I agree, for visual classes, forms including their visual controls, the class designer can be used (creating the sketch) for sizing, positioning, coloring, and visual properties in general. When the visual requirements are satisfied, the next step is extracting the code by means of "view class code" in the class browser. Often, it's necessary to handle the code extracted, specially when grids and other complex containers are incuded. Then you have, in a few minutes, the code of visual classes, and now that piece of code is available to add the functionallity and everything that you consider "convenient".

On the other hand, there are a great variety of tools to extract the code for the DataEnvironment attached to a form, I use a tool called "GenDE" provided by Michael Drozdov (Drozdov@ics.perm.su), also there is a "UnDE - DataEnvironment decoder" provided by John Koziol (you can be get it from downloads section of UT).

Also, I recommend to use a tool like "visual-paradigm" for Object-Oriented-modeling before coding.

It can be thought that this technique can be applied only to large systems. However, I think that the the big and the small exists only in the mind, and like all other arts, the programming requires a technique, and a discipline for mastering the technique. Then you can see some results. Then the sculpture begins to take a form.


Gerry Schmitz, Terry Thurber, John Petersen, Viv Phillips, Greg Moss, Mike Yearwood, Hilmar Zonneveld.. Thanks a lot for your comments.


Enrique Rivera

"You are the architect in your mind"