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Gain Momentum now called RadBuilder

This is an obscure old SGI UNIX (IRIX I think they called their 'Nix) xTalk Implementation that Richard Bannister told me about.

I'd never heard of until he mentioned it, which I found strange because I'd been searching everywhere for info about all xTalk implementations I could find. Apparently it had an extensive vocabulary and came with a 200 page syntax dictionary! I'd love to check that out!

I did some more digging and found out this product, or a descendent of it, still exists to this very day as Longtion's RadBuilder http://www.longtion.com/radbuilder/radbuilder.html

Nice find. I hadn't heard of that before today!

I wonder if it can be compiled to work on Linux as I have
never even seen an IRIX machine?

richmond62 wrote: ↑Tue Sep 14, 2021 8:45 am I wonder if it can be complied to work on Linux as I have
never even seen an IRIX machine?

Silicon Graphic's Inc. (SGI) Workstations were high-end rigs used mostly for graphics work. We had a bunch of SGI Indigos, mostly for doing super-high-resolution photo editing, at a shop I used to work at. We used these like 50 pound "Shuttle" big metal box hard drives to "Sneaker-Net" (physically walk with our feet) these massive (at the time) files from one machine to another.

They were also used a lot for things like 3D rendering (think Pixar's first movies) back before desktop computers got powerful enough to put them out of business. IRIX was their BSD Unix derived OS (I beleive) Operating System
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SGI_Indigo

I was actually hired at that shop in part to help them move everything to a cheaper Macintosh/Adobe/Quark setup and get the others up to speed (most people didn't have home computers back then)... hence the nickname "Da Mac Man" (MacClernan)

There's people still buying these things, a whole community of fans, some retro computing fans who weren't born when they were introduced, has risen up around these things. You can get them relatively cheaply now on eBay.

I see that it will run on Windows: I may have a look at it on a Linux box with WINE,
although

"Completely Visual – No programming required"

makes me feel a bit 'funny'.

However:

https://web.archive.org/web/20131115062 ... rials.html

RadBuilder gives off a made with Delphi vibe. Looks closely tied to Windows, at first glance.

susan wrote: ↑Tue Sep 14, 2021 11:30 pm RadBuilder gives off a made with Delphi vibe. Looks closely tied to Windows, at first glance.

I think it is a mostly Windows OS only thing now.
RadBuilder is available for free for Android so I might give that a whirl on my phone later.
http://www.longtion.com/android/radbuilder.html

Back in the early 90's I had a chance to evaluate "Gain/Momentum" (I recall there being a slash) for my company which was considering moving from IBM System/36 computers in our brand offices in the US an UK to Sun. As I recall Gain/Momentum did run on Sun Solaris (although my memory could be wrong and it could have been HP/UX) and they partnered with Sun to give us a demo of what kind of applications we could run in our branches if we developed using it instead of COBOL on 3270 and 5250 terminals. They talked about it being an Object Oriented Language and everyone was lapping it up since it seemed so modern. Then the showed us a graphical rolodex. Everyone was very impressed. I wasn't though because I was thinking "I could write that application in HyperCard IIGS and it would look better."

I asked if I could get a copy of their technical reference for review and since I showed the most interest they gave me one. I remember reading on the first page that the product is a descendant of HyperCard and its language intentionally designed based on HyperTalk. So, at least they admitted their lineage openly. We ended up sticking with IBM and going with AS/400's, but for a bit I thought I might be able to leverage my HyperCard knowledge at work. It would have been fun and it would probably have helped my career.

I recall it being a capable product.

- Brendan
My software: https://sites.google.com/view/silverwandsoftware/
My blog: bbellina.blogspot.com