Linux Port

Steve

Steve

Member
Messages
13
Hi,
I do like the program very much. But I was wondering/hoping if there were any plans, to port SwordSearcher to Linux anytime soon? From what I've been able to discover so far is that there is not a Linux-based Bible software anywhere out there that comes even close to Sword's capabilities.

Thanks again for a great program, and for your answer.

Steve :)
 
There are no plans for a Linux version at this time.
 
I should add that several users have reported success running SwordSearcher on Linux with WINE. http://www.winehq.com/
 
Steve said:
Hi,
I do like the program very much. But I was wondering/hoping if there were any plans, to port SwordSearcher to Linux anytime soon? From what I've been able to discover so far is that there is not a Linux-based Bible software anywhere out there that comes even close to Sword's capabilities .......
Click to expand...

I have never been able to understand why people use non-Microsoft operating systems or non-IBM compatible computers and then expect somebody to write a program for them. Surely the advantage of using a PC and Windows is that most people write programs for them. Anybody who likes Linux can always dual boot to it.

Correct me if I am wrong. :D
 
I actually looked into making a Linux version of SwordSearcher a several years ago. Borland released a development environment for Linux called Kylix (I bought it when it came out and experimented with it), which is very similar to Delphi (what I develop SwordSearcher with in Windows).

Alas, Kylix never matured into a stable development environment and has been all but abandoned by Borland. Borland found out what most people already know: Linux users expect all their software for free. There isn't a great market for desktop applications on Linux, so nobody needed a good desktop development environment.

There are of course other alternatives for developing for Linux, but they are all a far inferior to Delphi and other Windows IDEs. As an independent developer I have discovered that I am most efficient when focusing on one platform, so Windows it is.

:)
 
Borland

Brandon,

I love Delphi as well, though it has been a while. I did some work way back in Delphi 3. My enjoyment of Delphi probably stems from my college days when I learned real programming with Turbo Pascal way back in the Dos days. I probably liked it so much because my other classes were in Fortran and Cobol. Ugh.

Anyway, I have seen Borland over the years not able to capitalize on such a strong product, which is unfortunate. Ken Henderson, a big MS guru, had two recent blog entries on problems over at Borland. I thought you may be interested in them:

http://blogs.msdn.com/khen1234/archive/2006/01/23/516375.aspx
http://blogs.msdn.com/khen1234/archive/2006/01/24/516779.aspx

-- Jerry
 
Actually, Ken's blog entries have been quite a topic of discussion in the Borland newsgroups lately. People have been predicting the demise of Borland for 10 years. It sure is taking a long time for Borland to die. :)

I find Delphi to be the best Windows desktop application development environment, and I really like Pascal. But I am also proficient in C (SwordSearcher 1-3 were all programmed with Borland C). If Delphi eventually does "die," I'll just move on to something else. :)
 
Why Non-Windows OSes?

Lance Wrote: "I have never been able to understand why people use non-Microsoft operating systems or non-IBM compatible computers and then expect somebody to write a program for them. Surely the advantage of using a PC and Windows is that most people write programs for them. Anybody who likes Linux can always dual boot to it. "

There are many reasons for not wanting to use Microsoft Windows, including security, the inability to remove components that are not needed (for example you can't remove IE without killing other functionality in Windows), among other reasons.

I agree that one of the main reasons that people do use Windows is only because their favorite application runs on that platform, but this is exactly why they request their favorite applications to be ported to another platform. I have run across several programs that were designed for Linux platforms, and I sometimes look to see if they made a Windows version. If it is an application I like, why wouldn't I request it for my OS of choice?

Dual-booting take more time, does not allow for transferring data between apps running on the different OSs, and takes up lots of hard drive space.

Anyway, I don't mean to start an OS war, but just want to point out that asking for programs to be ported across multiple platforms just makes sense from the user point of view. It doesn't always make sense for the developer, unless he/they have a great number of resources to put toward it, though.

Doug A.
 
Re: Why Non-Windows OSes?

magicref said:
........ I agree that one of the main reasons that people do use Windows is only because their favorite application runs on that platform, but this is exactly why they request their favorite applications to be ported to another platform. I have run across several programs that were designed for Linux platforms, and I sometimes look to see if they made a Windows version. If it is an application I like, why wouldn't I request it for my OS of choice?
Click to expand...

I don't like MS Windows either but I would be crazy to ignore it. Most of the arguments against Windows no longer apply. We have huge hard disks so disk space is no longer a problem. Neither is memory any longer a barrier. I admit there are people out there trying to destroy computers or at least disable them, but a good firewall and anti virus will protect the average user but I do respect a person's right to choose whatever operating system they prefer ... as long as they don't expect miracles. I deliberately posted the cost of the Linux development program so that people can see how impractical it would be to purchase it for every request for a different operating system. Work out how many disks Brandon would have to sell just to cover the cost of the software and even my limited knowledge of programming tells me it would involve many hours of work. We all have to eat and nobody can live on good wishes.

God bless
 
Linux???

They are making software for cartoon characters?

Is a Charlie Brown version coming out now too?

Oh, wait... "L-I-N-U-X"...

MY bad...

;)
 
Jerry said:
Well, you might want to start gathering your packing materials...
Click to expand...

I read about this when they announced it, and I think this will be a good thing for Delphi. Borland has been treating Delphi as a cash cow while it focuses on other products for quite some time now. When Borland divests Delphi, Delphi's R&D team will go with it. And from their comments in the Borland newsgroups, they are actually looking forward to a new company letting them improve Delphi.

It all depends on who buys Delphi. Even if Delphi was suddenly dropped as a supported product, it would be a LONG time before it is obsolete. But if a good company is running it, it can only help Delphi.

All of this is irrelevant to SwordSearcher users, though. I'll be desiging SwordSearcher with whatever tool will allow me to make the best software I can. :) Right now, and for at least a few more years, that is Delphi.
 
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