RE: Contrib structure

Hi Stephen,

> Code sharing:
> I wonder if there should be two levels of code submission.
>
> The first level is as per the "contrib" guidelines. This is code
> that has been checked by one or more of the maintainers and the
> owners of the contrib code have committed to maintain the code
> long term. The contrib code remains part of the Barracuda distribution.
>
> The second  level is for those who have code they think would be
> interesting for everyone, however, they don't want to be

I think this is a good distinction, and its kind of what I envision with my
earlier proposal - first level code goes under the Barracuda cvs tree in the
contrib package; second level stuff could go under the Contrib module, along
with webapps like those contained under Diez's stuff.

I have been thinking that as webapps under this Contrib module get to the
point where they are stable and have enough traction/acceptance w/in the
community (ie. everyone agrees that its a good example or illustrates best
practices) then we could move them into their own space parallel to the
Barracuda tree. This is kind of like what BarracudaDiskRack is now (although
at this point DiscRack should really either be overhauled or end-of-lifed).

> Note: I know the BarracudaDiscRack application exists. It didn't
> compile for me and it is not running on the Barracuda web site
> and so I haven't seen it for a year or so. I understand this
> application is written as a tutorial based on an original XMLC
> application rather than "here is the best way to do a commercial
> database application in Barracuda". Correct me if I'm wrong.

You are correct.

> Application patterns / Best practises:
> Something else that I see as being essential for Barracuda to
> really fly is a collection of patterns and best practices.
...
> Search->View->Add/Edit/Delete, and I'm also looking at the code
> to view multiple records and provide a split to multiple pages.

I agree that we need these. We've got a pretty good example here that I
intend to make available, but its going to be a month or two before its
ready - we're right in the middle of a design phase right now, so its going
to be a bit before I can contribute some of the stuff we've been developing
as examples.

Great comments...
Christian
----------------------------------------------
Christian Cryder [[email protected]]
Internet Architect, ATMReports.com
Barracuda - http://barracuda.enhydra.org
----------------------------------------------
"Coffee? I could quit anytime, just not today"

> -----Original Message-----
> From: [email protected]
> [mailto:[email protected]]On Behalf Of Stephen Woolerton
> Sent: Thursday, January 16, 2003 2:21 PM
> To: [email protected]
> Subject: Re: [Barracuda] Contrib structure
>
>
> Hi All,
>
> Given there is a brand new server to setup, it seems a good time
> to consider different ways in which code can be shared. Here are
> some ideas...
>
> Code sharing:
> I wonder if there should be two levels of code submission.
>
> The first level is as per the "contrib" guidelines. This is code
> that has been checked by one or more of the maintainers and the
> owners of the contrib code have committed to maintain the code
> long term. The contrib code remains part of the Barracuda distribution.
>
> The second  level is for those who have code they think would be
> interesting for everyone, however, they don't want to be
> responsible for maintaining the code in the future. Kind of like
> "Here have a look at this, everyone and use it how you will". The
> intent of this level is that it makes it easy for someone to
> share some code, and in addition, it reduces the load for the
> project maintainers since they wouldn't have to vet code in this
> level. The second level code is possibly accessible from CVS
> under a separate title.
>
> Application patterns / Best practises:
> Something else that I see as being essential for Barracuda to
> really fly is a collection of patterns and best practices. For
> instance there are no Barracuda application libraries at present.
> Someone like myself who is new to Barracuda has a lot of
> development work generating such things as a pattern for
> Search->View->Add/Edit/Delete, and I'm also looking at the code
> to view multiple records and provide a split to multiple pages.
> As a new developer, I'm unlikely to get this right first, or even
> second time, and yet these things provide a foundation for the
> entire app and so it takes several applications before the
> framework is "nice" and then one has to go back to the other apps
> and fix them up. (Sound familiar, I'm sure many of us have been
> there. We're using WebObjects which is great, and now we need an
> OpenSource environment as well for applications which require no
> deployment fee. We went through the scenario above with
> WebObjects and now it runs well for us, but I hope to find a way
> with the help of the community to avoid that costly learning
> cycle with Barracuda).
>
> As I see it, Barracuda provides a high level abstraction layer so
> we can concentrate on Business logic in our applications.
> Unfortunately, a new user currently has to become an expert in
> Barracuda and write their own components before they can write
> the business logic they chose Barracuda for.
>
> In summary, as a new Barracuda user there are in effect two
> barriers to picking up Barracuda. The first is the framework
> which has quite a learning curve, and the second thing is
> developing the needed components on top of the framework.
> Providing application patterns enables Barracuda users to write
> sound business based code very soon after picking up the product.
> In addition, patterns and a few screens based on those patterns
> show best practices rather than having to discover them.
>
> Thanks
> Stephen
>
> Note: I know the BarracudaDiscRack application exists. It didn't
> compile for me and it is not running on the Barracuda web site
> and so I haven't seen it for a year or so. I understand this
> application is written as a tutorial based on an original XMLC
> application rather than "here is the best way to do a commercial
> database application in Barracuda". Correct me if I'm wrong.