"1. Do we need 2 versions?"To be discussed:
Yes, we do . . .
1.1. The REAL version (which we already have).
1.2. The BABY version (that is free of charge):
1.2.1. NO widgets (and NO LCB).
1.2.2. NO standalone capability.
"3. A transition path to paying customers for students or hobbyists that allows only personal use?"
3.1. Well, there could be a 'BABY starts walking' version at an extremely modest price ($50 - $100 ?)
that is EXACTLY the same as the BABY version + standalone building capabilities
(possibly for a restricted number of platforms).
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There is a quick-and-dirty path to a BABY version which should NOT take up that much of LiveCode Central's time:
Go back to the RevMedia code and set it up so that it will work on both 32-bit and 64-bit Macintosh,
(it already runs without a hitch on 64-bit Linux and under WINE - so, should be fine on Windows)
Give it a new name ( err . . . 'LiveCode Junior', or 'LiveCode Personal Learning Edition'),
POSSIBLY, strap the new, up-coming GUI, on the front.
Write a fancy document disclaiming any responsibility and support.
Of course RevMedia does NOT have the new Unicode capacity that LiveCode does: whether LC would
feel that is necessary to include is something they would have to think about.
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Having written all that, I can see NO reason at all why educators should not continue chuntering happily along
with Community versions:
I deploy 9.6.3 on both my 32-bit and 64-bit Xubuntu machines in my school.
I deploy 8.1.10 on my several polycarbonate iMacs running MacOS 10.7.4 in my school.
[And, quite frankly, the level I get to with my teaching means that there is no obvious advantage to
using 9.6.3 over 8.1.10]
The ONLY possible problem I can see relates to ARM Macintosh machines.
The ONLY other (highly questionable) downside I can see is that learners would not have access
to the new GUI. And as LC 10 has bogged down at DP4 for 5 months I, for one, am not holding
my breath: especially as children who have attended my 'Intro-to-programming' classes have never
complained or questioned the GUI 'we know and love.'