Android Question B4XPage is the new way to develop for B4A?

[joaquinortiz]

What happen with the old way to start a program, using Main, etc. Do we have to throw it to trash and start learning a new way?.

I spend much time learning on B4A environment, and now you push to learn a new way of programming?. What could be the advantages!.

Thanks in advance for your response!

 

[mangojack]

What happen with the old way to start a program, using Main, etc. Do we have to throw it to trash and start learning a new way?.

I spend much time learning on B4A environment, and now you push to learn a new way of programming?. What could be the advantages!.

Thanks in advance for your response!

Nothing has really changed ... You are not compelled to use B4X Pages. You can continue to develop apps exactly how you are doing it now.
It is simply another way of doing things.

In certain circumstances it might be simpler to use Pages versus Activities .. ie dealing with Activity life cycles etc...
but that is entirely your decision.

At the very least have a read / play and make your own decision.

 

[Erel]

Do we have to throw it to trash and start learning a new way?.

No. You are not forced to change anything.

Switching to B4XPages will make many things much simpler.
All of the new examples that I create are based on B4XPages.

Worth watching the video tutorial: [B4X] B4XPages - Cross platform and simple framework for managing multiple pages
And: [B4X] [B4XPages] What exactly does it solve?

 

[LucaMs]

Worth watching the video tutorial: [B4X] B4XPages - Cross platform and simple framework for managing multiple pages

BTW, I think it would be better to make a simpler, slower and therefore more suitable video for beginners.
(This is not the right place for this but I don't know where I should have written it; maybe in private )

 

[AnandGupta]

I am still writing in old-activity ways and studying the new-pages ways.

The benefits weigh more towards pages if you are facing activity related problems, which pages makes simpler. If you are comfortable in activities handling keep going. Neither Erel will complain or Android will complain.

But be ready as all new examples and samples will be in pages and you should have enough basic knowledge of pages to understand them.
I am waiting for @klaus Booklet update. He makes B4X so easy

Regards,

Anand

 

[joaquinortiz]

Thanks a lot for your time responding me @Erel @mangojack @AnandGupta @LucaMs.

I really agree with @LucaMs. 4 months ago I was a beginner and it cost me to learn it.

Thanks a lot guys!. Currently I'm recommend a pair of customers B4X to develop their mobile solutions. So I hope they learn it in a simpler way.

 

[Alessandro71]

I have some experience with the "old" coding style.
I took some time to look at the tutorial video and fiddle with some example and begun converting some of my actual projects.
I find the B4XPages framework easy and convenient.
The main motivation, for me, was easier porting to B4i, which I'm considering right now.

 

[LucaMs]

In my previous post I just wanted to say that, in my opinion, the video tutorial, although done well, is not very suitable for those approaching the tools of Anywhere Software for the first time.

Since I think a beginner should just start right away with the B4XPages (and that we should create our new projects based on them), I think that it (the video) is fine for those who already know B4A, the IDE, the Designer, importing a class module, etc. but not for those who start from scratch. On the other hand, in retrospect it is not possible to create a tutorial about B4XPages that also includes all these informations. Perhaps an ordered list of the indispensable videos to get to develop using B4XPages would be useful.

As already suggested by Erel, there are many advantages to using B4XPages even if you want to develop an app only for Android.
He listed them here:
https://www.b4x.com/android/forum/threads/b4x-b4xpages-what-exactly-does-it-solve.119078/

They are more than 20 (although, perhaps, I still have to understand one or two of them, if I remember correctly ?).

 

[joaquinortiz]

a beginner should just start right away with the B4XPages

Exactly. Thanks!.

 

[wes58]

I was thinking about starting with B4Xpages but gave up.
Why?
Because there is no thread dedicated to B4Xpages - i.e. with examples, issues, solutions etc. - all in one place
Now, everything is everywhere in the Questions Forum.
At least, I prefer reading 20 or more pages related to one subject, where, during the search for solution, I can also come across something what I didn't know about, instead of going through the search pages.
I know, it won't change, because that's the way the forum is organized, but that's how I find threads organized on forums on other websites.
That's my opinion only. I tried to convince some forum users - but no, it is a "new question, new thread" rule - so I gave up.
The worst thing, in my opinion, is the treads dedicated to posted libraries. Where I see that to ask a question about the library issues you told to post it in the question forum.
If you read, for example, a newspaper, and you like reading about sport. Would you like, articles to be spread on every page of the newspaper, or be put in one place?
Maybe some people like that way,

 

[kkkpe]

I agree 100% with you. who would like to start now has a great difficulty, all confused. You want to insert a navigation bar and you find hundreds of solutions that create so much confusion. I hope Erel takes this situation to heart and tries to clarify this. it would be necessary to open a chapter in which there is only b4xpage and cross-platform solutions. let's hope well and keep our fingers crossed.

