Native Development

[philkaye]

I want to get started on writing some native code.  The only device I currently have is a Playbook, so if i start writing Cascades apps I won't be able to try them out on a real device until the playbook is upgraded to BB10 (probably several months away?).

On the other hand, I don't want to waste a lot of time learning and writing difficult UI code under the old framework since BB10 is just around the corner.

My question - if I get started writing apps using the native SDK 2.0, will it be quite straight-forward to convert and re-build these apps under the BB10/Cascades SDK later on?  Or am i going to be wasting a lot of time learning and writing code that will be obsolete under the new framework?

[peter9477 · Accepted solution]

If these aren't games, but "business" apps or whatever, where you'd want system standard-looking buttons, text fields, and so on, then you can't do it with the NDK now at all...

If the app is UI-heavy, and you do intend to use Cascades, then your best bet is to work with the new BB10 beta simulator for now as it does support Cascades.

If the app isn't UI-heavy, but you'd like to keep it as close to how a Cascades app will work behind the UI, then you're talking Qt and can actually run Qt apps on the PlayBook even now. Just not with any parts of Cascades. If that's an option, use the NDK with Qt libraries.

Also consider attending a BB10 Jam day during the "world tour" http://www.blackberryjamworldtour.com and see if you can get a Dev Alpha on which to test.

By the way, "several months away" sounds optimistic... I think you can assume more like not before October at the earliest. If they decide to put any Cascades libraries into 2.1, however, or if there's a developer beta of BB10 on the PlayBook before the fall, then those would help you. They've given no hint yet (as far as I know) that they might do that.

[philkaye]

Ok thanks!  This answers my questions.  I'll stick with the simulator for now (once i get the sim working!)