STOS wrote: ↑Tue 30 Jan 2024, 16:03
I just don't see the point in an "app" for a programming utility/language. Surely, you develop on a desktop/laptop with a physical keyboard
There are significant differences between a desktop environment and a mobile environment. There are the obvious ones (touchscreen rather than keyboard/mouse, portrait rather than landscape orientation etc.) but there are less obvious ones too, such as (often) 16-bit colour rather than 24-bit, 'retina' resolution displays etc.
The upshot is that, apart from the simplest of applications, you can't "develop on a desktop/laptop" and expect your program to work 100% correctly on a mobile device. You can certainly get a long way, but ultimately it will be essential to
test the code on the mobile device, and probably to
modify it too in order that it works exactly as intended.
For that you need a development environment of some kind. It doesn't need to be as sophisticated as what you have on a desktop platform, for example you are unlikely to need a debugger or a profiler. But the ability to run and modify the code (in a quick and efficient way) is essential, and that's the main reason for having an app.
Another reason is simply as a showcase for the language. The app comes with dozens of example programs which show the range of capabilities of 'modern' BBC BASIC. Because (nearly!) everybody has a smartphone, downloading the app provides a quick and easy (and safe) way for somebody not familiar with the language to discover what it's all about.
What are you trying to gain out of this Richard? Why do you need more ratings?
I would have thought that was obvious - it helps promote BBC BASIC. The more users there are, and the happier they are, the more the 'reputation' of the language benefits. Most of my time is spent promoting BBC BASIC, very little in developing and maintaining it.
