[Interest] What don't you like about Qt?

[Marco Piccolino]

1) I don't like the distribution being so monolithic.

I'd rather see the packages being shipped individually and having explicit
version dependencies, like QML modules do and like qpm.io is doing.
Maybe this kind of approach will be easier/possible with the new config
system?

2) I don't like qml being considered only as a UI language or confounded
with QtQuick, which sometimes happens even in the docs and a few namings.

I do mostly mobile and I can't say I have tried all languages and
frameworks out there, but the combined declarative/imperative approach of
qml+js is a damn great one even for crafting different kinds of non-ui
components. I wonder if anyone else had the same positive experience.

Of course treating it not just as a UI language would mean improving it in
some respects (APIs, threading beyond workers etc). Not saying it can be
used everywhere as it is implemented now, but it's a very concise way of
expressing concepts and makes lots of sense to me.

I'd like to see qml+js rightfully marketed and developed as a
general-purpose language for crafting whole application architectures,
always with the option to kick-in c++ modules when needed.

3) I don't like the lack of extensive examples and documentation about good
full-blown application architectures implemented with Qt.

Granted, architecture is something that transcends the framework and varies
a lot, but seeing a few complex examples of architecture best practices
thoroughly documented and explained would possibly avoid many pitfalls
while designing a Qt app.

I can of course go out there and grab an opensource project like Telegram
and dissection it, but a) I am not sure Qt is used there as it was inteded
b) it requires so much more work from my part.

4) Accessing mobile-specific functionality (contacts, notifications, file
browsing, opening documents, inter-app operability etc.)  is still in most
cases platform-specific, and while AndroidExtras and JNI ways are by now
fairly well documented (thanks BogDan and Eskil!), iOS is a whole different
story and mostly requires you to find out stuff by yourself or asking the
few experts that exist. Plus implementing those parts by yourself limits a
lot the value of using a native cross-platform framework, beyond UI and
algorithms.

An extensive, up-to-date, maintained abstraction layer over such
functionality for Android, iOS and WinRT (and desktop OSes, since those are
also increasingly incorporating traditionally-mobile functionality) is
simply not there yet.

Over at http://slackin.qtmob.org there are some people who have implemented
their own stuff quick&dirty, but being everybody a full-time app developer,
it seems that unfortunately nobody has the time to start new Qt modules, to
comply fully with contribution guidelines, and to contribute massively to
something that for the most part requires fiddling with QPA, native APIs,
and continuous maintenance.

This said, I really love Qt and I wish it lives and prospers for years to
come!
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