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a field i'm involved in needs a tracking application that runs on a mac. there are a number of windows options but none for a mac. no one seems interested in making a mac version. so i was thinking - what does it take to create software? how does all this that i love about my mac life get to my desktop? is it something i could do?
the answer to the last question is probably no as i have little free time. but still, how does this all happen? i thought i'd as here for a start as googling a question this vague would give me a gazillion hits i wouldn't understand.
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A "tracking application" sounds like maybe it's primarily a database?
You can write those with Filemaker Pro... given enough time.
As for "non database" programming... I'll leave that to others, 'cause I'm hazy on the concept myself.
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FileMaker if its a fairly database centric app. RealBasic if you need fancier user interaction. Cocoa/Objective-C gives you all the power.
Then again, a lot of apps have moved online. html/php/mysql/javascript would be a common solution.
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[quote Paul F.]A "tracking application" sounds like maybe it's primarily a database?
guess being unclear isn't particularly helpful. it's not like one of you is going to rush out and steal this oh-so-lucrative idea. i homeschool my son and there is no mac program for making lesson plans, assignment sheets, tracking grades and stuff like that. there was one for OS 9: i still use it and is the only remaining reason for my needing a G4 mac. i don't know if FM can do that but i assume users would have to own FM to run a program culled from that and the market i'm thinking of wouldn't own FM.
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Have you looked at EasyGradePro?
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Well... let's see...
I wouldn't say that one could NOT do that kind of program using Filemaker... the more I use filemaker for, the more uses I find for it (even ones that it's really not optimal for...).
It doesn't sound like Filemaker would be the best choice.
But to another part of the question; in earlier versions of Filemaker (6 in particular), one could buy Filemaker Developer, and roll a Filemaker database into a stand-alone application, not requireing Filemaker to run.
If you get serious about the idea, I'd try to contact the company that made the OS 9 version, and see if you can negotiate the rights to build an OS X version of it using their source code.
NOT a small project, and an uphill battle with the company, I'm sure...but what the hell! It would be cool :-)
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[quote iaJim]Have you looked at EasyGradePro?
i just glanced at it. it covers the grade and attendance tracking needs but not the planning needs. for instance, determining that a certain math lesson will be done on a certain day at a certain time by a particular student. (not all homeschoolers plan that way, i don't, but the app would need to have that as an option.) then, once a plan is made, an individual assignment sheet could be generated for each student.
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[quote Paul F.]
If you get serious about the idea, I'd try to contact the company that made the OS 9 version, and see if you can negotiate the rights to build an OS X version of it using their source code.
NOT a small project, and an uphill battle with the company, I'm sure...but what the hell! It would be cool :-)
that's an interesting idea. not having to start from scratch sounds good. i need to look into what it means to write code. so, everything on a computer screen - lines, colors, spacings - is the result of code? no WYSIWYG for making an app?!
