R (Basic for Arduino)

3D Printing

Hobby CNC
- Building my own CNC

Woodworking
- Designing jigs for tools, plans for projects and best of all using a Bandsaw sawmill (Frontier OS18)

see:  https://www.frontiersawmills.com/en_us/os18-sawmill-with-7hp-212cc-lifan-recoil-start-gas-engine

ART
- both my wife and I are casual artists and I can share stuff about our art and as well info about digital art.

2

Advanced EZGUI / Components

« on: March 21, 2023, 10:47:08 am »

The EZGUI docs don't go into detail about creating and using components. This post is where I will try to explain it better. I will give an brief overview and then over time add more to this discussion.

What is a component ?

A component is like a page form (which can be put on a normal form) which acts like a single control. You can put any child controls on the component and make it do some repeatable task, but to your app it will act like a single control.

You can create a component once and use it over and over again on different forms. 

You do not create a component like you do a normal form, even though technically it is a form with child controls. There are special commands for defining a component and even processing its events and also sending events from the component to your app (remember it appears to your app as a single complex custom control).

The designer needs a component to be compiled to a DLL so you can use it there when visually designing your app. But a component in your app can be accessed either in its compiled form (DLL) or as source code (designer will generate the path to the source code if you desire rather than load a DLL when it generates your source code).

Components are a bit complex at first glance and is an advanced feature. But once you start learning how to use them it really is not that difficult.

Let's look at some source code for a component that comes with EZGUI (Canvas Scroller):

Code: [Select]

' ======================================
' [PROTECTED CODE]         Do NOT Edit !
' ======================================

DECLARE SUB EZ_CSCROLLER_InitComponent(BYVAL CMPPrefix$)
DECLARE SUB EZ_CSCROLLER_Design()
DECLARE SUB EZ_CSCROLLER_ParseEvents(CID&, CMsg&, CVal&, Cancel&)
DECLARE SUB CSCROLLER_Events(CID&, CMsg&, CVal&, Cancel&)
' ------------------------------------------------

%CSCROLLER_MYPICTURE          = 100

'<<BEGINFORM>> "CSCROLLER"

' ======================================
' [PROTECTED CODE]         Do NOT Edit !
' ======================================

SUB EZ_CSCROLLER_InitComponent(BYVAL CMPPrefix$)     ' (PROTECTED)
     EZ_DefComponent CMPPrefix$+"CSCROLLER", "SVBK||CSCROLLER.bas", CODEPTR(EZ_CSCROLLER_Design), CODEPTR(EZ_CSCROLLER_ParseEvents)
END SUB

SUB EZ_CSCROLLER_Design()     ' (PROTECTED)
     LOCAL CText$
     EZ_Color-1,-1
     EZ_UseFont 4
     EZ_UseAutoSize "CT"
     EZ_Picture %CSCROLLER_MYPICTURE, 0, 0, 6, 3, "SAMPLEBMP", ""
     ' -----------------------------------------------
END SUB


SUB EZ_CSCROLLER_ParseEvents(CID&, CMsg&, CVal&, Cancel&)     ' (PROTECTED)
     SELECT CASE CID&
          CASE %EZ_Window
               CSCROLLER_Events CID&, CMsg&, CVal&, Cancel&
          CASE ELSE
               CSCROLLER_Events CID&, CMsg&, CVal&, Cancel&
     END SELECT
END SUB

' ======================================
' [USER ACCESSABLE CODE]  You may Edit !
' ======================================
'<<SAVE>>
SUB CS_ShowPicture(BYVAL P$)
     LOCAL W&, H&, CW&, CH&, FW!, FH!, SW&, SH&, SF$, X&, Y&, XDif&, YDif&, VScroll&, HScroll&, EW&, EH&
     EZ_HideC "{ME}",%CSCROLLER_MYPICTURE,%CSCROLLER_MYPICTURE
     IF P$="" THEN
          EZ_HideFormScrollBars "{ME}", "B"
          EXIT SUB
     END IF
     IF EZ_ImageHandle(P$)<>0 THEN
          EZ_GetPictureSize P$, W&, H&
          EZ_HideFormScrollBars "{ME}", "B"
          EZ_GetSize "{ME}",FW!, FH!, 2
          VScroll&=0
          HScroll&=0
          CW&=FW!
          CH&=FH!
          SW&=EZ_WO("SW")
          SH&=EZ_WO("SH")
          SF$=""

