Your hardcore Giada loop machine forum.

Hello Developers, Programmers, and Hackers,

Are any of you using a Windows Based IDE to work on Giada? If so, can you recommend, or alternately caution me to avoid, using it? Most of the coding I've done so far has been Python in Pycharm and Java in Eclipse. I did a little Bit of C++ in Visual Studio over a decade ago, should I go back to using that?

Alternately, should I take the dive and figure out how to get Linux/Ubuntu Studio running on my laptop? I have zero experience with that operating system, but everyone I know that programs for a living says it's easy to figure out and they love it. I'm skeptical and worried about bricking my laptop.

Hi!

Recently I have set up my Giada programming environment from scratch (also trying to help and stuff).

About a year ago, I used Eclipse on Ubuntu Studio. It was hard enough to install it for any reason, but then worked nicely. IT even was aware of the code, and responded to commands like "show declaration / definition" or whatever.

This time I grew tired of wrestling with java-based gizmo that Eclipse really is and after trying some editors, eventually got bored and ended up using CodeLite from now on. It is not as feature-rich though, but I have learned internal mechanics of Giada well enough to not need any babysitting from Eclipse anymore.

If you use Windows, I heard many good opinions about Visual Studio Code. Not only it is free, apparently based on some open source code, but also I assume that it must have a decent integration with GitHub - after all, both products belong to Microsoft.

Your friends are certainly right that Linux is easy to use - far easier than it used to, if you happen to be one of those who tried Linux 15 years ago and only got disgusted.
However I don't think this is the right time for you to switch OS. Linux is still different than Windows (that's why we love it!) and needs some learning from the user perspective before you even consider coding in it.
There are things Linux-oriented that you will even find in Giada code - The idea of having three major sound systems to choose from might be hard to grasp to Windows user, for example, and probably a puzzling setting in config window of Giada.
Nevertheless, if you're curious, you can always download Ubuntu Studio, flash a pendrive or burn DVD with it and run it without installation. See if you like it or not, play around. This way, however, none of your data will be saved anywhere, so every time you boot, it's a fresh Ubuntu for you.
If you like it (and confirmed that wifi, bluetooth, touchpad, video acceleration and camera work), you can install Ubuntu Studio next to your Windows installation. This can be done with dual-boot option presented during installation (You'll be able to choose OS when computer boots up). It's a safe option for users that are not committed to Linux just yet. I have done this favour to many friends and guess how many ended up using Linux only...
(Just make sure to back up important stuff before installing, otherwise you're good to go on your own. I've never seen anything going wrong, but that's what the installer software suggests)
Finally, don't worry about bricking laptop at any point - no OS installer modifies BIOS in x64 laptop. Bricking is more to be expected from devices that force you to use a preinstalled OS, like smartphones etc.

Oh, and don't forget - make friends with GitHub, fork Giada repository to your account and work from there.

Hope to see some commits soon!

Just a side note - when working with Giada code, I use CodeLite, but I operate git manually via linux terminal. This is why I urge you to try Visual Studio Code - if this is what I think it is, you'll get no trouble from working with git.
Git is pretty much mandatory if you plan to submit any code (make pull request).

Thank you for the advice!

I'll probably install Visual Studio this week to at least get started testing out code. w/r/t git, I end up having to relearn how to use it every few years. Fingers crossed I don't get trapped in VIM this time.

When I have some more time on my hands, I am interested in trying to install ubuntu studio on a flash drive. I always assumed getting an alternate OS working on my system would be way more complicated than that. If it really is that easy, than I have no reason NOT to test pilot Linux.

Glad I could help, but don't forget to report back whether my recommendations were any good

Yes, installing Linux is a breeze these days, no more terminal witchcraft. However it's good to have a techy friend in touch, just in case something isn't clear or something went wrong.
Most notably, many notebooks come with Windows partition encrypted, and this needs to be disabled before a Linux installer is able to shrink it and make room for Linux.
Also, sometimes SecureBoot needs to be disabled in BIOS setup to even run Linux from flash drive. It was meant to be an anti-virus feature, but for whatever reason it runs Windows only..
Finally, I am a self-taught Linux user, because googling anything related to Ubuntu almost always give positive results.

Drop me a PM if you have any more questions regarding Linux in the future.