SimpleIDE - Developer Setup Guide

Prerequisites

1. Linux Environment (Primary)

MX Linux (primary development platform)
Other Debian-based distributions: Ubuntu, Debian, Linux Mint
Desktop Environment: XFCE (MX Linux default), GNOME, KDE with GTK# support

2. Windows Environment (Verified Working)

Windows 10/11 - Tested and working without code modifications
Same codebase as Linux version
Automatic path handling works cross-platform

3. .NET 8.0 SDK

MX Linux Installation:

Method 1: Official Microsoft install script wget https://dot.net/v1/dotnet-install.sh -O dotnet-install.sh chmod +x dotnet-install.sh ./dotnet-install.sh --channel 8.0

Method 2: Package manager (if available in MX repos) sudo apt update sudo apt install dotnet-sdk-8.0

Add to PATH (add to ~/.bashrc) export DOTNET_ROOT=$HOME/.dotnet export PATH=$PATH:$HOME/.dotnet:$HOME/.dotnet/tools

Windows Installation:

Download from Microsoft .NET Downloads page Run installer with ".NET 8.0 Runtime" and ".NET 8.0 SDK" selected

4. GTK# 3.0 Development Libraries

MX Linux (Debian-based):

sudo apt update sudo apt install gtk-sharp3 libgtk-3-dev libgirepository1.0-dev

Windows:

Automatically handled via NuGet during build No manual installation required

5. Additional MX Linux Dependencies

Ensure all build essentials are available sudo apt install build-essential sudo apt install pkg-config

For additional VB.NET tooling (optional) sudo apt install mono-devel mono-vbnc

Project Setup

1. Clone Repository

git clone https://github.com/jamesplotts/simpleide.git cd simpleide

2. Verify Project Structure

simpleide/ ├── SimpleIDE.sln # Main solution file ├── SimpleIDE.vbproj # Main project file ├── MainWindow.vb # Primary application window ├── Editors/ # Text editor components ├── Models/ # Data models ├── Utilities/ # Helper classes ├── Widgets/ # UI components └── Resources/ # Embedded resources

3. Restore Dependencies

dotnet restore SimpleIDE.sln

4. Build Project

Debug build dotnet build SimpleIDE.sln --configuration Debug

Release build
dotnet build SimpleIDE.sln --configuration Release

Clean rebuild (if needed) dotnet clean SimpleIDE.sln dotnet build SimpleIDE.sln --configuration Debug

5. Run Application

Development run dotnet run --project SimpleIDE.vbproj

Or run built executable ./bin/Debug/net8.0/SimpleIDE

Development Environment

Recommended IDEs/Editors for MX Linux

1. Visual Studio Code

Install via MX Package Installer or: sudo apt install code

Recommended Extensions:

VB.NET Language Support
.NET Extension Pack
GitLens

2. MonoDevelop (Optional)

sudo apt install monodevelop

3. Vim/Neovim with VB.NET plugins

Suitable for lightweight editing alongside main IDE

MX Linux Specific Tips

XFCE Integration

GTK# applications integrate naturally with XFCE desktop Font rendering optimized for XFCE's GTK3 environment Window management works seamlessly with XFCE compositor

Performance on MX Linux

Excellent performance on Debian-stable base Minimal resource usage compared to heavier IDEs Fast build times with .NET 8.0 Native AOT potential

Cross-Platform Development

Verified Compatibility

MX Linux: Primary development platform, fully supported Windows 10/11: Tested and working without modification Other Linux: Should work on any .NET 8.0 + GTK# supported distribution

Platform-Agnostic Code Patterns

Your codebase demonstrates excellent cross-platform design: Path handling: System.IO.Path methods work on all platforms Line endings: Environment.NewLine provides correct platform-specific endings GTK# portability: Same UI framework across platforms File system: .NET abstractions handle platform differences

Build System Integration

Project File Structure

Uses modern SDK-style project format with GTK# support.

Build Commands

Development build with debugging dotnet build --configuration Debug

Production build dotnet build --configuration Release

Build with specific runtime (experimental) dotnet build --runtime linux-x64

Common Issues and Solutions

MX Linux Specific Issues

1. GTK# Not Found

Ensure GTK# runtime is installed sudo apt install gtk-sharp3 Verify installation ls /usr/lib/cli/gtk-sharp-3.0/

2. Missing Dependencies

Install all potential missing dependencies sudo apt install libgtk-3-0 libgirepository1.0-dev libwebkit2gtk-4.0-dev

3. Font Rendering Issues

Install Microsoft core fonts sudo apt install ttf-mscorefonts-installer

Or set fallback font in application settings

General Build Issues

1. NuGet Package Restoration

Clear NuGet cache dotnet nuget locals all --clear

Restore packages dotnet restore --force

2. File Permission Issues

Ensure execute permissions on scripts chmod +x *.sh

Check build output permissions ls -la bin/Debug/net8.0/

Testing on MX Linux

Basic Functionality Tests

Editor: Open and edit VB.NET files with syntax highlighting
Build System: Compile sample VB.NET projects
Project Explorer: Navigate project structure
Settings: Persistence across application restarts

XFCE Integration Tests

Window management (minimize, maximize, close) Menu bar integration File dialog native integration Theme consistency with XFCE appearance settings

Performance Optimization for MX Linux

Build Optimization

Parallel build dotnet build --maxCpuCount

Incremental build (development) dotnet build --no-incremental false

Runtime Optimization

Use Release configuration for performance testing Monitor memory usage with system monitor Profile with dotnet-counters for performance analysis

Contributing from MX Linux

Development Workflow

Code in preferred editor (VS Code recommended)
Build and test locally
Run comprehensive functionality tests
Submit pull requests with detailed MX Linux testing notes

MX Linux Specific Testing

Verify XFCE desktop integration Test with multiple XFCE themes Confirm proper font rendering Validate system resource usage

Additional Resources

FilesExpand file tree

DEVELOPER_SETUP.md

Latest commit

History