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Electron.Net: Build cross platform desktop apps using .NET core and ASP.NET core

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Re: Electron.Net: Build cross platform desktop apps using .NET core and ASP.NET core

#112
post #78

Can't we just make a proper, easy to use portable desktop application framework please? I really don't care what language is used so log as JS is avoidable (It can still be a compilation target so it could even be JS), and I can make a snappy desktop app that takes 10 not 100mb. I'm not even sure which one I'm hoping for at the moment. Xamarin seems to have bet fully on mobile. Avalonia looks nice but feels like it w…

I've had good luck so far with Xamarin.Mac + traditional WPF for macOS and Windows respectively, with a PCL containing 90% of the shared code. Xamarin.Mac doesn't seem neglected to me, and the forums are decently active for support.

Xamarin and C# are great, I will use them for the next desktop + mobile project. I was looking at this option for a long time and the acquisition by Microsoft added enough confidence in the future of the stack.

Re: Electron.Net: Build cross platform desktop apps using .NET core and ASP.NET core

#113
post #105

Can't we just make a proper, easy to use portable desktop application framework please? I really don't care what language is used so log as JS is avoidable (It can still be a compilation target so it could even be JS), and I can make a snappy desktop app that takes 10 not 100mb. I'm not even sure which one I'm hoping for at the moment. Xamarin seems to have bet fully on mobile. Avalonia looks nice but feels like it w…

If you think JS/HTML is bad you should try any of the cross platform desktop application frameworks.

Qt is pretty great.

Re: Electron.Net: Build cross platform desktop apps using .NET core and ASP.NET core

#114

What you need is http://www.lazarus-ide.org/ for cross, native app development. Here is a list of programs built with Lazarus/FPC: http://wiki.freepascal.org/Lazarus_Application_Gallery

Why comment at all if you're simply going to ignore the article and advertise something else?

Re: Electron.Net: Build cross platform desktop apps using .NET core and ASP.NET core

#115
post #105

Can't we just make a proper, easy to use portable desktop application framework please? I really don't care what language is used so log as JS is avoidable (It can still be a compilation target so it could even be JS), and I can make a snappy desktop app that takes 10 not 100mb. I'm not even sure which one I'm hoping for at the moment. Xamarin seems to have bet fully on mobile. Avalonia looks nice but feels like it w…

If you think JS/HTML is bad you should try any of the cross platform desktop application frameworks.

Swing covers almost every use case (JavaFX as well and has a more modern feel). While people like to complain about Java, it is easy to follow and gets the job done. Other languages are available on the JVM that could also leverage Swing/JavaFX, like Clojure.

Re: Electron.Net: Build cross platform desktop apps using .NET core and ASP.NET core

#116
post #26

I was really excited when I saw this because I thought someone had finally brought us a .net alternative to electron, using xaml. Unfortunately this seems to be electron but with a .net webapp running in the background? You still need node and webkit for the UI it seems. If that's what this is, it was already possible to do with edge.js and electron so I'm not sure what advantage there is here.

Agree. To me the solution will be webassembly. I entertain the hope that there will be a .net runtime for webassembly, in which case you will be able to write a full cross platform application without having to write a line of JavaScript. Won’t be XAML+.net but will be HTML+.net.

Javascript's not the worst part of Electron (performance/size-wise). HTML+CSS is. See the imperfect, but much better, experience with React Native on mobile.

Re: Electron.Net: Build cross platform desktop apps using .NET core and ASP.NET core

#117
post #90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe non-Xamarin-employee interest has declined sine the announcement of Xamarin Forms coming to the desktop? https://blog.xamarin.com/glimpse-future-xamarin-forms-3-0/ (2017May)

That's good point. But one big difference between Xwt and Xamarin Forms is that Xwt supports Linux via GTK (GTK1, GTK2 & GTK3) whereas Xamarin Forms does not. Xamarin Forms also requires different code for different targets, such as: // Android Forms.Init(this, null); var androidFragment = new MyFormsPage().CreateFragment(this); // iOS Forms.Init() var iosViewController = new MyFormsPage().CreateViewController(); //…

From the roadmap linked in that blog post:

Xamarin Forms Gtk# Backend - https://github.com/xamarin/Xamarin.Forms/pull/1174

It's all floating out there right now but maybe by end-of-year ("Q4 2017") there will be something solid. This uncertainty promises enough to keep people like me from evaluating alternatives.

Re: Electron.Net: Build cross platform desktop apps using .NET core and ASP.NET core

#118

Can't we just make a proper, easy to use portable desktop application framework please? I really don't care what language is used so log as JS is avoidable (It can still be a compilation target so it could even be JS), and I can make a snappy desktop app that takes 10 not 100mb. I'm not even sure which one I'm hoping for at the moment. Xamarin seems to have bet fully on mobile. Avalonia looks nice but feels like it w…

Does the binary size matter? Memory footprint is more important. There's always PyQt which works cross platform

If we're talking Python, then I've had great experiences with Kivy.

https://kivy.org/#home

Re: Electron.Net: Build cross platform desktop apps using .NET core and ASP.NET core

#119
post #77
post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's even worse than that. It makes apps expensive and slower to develop across platforms, makes different version more complicated to maintain and keep in sync, creates more attack surface, etc. And even from a non technical point of view, there is a consistency of experience across platforms point of view. There are very good reasons to have fully cross platform apps that you develop only once. And in general, I do…

I rather have a portable application that takes advantage of the best features on each platform that it runs, than the minimum common denomitor that is the web. Ergo developers taking the easy route to the expense of user's overall UI/UX. Thankfully all web based mobile OSes bombed so far.

that was my position for the last 7 years about hybrid vs native on mobile. but with the recent slowdown on new features on mobile, i'd say even the common denominator is probably largely sufficient for 99% of the apps.

Re: Electron.Net: Build cross platform desktop apps using .NET core and ASP.NET core

#120
post #9

This reminds me of the project I am currently working on. .NET/QML https://github.com/pauldotknopf/net-core-qml Not quite production yet, but it will be soon. I'd love to here some input. You can check the unit tests for how things are working currently. At a certain point, I will also implement a Qml debugger in visual studio code.

I really like this approach, particularly since it allows a clean separation between the responsibilities of designing the UI and writing the back-end code. The UI designer can still wire up events and design them in Qt Creator (maybe using placeholder events?) but then the .NET dev can write the back-end stuff for it.
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