          IF W&<=CW& AND H&<=CH& THEN
               ' no scrollbars
               X&=(CW&-W&)\2
               Y&=(CH&-H&)\2
          ELSE
               EW&=0
               EH&=0
               IF W&>CW& THEN EH&=SH&
               IF H&>CH& THEN EW&=SW&
               IF W&>(CW&-EW&) THEN
                    X&=0
                    SF$=SF$+"H"
                    HScroll&=W&-(CW&-EW&)
               ELSE
                    X&=((CW&-EW&)-W&)/2
               END IF
               IF H&>(CH&-EH&) THEN
                    Y&=0
                    SF$=SF$+"V"
                    VScroll&=H&-(CH&-EH&)
               ELSE
                    Y&=((CH&-EH&)-H&)/2
               END IF
          END IF
          IF X&<0 THEN X&=0
          IF Y&<0 THEN Y&=0
          EZ_ResizeC "{ME}",%CSCROLLER_MYPICTURE, EZ_CX(X&),EZ_CY(Y&), EZ_CX(W&),EZ_CY(H&)
          EZ_SetImage "{ME}",%CSCROLLER_MYPICTURE, P$
          EZ_ShowFormScrollBars "{ME}", SF$
          EZ_ShowC "{ME}",%CSCROLLER_MYPICTURE,%CSCROLLER_MYPICTURE
          IF INSTR(SF$,"H") THEN
'               EZ_SetHScroll "{ME}",0, 0, HScroll&, 0,(HScroll&\10)+1
               EZ_SetHScroll "{ME}",0, 0, HScroll&, 0,1
          END IF
          IF INSTR(SF$,"V") THEN
'               EZ_SetVScroll "{ME}",0, 0, VScroll&, 0,(VScroll&\10)+1
               EZ_SetVScroll "{ME}",0, 0, VScroll&, 0,1
          END IF
     END IF
END SUB

SUB ScrollMe(BYVAL SMode&, BYVAL CVal&)
     LOCAL C!, R!, W!, H!
     EZ_GetSizeC "{ME}",%CSCROLLER_MYPICTURE,C!, R!, W!, H!
     IF SMode&=-1 THEN
          R!=0-EZ_CY(CVal&)
     ELSE
          C!=0-EZ_CX(CVal&)
     END IF
     EZ_ResizeC "{ME}",%CSCROLLER_MYPICTURE,C!, R!, W!, H!
END SUB

SUB FreeMyStartBitmap()
     LOCAL P$
     P$=EZ_GetCmpText("{ME}",0,1)
     IF P$<>"" THEN
          EZ_FreeImage P$
          EZ_SetCmpText "{ME}",0,"", 1
     END IF
END SUB
'<<END>>

SUB CSCROLLER_Events(CID&, CMsg&, CVal&, Cancel&)
     LOCAL P$
     SELECT CASE CID&
          CASE %EZ_Window
               SELECT CASE CMsg&
                    CASE %EZ_Loading
                    CASE %EZ_Loaded
                         EZ_HideFormScrollBars "{ME}", "B"
                         EZ_HideC "{ME}", %CSCROLLER_MYPICTURE, %CSCROLLER_MYPICTURE
                         P$=EZ_GetText("{ME}",0)
                         EZ_SetText "{ME}",0,""
                         IF P$<>"" THEN
                              IF UCASE$(RIGHT$(P$,4))=".BMP" THEN
                                   P$=EZ_LoadPicture(P$)
                                   IF P$<>"" THEN
                                        CS_ShowPicture P$
                                        EZ_SetCmpText "{ME}",0,P$,1
                                   END IF
                              ELSE ' assume it is a Picture string
                                   CS_ShowPicture P$
                              END IF
                         END IF
                    CASE %EZ_TextUpdated
                         SELECT CASE CVal&
                              CASE 1
                              CASE ELSE
                         END SELECT
                    CASE %EZ_BitmapUpdated
                         FreeMyStartBitmap
                         P$=EZ_GetBitmapName(CVal&)
                         CS_ShowPicture P$
                    CASE %EZ_ColorUpdated
                         LOCAL FG&, BG&
                         FG&=EZ_GetCmpAttr("{ME}",0,1)
                         BG&=CVal&
                         EZ_SetColor "{ME}",0, FG&, BG&
                    CASE %EZ_FontUpdated
                    CASE %EZ_SelUpdated
                    CASE %EZ_ClearUpdated
                         CS_ShowPicture ""
                    CASE %EZ_FreeNow
                         FreeMyStartBitmap
                    CASE %EZ_Started
                    CASE %EZ_Close
                    CASE ELSE
               END SELECT
          CASE -1        ' Vertical scrollbar
               IF CMsg&=%EZ_Change THEN
                    ScrollMe -1, CVal&
               END IF
          CASE -2        ' Horizontal scrollbar
               IF CMsg&=%EZ_Change THEN
                    ScrollMe -2, CVal&
               END IF
          CASE ELSE
     END SELECT
END SUB


