On Thursday, 25 January 2018 at 15:20:15 UTC, Benny wrote:
After months doing a different project, i need a programming
language for a new client with specific needs. D comes to mind.
As usual that involves downloading the compiler (dmd and ldc).
So, lets install Visual Studio Code:
* Code-D Plugin:
- Syntax highlight *check*
- After saving: DMD error suggestions in the code. *check*
- Limited name suggestion ( VSC functionality not the plugin
) only by forcing VSC (ctrl+space).
- ... and nothing else...
So lets try the next plugin:
* Serve-D Plugin:
- Syntax highlight *check*
- After saving: DMD error suggestions in the code. *check*
- Limited name suggestion ( VSC functionality not the plugin
) only by forcing VSC (ctrl+space).
- ... and nothing else...
Frustration level increasing. Lets try the next one:
* D-Language Plugin:
- Syntax highlight *check*
- Limited name suggestion ( VSC functionality not the plugin
) only by forcing VSC (ctrl+space).
- ... and nothing else...
Ok ... so Visual Studio Code its Dscanner, DCD, Workspace-d do
not properly work or some other issue.
Then lets try IntelliJ Community Edition. After a long time
getting all the dependancies and compiling them... Dscanner -
DCD ( client and server ) - Dfix ...
* D Language Plugin:
- Syntax highlight *check*
- Way too many items like writefln, import etc all being
marked as unknown. Clearly wrong.
- ... and nothing else...
- Socket error (std.socket.xxx) on closing IntelliJ
Conclusion is that it feels like the whole D infrastructure is
very, very poorly supported.
Other issues like delays that some of the D plugins seem to
introduce:
* Like "loading ..." popups that do nothing but always show up
( Visual Studio Code )
* Like pressing "dot" expecting a response, waiting 2 seconds
and then finally something happening ( IntelliJ plugin ) but
simply dumping every possible name and variable ( zero
intelligent code support )
I assume that this is again broken DCD or Dscanner.
And no, no errors in the console of VSC or anything like that.
Let me summarize my personal D editor experience in the last 1+
year.
* Attempts at getting D editor support going: 6 or 7.
* Amount of times things worked out of the box. One! And this
was limited to about a few minutes and after that all
suggestions broke again.
* Amount of times dscanner or dcd or other plugins broke
because of DMD newest version broke: 4
* Tested on different machines: 4! They all have one thing in
common: Windows 10
* Tested on different Windows installations: 3
* Tested on different "version" of Windows 10: 3
* Amount of times complaining to the plugin authors: Too many
to count.
* Time spend on these tests / issues: Easily 50 hours or more.
* Frustration level: Again, like each time before EXTREME!
Please do not give me the company line that i need to report
issues. I did so many times. It is tiring playing guinea pig,
complaining and reporting, waiting for things to get fixed and
still seeing things break again or simply not working properly.
I can download Go, C#, C, C++, Delphi, Rust and get proper
working plugins for the above mentioned editors but D is always
that frustrating problem child. And i can not blame the plugin
authors because the issues always seem to stem from the D
plugins ( dcd, dscanner, ... ).
Like dscanner changing its binary location between builds from
folder root to /bin folder, breaking the plugin authors there
system as it expected it in the folder root.
Maybe things work great in a few very specific editor but in my
personal experience, D its editor support is non stop
frustrating. And i suspect that this complaint is not new.
Clearly there is infrastructure in place for automated testing
the compiler but it feels like there is a total lack of
infrastructure for everything that surround it. Beyond maybe a
few editors that the core team uses?
My personal opinion: Too much in the D landscape is so
individualist and not properly cross platform tested, that it
results in pure frustration for the end developer.
You know you're not the first coming with this topic. I've
developped a theory. You guys are looking for excuses to not get
into D. If IDE were okay you would find something else.
Did you know for example that with a decent D IDE you can press
"F1" and get directly the html help:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ncf6n4yniI&list=PLzk8A0LUvEOV-OMdz09jfOahwnKoA2na_&index=1
?
