Re: [avrdude-dev] Avrdude Gui problem

[Mike Perks]

Dave N6NZ wrote:
> Well, the trick is finding a tool where all the bits and pieces are 
> available on all platforms and work the same way.  Maybe some RAD tool 
> expert can tell us about one.
I have had good success with wxWidgets and the advantage here is common 
code for all platforms. The only thing different is the serial port code.

I have a downloader for my own bootloader-based device (om128) which I 
wrote because no existing host software could support my host initiated 
uC reset using the DTR line. In any case my design point is the same as 
Joerg already described. That is a common back-end and then a front-end 
CLI and a separate front-end GUI. I originally even separated the 
back-end into its own Windows DLL but decided that extra separation was 
not needed. However for AVRDude it may make sense to separate out the 
back-end into a dynamic library (DLL or .so file) so that anyone can 
write their own front-end if desired.

If there is a concerted effort to produce a AVRDude-GUI using wxWidgets, 
then I would be interested in helping. The several previous attempts 
have what I call "poor" usability and this is area to start first. What 
is really needed is a documented UI design that we can comment on before 
committing anything into code. That doesn't mean we shouldn't prototype 
of course but wxWidgets is a known technology. I personally like the 
tabbed pane design point an example of which is used in AVRStudio.

Regards
Mike Perks
oakmicros.com