Python, VB, Tkinter, and the future of GUI programming & CP4E

[Ron Stephens]

Tools change the world. Computer tools are of prime interest and
importance to the human future. We all owe a huge debt of gratitude to
Guido and his team and the other hard working contributors to Python and
its associated toolkit.

I am a newbie but one who has dreamed of a more user-friendly
programming language that would open up entirely new vistas in the use
of computers. Having dabbled in many computer languages and
environments, I first got interested in Python after reading a short
piece about CP4E in the last chapter of "Rebel Code", a good book about
the history of free software and the open source movement (a highly
recommended book ;-))).

I have fallen head over heals in love with Python, which is the most
user friendly and seductive language I have yet met. However, GUI
programming remains, in my completely inexpert and naive opinion, overly
complex and daunting, and my simplistic and uninformed mind can not see
why this can not be rectified.

Tkinter is great, but what we need now is a higher level sort of
gui-language that allows one to visually create forms, buttons, event
driven windows for data input and output, etc. For the life of me, I do
not see why this should be too difficult to accomplish, yet I don't see
it for any programming language.

I believe that whoever, whichever programming language/environment first
achieves this holy grail, will own the world. Why not Python?

Now, much as I hate to admit it, the closest any existing
language/environment comes to achieving what I have in mind is Visual
Basic. I played around with VB a few years ago (much earlier version)
and its semi-automatic creation of forms and controls, with the ability
to attach actual code to the forms and controls that had been visually
created, was darn nice. However, Visual Basic as we all know has many
serious drawbacks, including its proprietary, Windows specific
(non-cross-platform) nature, not to mention its complete and utter lack
of the grace, beauty, power, and expressiveness of Python.

Before Python, I tried Java and then a visual front end to Java from Sun
called Java Studio; JS was entirely graphical and essentially turned
flowcharts one created on the computer into Java code. It was good for
gui window creation for input and output, but horribly inefficient for
logic and calculation and control flow type of issues. Sun discontinued
it.

Why couldn't someone or some group create a higher level visual GUIi
front-end to Tkinter (or any good Tkinter alternative)? For instance, in
my preliminary study of Tkinter, I see that there are known, easily
repeatable blocks of code useful for creating many of the most useful
constructs. How hard would it be to put all of these blocks of code into
a visual, poke yoke (idiot proof) visual gui design front-end program
for Tkinter/Python?

Now, being myself a hopeless bush-hacker (def  bush-hacker: one who,
although intimately in love with and aware of Python's possibilities,
has nonetheless quite lamentably wasted all too much of his/her time and
energy in profligate intellectual pursuits instead of useful Python
hacking), I am simply not personally capable of doing what I am
suggesting above. But is anyone doing it? It would be a fine thing to
do.

I am trying out Active States Komodo and it is really good, I love it;
it is a great IDE. I also use their earlier tools. But is ActiveState,
or PythonWare, or anyone working on a true visual front end to tools
like Komodo and Tkinter? It could be an open source project or a company
sponsored project.

I am simple minded in the extreme. I also accuse myself of  being a
dreamer, a jack of all trades and master of none. But I have fallen in
love with Python; I believe Python has the potential to be the basic
computer language that changes the world; but I believe that the true
world changing revolutionary crown will go to whichever programming
language/environment first and best creates an extremely high level,
visual gui creator.

Why not python???

Ron Stephens
rdsteph at earthlink.net