The designer generates a subroutine for adding the component to one of your forms:

SUB EZ_CSCROLLER_InitComponent(BYVAL CMPPrefix$)


In this routine is a call to EZ_DefComponent:

     EZ_DefComponent CMPPrefix$+"CSCROLLER", "SVBK||CSCROLLER.bas", CODEPTR(EZ_CSCROLLER_Design), CODEPTR(EZ_CSCROLLER_ParseEvents)

What is not provided is a example of how to put your components into a DLL.  You can put more than one component in a DLL to create a library of compoments. Once compiled to a DLL the DLL and the source code for the components should be put in the EZGUI Designers component folder.

Here is an example of a component DLL:

Code: [Select]

#COMPILE DLL "cmplib1.dll"
#INCLUDE "C:\ezgui45beta\includes\ezgui50.inc"

FUNCTION LIBMAIN (BYVAL hInst&, BYVAL FReason&, BYVAL lpR&) AS LONG
     SELECT CASE FReason&
          CASE 0      ' %DLL_PROCESS_DETACH
          CASE 1      ' %DLL_PROCESS_ATTACH
          CASE 2      ' %DLL_THREAD_ATTACH
          CASE 3      ' %DLL_THREAD_DETACH
          CASE ELSE
     END SELECT
     FUNCTION=1
END FUNCTION

#INCLUDE "C:\ezgui45beta\projects\real components\Form_pgscroller\pgscroller.bas"    ' Component include file!
#INCLUDE "C:\ezgui45beta\projects\real components\Form_cscroller\cscroller.bas"    ' Component include file!

SUB EZ_InitComponent(BYVAL CMPPrefix$) EXPORT
     EZ_PGSCROLLER_InitComponent CMPPrefix$
     EZ_CSCROLLER_InitComponent CMPPrefix$
END SUB

The two components that come with EZGUI are in separate files and must be included in this DLL code file and this is how I created the component DLL that comes with EZGUI.

A component needs an entrance function and that is predefined by EZGUI and always is:

SUB EZ_InitComponent(BYVAL CMPPrefix$) EXPORT

The function must be exported to EZGUI (and the designer) can find it the function. The function is found by polling the DLL for it by name and then it is called dnyamically (no Declare required).

3

General Discussion / Considering a new FREE model for how EZGUI is made available to new users

« on: January 24, 2023, 12:11:08 pm »

This is just an idea, but just wanted to "bounce" this off my customers to see what you think about it.

What would you think of EZGUI becoming a FREE product ?

Not open source though. One could register to get EZGUI for FREE and use it for FREE.

There would still be a software license and it would still be a proprietary product (not open source, since I think that would ruin it).

Support would be via the online forums.  I would do my best to answer questions, but of course with it as free I would have limits of how much I can do on the forums. It would have to assisted via the peer to peer forum. I am planning of trying to get some of the lost data (when I upgraded the forum software) back into the forum as a resource as well, but that will take some time.

"Extended" support though could be purchased (for a very reasonable fee) so one could get more extensive support. Any customers who purchased EZGUI already would continue to get priority for support as I have done in the past.

What good would this accomplish ?

Two things are needed for EZGUI to have a better future:

(1) It needs to support programming languages other than Powerbasic

(2) It needs to eventually become 64 bit as well

I can't do this with the limited current customer base. Powerbasic (as a company) while still viable, does not yield the regular new potential customers it did in the past. Also in Powerbasics last few  better years (when Bob Zale) was still alive, I had to compete with other third party products (which most have moved on now though) which made it a greater challenge to keep the new customer base increasing.

Lastly, 32 bit still has a few good years left to it, but eventually 64 bit may make 32 bit totally obsolete. While 32 bit still is viable and has a market, now would be the best time to change my marketing model.

