Application Starter Stack for Livecode

AppStarterStack

for Livecode

Have questions? See if we've answered it.

To use the AppStarterStack you must have basic knowledge of Livecode.

It was built to give you more power and ability than the Livecode and an empty stack can give you.  

No one should expect to use the stack without first reading the documentation,  watching the available tutorials, and studying its main architectural features.

It is important to include a few hours just for the study of the stack.  It will help you in the long run.  Learning it and seeing how it works under the hood will make you a powerful and proficient developer.   With a little patience and dedication, you can learn this stack and build your application faster and better as a result.

This AppStarter Stack is for business owners and developers who are working to build professional software for any of the 5 platforms, using Livecode version 9 / 10.

  • For the business owner, it saves you time to market and development cost
  • For the developer it saves time and makes the work focused on the features of the specific software you are building.

The use of this product requires a competent Livecode developer who is able to learn a few concepts and follow instructions exactly to learn how to do various tasks.

Your license can include time with your developer to on-board and jump-start your project.

Livecode is an amazing platform for the interactive creation of multi-platform software;

BUT, there is still lots to do to make a working, production ready application for multiple devices and operating systems.

The AppStarterStack includes many of the features that ANY application needs.  You no longer need to program and engineer these commands and functions, you just use them.

As fun as it is, it takes a lot of time and effort to write correct code to make fast, flexible and non blocking applications. You no longer have to do it, if you use the AppStarterStack for Livecode.

Yes, all of the controls of the stack are open to change and customization. You can totally make your project look on-brand and on-style. *

  • You control almost every aspect of how your stack looks, its colors and esthetics*
  • use #HEX colors or the "Material Design" palette (example: green,400).

*Except for controls coming from your OS.  Menus, sliders, toggles, they are themed to the default of your operating system.  

When you purchase a license for the AppStarterStack you will receive:

  1. The AppStarterStack Demo .livecode file (which builds to all platforms)
  2. Access to growing library of videos and tutorials.
  3. Documentation .PDF
  4. Access to private github where the script exports of the AppStarterStack will live. (This is the repository where we will add features, handlers  and bug fixes to the code.)  Each pull request will be well documented so that you are clear what has changed.
  5. Coming Soon "AppStarterStack Developer  Plugin". This developer tool palette was previously included in the AppStarterStack, but we decided to separate it out, and create a Livecode IDE plugin which we can update and improve without affecting your codebase file in any way.

We support Open-Source software innovation.  We are really proud of the AppStarterStack and its features, but it is hardly anything we need to keep secret or closed.

However, there is currently no strategic advantage to open-sourcing it.  It is not really for general consumption.  In the future, this position may change.

We built it, so that we could complete the software projects that represent our aspirations as cosmic travelers, fellow humans and entrepreneurs.

We are offering it to help others who have specific software they are trying to build without taking too long and ending up with a production-ready MVP in lets say .... a few months, not years.

For the foreseeable future we will create 2 tracks of the AppstarterStack, one for each of the 2 current Livecode versions. We plan on maintaining only 2 versions at any given time.

  • AppStarterStack 1.0 for Livecode 9
  • AppStarterStack 1.0 for Livecode 10

Because Livecode is the best all-around multi-platform application development engine in the world.

Its not well known, or fancy, and it has its issues and warts (the aging IDE), but under the hood the engine is very capable, powerful and fast.

There is nothing you cannot build in Livecode in a very reasonable amount of time, now even faster with the AppStarterStack

And for that reason it is the platform of choice for our projects now and in the future.

We ❤ Livecode and wish to see it prosper and grow and be used everywhere to build beautiful and useful applications on all platforms.

 


proudly built with Livecode

We are committed to maintaining the AppStarterStack for at least this decade, 2020s and beyond.

As a software company, we are really just getting started 🙂  We will be using the AppStarterStack and Livecode to build many products in the coming years. Some will be small, some big, and maybe some will be with you.

Should anything happen to cause us to be unable to update the AppStarterStack, it won't really matter.

There is no encrypted code, there is no super complex code, you can fix anything you need to fix in the codebase should something stop working or should anything be incorrect.

We, of course, are there to help based on the license we negotiate together.

Using the stack as your starting point does not inhibit your ability to use the Livecode Engine entirely correctly to create bug free software. 

The current AppStarterStack is made up of 10,000 lines of documented and  human readable code.

The AppStarterStack does not place any limit on how you are able to use the Livecode Engine.  All the power is still in your hands to build the application you need.

As a licensee, you are free to build a product to sell to others.  Or you can use it to make an in-house application to help with a problem somewhere.

We always hope that the AppStarterStack is used to make life better, safer and more abundant for everyone.

