Share My Creation B4XDesigner Pre-Preview

Well,

already said about our B.O.S.S. team here... and this a pre-preview of B4XDesigner...

That's what i was talking... please see the video... no speaker, no music... silent... (not having time to create other for now, but i hope will have.. if "you" come at our Team)


When we finish it... not know when... this tool will be Free for all B4X Community (Caution: this is Not Open Source Code, but the projects we are going to create next of it with the help of it)...

* If you come at our Team - (first you must write some code to be accepted) - we will share the full code of it. But you must have ideas and you must turn your ideas to code
* Sorry for bad quality of video - need new pc

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B4XDesigner - What is this ?
It is a layout designer (but with some auto-generating code) - also we are not want that to be only for B4X but also for other jobs (like report generator, web interface, or anything need design) - It is not official yet (hope Erel manage-us / help-us and may be want to make it official) and may be not come official ever

Why not use Internal Designer and why use our "ugly" tool (B4XDesigner) ?
Well... as i said before will not only for B4X but also report generator and designer... but also many member know that i am too lazy and i want to create apps on the fly (remember easycode - if not, just search the forum). Generating automatic code (no AI) for specific works like business forms using databases and etc.

So some reasons for using it:
* Easy to create fast apps (business apps with tables, fields, etc)
* Live Preview of controls.. (trying to do for all)
* Other way of designing

Ofcourse there is no scope to replace internal designer - because in future versions may be have more controls - so generating compatible "bjl" (hope bal and bil in future) - to loadlayout and re-design them at internal designer.

In the point we are - what is possible to do with it...
Okay... that is something - may be - not understandable in version uploaded.. Because saving/loading not dialog... but working - saving into bin folder some files...
- Design Controls with live preview for b4j
- Has some extra properties at those controls using pure code of b4j (for example maxlength, only numbers, assign with table - field)
- Not showing all properties of controls and targetting at business app creation (i think that this is a feature.. to have less properties or properties you only want - may be have it customizable on next versions)
- Load / Save one project form only ...
- Open Folder is for selecting working folder for project (and specif. for db)
- DB selecting (works only for showing table and fields of it at some controls)
- Generating Code... creates bjl for start... and works only for some controls yet... you can try it... to see what works.. not creating .bas code yet..
- Play Previews the Form as real app / stop stop it...
- Calculations... you can have many lines with the sequence you wanna make the app automatically for example: sum;[ a ]+[ b ] (no spaces) ... sum,a,b will be a textfield... When going into "a" field and type number and enter... will make the calc into "sum" textfield...

What not works and need help or time...
- Custom controls like my "date control having textfield beside with swift button" - may be works at "play" but can't make it bjl yet... that because i "reverse engineering" bjl layout and need some help with all that...
- Generating code is easy.. but need time now working
- Assigning Table..fields and saving/loading from database is easy - also need time...
- Some bugs need fix too..
- Also need to generate bal bil with the same trick generating bjl
- the same time need to generate code for b4a, b4i
- jrdc2 support will be nice to add it too...
- History undo redo steps...
- changes at UI
- make it more user friendly
- more than one form editing at the same ui (if it's possible)

We need you ! (Ofcourse we need Erel too... may be if he tell us to use some hidden secrets... or if he want to edit-delete our ugly code... because one line of his code, is one our paragraph)
Also, if you get the code you may be lost with the logic - not a "Super-Expert" code, also not commenting a lot... may be big parts of code need to replace, we are open in new ideas... I know it is difficult to organized something with the vision of other - but i think that our community "have the nuts" (sorry for nuts).

Download Pre-Preview from Google Drive

 

[Magma]

View attachment 148678

There are others, they didn't all fit on the screen.

I think if you create stand-alone you will see them at your project too

 

[LucaMs]

I think if you create stand-alone you will see them at your project too

For sure.

 

[peacemaker]

"universal designer"

1) "Tag"reserved ?
2) I suggest to reserve some custom property "Link" or so that can be used like a Tag for some custom action, say API-request or http URL to open ...
3) "DBinterface" view to specify some DB connection for DBxxx properties

 

[Magma]

1) "Tag"reserved ?
2) I suggest to reserve some custom property "Link" or so that can be used like a Tag for some custom action, say API-request or http URL to open ...
3) "DBinterface" view to specify some DB connection for DBxxx properties

1. ?
2. why not...
3. it will be nice, if someone can use jrdc2 with it... but need a lot work and need coders and time to do it - not impossible ...

 

[Magma]

...at first post added some lines with what is doing for now... and what problems need solution, time, hands, brain... time... ofcourse our moto in our Team is no Rush... we have time until 2079 (as LucaMs said)...

life is too short... hope not programming at beach...and ofcourse not under XMAS Tree...

 

[peacemaker]

Your already started very good.
And IMHO best way now is to invent the exact project where this B4XDesigner may be used if embedded. And this embedding will give many real ideas how to upgrade the Designer.

 

[peacemaker]

1. ?

1. Now no "Tag" in the view properties list.
3. Yes. DBinterface view is to fill all data for connection to DB, with DB type selection....
4. properties list better to open by the right mouse click also. Or even at any click as child-window.

 

[Magma]

1. Now no "Tag" in the view properties list.
3. Yes. DBinterface view is to fill all data for connection to DB, with DB type selection....
4. properties list better to open by the right mouse click also. Or even at any click as child-window.

