The (dark) future of Java on desktop

[Dirk Stöcker]

On Thu, 8 Mar 2018, Richard wrote:

> On Thu, Mar 08, 2018 at 08:36:21AM +0100, Frederik Ramm wrote:
>
>> You could sit down today and re-implement everything in, say, C++, and
>> it would be relatively straightforward, and while the result would not
>> share any of JOSM's codebase, it would still encapsulate all the
>> experience and brainpower that has flown into JOSM development over the
>> years.
>
> true in principle but you would need a protable GUI that doesn't suck or
> you end up programming for at least 3 platforms with 3 sets of bugs,
> 3 sets of dependencies etc.

Reimplementing an existing software like JOSM which has an estimated cost 
of more than hundred development years (https://www.openhub.net/p/josm) in 
another language in an non-profit OS application is doomed to fail in my 
eyes. The motivation for a programmer to take an existing software and 
reimplement everything again is low. For a very long time you will not 
have something which is usable and inbetween you have tasks to do, but no 
positive feedback. That may work when the people are paid for it, but not 
when programmers need to be motivated. I'd consider people beeing motived 
by such a task very strange. :-)

Rather than that if JOSM really dies some of the better ideas of it will 
be taken and implemented in existing or new software (which BTW is already 
happening, e.g. osmosis taking the Validator MapCSS or many other things).

If there is a way to automatically convert the code and start with a 
working base, then the situation is different...

But I also don't think this is necessary (ATM).

Ciao
-- 
http://www.dstoecker.eu/ (PGP key available)