I think the .NET Framework is a good choice for blind programmers -- though not the only good choice. It has a comprehensive, consistent, and generally well-documented class library that is free to use in any project. Depending on personal preferences for syntax, one can write in C#, Visual Basic, or other languages. Programs may be built with either integrated development environments or text editors and command-line compilers.
One potential obstacle is that clients may not have the version of the .NET Framework already installed that an application needs. I found a good solution for this problem with Version 2.0 of the .NET Framework, using the Microsoft Component Installer. However, I could not find a satisfactory, sufficiently automated solution for later versions of the Framework.
GotNET is a program I have developed in attempt to address this need. I hope folks on this list can give me feedback on the latest beta, which is available at
http://EmpowermentZone.com/netsetup.exe or for a manual install, http://EmpowermentZone.com/netsetup.zipBelow is the current documentation to help you decide whether to try GotNET.
Jamal GotNET Beta 0.8 May 26, 2010 Copyright 2010 by Jamal Mazrui GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL)The Microsoft .NET Framework is a software platform for applications written in various languages. Numerous developer tools assist programmers in building applications that run on this platform. GotNET.exe is a free, open source utility that can check whether the most common versions of the .NET Framework are installed, and install one or more of them if not found. The latest version of GotNET is available at
http://EmpowermentZone.com/netsetup.exeIts source code is in the file GotNET.bas, written in the PowerBASIC programming language from
http://PowerBASIC.comOther executables in the distribution are Microsoft installers for particular .NET Framework versions, which retrieve necessary files from the Microsoft.com web site: PSetup.exe for version 2.0, dotNetFx35setup.exe for version 3.5, and dotNetFx40_Full_setup.exe for version 4.
The command-line syntax of GotNET is GotNET.exe FrameworkVersion InstallerExecutable AdditionalParameterThe batch files GotV2.0.bat, GotV3.5.bat, and Gotv4.Bat illustrate use of these parameters. Each batch file checks whether a particular Framework version is installed. If that version is found, a confirmation message is printed to the console. Otherwise, the appropriate installer executable is launched. If no parameters are passed to GotNET.exe, a message box shows what .NET Framework versions are currently installed according to the Windows registry. To save this information, you can press Control+C to copy it to the Windows clipboard, and then paste it elsewhere.
The file netsetup.iss is a script file that was used to build the GotNET installation program, netsetup.exe, using the free Inno Setup software, available at
http://InnoSetup.orgInstallation programs may be build for .NET-based applications that borrow syntax from that script file, thereby ensuring that .NET prerequisites for an application are installed.
__________View the list's information and change your settings at //www.freelists.org/list/programmingblind