1. my idea of properties was for novice user... we can have an "id" (tag) - no prob to add properties...

(for any property) the thing is how to use it everytime... and what will be the result..

 

[Magma]

about "properties" availiable... some saying there is no color, no radius, no border...

Ofcourse all these can be added... my "sceptical" was to have a small properties list and "target" at novice-developer and business (so for that having, db tables, fields). Another thought will be to have a menu selecting ready "Skin/Templates" for all controls... that will be very nice...

also, prefered only using XUI views to be more compatible with all versions of B4X...

 

[hibrid0]

Buena herramienta, tienes mucho conocimiento sobre el diseñador.
Can you make a plugin for Figma to export our designs to b4x?

 

[epiCode]

Nice Initiative Magma. Irrespective of outcome this will pave way for more such collaborative ventures.

As for the designer:
IDE Visual Designer may not win beauty contests either but it gets the job done. So, any effort on the same lines has to have a good reason for its existence.
I feel that Cross Platform Layout file generation is not a big deal for Erel (its just 3 clicks to copy and paste to convert between apps at the moment).

however, I have some suggestions for a new designer:
1. Use text format layout ( easier to do bulk changes using regex etc in any text editor)
2. Visual Alignment Guides and numerical gap indicators which appear when moving a control and disappear on release.
3. Alignment and Spacing Tools
4. Grouping and group property adjustments
5. Styles ( like heading, subheading, body text, button text etc.)
6. Ability to lock and hide elements you are satisfied with and do not wish to see/change while working with other elements
7. Ability to replace custom controls with other custom controls while retaining common properties like position, color, edges etc.
8. Ability to Merge a custom combination of elements as an element to be reused later and changes to its master to automatically apply to other selected layout files

that is a lot of Wishlist for now (not mentioning what you have already included)

 

[epiCode]

Buena herramienta, tienes mucho conocimiento sobre el diseñador.
Can you make a plugin for Figma to export our designs to b4x?

That will make b4xdesigner redundant. In that case, all we need is a plugin to convert Figma to .B?L extensions.
But honestly that will open floodgates of extremely good ready to use designs for B4X Community.

 

[Alexander Stolte]

its just 3 clicks to copy and paste to convert between apps at the moment

It's more than 3 clicks. In your daily work you must always keep in mind that if you change individual layout files, you will have to exchange these layout files again later in B4I or B4J. I only ever have one IDE open, so I have to open B4I first, find the correct layout files that I have changed and then copy paste. Or when I create a new custom view, it's just annoying when I create an example that I have to change the whole thing in 3 IDEs when I change the layout.

 

[AnandGupta]

it's just annoying when I create an example that I have to change the whole thing in 3 IDEs when I change the layout.

Only if Erel could make the layout file a json/text instead of binary, I could easily use some text compare to quickly add/remove the views/properteies.

Spoiler: Other IDE

I can do it in VS for C#

 

[Magma]

Only if Erel could make the layout file a json/text instead of binary, I could easily use some text compare to quickly add/remove the views/properteies.

Spoiler: Other IDE

I can do it in VS for C#

May be there is a reason... like "compatibility" with previous versions (before b4x views).... He has his reasons I am sure...

Also a reason for creating b4xdesigner is not only the same UI designing... but as I said Faster app creation (adding automatically some code) - generate some code for business apps (using table, fields, sql, making calculations, etc)

 

[AnandGupta]

May be there is a reason... like "compatibility" with previous versions (before b4x views).... He has his reasons I am sure...

Yes. But he did many changes to original like B4XPages. So I still hope he may now as Android itself as reached many notched above with no compatibility below.

Also a reason for creating b4xdesigner is not only the same UI designing

I am not comparing it here. By all means it is going to be great as it is different IDE itself. But please keep everything text and none binary, I request.
It helps a lot for experienced programmers.

 

[Magma]

Yes. But he did many changes to original like B4XPages. So I still hope he may now as Android itself as reached many notched above with no compatibility below.


I am not comparing it here. By all means it is going to be great as it is different IDE itself. But please keep everything text and none binary, I request.
It helps a lot for experienced programmers.

from one side will be good to be text... from the other will be good to have compatibility with B4X Internal Designer... hmmm

 

[Magma]

...Hi there...

I ve just updated the B4XDesigner link at google drive - you can see the new features added...

B4A - B4J projects can be created although not all-ready yet and needs some changes at the project-exported...

Due to local-law-changes (electronic invoices - peppol and problems will have at all ERP of Greek Programmers/Freelancers) at my country -- not having the time to further explain the features added... Also not having the time at least for now - for new features... the Team also is not so active and I hope new members come to see how it's going and help us (the code for me is not difficult)... but I hope all these change...

Thanks again to all members of team help me until now at this difficult project - this is a team work - any help, even a "word" or small fix is needed...

I ll try explain but is better to download and see the features added:

- Now we can use more than one Database (something like ADO at vb6)
- New controls added
- Export is working for B4A - B4J - code not yet ready (only some of this working - but is an example what we can do in next versions)
- Many bugs fixed !
- Undo - Redo added
..and more !!

check 1st post and download !

some screenshots:

 

[Magma]

Replaced the zip at google-drive... had some bugs at datasource control...

Ofcourse not semantic for pre-preview stage we are now... but was already fixed so sharing...