Question Regarding Extensions

Advanced Topics Mods & Extensions
1

What exactly is counted as an extension in Snap!? Which extensions does the Snap! Team recommend for beginners?

2

Because Snap! is free software, anybody can extend it to make their own version. We're proud that dozens of people have done so. Among the best-known are TurtleStitch, which uses Snap! to control a programmable sewing machine; NetsBlox, which uses Snap! to interface with web sites' APIs; and BeetleBlocks, which extends Snap! to a 3-D stage to draw shapes that can then be sent to a 3-D printer to fabricate them.

There's no "what exactly is counted"; we don't hand out official extension certificates. People just take Snap! and run with it. Some guys in Russia are using Snap! as an extension language for Minecraft. Somebody else made a teaching tool for graph theory. And lots of people have versions to control their brand of robot.

3

Brian! I'm sorry you forgot Snap4Arduino in your list. It should be the first!

[Hey, I hope you see I'm kidding :smile: )

  • About recommendation for beginners... I think he matter is the context of your projects. In general, Snap! is the best option. But it you will work with microcontrollers, or with 3D printers or with some Internet services... Then you can use "our Snap! family projects".
    As Brian has said, there are no official extensions. But all this list (adding Snap4Arduino :slight_smile: )are well-mantained.

  • And about this, Brian, I want to ask you again to reorganize our forum categories. You moved a lot of subcategories to Advanced Topics, but I don't like it. My proposal:

    • "Advanced Topics" can have only "Development" subcategory. We can create more subcategories later. Yes we will move there all the topics about hacking, complex questions, JS...
    • I like "Mods & Extension" being a main category. Maybe it is not for Advanced topics, only basic questions about our extensions projects. Then, "Snap4Arduino" subcategory will return there. Maybe you can create other subcategories for the others main projects (it would be like the "official extensions" list).
    • "Feature requests" also a main category. Inside it, can return the other "concrete feature requests subcategories".

Thanks,
Joan

4

I thought about listing the long-awaited MicroBlocks extension... that sort of crowded Arduino out, but it isn't really ready to announce for beginners.

As for reorganizing the forum, I solved the problem by making you an admin. Use your powers only for good... :~)

5

@bh and @jguille2, thanks to both of you for your answers. I have not forgot the use of the Solution button but I do not think using it would be a good idea since both of you have provided solutions and the button only lets me select one post.
By the way, I am making a block library does that count as an extension? I have thought about it and in my opinion, it does not.

6

The way you pose the question makes it sound much more official than I think we intended. It's not "are you allowed to post here" but rather "is this the best place to get your question answered." There are fuzzy edges. For example, I noticed the other day that 6.0 breaks the bignum library. Fixing it will involve some reading of the 6.0 source code. It's a library, not a whole separate program, but this particular library interacts with the Snap! code more than most. So maybe this is a good place for that conversation. But it's not, you know, if you post here you get to display an extension badge on your profile page!

7

I see.