11-25-2025, 10:40 PM
This is the type of thing where a square is a rectangle but a rectangle may not be square.
I see just about everything shared here to be a program. If you can compile it, it's pretty much a "program". The games, utilities, inform, and everything else is just a distinct subset of the catch-all "program".
For me, what makes something an "utility" is that it's a program sub/function/tool that can be used in other programs, or which tend to serve one simple and distinct purpose.
Example:
CircleFill. That's an utility program/tool. It's not much use all by itself and really doesn't standalone as any sort of true "program". It's an utility which you use to help expand the usefulness of any program you want to write. By itself, it's not an actual program; it's an utility to be used inside your programs.
A "mile to kilometer" conversion program would be something I'd consider an utility. It serves one purpose, that purpose only, and is a simple little routine to do one thing. Most likely it's all one set of functions/subs with a simple interface attached to showcase how to interact with it.
Now, if one expands upon these and makes a CLOCK using circlefill and has it tracking time and playing coocoo sounds and doing extra stuff, it's no longer just an "utility". It's now a clock program and is something much more complex and involved that a simple little utility program.
Same with some conversion program written in InForm that lets you convert distance, weight, times, computer storage amounts, ect, ect... I'd personally consider it to be a "Program" at that point, but I could see where somebody else might just label it "Utility". There's areas where we have overlap in the definition of things.
It's much like trying to define an object and deciding if you want to call it a "square", a "rectangle", a "quadrilateral", a "parallelogram", or a "rhombus". Note that many objects fall can be defined into being ALL of those things at the same damn time!!
So we're not the biggest and pickiest folks at trying to force people to put square pegs into circular holes around here. We tend to let people use their own judgement of where they thing something belongs. It's more of a judgement call than anything else, and folks need to decide for themselves where something would fit best.
An example of this ambiguity would be with a lot of the stuff @Pete shares: https://qb64phoenix.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=3965
His "Quick Paste" certainly isn't configured to be something drop dead simple to just plug into another program. It's not in a SUB or FUNCTION, so you can't just copy and paste it and make use of it as an utility for yourself. But it IS a utility type program which basically just copies and pastes your login info for you. So... It's an utility in that sense. But it's also a stand-alone program.
Personally, I wouldn't argue about it going into either of those subforums. If it ended up in "Games" or "Christmas" so such, I'd quirk an eyebrow and probably end up moving it and wondering what the heck he was drinking, but otherwise, I wouldn't worry about it it to much personally. Put it where it makes the most sense to you and then just don't worry about it. I'd rather folks CODE something than worry excessively over "gosh, which forum should I put it in?!"
I see just about everything shared here to be a program. If you can compile it, it's pretty much a "program". The games, utilities, inform, and everything else is just a distinct subset of the catch-all "program".
For me, what makes something an "utility" is that it's a program sub/function/tool that can be used in other programs, or which tend to serve one simple and distinct purpose.
Example:
CircleFill. That's an utility program/tool. It's not much use all by itself and really doesn't standalone as any sort of true "program". It's an utility which you use to help expand the usefulness of any program you want to write. By itself, it's not an actual program; it's an utility to be used inside your programs.
A "mile to kilometer" conversion program would be something I'd consider an utility. It serves one purpose, that purpose only, and is a simple little routine to do one thing. Most likely it's all one set of functions/subs with a simple interface attached to showcase how to interact with it.
Now, if one expands upon these and makes a CLOCK using circlefill and has it tracking time and playing coocoo sounds and doing extra stuff, it's no longer just an "utility". It's now a clock program and is something much more complex and involved that a simple little utility program.
Same with some conversion program written in InForm that lets you convert distance, weight, times, computer storage amounts, ect, ect... I'd personally consider it to be a "Program" at that point, but I could see where somebody else might just label it "Utility". There's areas where we have overlap in the definition of things.
It's much like trying to define an object and deciding if you want to call it a "square", a "rectangle", a "quadrilateral", a "parallelogram", or a "rhombus". Note that many objects fall can be defined into being ALL of those things at the same damn time!!
So we're not the biggest and pickiest folks at trying to force people to put square pegs into circular holes around here. We tend to let people use their own judgement of where they thing something belongs. It's more of a judgement call than anything else, and folks need to decide for themselves where something would fit best.
An example of this ambiguity would be with a lot of the stuff @Pete shares: https://qb64phoenix.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=3965
His "Quick Paste" certainly isn't configured to be something drop dead simple to just plug into another program. It's not in a SUB or FUNCTION, so you can't just copy and paste it and make use of it as an utility for yourself. But it IS a utility type program which basically just copies and pastes your login info for you. So... It's an utility in that sense. But it's also a stand-alone program.
Personally, I wouldn't argue about it going into either of those subforums. If it ended up in "Games" or "Christmas" so such, I'd quirk an eyebrow and probably end up moving it and wondering what the heck he was drinking, but otherwise, I wouldn't worry about it it to much personally. Put it where it makes the most sense to you and then just don't worry about it. I'd rather folks CODE something than worry excessively over "gosh, which forum should I put it in?!"