Re: Bypassing Interface Builder

FROM : Graham Cox
DATE : Thu May 15 01:41:12 2008

One thing to point out here (as the author of DrawKit) is that DrawKit 
doesn't use INTERFACE builder to any great extent because it is 95% 
data model. In the model-view-controller architecture, Interface 
Builder is useful mostly for V, and to some extent for C and very 
little for M. So trying to use IB for something it isn't useful for is 
a sure route to frustration and misunderstanding.

Also, DrawKit *can* use IB, where it makes sense to do so. For 
example, you can set up a custom view in IB to be a DKDrawingView 
instance and ... umm, you're done. That is enough to create a fully 
functioning layered vector drawing editor in its entirety. For a real 
app you'd probably want to have more control and build some or all of 
the "back end" yourself, but the above is a good start as it will show 
that things are working, and puts the various objects together in the 
correct relationships. In this sense it's conceptually similar to 
NSTextView - you can set up an NSTextView in IB and it will build a 
complete text editor for you, but for more control you need to put 
together NSLayoutManager, NSTextContainer and so forth yourself.

hth,

G.

On 15 May 2008, at 12:36 am, colo wrote:

> My goal is to make a drawing app from the Drawkit framework but for
> the life of me I just can't get past the use IB but Drawkit does not
> use IB but the books do and swear that I should fiasco! Ah ha ha ha ha
> h haha h  hah aa haa