Suggestions
Please install the DirectX SDK onto the server(if you have access to doing that) and include it's libraries in the list of libraries to reference.
Please ensure that all libraries already on the server are listed in the IDE for Referential inclusion.
Please provide at least a basic object browser for all libraries being included for Referential inclusion. Even if you just provide a webpage or article that details all the public properties and methods available in each library, that would help many new developers understand how to use them. (Perhaps using a wiki CMS would help with this, then the users could update and maintain the information.)
Please add a search feature in the "Explore" section to allow users to narrow down the selections. This search feature should be able to use some form of wildcard search.
Please add a button on the project view page(the one that shows basic info about the project and has the button to open the ide) to allow the project owner to edit basic project settings including but not limited to, changing the project name, and changing the project's public accessibility, and possibly adding other users to a list of authorized editors.(see next suggestion)
Please add functionality for a user to add other users to their own projects as authorized editors regardless of the projects public accessibility. You may also need to lock out files while they are being edited by a user to prevent other users from being able to make modifications to them. This will allow users to work together on group projects, as well as allowing schools to use your site in programming classes to help teach developer teamwork. This also has the side effect of providing users a little more security, as they wouldn't have to hand out their user name and password to anyone they want to have help them with their projects. Additional options will need to be provided to allow the user to select who has the ability to compile, download the source, and specify which files in the project users can edit, as well as specify if a user can add new files. If you add this suggestion, then have the project show up on the authorized editors project list under the heading "Shared Projects". The owner of the project should still see it listed under "My Projects" You will also need to add the ability for the owner to transfer ownership of a project to another user that is already specified as an authorized editor.
I was thinking of suggesting the same feature but when I read it here I thought I'd just second the motion. Even if users only use the platform for "work in progress" type projects it would still be of great benefit to allow private collaboration where more than one user is involved.
Often when I'm developing, I'll set my compiler to treat all warnings as errors and set my warning level to maximum. This helps me to ensure that the code that I write is bullet proof by the compiler. (Of course bugs can still occur, but this limits their ability to appear.)
What I'd like to see, is a settings screen on the project level where we can set many of the core compiler settings like this.
Also, add in support for building code libraries in C# and VB.NET. By code libraries, I'm talking about code projects that compile into DLL files. I see that you've already added support to linking these in, so now we just need to be able to actually build them.
You do have the ability to build them, there just isn't a default template.
Please create a new vb.net or c# project, and click the Settings button in the top menu bar of the IDE, you'll be able to figure it out from there.
We do plan on expanding these settings aswell, and eventually adding in an IDE tutorial since there are features like this that are not known about.
Thanks...that will help with building expanding projects.
Woah - quite the list of features :)
A lot of these are on our list of things to add... Our goal is to enable a platform where multiple people can work on files in real-time and have already had some universities express interest in this platform.
I've added some of your other suggestions to our feature requests!
Keep 'em coming!
Developer - Compilr.com