 

[Erel]

Because there is no thread dedicated to B4Xpages - i.e. with examples, issues, solutions etc. - all in one place

Here are all the B4XPages related threads: https://www.b4x.com/android/forum/pages/results/?query=b4xpages
Organized and with a title for each one.

It would have been an enormous mess to have all of this information in a single thread.

B4XPages is very new. If you haven't found something then it is likely that it wasn't asked before.
More and more questions, examples and tutorials will be available in the future.
Developers who have questions should post them. This is the way to build a more complete knowledge base.

 

[AnandGupta]

At least, I prefer reading 20 or more pages related to one subject,

Just wait for @klaus booklet. It will have what you want in one place. I am waiting.

Regards

Anand

 

[LucaMs]

I was thinking about starting with B4Xpages but gave up.
Why?
Because there is no thread dedicated to B4Xpages - i.e. with examples, issues, solutions etc. - all in one place
Now, everything is everywhere in the Questions Forum.
At least, I prefer reading 20 or more pages related to one subject, where, during the search for solution, I can also come across something what I didn't know about, instead of going through the search pages.
I know, it won't change, because that's the way the forum is organized, but that's how I find threads organized on forums on other websites.
That's my opinion only. I tried to convince some forum users - but no, it is a "new question, new thread" rule - so I gave up.
The worst thing, in my opinion, is the treads dedicated to posted libraries. Where I see that to ask a question about the library issues you told to post it in the question forum.
If you read, for example, a newspaper, and you like reading about sport. Would you like, articles to be spread on every page of the newspaper, or be put in one place?
Maybe some people like that way,

The same is and was for the "classic B4A" but you didn't give up

 

[wes58]

Here are all the B4XPages related threads: https://www.b4x.com/android/forum/pages/results/?query=b4xpages
Organized and with a title for each one.

It would have been an enormous mess to have all of this information in a single thread.

B4XPages is very new. If you haven't found something then it is likely that it wasn't asked before.
More and more questions, examples and tutorials will be available in the future.
Developers who have questions should post them. This is the way to build a more complete knowledge base.

There are now 2813 pages in the Qustion forum!
Myabe you could create a new forum/section just for B4Xpages?
It would be better than having everything in the Question forum, I think.
As you said it is very new, so it would probably benefit everybody, newcomers and users who have been with B4A from day one.

 

[wes58]

The same is and was for the "classic B4A" but you didn't give up

I was a lot younger then. How many years is it, since the first version of B4A came out?

 

[Erel]

The number of pages in the questions forum is meaningless. The ONLY way to find information that you are looking for is with the search engine.
It doesn't matter if we talk about B4XPages, XUI, GPS or any other feature.

 

[kisoft]

The number of pages in the questions forum is meaningless. The ONLY way to find information that you are looking for is with the search engine.
It doesn't matter if we talk about B4XPages, XUI, GPS or any other feature.

In fact, the forum search engine works very well. It would be good, however, if these threads were ordered thematically...Often, beginners do not even know what to ask when they encounter a problem and are sent from topic to topic.

 

[Erel]

Check the order: https://www.b4x.com/android/forum/pages/results/?query=b4xpages
It is quite good, considering that it is automatic and will always be automatic.
Many factors are considered when searching. The forum category is one of the factors (it is actually a bit too strong in some cases), this causes tutorials to rank higher.

 

[wes58]

In fact, the forum search engine works very well. It would be good, however, if these threads were ordered thematically...Often, beginners do not even know what to ask when they encounter a problem and are sent from topic to topic.

That's right. And it is even harder for people for whom English is not the first language.
Try to search for "B4X pages" instead of "B4Xpages" and you will see what (or how many) meaningless results you get!