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Welcome to B4X forum!
B4X is a set of simple and powerful cross platform RAD tools:
- B4A (free) - Android development
- B4J (free) - Desktop and Server development
- B4i - iOS development
- B4R (free) - Arduino, ESP8266 and ESP32 development
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Well Xamarin was replaced with .MAU by Microsoft. then Microsoft let off the staff working on .MAU.
Also, Google let off some of the team working on Flutter.
Apparently AI is taking over most of the coding done by engineers..
Xamarin End of Support FAQs · dotnet maui · Discussion #21214
The official Xamarin support policy states the key details. Please read! Important dates: May 1, 2024 is the end of Xamarin Official Support May 14, 2024 is the end of .NET 7 official support Augus...
github.com
MS lays off senior .NET/Maui engineers - what does this mean for the future of .NET Maui? · dotnet maui · Discussion #29483
https://x.com/migueldeicaza/status/1922409129567563855?t=niaTRg-0tDzr4MCQwyKigw "Microsoft laid off the senior engineers of .NET on Android and key figures of Maui. This might just be the US wave, ...
github.com
What’s Next for Flutter After Layoffs Hit Google Team
Some developers are skeptical about Flutter's future in the wake of layoffs. Here's what Flutter's product manager has to say to them.
Its answer to a related question of mine::
(continued; I'll have it translated...)
Cross-platform languages/frameworks – current status (2024-2025)
Flutter (Dart language) and React Native (JavaScript/TypeScript) have emerged as the leading cross-platform frameworks for mobile development in recent years. The latest statistics confirm that Flutter is leading in terms of adoption and growth. According to the JetBrains 2023 survey, “Flutter has been the most used multi-platform app framework, since 2021”. Market data confirms this as well: AppTopia estimates that Flutter will be used in nearly a third (≈30%) of new free iOS apps in 2024, up from 10% in 2021. Similarly, analysis by Appfigures indicates that Flutter remains the most popular cross-platform framework, with React Native coming in close behind.
The usage percentages detected by developers confirm this: in the StackOverflow Survey 2024, 9.4% of all developers declare to use Flutter, against 8.4% who use React Native. Among professional developers the share is similar (Flutter 9.4% vs React Native 9.0%). Other frameworks have much lower shares: .NET MAUI (~3.1%), Xamarin (~2.9%), Ionic (~2.5%), Cordova (~2.2%).
Figure – Comparison of some popular cross-platform frameworks. Usage percentages (column “SO 2024”) are taken from the StackOverflow 2024 survey. Flutter is the most popular, followed by React Native. (.NET MAUI and Xamarin together cover less than 6%.)
Conclusions
The data clearly indicates that Flutter (Dart) leads the cross-platform market in 2024-2025, detaching React Native and other competitors. In addition to the percentages of use in developers, industry studies and specialized blogs also confirm this: Flutter has grown rapidly in a few years, while React Native remains strong but apparently in a settling phase. Microsoft solutions (.NET MAUI/Xamarin) and hybrid web technologies (Ionic, Cordova) remain used by a much smaller niche. In summary, Flutter is currently the most popular/“downloaded” cross-platform framework, followed by React Native, with the others (MAUI, Xamarin, etc.) far behind
Another answer:
Conclusion
You are right in saying that a real IDE is better than a simple editor:
VS Code is great but it remains an editor.
Android Studio is the official and complete IDE for Flutter.
In the B4X world, however, the presence of a dedicated IDE for each platform is one of the winning features: zero configuration, very high productivity.
If you want, I can help you compare Flutter + Android Studio with B4X, to understand what is best based on your needs.
ConclusionYou are right in saying that a real IDE is better than a simple editor:
VS Code is great but it remains an editor. Android Studio is the official and complete IDE for Flutter.In the B4X world, however, the presence of a dedicated IDE for each platform is one of the winning features: zero configuration, very high productivity.
If you want, I can help you compare Flutter + Android Studio with B4X, to understand what is best based on your needs.
First I send "B4X is the easiest programming language to learn"
Then it responded about Xamarin and Flutter at the end of its answer.
Then I asked "Isn't Xamarin and Flutter dead compare to B4X?"
It answered me and agreed that Xamarin is officially dead and replaced by .NET MAUI.
Flutter is declining.
B4X is still going strong but it's so niche.
I suppose Flutter is very popular (Google!) and will be more and more.
But you have to do somersaults to use it, while with B4X you start the "engine" (car metaphor), start and produce much faster and easier (only thanks to a lot of work by Erel).
Until today I still not clear what Flutter is. I know it uses a programming language call Dart. So why 2 different names. I lazy to find out.
While B4X is the only name you need to know.
Dart is the language;
Flutter is a framework (open souce) written with Dart and is a set of classes/widgets (Button, TextField, Label, .... ) and any GUI graphic elements