Beijer Electronics (formerly QSI Corporation)

We are continually looking for ways to improve Qlarity and Qlarity Foundry. To this end, I would like to solicit your ideas on what we can do to improve our software.



If you wish to voice an opinion on this subject, please post a reply here. You may answer any or all of the following questions, or post your own thoughts.



What language features would you add to the Qlarity programming language?



What featues would you add to Qlarity Foundry.



If we could add one thing to the environment, what one thing would be the most useful for you?



What is your least favorite thing about Qlarity/Qlarity Foundry?





We do discuss all of the ideas that we receive, and although we cannot implement them all, many features in Qlarity today are the result of these types of requests.



Thanks in advance for any feedback you decide to leave.

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Jeremy
http://www.beijerinc.com

I think it would be really helpful to be able to define constants and enumerations in Object Templates. I have quite a few object specific contants that are better defined in the object code versus globally.

Also, I'm not sure if I missed them or not but it would be better if you could define "static" variables in both functions and as object properties. I'll keep posting things that would be helpful as I encounter them.

Thanks.

Both of those features are high on my list too. Currently you do tend to wind up with a large number of global variables (to simulate static ones) and constants/enums which would make better sense at an object scope.

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Jeremy
http://www.beijerinc.com

I have several features that I would like to see.



1) When a file (or workspace) is included, that it not actually be physcially copied by QF, but simply referenced. We go through a fairly extensive set of acrobatics to break up our large workspace into many smaller ones and include them into the one larger one. But if we save any changes to the larger one, all the text of the smaller ones gets included!



To work around this, we make changes in the larger workspace. If it works, we then figure out which other smaller workspaces to modify, then throw away our larger workspace and get the original one back to see if our changes worked.



2) If there was a cleaner way to diff files without getting bogged down with all the Z-order changes, that would help tremendously. Any chance Z-order information could be kept in a separate file so that Qlarity code could be diff'ed easier?



3) CVS integration in QF would be nice and may eliminate 1) and 2) above.



4) Though I'm probably the only Mac OS X user customer, I'd still love to extricate Windows from our development tools. (Anyone working on a GNU QF? )



5) Editor changes: triple clicking a line would select the whole line.



6) I would like the ability to find an object in the Object Tree view. We have hundreds and it is cumbersome to locate them.



7) I would love to be able edit the source files in my own editer, where I can really fly, and have QF use those files in real-time.



My favorite features include the ability to simulate the code prior to commiting to the hardware, connecting QF via Ethernet or serial line to our hardware to debug, the object properites are complete and consistent and that is great.

Try placing the "include" statements into the Advanced Code Section. Qlarity Foundry does not attempt to interpret code placed in that section, rather directly sends it to the compiler. If you cannot see the Advanced Code Section, then go to Tools->Settings->Editor and check "Show Advanced Code..."



You could also try using "#include" instead of include. This is a form of inline include, but there are some sublte differences which generally make it less desirable to use.



I have added (or noted additional interest on) your other points to our list of possible features.



On #4, I know you are not the only Mac user of QF out there -- there are a few of you. I know that QF worked under WINE a few years ago with minor problems, but I haven't tried recently.



On #7, if you take advantage of the include suggestions I made you can probably use your own editor for the sub workspaces. The compiler will read those in each time you compile.

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Jeremy
http://www.beijerinc.com

Built-in shift options like Auto-Unshift on keypress



Full access to handshaking lines on primary COM. (DTR)



A method to turn off the device. (true power switch)



Thats its for now but believe me I got tons more.

I think it would be nice if when I unlock a library component to edit - a check was made to see if the file was read only. If the file is read only give an idiot warning.



Occassionally I forget to check the library out from or source safe and do some editing. I don't realize I haven't checked the file out until I try to save it...

I will look at the code. However, I don't think QF warns on any read-only file, including the main project file. It simply complains when it cannot save to the file.

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Jeremy
http://www.beijerinc.com

Right - That's what I'm saying. I don't get the warning until I try and save. Obviously editing the the file when it is read only is dumb, but I do it anyway sometimes.



I was just thinking it would be nice if at the warning dialog received when one attempts to unlock a library component would be a good time to check if the file is read only and notify user. This is the text on the dialog I'm referring to...

I don't think I was clear. I did understand your suggestion. Sorry. What I meant was: If I did that for libraries, I ought to do that all other file types. I was debating in my mind the effort/reward involved in digging around all the file types that QF could possibly edit and trying to check for read only on file open. The library is a unique case because it is 3 state: Open, Edit and Write.



It is something that I am not sure if I will do, and probably cannot be certain until I look at the source code.

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Jeremy
http://www.beijerinc.com

No problem, just a suggestion.

An option to do a find and replace only in the currently selected code region would be handy.

I think it would be nice if the results of a workspace wide find went to their own tab on the Messages & Errors window. They currently replace the results of my last build.



Occasionally I like to go back to my last build results so I can double click on an error or warning and jump to that location.

One of the changes I have in mind for the next time I do a major upgrade to QF is to completely redo the docking windows. I would like to support a more advanced docking algorithim like Visual Studio supports. I would also add support for tear-away tabs (where you could grab the tab and dock it in its own window if you wanted, and place other windows as tabs in that one).



Once that support is in, I will have a better framework for adding more windows than the current system which is not as extensible as I would like.

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Jeremy
http://www.beijerinc.com

I think that a "Find in workspace" menu option would be so helpful. As my project is getting bigger and bigger, I need it more and more. In order to find a reference to a variable I end up commenting it out and compiling. Then I see where it is referenced in the errors. Kind of silly but it works.