If you are found to use the AppStarterStack for evil, to run scams, or in any way to knowingly harm another being or to break reasonable laws where you live. 
Only then do we reserve the right to terminate your license.

The AppStarterStack is an all code solution.  We do not avoid code in any way.  In fact , with the AppStarterStack we are avoiding the Livecode IDE, but harnessing the power of its incredible engine using LC script.

You can very definitely build a simple app with the AppStarterStack or an advanced complex one as well.

It is not a great choice for building apps if you want a "drag and drop" non technical experience.

For a simpler less technical experience a tool such as Appli is perfect. (I am part of the Appli team. :D)

Yes, direct support for you and your project is available.

Your license will include an onboarding session where I help you to get started shaping your project using the AppStarterStack.

Your license can also include support hours from us where we can help you put together certain parts of your application.

We can definitely support you on your journey towards the completion of your software project.

  • If you are searching for a developer to do the job entirely, that is also a possibility.
  • We can also help you find a competent Livecode developer to help you complete your project.

In either case, please contact us.

  • I can focus on the user experience and functionality of my application, instead of working on 'under the hood' functions which support my application.
  • My application is ALWAYS in a state where it can be built into a standalone for the purpose of demoing, testing.  On all main platforms.
  • I am almost always making forward progress in the usability of my application, making it a process of greater flow of inspiration.
  • It is easy to pick up where you left off, because there are so many fewer things you have to think about.
  • A lot of the hard stuff is already done, each and every time I start any new Livecode application.
  • Each project can look unique and distinct from the others.

The vision for the community is simple.  We can be a group of developers building software using the same tools and starting point.

  • We respectfully help each other navigate our challenges
  • We can report problems we encounter with using the stack
  • and we can request features we'd like to see.
  • We can also post useful changes we've made to our stacks

I, Tom, will be one of these community developers.  It is the very reason I built it; To use it to build software products, which is exactly what I will be doing for years to come.

Ultimately I hope the community can help itself to overcome challenges faster and benefit from the experience of others, and to complete our respective software projects on time and on budget.

The AppStarterStack contains no security related features, except for simple hashing and encryption functions.  But this does not mean it is insecure in some way.


It is your responsibility to ensure the security of your code / any API keys.  Live code has code encryption features that can be used to increase the security of your code.

For code that must be kept as secure as possible, we recommend having an encrypted stack from which you can ask for data using a function.  ie. GetSecret("API  Key")

To learn to use the AppStarterStack you need "some" knowledge of the basics of how Livecode works.

Nothing is impossible, but if you have never used Livecode before, it will be difficult to derive the benefits of using it.


Key Concepts you must understand before working with the AppStarterStack

  • The Message Path
  • Variables and Custom Properties
  • Scripts & Behavior Scripts
  • Understand the practical difference between a function and a command
  • Self-Calling Loops
  • Front Scripts / Back Scripts, Library Scripts
  • Livecode Controls  & Custom controls
  • Shared groups
  • Difference between Send, Send In Time, Dispatch.
  • Meaning of "Wait With Messages"
  • Understand the concept of  Concurrency

But that is it.

Once these concepts are understood to you, the AppStarterStack's architecture can be completely understood

Thats a great question.

You can create a branch of the main repository to share any changes / improvements you have made to the AppStarterStack's codebase.

First, have a plan, go in knowing what you want to build and what it consists of.

Second, do the work of creating your different interfaces.

Interfaces are made out of different arrangements of groups of controls.

Third, write the code that represents the logic of your application and its different functions.

Put each tool (section,card)'s code into the script of the card.

Put shared code into stack "Code Library"

Yes you can change the variable and stack namespace of the codebase, but it is not as simple as a search/replace.   Let us figure out the procedure of how to do this safely. Stay tuned.

Yes it is.  Through your license we shared the rights to use and to alter the AppStarterStack to build software products; To sell and to distribute (standalone builds) to an unlimited number of users until the end of time.

The AppStarterStack is a only starting point for the software you will build using your ideas and your genius.  The AppStarterStack is there to support the functions of your application. 

Your IP is everything you add or change in the stack to create your final application.

We are confident that the freedom your license provides is sufficient for you to bring your application into reality and into the hands of your users.

We wish you all the best on your journey as you build your software project. 

Standalones do not check or validate your AppStarterStack license and never will.

You are asked to place your AppStarterStack license key inside the codebase of the application(s) built with it. 

The AppStarterStack plugin will have a license validation function.   If this validation fails, nothing happens.  It is there for customer support and authentication of our customers.

Hello Visitor, welcome to the AppStarterStack website. This site is still under development, so please excuse any styling errors or still missing content.