The point's are all well taken. I am at about 3rd grade (in school) as far as learning the language and what I learn I would like to apply to other development boards later.
So I am interested in anything that will accelerate my education. In 3 month's I have learned? how to interface and return data from several different devices. I think (with a lot of help) I have a stable routine to return local time and date from a GPS receiver, another for a BMP085 for temp and Baro data and how, more or less to use 3 different display devices to display data from these "routines".
Progress and fair progress at that. there are 3 more devices and some radio's that I need/want to do.
The issue for me is that once I find a sketch that is 'close' to what I need (or think I do) I can "Fix" it... usually through trial and error and make it work. Once in a while I can find an example in the playground, the "Examples" in the IDE or the reference section... and both by example and question here in the forum.
I do spend about 3 times as much time teaching and talking as I do learning (a lesson there?).
However for the most part what I know is more a collection of things "Not" to do, rather than a good and clear understanding of how each piece of a sketch works and I frankly think that I would need several hours to implement a "Blink without delay" sketch without the example section.
I am trying to understand pointers and although I can follow most of it on paper I doubt sincerely that I could create a sketch to write my name on a serial monitor...
I totally have problems with interrupts especially when they don't work right. I know what they are and why they are used from all sides, I believe. That knowledge doesn't however let me use them effectively, under control... My little GPS clock uses an interrupt routine called by serial data available... in the middle of writing the current "Good data to the display.
I can "follow" after a sort most of what I read though a statement with 3 conditional operators leaves me with too many ?'s
Learning by the bits and pieces method is the way I have learned all my life... Having said that I must also say that there are many holes in my education and the only way I can think to avoid the same sort of holes is a rigorous course of study and therein comes another issue. There isn't a "collected" book or tutorial that will take me from hello world to being able to write a 200k program for a Mega. If and when I "Learn' enough language for the Arduino to do that "Sketch" how much will be really usable in the larger world when I am through. Is this the purpose of the long awaited "Duo" that I read about here....
This time spent here is supposed to be my retirement and I find myself working as hard if not harder now as when I retired.
The 'stuff'. I have been grousing about is mostly the reason why I am curious about other environments to write and program the Arduino.
Paul you said "That all depends on whether you think the IDE needs improvement."... no not really though I would like line numbers because sometimes finding compiler error messages is hard since I misplaced my ouija board and I won't repeat what my crystal ball told me to do with the questions...
Oh Yeah Even with a BIG monitor I have real issues with my old eyes and the font serif font used in the IDE... So Poor little ME. (Now is whether I wonder If I should post this thing or forget I asked???), Oh Yeah... Doctor Serial... Nick. IMO
Doc