Is tcl/tk a dead end?

sjg · 2008-09-01 21:49:38

Hi all,

Have recently tried to learn to program, and so following good advice from this board tried to write an application I would actually use. I spend a lot of time writing papers in LaTeX, so have started to write a tex editor with bibtex reference handling. The program is now in a semi-useful state, and I can use it quite happily.

I wanted something could easily be made cross-platform, since at university I only have access to windows PCs. It was for this reason that I decided a scripting language like tcl would be a good fit.

I started work in tcl/tk and found it very intuitive. Tk does, however, look slightly dated and out of place next to my gtk apps (although I do not mind the way it looks). What bothers me more is that I cannot find many other projects using tcl/tk. I have tried to start again in pyGTK, but found it much more difficult to learn.

So I guess my question is - is tcl/tk a dead end? Let me know your thoughts!

Thanks

Dusty · 2008-09-01 22:00:56

TKInter is the only GUI toolkit that comes standard with Python, but I don't actually think very many projects use it (which is to say: in my opinion, yes it is dead -- I would never personally use it).

I don't care for pyGTK either. I've never used TK so I don't know how you define 'intuitive' vs 'difficult to learn', but if you want to use python I suggest wxPython, it makes more sense (to me, anyway).

Dusty

lucke · 2008-09-01 22:07:37

I myself have quite a fondness for Ruby (incidentally, base distribution comes with Tk as well) and Qt, thus I fancy QtRuby. Maybe PyQt would be worth a shot (unless you're stuck on GTK)?

EnvoyRising · 2008-09-02 02:29:07

+1 for QtRuby

However, be warned that documentation is next to none. There are tutorials for the basics, but (at least for me) when it comes to learning some of Qt's more abstract and advanced techniques, the only help you'll get is in the form of C++ documentation which isn't always easy to translate to ruby.

Also, as for as integrating with your other gtk apps, Qt, at least now, is still a viable option, thanks to the cleanlooks style which mimicks gnome's clearlook theme, or better yet, the gtk style which uses native gtk calls, but has to be installed seperately.

iphitus · 2008-09-02 04:10:16

Guess depends how you define "dead"

If dead end = no longer developed, then TK/Tcl is very alive
If dead end = few people use it and few have it installed, it's not far from dead.

Python's cool. *shrug* Just use what you find comfortable and does what you need.

sjg · 2008-09-02 16:54:57

Thanks for the responses. I will certainly have a look at wxpython and QtRuby.

in my opinion, yes it is dead -- I would never personally use it

If dead end = few people use it and few have it installed, it's not far from dead.

This is what I thought. I have had a look on google / sourceforge etc. and have only come up with a handful of apps using tcl/tk. Pity, as I have quite enjoyed learning it (although I don't know any other languages to make a comparison!). I am glad it is still undergoing fairly active development.

Just use what you find comfortable and does what you need

I guess this is what it comes down to. I don't harbour any ambitions to become a programming guru, so for my own use tcl is fine for this project. Will look at the other suggestions next time a feel the need to learn to code.

Thanks again,

Stewart

strykaas · 2010-01-24 11:38:27

Hi !
A guy recently started developing a new GUI builder called PureTkGUI which generates tcl/tk code. I've tested it quite a bit and generates clean code.
What's more, it supports the latest themed tk 8.5 additions which makes tk look up-to-date compared to other gui toolkits. I've also heard it should be able to generate other languages in a not so distant future, such as python/tkinter, ruby/tk and perl/tk. It looks very promising.
http://sourceforge.net/projects/puretkgui/

tomk · 2010-01-25 11:54:05

strykaas - please read the forum rules here, in particular the section dealing with Old Threads.

Closed.

Arch Linux

#1 2008-09-01 21:49:38

Is tcl/tk a dead end?

#2 2008-09-01 22:00:56

Re: Is tcl/tk a dead end?

#3 2008-09-01 22:07:37

Re: Is tcl/tk a dead end?

#4 2008-09-02 02:29:07

Re: Is tcl/tk a dead end?

#5 2008-09-02 04:10:16

Re: Is tcl/tk a dead end?

#6 2008-09-02 16:54:57

Re: Is tcl/tk a dead end?

#7 2010-01-24 11:38:27

Re: Is tcl/tk a dead end?

#8 2010-01-25 11:54:05

Re: Is tcl/tk a dead end?

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