PAGE - Python Automatic GUI Generator - Version 2.2b
Systems Supported
Recent Changes
Changes in version 2.2b
Changes in version 2.2a
The biggest changes going to version 2.2
Installation
Documentation
Download
Other projects to visit
Some things I wish that I had found.
Author
Systems Supported
Currently PAGE and the resulting GUI windows run on
- Linux
- Solaris 2.6 or later
- Win32
It is important to know that a version of PAGE will require
particular versions of Python, Tcl/Tk, and Tix. You really better
stick to the recommended versions. PAGE - 2.2 is meant to work
with Python - 2.2. The name is NOT meant to suggest that PAGE
is up to the same level of development or sophistication that
characterizes Python. It is only menat clarify the relationship
of the versions involved. For fixes or enhancements I will
add alphabetic extensions to the PAGE version designation.
The first enhancement to the version that runs with Python 2.2 is
page-2.2a.
Software versions utilized are:
- Python 2.2
- Tcl/Tk 8.3.2 or later.
- Tix 8.1.3
Tk Widgets supported:
- TopLevel
- Menubutton
- Checkbutton
- Radiobutton
- Listbox
- Text
- Frame
- Scale
- Button
- Entry
- Label
Tix Widgets supported:
- TixLabelFrame
- TixScrolledListBox
- TixScrolledText
- TixOptionMenu
- TixLabelEntry
- TixComboBox
- TixTree
- TixNoteBook
- TixMeter
- TixBalloon
Other features:
- Menu Editor.
- Attribute Editor.
- GUI for Event binding.
- The ability to debug the Python code in Python and return
to PAGE to modify the GUI.
Recent Changes
Changes in version 2.2b
- Changed the Python Console to use tixPanedWindow.
- Changed the file processing to be more successful with moving the
tcl versions between environments.
- If PAGE is invoked with a parameter, the parameter is interpreted
as a file name. If that file does not exist, then PAGE exits with a
message.
- Change exit dialog to have default button behavior.
- Corrected small error in p2t.
Changes in version 2.2a
- Reinstated some code in page.tcl starting at line 241. This code
had been comment out when I was using TkoptionDB. When I decided to
utilize WmDefaults instead of TkoptionDB, I neglected to reinstate
this code.
- The example GUI, classgui.py, has been changed to illustrate and
recommend the placement of global imports in the init function. This
is necessary if you want a more nearly painless ability to use PAGE to
fix up a GUI generated by PAGE.
- Added some additional information to the user's guide including a
very short usage summary.
- Change Python console to display standard error as well as
standard output. This means that you will see error messages if you
select the run button.
The biggest changes going to version 2.2
- Making use of the fact that Python 2.2 has substantially improved
the support of Tix and PyTix which dramatically simplifies the
installation of PAGE which now uses only the standard stuff from
Python 2.2.
- Utilizing the new WmDefaults package in Tix which provides
reasonable portability of the generated GUI among several environments
such as KDE on Linux and Win32. If you stick to the default fonts and
colors, things will look good when trying to display the same GUI
between different environments, see example 2 below. I now recommend
forgetting about the TkoptionsDB.
- Win32 installation got a lot better. I even provide an installer
for Tix on Windows.
- Cleaned up a troublesome bug having to do with indentation of
class methods with the GUI and found a couple of other small things.
- A real live running example is included. It is the MP3 player for
Linux that I am running as I am writing this.
- The user guide has been a bit expanded. It now exceeds 10,000
words.
The really important changes that I tout above were made people other
than myself. Many thanks.
Installation
Installation is got much easier with Python 2.2. The main
improvements were (1) Python now supports tix with all the widgets
that I like to use so that it is no longer necessary to modify any of
the Python installation under Linux and (2) Tix was improved to
include the WnDefaults package which makes it no longer desirable mess
around with TkoptionsDB and one still gets GUI's that look good within
several different environments.
Installation remains something of a fiddle because one must have
Tcl/Tk, Tix, and Python. Python - 2.2 includes Tcl/Tk libraries
necessary for tkinter, but that support is not enough for running full
tcl scripts which is what PAGE is. Therefore, you need to install the
full blown Tcl/Tk. Please use the versions Python and Tix that I have
used. You can probably get by with Tcl/Tk 8.0 or
later. ActiveState.com provides a convenient version of Tcl/Tk 8.3.4.
I have chosen to use the latest versions of all three components. That
will mean that you must:
- Install Python 2.2
- Install Tcl/Tk 8.3.4.
- Install Tix 8.1.3.
- Install PAGE.
It is important to use the recommended versions of Python, Tcl/Tk, and
Tix.
Installing PAGE is just a matter expanding the tgz file in Linux and
making sure that the correct paths are set in the pg script.
Before installing page-2.2.exe on Widows be sure to read Windows Installation.
Documentation
Users Guide
A fairly comprehensive example
including the generated Python code.
For use with 2.2, I am recommending that one use the default colors
and fonts so that a GUI generated by PAGE will look reasonable good in
a number of different environments. To go along with this I have
included a second example which is really
the previous example but restricted to defaults colors and fonts. The
screen shot was made in Linux but the GUI looks fine under Windows
98. The size of the second example web page is about 300KB since it
contains several screen shots.
Download
To download Page, go to the
Summary Page from
which you can download the most recent version. There is all
manner of interesting information there and it is still easy to
find the download stuff.
Other projects to visit
If you would like to see a project from the lunatic fringe, see
SnoPy.
Some things I wish that I had found.
This will be a growing list of some tricks
which I had to figure out with a minimum help from documentation.
Author
I am Don Rozenberg. I encourage
you to contact me with any problems, comments or suggestions.
Here is my resume.
Keep those cards and letters coming.
"Seeking
rationality in a Java-centric world"