My first Symbian application: the missing Chronometer/Timer

After not being that impressed with Qt on S60 3rd edition (the non-touch Nokia GUI) and the QtCreator on Linux, things went only uphill.

A new version of QtCreator enabled me to develop for Qt 4.7.1 / QtMobility 1.1  which includes the Feedback API and.. voila! there goes my missing timer app: ChronoTimer is created

But since Qt 4.7.1 and QtMobility aren’t shipped for my n85 and no smart installer can be built by the Remote Compiler, I have to put them here too for you to download them. So, without further introduction:

– Qt 4.7.1 installer (12MB)

– Qt Mobility 1.1 (2MB)

– ChronoTimer (12KB – Yup… static linking would have been nice…)

And now screenshots from the S^1 Simulator (it seems to be working on all Qt Simulator’s platforms):

Chronometer

Timer

QtCreator on Linux, and Qt for Symbian in general (updated)

I just installed the latest QtCreator with its simulator, and with the Remote Compiler option, was able to see an application actually running on my N85.

Qt not funny

And I have to say I was very unimpressed.

The thing is, this approach of emulating desktop widgets would enable – with some customisation – the creation of a rich user experience in the future (and with massive customisation).

You can teleport your database GUI you made in Qt on Symbian in a couple of minutes (after resizing the window to S60’s resolution).

But.. That’s not the point. I don’t need ‘Forms’ on my mobile.

I would have expected Qt Mobility to have a (new) set of controls that directly translate to what the S60 UI offers. But what I see in that screenshot it’s just canvas painting.. (excepting the menu).

In fact, I would go even further and say that, GUI-wise, this is worse than Web RunTime. HTML and CSS with some JavaScript would be much more customizable !

That doesn’t take away the fact that Qt C++ apps can crounch numbers faster – but aren’t we in the business of online-everything, even on the desktop?

Update1: QtQuick Components may solve this issue in the near future: http://labs.qt.nokia.com/2010/09/10/building-the-future-reintroducing-the-qt-quick-components/

Update2: Qt 4.7.0 is not actually available for n85. The smart installer I built with the Remote Compiler said ‘Device not supported’, although S60 3rd edition FP2 is listed there. Oh well, next time I’ll buy something mainstream..