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Visual Programming Languages – Snapshots

blog.interfacevision.com

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Re: Visual Programming Languages – Snapshots

#3
Looking at all these visual programming languages, I'm struck at how complex many of them are.

For example, I can almost always understand a recursive Fibonacci generator written in a new procedural or functional language that I've never seen before, yet I struggled to figure out what was happening as some of these visual languages generated the same Fibonacci sequence.

Why create that kind of complexity in an effort to avoid text?

Re: Visual Programming Languages – Snapshots

#4
post #3

Looking at all these visual programming languages, I'm struck at how complex many of them are. For example, I can almost always understand a recursive Fibonacci generator written in a new procedural or functional language that I've never seen before, yet I struggled to figure out what was happening as some of these visual languages generated the same Fibonacci sequence. Why create that kind of complexity in an effort…

Because generally you'll want to deal with a bit higher-level structures using the visual paradigm. So, a Fibonacci generator should be just a box, not a whole graph.

Visual programming can help keeping track of data flows within complex and/or parallel programs.

Re: Visual Programming Languages – Snapshots

#6
post #4
post #3

Looking at all these visual programming languages, I'm struck at how complex many of them are. For example, I can almost always understand a recursive Fibonacci generator written in a new procedural or functional language that I've never seen before, yet I struggled to figure out what was happening as some of these visual languages generated the same Fibonacci sequence. Why create that kind of complexity in an effort…

Because generally you'll want to deal with a bit higher-level structures using the visual paradigm. So, a Fibonacci generator should be just a box, not a whole graph. Visual programming can help keeping track of data flows within complex and/or parallel programs.

I rather like Martin Fowler's view of diagrams being sketches used to communicate rather than blueprints from which to build stuff:

"comprehensiveness is the enemy of comprehensibility"

I like nice simple diagrams (I joke to colleagues about having a limited budget for boxes and arrows or drawing things in crayon) - having these kinds of things where you try and include everything in your diagram seems to miss the point to me.

http://martinfowler.com/bliki/UmlAsSketch.html

Re: Visual Programming Languages – Snapshots

#7
post #6
post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because generally you'll want to deal with a bit higher-level structures using the visual paradigm. So, a Fibonacci generator should be just a box, not a whole graph. Visual programming can help keeping track of data flows within complex and/or parallel programs.

I rather like Martin Fowler's view of diagrams being sketches used to communicate rather than blueprints from which to build stuff: "comprehensiveness is the enemy of comprehensibility" I like nice simple diagrams (I joke to colleagues about having a limited budget for boxes and arrows or drawing things in crayon) - having these kinds of things where you try and include everything in your diagram seems to miss the po…

Yeah, except that in our system the graphs are still executable: http://noflojs.org/

Re: Visual Programming Languages – Snapshots

#10
post #7
post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I rather like Martin Fowler's view of diagrams being sketches used to communicate rather than blueprints from which to build stuff: "comprehensiveness is the enemy of comprehensibility" I like nice simple diagrams (I joke to colleagues about having a limited budget for boxes and arrows or drawing things in crayon) - having these kinds of things where you try and include everything in your diagram seems to miss the po…

Yeah, except that in our system the graphs are still executable: http://noflojs.org/

So are your components written directly in a "lower level" language (JavaScript etc.) and then the high level structure relating those components defined in the diagrams?
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