5 ms·

If you're looking for something more Deplhi-like, why don't you just use .NET? Mostly open source now, tons of 3rd party libraries and component packages availa

If you're looking for something more Deplhi-like, why don't you just use .NET? Mostly open source now, tons of 3rd party libraries and component packages available for it, just like Delphi in its glory days.

skrebbel 9y ago
Because I want a UI that works on Windows and macOS out of the box. Plus I want it to have a tiny memory/CPU footprint and while .NET/WPF is better than the average Electron app I still notice a difference.
- problems 9y ago
  Definitely a good reason to use Qt, but you wouldn't get that with Delphi either. Qt is probably the best looking build-once, run with an acceptable UI package anywhere in that market. EDIT: Just saw your second addition... not so sure I'd agree though, the performance on startup of .NET applications these days is quite excellent and I haven't been able to tell for years, but I've been on SSDs with lots of RAM on recent chips I suppose.
  - int_19h 9y ago
    Delphi footprint is actually less than Qt in many cases (at least of older versions, don't know about the new ones). Don't forget that VCL wraps native widgets, so there's a lot less code in there.
- duncan_bayne 9y ago
  Have you tried Racket?
  - JohnStrange 9y ago
    I'm programming desktop applications in Racket, but unfortunately for many purposes it is, as of now, too slow. Especially application startup time is painful, and text% and other essential components of the GUI are way too sluggish for professional end-consumer applications. Maybe the Chez-based rewrite will help, but I'm not betting on it. Parts of the GUI library are just too complicated, and sometimes for no good reason (for example, style lists or the way it deals with snips internally). I'm probably ending up with prototyping in Racket and writing the final application in Qt or Lazarus.
- Kipters 9y ago
  You can get an UI that works on both (WinForms or GTK#), or you can use the native UI frameworks
  - problems 9y ago
    I believe there's a few things under .NET that try to wrap multiple UI libraries to varying levels of success too however none of them are as mature as Qt for a nice multiplatform UI in my opinion.
- j_s 9y ago
  Golang + Facebook's C flexbox yoga? Not sure it covers all the bases but it's a new option! https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14928177 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14928177
gaius 9y ago
Isn't the same guy behind both Delphi and C#? Anders Hjelsberg if memory serves.
- davnicwil 9y ago
  Yes. And also more recently, Typescript. Quite a career!
- mercer 9y ago
  Also TypeScript!
  - Stratoscope 9y ago
    And Turbo Pascal!
- interfixus 9y ago
  Let me offer my apologies on behalf of the Danish nation for what we have foisted upon the world: Hejlberg's C#, Stroustrup's C++, Lerdorf's PHP, and Heinemeier Hansson's RoR. TP and Delphi, obviously, require no apologies.
  - int_19h 9y ago
    Nothing's wrong with C#. When it came, it was a "better Java" in many respects, and that was a niche that was desperately begging to be filled. Over the years, it became even better at it.
    - interfixus 9y ago
      I'm sure there's nothing wrong with it. It's just me being old school and curmudgeonly - not really hot on runtimes and complex dependencies. Although of course, if I really need it, Nim will compile my wonderfull code to js. Otherwise just singe, compact, standalone executables for any platform I care to imagine. And yes, the language itself is a joy to code in. Which is opinion, not fact, I realize that.
dvfjsdhgfv 9y ago
The UI construction on Delphi is a pleasure. Does something comparable exist for .NET?
- mb_72 9y ago
  Maybe I'm missing something here, but Visual Studio? https://www.visualstudio.com/downloads/ https://www.visualstudio.com/downloads/
- omgtehlion 9y ago
  WinForms, it is not 'cool' nowadays, but works exactly like VCL+delphi ui designer
  - mintplant 9y ago
    Eto.Forms if you're going cross-platform.
  - tonyedgecombe 9y ago
    WinForms is a bit of a mess when you want to support high-dpi.
    - throwaway7645 9y ago
      You can switch to WPF at that point I think.
      - tonyedgecombe 9y ago
        Which is like wading through treacle, I'm convinced we have taken as many steps backwards as forwards when it comes to desktop development.

