Support for developing QML apps without a C++ toolchain

Support the development of QML/JS applications without requiring a C++ toolchain.

QML & C++

While QML is promoted primarily as a language for the UI aspect of an application, simple applications can also do without any C+. The line between what should be done in C+ and what can be done in JavaScript is still subject to discussion. With qmlviewer there is a general purpose viewer which can also be used to preview .qml files / projects on devices, but it's not promoted as a general purpose runtime (one reason being security issues).

QtCreator 2.1

Qt Quick UI Projects

• Run qmlviewer
• Not deployable (only on developer PC)
• Debugging requires installed toolchain (QmlObserver needs to be compiled)
• Fast turnaround cycles (no compilation step)

Qt Quick Applications

• Stub C++ part
• Can be deployed & published to the Ovi store

Pros/cons:

• .qmlproject allows one to stay away from qmake (yet another unknown language)
• It's one project, just used in different ways! Why create two projects out of it?

Use Cases

• As an author I don't want to install & mess around with a C++ toolchain to test my application
• As an author I want to avoid the slow packaging step for quickly testing stuff on the device
• As an author I want to preview files in my project conveniently, even if they are not the main files
• As an author I want to use the qmlviewer features (Taking snapshots, Recording videos, scripting) for my project