diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile index 5e183b4..1840665 100644 --- a/Dockerfile +++ b/Dockerfile @@ -1,4 +1,4 @@ -FROM xena/christine.website:1.1-25-g6c29390 +FROM xena/christine.website:1.1-32-gd8c75d6 EXPOSE 5000 RUN apk add --no-cache bash CMD /site/run.sh diff --git a/blog/coding-on-an-ipad-2018-04-14-2018.markdown b/blog/coding-on-an-ipad-2018-04-14-2018.markdown new file mode 100644 index 0000000..bbb14c7 --- /dev/null +++ b/blog/coding-on-an-ipad-2018-04-14-2018.markdown @@ -0,0 +1,133 @@ +--- +title: Coding on an iPad +date: 2018-04-14 +--- + +# Coding on an iPad + +As people notice, I am an avid user of Emacs for most of my professional and +personal coding. I have things set up such that the center of my development +environment is a shell (eshell), and most of my interactions are with emacs +buffers from there. Recently when I purchased my iPad Pro (10.5", 512 GB, LTE, +with Pencil and Smart Keyboard) I was very surprised to find out that there was +such a large group of people who did a lot of their professional work from an +iPad. + +The iPad is a remarkably capable device in its own right, even without the apps +that let me commit to git or edit text files in git repos. Out of the gate, if +I did not work in a primarily code-focused industry, I am certain that I could +use an iPad for all of my work tasks and I would be more than happy with it. +With just Notes, iWork and the other built-in apps even, you can do literally +anything a consumer would want out of a computing device. + +As projects and commitments get more complicated though, you begin to want to +be able to write code from it. My Macbook died recently, and as such I've +taken the time to try to get to learn how the iPad workflow is a little more +hands-on (this post is being written from my iPad even). + +So far I have written the following projects either mostly or completely from +this iPad: + +- https://github.com/withinsoft/ventriloquist +- https://github.com/Xe/arrival +- https://git.xeserv.us/xena/register +- https://github.com/Xe/when-then-zen (more on this in another blogpost) + +I seem to have naturally developed two basic workflows for developing from this +iPad: my "traditional" way of ssh-ing into a remote server via [Prompt][prompt] +and then using emacs inside tmux and the local way of using [Texastic][texastic] +for editing text, [Working Copy][workingcopy] to interact with Git, and [Workflow][workflow] +and some custom JSON HTTP services to allow me to hack things together as +needed. + +## The Traditional Way + +Honestly, there's not much exciting here, thankfully. The only interesting +thing in this regard (besides the lack of curses mouse support REALLY being +apparent given the fact that the entire device is a screen) is that the lack +of the escape key on the smart keyboard means I need to hit command-grave +instead. This has been fairly easy to remap my brain to, the fact that the +iPad keyboard lacks the room for a touchpad seems to be enough to give my brain +a hint that I need to hit that instead of escape. + +![An example workflow screenshot with Prompt](https://i.imgur.com/owGRo5x.png) + +This feels like developing on any other device, just this device is much more +portable and I can't test changes locally. It enforces you keeping all of your +active project in development in the cloud. With this workflow, you can +literally stop what you were doing on your desktop, then resume it on the iPad +at Taco Bell. A friend of mine linked [his blogpost on his cloud-based workflow][ceruleiscloud] +and this iPad driven development feels like a nice natural extension to it. + +It's the tools I know and love, just available when and wherever I am thanks to +the LTE. + +## iPad-local Development + +Of all of the things to say going into owning an iPad, I never thought I'd say +that I like the experience of developing from it locally. Apple has done a +phenomenal job at setting up a secure device. It is hard to run arbitrary +unsigned code on it. + +However, development is more than just running the code, development is also +_writing_ it. For writing the code, I've been loving Texastic and Working Copy: + +![](https://i.imgur.com/5RVt52w.png) + +![](https://i.imgur.com/XTWoOAY.jpg) + +Texastic is pretty exciting. It's a simple text editor, but it also supports +reading both arbitrary files from the iCloud drive and arbitrary files from +programs like Working Copy. In order to open a file up in Texastic, I +navigate over to it in Working Copy and then hit the "Share" button and tap +on "Open in Texastic". By default this option is pretty deep down the menu, so +I have moved it all the way up to the beginning of the list. Then I literally +just type stuff in and every so often the changes get saved back to Working +Copy. Then I commit when I'm done and push the code away. + +This is almost precisely my existing workflow with the shell, just with +Working Copy and Texastic instead. + +There are downsides to this though. Not being able to test your code locally +means you need to commit frequently. This can lead to cluttered commit graphs +which some people will complain about. Rebasing your commits before merging +branches is a viable workaround however. There is no code completion, gofmt or +goimports. There doesn't seem to be any advanced manipulation or linting tools +available for Texastic either. I understand that there are fundamental +limitations involved when developing these kinds of mobile apps, but I wish +there was something I could set up on a server of mine that would let me at +least get some linting or formatting tooling running for this. + +Workflow is very promising, but at the time of writing this article I haven't +really had the time to fully grok it yet. So far I have some glue that lets me +do things like share URL's/articles to a Discord chatroom via a webhook (the +iPad Discord client causes an amazing amount of battery life reduction for me), +find the currently playing song on Apple Music on Youtube, copy an article into +my Notes, turn the currently active thing into a PDF, and some more that I've +been picking up and tinkering with as things go on. + +There are some limitations in Workflow as far as I've seen. I don't seem to be +able to log arbitrary health events like mindfulness meditation via Workflow as +the Health app doesn't seem to let you do that directly. I was kinda hoping +that Workflow would let me do that. I've been wanting to log my mindfulness +time with the Health app, but I can't find an app that acts as a dumb timer +without an account for web syncing. I'd love to have a few quick action +workflows for logging 10 minutes of anapana, metta or a half hour of more +focused work. + +## Conclusion + +The iPad is a fantastic developer box given its limitations. If you just want +to get the code or blogpost out of your head and into the computer, this device +will help you focus into the task at hand so you can just hammer out the +functionality. You just need to get the idea and then you just act on it. +There's just fundamentally fewer distractions when you are actively working +with it. + +You just do thing and it does thing. + +[prompt]: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/prompt-2/id917437289?mt=8 +[texastic]: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/textastic-code-editor-6/id1049254261?mt=8 +[workingcopy]: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/working-copy/id896694807?mt=8 +[workflow]: https://www.workflow.is +[ceruleiscloud]: https://elliot.pro/blog/working-in-the-cloud.html \ No newline at end of file diff --git a/templates/contact.html b/templates/contact.html index 1ab268d..9f8fdfc 100644 --- a/templates/contact.html +++ b/templates/contact.html @@ -30,7 +30,7 @@

@miamorecadenza

Discord

-

Cadey~#1932

+

Cadey~#1337

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