skrebbel 9y ago

Because I want a UI that works on Windows and macOS out of the box. Plus I want it to have a tiny memory/CPU footprint and while .NET/WPF is better than the average Electron app I still notice a difference.

problems 9y ago
Definitely a good reason to use Qt, but you wouldn't get that with Delphi either. Qt is probably the best looking build-once, run with an acceptable UI package anywhere in that market. EDIT: Just saw your second addition... not so sure I'd agree though, the performance on startup of .NET applications these days is quite excellent and I haven't been able to tell for years, but I've been on SSDs with lots of RAM on recent chips I suppose.
- int_19h 9y ago
  Delphi footprint is actually less than Qt in many cases (at least of older versions, don't know about the new ones). Don't forget that VCL wraps native widgets, so there's a lot less code in there.
duncan_bayne 9y ago
Have you tried Racket?
- JohnStrange 9y ago
  I'm programming desktop applications in Racket, but unfortunately for many purposes it is, as of now, too slow. Especially application startup time is painful, and text% and other essential components of the GUI are way too sluggish for professional end-consumer applications. Maybe the Chez-based rewrite will help, but I'm not betting on it. Parts of the GUI library are just too complicated, and sometimes for no good reason (for example, style lists or the way it deals with snips internally). I'm probably ending up with prototyping in Racket and writing the final application in Qt or Lazarus.
Kipters 9y ago
You can get an UI that works on both (WinForms or GTK#), or you can use the native UI frameworks
- problems 9y ago
  I believe there's a few things under .NET that try to wrap multiple UI libraries to varying levels of success too however none of them are as mature as Qt for a nice multiplatform UI in my opinion.
j_s 9y ago
Golang + Facebook's C flexbox yoga? Not sure it covers all the bases but it's a new option! https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14928177 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14928177

gaius 9y ago

Isn't the same guy behind both Delphi and C#? Anders Hjelsberg if memory serves.

davnicwil 9y ago
Yes. And also more recently, Typescript. Quite a career!
mercer 9y ago
Also TypeScript!
- Stratoscope 9y ago
  And Turbo Pascal!
interfixus 9y ago
Let me offer my apologies on behalf of the Danish nation for what we have foisted upon the world: Hejlberg's C#, Stroustrup's C++, Lerdorf's PHP, and Heinemeier Hansson's RoR. TP and Delphi, obviously, require no apologies.
- int_19h 9y ago
  Nothing's wrong with C#. When it came, it was a "better Java" in many respects, and that was a niche that was desperately begging to be filled. Over the years, it became even better at it.
  - interfixus 9y ago
    I'm sure there's nothing wrong with it. It's just me being old school and curmudgeonly - not really hot on runtimes and complex dependencies. Although of course, if I really need it, Nim will compile my wonderfull code to js. Otherwise just singe, compact, standalone executables for any platform I care to imagine. And yes, the language itself is a joy to code in. Which is opinion, not fact, I realize that.

dvfjsdhgfv 9y ago

The UI construction on Delphi is a pleasure. Does something comparable exist for .NET?

mb_72 9y ago
Maybe I'm missing something here, but Visual Studio? https://www.visualstudio.com/downloads/ https://www.visualstudio.com/downloads/
omgtehlion 9y ago
WinForms, it is not 'cool' nowadays, but works exactly like VCL+delphi ui designer
- mintplant 9y ago
  Eto.Forms if you're going cross-platform.
- tonyedgecombe 9y ago
  WinForms is a bit of a mess when you want to support high-dpi.
  - throwaway7645 9y ago
    You can switch to WPF at that point I think.
    - tonyedgecombe 9y ago
      Which is like wading through treacle, I'm convinced we have taken as many steps backwards as forwards when it comes to desktop development.