I ran across what seems like an interesting project today: Syntax. The only problem is, I can’t tell exactly what it does without downloading it and using it. And I made a pact with myself not too long ago that forbids me from downloading and attempting to use code of questionable value or operation. In the past I’ve spent way too many hours downloading a huge chunk of code, installing it, and writing a quick application in it only to realize that I hated it or that it was horribly written.
Syntax is particularly confusing. They reference PhlexDB (wiki reference) and PxDB often in their wiki, which is odd. You see PhlexDB (whose website is now just blank, however it appears, based on the google cache, that it’s been taken over by a Porn Site) is a project I looked at long ago. I thought their code was interesting, just not mature enough to be used yet. Additionally, the lack of documentation made it hard to decipher. But it was something I intended to watch closely. I was also watching another project named Xulit!. Xulit! has language issues: their developers did not write in English well enough for me to comprehend everything they tried to discuss. However, the project looked interesting and I decided to keep a close eye on it. Then, Xulit! announced that they merged with PxSystem. Now, I can’t find a reference for this on the web anywhere, but I was almost certain that PHlexDB and PXSystem were either one and the same, or that they were together somehow. Xulit!’s site hasn’t been updated for a few months. But PXSystem’s site (if you can call it that) seems to have recent entries in the changelog.
So I’m not sure if Syntax == Xulit! == PXSystem == PhlexDB or not. All four projects had similar goals — hence my interest in all of them — so it surely makes sense that they might consider working together. The Xulit! site seems to have the most content while the Syntax site seems to speak better English than the others. None of the projects ever produced, as best as I can tell, a working, usable, documented, code-base.
I’m so confused. I don’t really care what came from where. If the code is worthy, usable, (at least) self-documented and free (as in speech and beer), I’ll use it. But I don’t really want to download their entire codebase and invest a few hours into learning how it works only to be disappointed that its the same unfinished product under a new name. Or, worse yet, another product that is unusable and undocumented. The Syntax Wiki seems to have lots of information in it. But none of it really makes sense without downloading the code. And, I can’t seem to find a "here is a complete working example of how to use this code" type example.
Who knows?