My goals:

(1) Port EZGUI (mostly make modifications) so it is more friendly to other programming languages such as FreeBasic, PureBasic and expecially C.

C is important and could be a great market for EZGUI. There are actually many C programmers out there who shy away from C++ and also from dot.net. C still can produce amazingly fast and tiny apps.  But the programming mainstream has moved to dot.net mostly for GUI stuff so C is a second class citizen in the GUI world.

EZGUI could be a boon for C programmers, as well as for those who use other dialecs of Basic.

I am also not averse to licensing the actual source code to EZGUI for larger companies, so far I have only done this for one company at the moment, but it could be part of the extended support. Licensing the source code is not cheap though and is best suited for large companies where it makes sense. The current price for licensing the source code is in the $5000 range.

So what do you think of this possible new model for  EZGUI ?

What would be a reasonable price for extended support say for a yearly price ?

For those who can't afford much, especially for the hobby programmer market, it is still a deal since EZGUI would be free up front and one could still get decent support via the forums for free.

4

EZGUI 5 support forum / test posts

« on: January 11, 2022, 03:44:55 pm »

This is for testing my repost efforts of previous forum.

This is just for testing the format of the text I convert.

5

Advanced EZGUI / About this forum

« on: January 11, 2022, 12:57:27 pm »

This forum is for posting source code, explanations and having discussions about more advanced tasks using EZGUI 5.0 Professional.

It is my experience that most EZGUI users have not even barely tapped into the more advanced features found in EZGUI.

The purpose of this sub-forum is to help EZGUI users push EZGUI 5 to its limits.

I am currently doing custom app development for clients using PB10/EZGUI 5 and I myself am learning how to push EZGUI to its limits.

6

EZGUI 5 support forum / So where does EZGUI go from here ?

« on: December 02, 2021, 04:41:34 pm »

Will there be an EZGUI 6.0 ?

Maybe.

So what have I been doing since the release of EZGUI 5.0 Pro and does EZGUI have a future ?

EZGUI definitely has a future as long as 32 bit Windows app are supported by Windows.

I have tested a few EZGUI apps on Windows 11 and just as expected it works very well. So EZGUI should have a good future for at least as long as Windows 11 exists and Windows 64 bit can still run 32 bit apps.

Why no new version of EZGUI yet ?

One thing is that EZGUI 5.0 is so feature rich there is not a lot missing in it. IMO most EZGUI users have not tapped into the raw power found in the EZGUI engine. But I have !

For the last 2 years I have been working on custom programming applications for clients, using EZGUI 5.0 Pro (and Powerbasic 10).  I am finding so many ways to push EZGUI far beyond what most users likely are doing. For one I have really pushed the limit of using Ownerdraw and more and more I am finding ways to solve all sorts of problems.

How about writing an application that can change the user interface into different languages ?

(See the picture attached to this post.)

Using Ownerdraw and a few extra WIN32 API calls I have been able to create an app which can switch between multiple languages. I used PB Forms and wrote a simple "Language" editor to define templates for different languages and then in the actual app I used ownerdraw controls and could switch between languages dynamically. Now of couse EZGUI does not support Unicode yet, but for non-Unicode languages you could use existing EZGUI controls. The app I wrote only needed other languages for buttons and labels, so I could support unicode using the WIN32 API and ownerdraw.

Ownerdraw is extremely powerful and probably under used in Windows apps.  The point is that by tapping into the more low level engines in EZGUI you can do some amazing things. How about 3D buttons (ownerdraw) with transparent images on them. All sorts of things are possible.

One of the things I need to do here on the forums is to start teaching EZGUI users how to tap into many of these low level engines in EZGUI.

So look for upcoming updates on these forums with ideas of how to push EZGUI 5.0 to the limit.

7

EZGUI 5 support forum / Good News about EZGUI 5.0 on Windows 11

« on: November 06, 2021, 01:01:43 pm »

Just updated one of my PC's to Windows 11.

EZGUI is looking good so far, running on Windows 11.

Always worried about a new version of Windows breaking ones apps, but so far it appears that EZGUI runs fine on Windows 11.

Not an extensive test by any means, but tested a number of features in EZGUI such as Sprites, OpenGL 3D, Visual Designer, window regions, ownerdraw and more.

