What language is the generated LiveCode app running in?

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Mike O
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Joined: Fri Jul 15, 2011 10:21 pm

What language is the generated LiveCode app running in?

Post by Mike O » Fri Jul 15, 2011 10:47 pm

I haven't downloaded LiveCode or installed it. I've scanned the website and drooled over the claims of "LiveCode enables flexible delivery to multiple platforms and devices from a single code base" and "Windows & Mac desktops, Linux desktops, Web browsers, Server environments, iOS (iPhone/iPad) devices, Windows Mobile devices, and other mobile devices (coming soon)."

I've been around the block a few times to realize it is pretty much impossible to accomplish this natively. It would be nice if LiveCode could generate Java code for Android, and XCode for iOS, and PHP for webservers, and exe's for Windows mobile/desktops. But I don't see how this is possible. I figure the only way for LiveCode apps to run on so many platforms is for it to generate javascript and run this code inside of its own webkit so it appears to be running outside of a browser.

Is this how LiveCode apps work???

TIA
Mike O

Klaus
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Re: What language is the generated LiveCode app running in?

Post by Klaus » Sat Jul 16, 2011 12:59 am

Hi Mike,
Mike O wrote:I...
Is this how LiveCode apps work???
No.


Best

Klaus

Mike O
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri Jul 15, 2011 10:21 pm

Re: What language is the generated LiveCode app running in?

Post by Mike O » Sat Jul 16, 2011 1:09 am

Klaus,
Thanks for clearing that up. :)

That leaves two alternatives:
a) Does LiveCode create the app in native code? Example: XCode for iOS, Java for Android, PHP for web server etc.?
b) Or does Livecode have its own emulator and executes scripting code at runtime?

Mike O

shaosean
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Re: What language is the generated LiveCode app running in?

Post by shaosean » Sat Jul 16, 2011 6:01 am

Rev is an interpreted language.. The script you write is processed at runtime by the engine which makes the low-level calls to the system to do what it needs to do (why we use the same format for file access across multiple platforms).. The interface is emulated and not made from real system controls which has both good and bad points..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interpreted_language

While the article lists "speed" as a negative, the Rev engine is blazing fast and with lots of tasks is just as fast as writing the code in a lower level language (and some things are slower and other things can't be done)

jacque
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Re: What language is the generated LiveCode app running in?

Post by jacque » Sun Jul 17, 2011 4:16 am

Mike O wrote:I've been around the block a few times to realize it is pretty much impossible to accomplish this natively.
It's amazing, but it does. You do have to branch your code to accomodate OS-specific features sometimes, but most of it works everywhere. You should download the trial, build the Hello World test app, and see.
Jacqueline Landman Gay | jacque at hyperactivesw dot com
HyperActive Software | http://www.hyperactivesw.com

Mike O
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Joined: Fri Jul 15, 2011 10:21 pm

Re: What language is the generated LiveCode app running in?

Post by Mike O » Mon Jul 18, 2011 5:29 pm

Hi Jacque,
Thanks. I will download the eval and try it out (does it time out after 30 days?). I'm testing two other products so I will have to burn the candle at both ends and now the middle. :D

A couple of questions for the group. For mobile devices, does the size or speed of the LC engine restrict the size of the device that it can run on? There are a lot of low powered Android devices out there and I'm wondering if the LC engine will fit on the device. In other words, how much memory does the LC engine consume for Android mobile devices and does the engine impact performance?

I wouldn't mind seeing some web apps built with LiveCode and videos of finished iPhone/Android apps. Can anyone spare some links for what the finished apps look like? Is there a list of LC built iPhone apps at iTunes?

TIA
Mike

jacque
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Re: What language is the generated LiveCode app running in?

Post by jacque » Mon Jul 18, 2011 8:41 pm

I believe the trial does time out, so probably you should wait to download until you have time for testing.

I made a simple Android app with five cards and a few small images. The total size of the compiled Android apk file is 1.5 megs. That should fit on any device, and is probably pretty close in size to your basic bare-bones app. If you make one with lots of images and other large resources, then the apk will be about the minimum size plus the size of your resources on disk.

I'm not sure how to measure memory use on mobile devices, but on the desktop you only need as much RAM as the physical size of your app, plus a bit of elbow room. Basically I think a compiled mobile app will run just about anywhere LiveCode supports. I have a fairly low-powered Android device and I haven't had any trouble. The newer i-things have plenty of RAM for an iApp. Both operating systems have good support for virtual memory as well, so I doubt memory constraints will be an issue.

Android support is too new to have much in the way of commercial apps yet. There are several LiveCode iApps in the Apple store though. People keep announcing them to the mailing list but I haven't been keeping track so I don't have a list. There may be some writeups on the LiveCode web site.
Jacqueline Landman Gay | jacque at hyperactivesw dot com
HyperActive Software | http://www.hyperactivesw.com

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