Appeal for API/SDK Support in Chief

[gteacher]

Appeal for API/SDK Support in Chief

There have been numerous references here in support of the idea of having an API/SDK in Chief (mostly in the Suggestions and ChatRoom threads). Chief has been mostly silent on this topic with only vague promises of some future consideration. At this point, it doesn’t look like (to me) that Chief intends to do anything significant on this issue in the near future. I don’t expect any significant expansion of RUBY’s capabilities in this year’s release of X6 or any near movement to begin the groundwork for an API.

The reasoning appears to be, understandably, the lack of interest on the part of the average (novice) user. Their logic is simple: This site has approx. 20K users and when this topic is addressed they only receive a few responses in agreement on this theme. These limited responses get “lost” among the several thousand suggestions they now have in their suggestions database.

It is unfortunate that an API/SDK has been tied to the Ruby script language here. It only serves to confuse and give the impression to the casual user that an API/SDK would turn Chief in to a programmer’s tool. NOT TRUE.

An expansion of Ruby to implement such a feature(s), properly implemented, would be no more difficult to use, for the novice, than any other Chief tool and certainly NOT require any significant programming abilities. At present there are some serious limitations in Chief’s implementation of Ruby which prevents its use in this direction. This is not a resource or finance issue but a business decision about the interests of its users.

This is a “chicken or egg” issue. Most people are not aware of the capabilities possible unless they see some significant demonstration of use. Significant use is not possible without enhancement of the present tools now available. Therefore: interest remains in a never land.

I don’t believe that work in this area would take away resources for the other pet projects voiced here. A logical first step may be only for Chief to join one of the independent, non-profit, development support groups sustaining Ruby. A upgraded Ruby engine and interface would only provide a path to more easily clear up some of the limitations in Chief regarding a API/SDK and BIM’s, material lists, schedules, labels, Web exchange, etc. and a myriad of other tools in Chief that are a “great idea” but now too limited for practical usage.

If you agree that Chief should address some of the present limitations with the Ruby script engine, Chief needs to hear from you ELSE nothing more will be done in this area in the immediate future (next several revs.). The present bottlenecks will remain and probably decline into obscurity.

Please send a brief e-mail regarding your support or not to:

support@chiefarchitect.com or suggestions@chiefarchitect.com

(One sentence is best). Otherwise this is pretty much a non-issue for the time being (years).

Note: I am somewhat reluctant to make this post as a lack of response would only reinforce Chief’s present impression that there is no noteworthy user interest in this area. If I have the wrong impression, I invite Chief’s management to comment.

If you are a novice user or expert and would like to see some of the anomalies in Chief cleared up through the expansion of the Ruby script engine and a possible API with true BIM capabilities, now’s your chance to influence the future direction of Chief.