8

EZGUI Pre-Purchase Questions answered / Common questions about EZGUI before purchase

« on: September 24, 2021, 08:11:33 am »

In this post I will mention a number of common questions new users may have before purchasing EZGUI 5.0 Professional:

(1) What compilers does EZGUI work with ?

EZGUI was designed for use with the Powerbasic Windows compilers. It should work with nearly any of their Windows compilers such as PB 6.x, 7.x, 8.x, 9.x and 10.x

While not designed for them, it is possible to use EZGUI with the Powerbasic Console compilers as well, but it will require a little "tweaking" to do so. If the Console compiler supports a command to turn off the default console window, you will have to manually add that command to your apps code each time you compile it. I can also provide an old utility app (which came with EZGUI 4.0) you can use which can modify the compiled EXE after compiling (needs to change a single byte in EXE header).

It is recommended though to use the Powerbasic Windows compilers.

(2) Will EZGUI work with any other programming languages ?

In theory if could, but the biggest problem is that most programming languages use a C like string type for variable length strings.

Powerbasic uses the WIN32 OLE API's for variable length strings which is what the EZGUI run time API's expect.

The EZGUI runtime is a standard DLL (32 bit) so it can be accessed by any programming language, but because of the OLE string issue most languages may be able to work properly with it.

Also the include files for EZGUI are for Powerbasic compilers only and would have to be converted for another language.

(3) Will EZGUI 5.0 work on Windows 10 ?

YES.  EZGUI was designed using core WIN32 API's which make it extremely compatible with most versions of Windows, including new ones.

Because of this it can run on Windows 98, ME, Vista, XP, 7, 8 and 10 !

EZGUI knows what version of Windows it is running on and adjusts to it. Some features are simply turned off on Windows 98, ME and Vista. About 95% of the feature set works on those older versions. From Windows XP and on , all of EZGUI's features are active.

The OpenGL Canvas control in EZGUI requires that the core OpenGL drivers are installed for that to work. Most PC's support OpenGL so that should not be a problem.

(4) How large is the EZGUI runtime ?

The primary runtime DLL is only about 700 KB in size. There are a few other secondary runtime DLLs (ie. OpenGL Canvas control) and when using them the entire runtime is about 1 megabyte in size. The entire runtime can fit on an old fashioned floppy disk.

(5) Does EZGUI have a Form Editor ?

Yes, EZGUI 5.0 has its own Visual Designer (Form Editor). It does not though have a code editor built in. Instead it uses what I call a "Smart Parser" technology which let's you use the Designer with any compatible external code editor when generating code. The Smart Parser literally rewrites your source code when forms have been modified, each time you generate code. This allows a seamless integration between the Designer and your favorite code editor.

To be compatible the code editor needs to be compatible with the Powerbasic compiler and also support the passing of a filename to the command line. That is all.

(6) How much does EZGUI 5.0 Professional cost ?

Currently as of  9/24/2021 the price is only $39 and I don't expect it to change anytime soon.

EZGUI 5.0 originally sold for $249 when it was released and even at that price was worth every penny.

At the current $39 it is a real deal.

(7) Do I still get the same quality tech support if I buy EZGUI at your highly discounted price ?

Absolutely ! I provide the same tech support to all EZGUI users.

9

EZGUI 5 support forum / Rebuilding the forums

« on: September 16, 2021, 05:01:55 pm »

While I don't know if I can get back the old forum data in full, what I will try to do is rebuild the important stuff of the forum (aka. solutuions when using EZGUI).

10

Registration and Rules / Registration to post on forums

« on: September 08, 2021, 10:54:14 am »

Registration for these forums is tightly controlled. Because most online forums are regularly attacked by forum spamming, only the admin can register you on these forums.

If you would like to be registered for these forums simply email your request to:

chrisboss@centurylink.net

or

support@cwsof.com

Registration requires "real" names rather than pseudo names.

11

General Discussion / Welcome to my new forums

« on: September 03, 2021, 07:42:01 pm »

Welcome to the Computer Workshop's new online forums.

The previous forum software was way outdated and had big problems in trying to update it. Sadly I had to start from scratch for create this new SMF 2.0 forum which is the latest version.

I do have a backup of the old forum database, but still can't figure out how to import it into the new one.  SMF didn't make it easy to upgrade from the 1.x forums to 2.x.

I really like their forum software, but they did a bad job of making the upgrade path easy.

I still may be able to get the old data back.