Any chance we'll ever see a Mac version of iMatch?

[Wow]

Sorry but I have to ask :-). I moved to Mac and iMatch is one of only two programs I miss. Thanks!

[Mario]

Sorry, but no.
Very expensive platform to develop for, constant control and pressure from Apple, incalculably market and all that.

When I would spend two years of my entire spare time to port IMatch to the MacOS eco system (assuming the MacOS ecosystem still exists in two years and was not abandoned by Apple in favor of IOS) and then sell 500 licenses, I'll be at a lost of hundred thousand € ore probably more.

Apple can just get their stuff together and implement a software layer than runs Intel/AMD software on their M* chips. Problem solved, all Windows application would run again, like they did before Apple abandoned Intel/AMD in favor of their own processors.

[Wow]

Thanks for the explanation. I figured, but I had to ask. I was under the impression it was much easier to have an underlying code base that worked for both OS these days, and that's why do many companies now write for both, but apparently not. Thanks again.

[Mario]

it was much easier to have an underlying code base that worked for both OS these days, and that's why do many companies now write for both,

Companies - yes. One Mario - not so much.

When I would so something like this, I would go the IMatch Anywhere route anyway.
Browser-based front end, IMatch Anywhere running on Windows, Linux, Mac, iOS, Android,....
That would make a lot more sense to me. And is the future anyway.

[jch2103]

A related question: 

Microsoft and other companies (Dell, etc.) have announced new devices powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Plus and X Elite processors. It's not clear to me if these ARM-based units can run all 'regular' Windows programs, or how efficient any translation would be. I'm likely to be in the market for a new laptop, so this may be something for me to consider. Any thoughts on how this is going to affect IMatch?

[Mario]

ARM is a different chip architecture (like Apple's M* processors) and not compatible with Intel/AMD processors.
So, applications have to be specifically built to run on Windows ARM.

Microsoft is supposedly providing some sort of "emulation layer" that allows to run normal Intel/AMD (AMD64) applications on Windows ARM. How good that will be and how fast, nobody knows yet really.

There is supposedly a "migration path", of sorts, for existing applications based on the Microsoft Runtime and MFC. Which is kinda good news for IMatch.

The old Windows ARM computers are no longer sold (and never did well), and Microsoft released a few new ARM Windows Surface models just a couple of days ago. It's all too fresh yet.

I will have to buy an ARM computer first in order to do any experiments. Any sponsors ?
The new ARM Surface models are not yet available but start around 1,200€. I'm sure Dell and Lenovo will offer ARM models at some point in the future.

IMatch is written in Microsoft Visual C++ and uses the very common Microsoft runtime and MFC class library.
Which is a good base for a conversion to ARM.
It also uses several of open source and third party components. Some are easily portable, some I might have to replace or rewrite myself.

Ps.: The "old" Intel (this year!) surface models are currently available with big discounts directly from Microsoft, at least here in Germany.

[jch2103]

Thanks, very interesting. Time will tell how promising all this will be. 

[Mario]

I will cause a lot of work on my part, if I would consider this.
One billion Intel/AMD PCs around today. So far only Ms has some ARM offerings for Windows. Let's see.

Considering that the new surface models still need active cooling (fans), I doubt this is the best design yet.

[jch2103]

I suspect you're absolutely right. 

Interestingly, I just got a notice of Affinity Photo 2.5. The first listed update is

So we're thrilled to announce that the entire Affinity suite is now optimized for the latest Windows hardware thanks to full native optimization for devices with ARM64 chips. In fact, Affinity is the first creative software with end-to-end native ARM support.

So maybe this time around, ARM will get more support. But, we'll see how the market actually develops...

[Mario]

Very good. Serif has over 100 employees and was recently bought by Canva. I'm sure they have enough man power to port their software to ARM. I'm just one person, so this might take a while...

Normal people can't even buy an ARM computer for Windows yet. Even Microsoft's own ARM Surface models are only on pre-order at the moment.

[mopperle]

I suspect you're absolutely right.

Interestingly, I just got a notice of Affinity Photo 2.5. The first listed update is

So we're thrilled to announce that the entire Affinity suite is now optimized for the latest Windows hardware thanks to full native optimization for devices with ARM64 chips. In fact, Affinity is the first creative software with end-to-end native ARM support.

So maybe this time around, ARM will get more support. But, we'll see how the market actually develops...

First they should release a stable version of 2.5. Their forum is flooded by crash reports.

[Mario]

First they should release a stable version of 2.5. Their forum is flooded by crash reports.

;-)

My general principle: bugs first.
Which means I concentrate on bug fixes before I develop new features (almost always). Having tons of bugs on the back-burner while working on new features is not a good idea, in my opinion. I'm old school that way.
But then, I have no shareholders or investors to please or revenue growth to generate year over year.

Since Serif was recently bought by Canva, I guess we'll see some changes in products, monetization strategies and priorities over the next year or two.

[mopperle]

If a CEO writes "I'm thrilled..., great excitement..., future is bright" it rings all alarm bells on my side.
Typical wording we used to play "Bullshit Bingo".