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!
The work Carsten does was brought to my attention when he replied to one of our posts on Facebook talking about Xojo’s SerialConnection. Carsten said he used SerialConnection to open and monitor cash drawers in his Xojo-written ERP, AWARD+. Read how Carsten has used Xojo alongside PostgreSQL, MBS DynaPDF, and other tools for the last 25 years.
Mac, Windows or Linux?
All of them.
How would you explain your most recent project to a new developer?
We often have to keep up to new legal requirements here in the EU, so the last part was the integration of electronic invoices. For doing this we had to gather information about the laws, do’s and dont’s and required tools. We had to build a parser and creator for the XML part (a colleague of mine did most of that job in Xojo) and to integrate that into our module for creating and mailing invoices (that is my job). To make things easier, we often accessed existing partial solutions like MBS DynaPDF and Ghostscript to build a required PDF/A.
What is something that has surprised you about coding in the last 5 years?
I am very surprised that still so many people insist on using C or C++. It’s like driving an old steam locomotive instead of a new truck. In our time, solutions have to be done very fast and they don’t last forever. So an IDE like Xojo is faster for prototyping or building. Especially for a small customer base or even individual development.
Xojo isn’t the only tool in your kit. What is a piece of software more people should know about?
The software we make heavy use of is PostgreSQL. And we use Git. Do not try to work in a team without having something like Git. Even a single developer benefits from versioning and backups when using a hub. We use every command-line program that may help us, to name a few: ImageMagick, SIPs, qlmanage, Ghostscript and curl.
Which three Xojo language features or framework capabilities do you find yourself relying/using on the most?
- PostgreSqlPlugin
- AutoComplete and other integrated help
- Navigation inside code editor like “Go to Function” using ContextualMenu
How did you find Xojo? And when did you start using Xojo?
I used GFA Basic on Amiga and was looking for something similar for Apple Macintosh. Maybe started with REALbasic using v3.
What did you first build with Xojo? And when was that?
My first job was importing foreign code from 4th Dimension into RealBasic. That started back in late 2000.
What do you build with it now?
ERP System AWARD+ including merchandise management, webshop, document database, cash register system, ticketing and much more.
Looking back, how long did it take for your app vision to evolve from a blank project into a working solution?
We moved from 4th Dimension to Xojo and SQL (including own PlugIn for PrimeBase) in about two years for the whole big main ERP module. Other tools took much less time.
What is something you worked on that you want to talk about?
As I mentioned it is of great help to have learned skills outside the world of IT. And don’t invent the wheel twice. Having tools like SIPs or ImageMagick i.e., there is no need to build up your own thumbnail generator.
Do you earn a living with Xojo?
I earned my living for the past 25 years with Xojo. Not every day because I also helped as sysadmin. But my main occupation will soon end.
Do you use it for any hobbies?
Writing small tools for Windows that I am used to having on my Mac and vice versa.
What’s your biggest Xojo success?
Every new app or module finished should be the biggest success. This is what I call motivation. Most proud moment? I remember installing “my” software in a German State Long-Term Archive. Running it started all those tape robots. What a feeling…
If you were introducing Xojo to a friend, which three words would you use to describe it?
- Cross Platform
- Easy to learn and use
- Start for free
Thank you to Carston Kobusch for answering questions and sharing his Xojo experience with the community.
If you have an app, a project or a person you want to see featured in Spotlight On, tell us about it!