Spotlight On posts focus on Xojo community members. We’ll use this space to tell the stories of people using Xojo, share amazing Xojo-made apps and spread awareness of community resources. If you have an app, a project or a person you want to see featured in Spotlight On, tell us about it!
Born in Slovenia, at the age of 6 Richard Klingler moved to Switzerland where he lives today. Richard started coding around 16, though he jokes whether what he did could be called coding, typing on an 8-bit computer called the ZX Spectrum. His first job was as an electronic department leader at a die bonder factory. Soon after, he started developing web applications then moved on to working as an embedded Linux developer making applications and kernel drivers for radio modem communication. His last job was as an embedded IoT engineer where he started to use Xojo for in-house development of testing applications.
For the last few years Richard built up a tool shop in his basement where he has started welding, wood working and growing his collection of machinery. For him, this work is a great way to do something with his hands and he finds pleasure in seeing immediate results. It is an added bonus if the stuff he builds can be used in his garden or be sold through his girlfriend’s online shop! When he’s not coding or working with his machines, he’s cooking. Special projects include his famous lasagne made with homemade, fresh pasta and his chocolate Christmas cookies.
Q&A with Richard Klinger
Mac, Windows or Linux?
Mac and Linux.
When did you start using Xojo?
April 2012 when it was REAL Studio.
How did you find Xojo?
When I searched for an uncomplicated platform for developing macOS applications instead of using Xcode.
Since this Summer you have been pretty active on the Xojo Forums. What do you find yourself doing while on the forums?
At the beginning I was mainly active to get back into Xojo programming as I hadn’t it used for a while. Sometimes I was even able to help out other people. The forum is very good reading material to learn how people implement the same thing differently.
In fact, it was because of a thread (asking about a Dynamic 2-dimensional array) on the Forums that another user suggested you for Spotlight On. Can you tell us more about this project?
Unfortunately, not much as it was a company prototype project which might go in production one day. But basically I was looking for a solution for how to control a CNC GCode interpreter from within a desktop application to test marking on stainless steel pipes with a felt pen. I ended up using snippets of GCodes for each letter/number. So in Xojo I just loaded the corresponding GCode for each letter/number, scaled it so it would fit onto the pipe, and sent the final code out via USB serial port.
In my last weeks at that company I did a touchscreen application for Raspberry Pi, which should do in the end the pulling in of steel pipes, cutting to the right length and labeling it for sanitary installation. I wanted to do it first with PyQt6, but very soon decided that Xojo is a perfect fit for this.
What do you build with Xojo now?
An IDE for macOS to simplify FPGA electronics development based on open source tools which are console applications only therefore simplifying the development process. As I wanted to have a more native macOS look I acquired the great NSToolbar plugin which has also an outstanding support from the author.
The progress can be seen on its website https://www.fpga.ch
Mostly I use Xojo for hobbies now as it is just a breeze to quickly develop something to verify an idea. Also, in combination with embedded electronics, Xojo is a perfect match to communicate with it via serial interfaces or IP networking.
Xojo isn’t the only tool in your kit. What is a piece of software more people should know about?
As I deal a lot with databases and REST API I use RapidAPI and Navicat Premium Lite on macOS which are both free tools.
Then of course for graphics the Affinity suite. And just recently I bought an App Wrapper license for distributing macOS applications.
But also don’t forget SF Symbols. I quickly built my own image scaler application with Xojo to copy/paste macOS icons from SF Symbols and generate automatically icons at a desired resolution with @1x/@2x/@3x scaling.
If it’s one of many things you use, what do you tend to use Xojo for?
To develop helper applications for electronics development, like controlling power supplies and function generators, grabbing screenshots from oscilloscopes. An idea exists for doing a combination of instrumentation control and test automation, sort of a poor-mans LabView.
What’s your biggest Xojo success?
Personally, my FPGA IDE for macOS. Not sure if it will be a success out there when once published in 2025. But during this project I learned a lot about the power of DesktopCanvas and DesktopListbox.
Thank you to Richard Klinger for answering questions and sharing his Xojo projects with the community. You can, in the words of Bart Simpson “Absotively posalutely“, find Richard on the Xojo Forums.
If you have an app, a project or a person you want to see featured in Spotlight On, tell us about it!