| GLBasic | |
|---|---|
 | |
 GLBasic 8 | |
| Developer | Dream Design Entertainment Software |
| Stable release | 15.004 / August 4, 2017; 8 years ago (2017-08-04) |
| Preview release | 15.238 |
| Operating system | Windows |
| Platform | Windows, Intel/PowerPC Mac, Linux (and Xbox Linux), OS-X, Pocket PC, GP32, GP2X/GP2X Wiz, iPhone, iPad, Palm Pre/Pixi, HP WebOS devices (HP TouchPad, Pre2/3, Veer), Open Pandora, Palm Pre 2/Tablet, Android |
| Type | Compiler |
| License | 2D Free version for Windows, Mac and Linux (can also be used to compile time-limited versions for other supported platforms), Commercial version, Free School Version |
| Website | www |
GLBasic is a commercialBASICprogramming language that can compile to various platforms includingWindows,Linux,Mac OS X, and somehandheld devices. The language is designed to be simple and intuitive.
GLBasic started as aninterpreted language with2D commands (GL stands for Graphics Language). It now uses theGCCcompiler for many different platforms to achieve fast,native code results. The GLBasic precompiler "GPC" converts the simple BASIC language intoC++ code and compiles it later. Thus, the user can extend GLBasic using the INLINE command to mixC/C++ code directly with GLBasic source code. Due to this, GLBasic can easily access third-party dynamic libraries on all platforms.The GLBasicSDK comes with anIDE,debugger, and a graphics engine built onOpenGL (orOpenGL ES) for the platformsWindows,Linux,Mac OS X,iOS, andWebOS. For handheld devices (Windows Mobile,GP2X, andGP2X Wiz), GLBasic uses its own close-to-hardware routines for fast graphics.
To compile for theiPhone oriPad, you will need aniMac (on which to compile the generated code - to comply with Apple's requirements) and the latest version ofXcode, which is a free download from the Apple website.
To be able to actually run the program on an iPhone or iPad (GLBasic programs will not work on the emulator), you need to be a member of the iPhoneApple Developer Connection.
Since the release of the 8.054 beta, it became possible to compile for theOpen Pandora machine as well. However, with the lack of Windows programming tools half of the compiling process is performed on Windows, and the other half on the actual machine. Since version 10, the IDE directly builds packages on Windows for the Pandora.
Version 8.230 and above can compile for the Web-OS devices like thePalm Pre without additional hardware or developer program membership requirements. Support for theHP TouchPad was added in September 2011 via a web-update.
Version 10.057 added support to build application packages running onAndroid devices.
GLBasic comes with numerous examples.
Apps created with GLBasic can be uploaded to the AppleApp Store,Google Play, and HP'sApp Catalog; all of which require a developer account. Costs to the developer and pre-publication review level depend on the publisher used.
ForApple iOS theiOS Developer Program costs US$99 per year. All apps published on the app store are required to undergo a two-week, review-and-approval process prior to publication.
ForAndroid there is a one-time fee of US$25. Apps published viaGoogle Play Store are not subject to an approval process and are immediately available to the public.
Publishing via HP's App Catalog requires a free account. Apps placed for sale through HP's App Catalog undergo a five-day review process before publication.
A wrapper for theIntel AppUp Centre SDK is also available for GLBasic.
GLBasic has the following features:
GLBasic comes with the source code to DDgui, an easy-to-use GUI system, allowing all supported platforms to have the same look and feel across all platforms.
For Windows, Linux and Mac GLBasic has ported aTcl/Tk wrapper that offers a native OS look.
GLBasic has gone through the following revisions:
Hello World
// this is a comment// Print "Hello World" to the screen position 0,0 (top, left)PRINT "Hello World", 0,0// swap backbuffer and visible screen, prepare backbuffer for next renderingSHOWSCREEN// wait for a key to be pressedKEYWAIT
With Version 8, GLBasic added basic object-oriented commands to the TYPE command. This allows structures to access itself (using the 'self' command) and to have functions within TYPEs
TYPE Tvec x;y;z FUNCTION null: self.x = 0; self.y=0; ENDFUNCTION
FUNCTION add: v AS Tvec INC self.x, v.x INC self.y, v.y INC self.z, v.z END FUNCTION END TYPE
LOCAL vec AS Tvec, vec2 AS Tvec
vec.null() vec.x=50 vec2.x = 100 vec.add(vec2)
Version 8 can encrypt and decrypt strings using 128-bitBlowfish.
Due to the author having problems with ARM64 iOS compilers, various other problems, and insufficient time to update the software, the source code (and the forum post about it) was made to those forum members who had a post count of at least 100. The download weighs in at around 2.5 GB compressed.
