August 1999 - Zope-Dev

RE: [Zope-dev] BUG in online help?
by Brian Lloyd 03 Aug '99

03 Aug '99

> >I'm getting this when clicking on certain items in the help system > >eg DTML Document > > > >Zope Error > > > >Zope has encountered an error while publishing this resource. > > > >exceptions.AttributeError > > > >Sorry, a Zope error occurred. > ... > >AttributeError: __call__ > as requested I've put this into the collector, but I believe it may be > related to the fact that there are now two versions of > ts_regex.py in my > CVS latest version in lib/python & lib/python/DocumentTemplate. > > I think the latest doesn't have various bits required in some places. > Surely it's dangerous to have modules with apparently identical intent > and different functionality. > -- > Robin Becker Actually this is due to a bug that got into CVS the other day. It has since been fixed - do an update and restart and it should go away. As for the two ts_regex modules, this is an unfortunate side-effect of the fact that DocumentTemplate is also distributed as a stand-alone package. The fact that the extra one is there shouldn't actually cause any problems though. Brian Lloyd brian(a)digicool.com Software Engineer 540.371.6909 Digital Creations http://www.digicool.com

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External Methods and REQUEST variable
by Josh Zeidner 03 Aug '99

03 Aug '99

Currently I am working with External Methods that use the REQUEST variable. I have defined a python function as : def print_form_values(self, REQUEST=None): if REQUEST is not None: return REQUEST.form.keys() else: return [ 'NOTHING!' ] It should pick up variables past through POSTing, however it does not. I have defined an DTML doc like this and posted a series of variables to it.  <h2></h2>      GetFormKeys is the ID of the method. I cannot get this to work! What am I doing wrong? -Josh Zeidner ps. Is there a way for DTML methods to take arguments? _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com

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Does ZServer support persistant TCP connections? Does it close them?
by Brad Clements 02 Aug '99

02 Aug '99

I just filed a collector bug on IE5 hanging with Zope 2.0b1. Based on how it hangs, I'm beginning to think that IE5 might be expecting Zserver to support persistant connections, and either Zserver doesn't, or it closes it's end after some idle time limit that is much lower than IE5 expects... Or it loses track of an idle tcp connection until kicked in the butt by a new request. Can anyone say right away if ZServer supports persistant connections, and if yes, what's the timeout. Brad Clements, bkc(a)murkworks.com (315)268-1000 http://www.murkworks.com (315)268-9812 Fax netmeeting: ils://ils.murkworks.com ICQ: 14856937

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[Announce] CyberCash Connector for Zope
by Scott Robertson 02 Aug '99

02 Aug '99

I was threatening Paul when I was out in VA that I would do this, and because Rob made me make it a priority (got to love those guys), here to put the Z in e-commerce, is the Wampum Generator! (May need to work on the name) The Wampum Generator allows you to process credit card transactions in Zope using CyberCash. You can perform a variety of tasks using DTML and most of the CyberCash administration functions exists in the management interface (batch processing, voiding transactions, & posting returns) >From The README.txt: The Wampum Generator (pre-alpha) The Wampum Generator (pre-alpha) is the first draft of a CyberCash Connection object that gives application developers the ability to process Internet credit card transactions in Zope. If you encounter a bug or would like to see a particular feature added please discuss it on the Zope mailing list, zope(a)zope.org. Or better yet send us a patch! We are releasing this product in this rough state because it might be useful to some of those people in the Zope community, and to receive your feedback and comments. Be warned this release is not for the faint of heart! If you're not the hacker type you might want to wait for a more polished release. To build this package you must download the Merchant Connection Kit (MCK) from CyberCash at http://www.cybercash.com and sign-up as a merchant. Note: the product will setup reasonable defaults for testing if you leave the values blank. For further information on building and installing please read the INSTALL.txt which is in the same directory as this file. It is currently assumed that the user has a basic understanding of how credit card transaction work and that the user has passing knowledge of the MCK API. Documentation is available from www.cybercash.com. For an example of use please see the cybercash-form.dtml and process-cybercash-order.dtml in the same directory as this file. The Wampum Generator was created by CodeIt Computing, http://www.codeit.com. Special thanks to Digital Creations for funding this project so that the Open Source Community could have their own e-commerce solution to go with the worlds best web application platform. CyberCash, and the CyberCash MCK are registered trade marks of CyberCash Inc. The Wampum Generator is available from the Contrib section of the Zope web-site at http://www.zope.org/download/Contrib. Enjoy! --------------------------------------------------- - Scott Robertson Phone: 714.972.2299 - - CodeIt Computing Fax: 714.972.2399 - - http://codeit.com - ---------------------------------------------------

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Re: [Zope-dev] Secure Tranactions with Zserver
by Christopher Petrilli 02 Aug '99

02 Aug '99

> While ZOPE with Apache-SSL is certainly possible , I personally would > prefer a more tightly coupled structure than the lightweight server to server > protocols provide(such as the certificate if available of the client > ) . I'll probably step on a few toes, but since this is my background and what I did before I came to work for DC, I'll put some of this to rest for the "foreseeable future"... It is possible to get access to the entire certificate via CGI from both Apache and Netscape (I can't and would rather not speak of IIS), and therefore you can garner whatever pieces you need out of it. In addition, mod_ssl allows for a nice ability to grab pre-parsed sections of the certificate without having to implement ASN.1/BER, which my dear friends, is a Good Thing. ASN.1 makes perl look readable, and is vague in the utmost and pedantic in the extreme. (Yes, I know that's contradictory, but Anthony Baxter I'm sure would agree with his interactions with SNMP). In addition, "tight integration" in this context is being used to imply "more security" I believe, which is a red herring, and implies that we as a company, are more focused on the cryptographic implications of what we do. While I might have a background in cryptography, most people around here don't, nor do they want it. For more information please read: http://www.counterpane.com/whycrypto.html This is Bruce Schneier's quite lucid essay on why crypto is harder than it appears on the outset. I'm not sure I wish to dedicate my entire time and resources to focusing on this, I would rather find someone else who has done an excellent job and allow us to leverage our own unique capabilities. The second aspect would be performance, however, anyone who has dealt with SSL, much less client-certificates and the overhead of dealing with them, understands that these are not generally solutions for high-transaction situations. If they are, then you are getting involved in hardware cryptographic accelerators (IBM's ISCF, Crysalis, Rainbow, etc.) and these are a bag into and of themselves. This would be a rather nasty Pandora's box to open, having stepped into interoperability before with a previous employer. I have spent literally months debugging PKCS-11 interface issues that change between revs of hardware. Just don't go there :-) > Tight integration of the SSL-Crypto extention with the zserver > would allow security/permission capatibilities to be set on objects based > upon a closed verification chain via client certificates Well, if you've violated the system integrity of any commercially available server (i.e. NT, UNIX, etc), then you've basically violated the chain of verification. So passing this information through CGI isn't that much less secure in the overall scheme of things. I would like to see this handled through a module, as it is better there than through ZServer. > If encryption and X609v3 are available then zope becomes a FAR more > interesting possibility for ecommerce. This is somewhat true, however, X.509 certificates are only in use in intranets at this point, and in some extranet applications. It is certainly not a dominant form of authentication at this point, nor probably will it be until some UI issues are resolved. Currently, there are divergent camps about how to deal with multiple authorities, and whether someone should have multiple certificates for different purposes, or if authority should be designated through arbitrary v3 extensions. This is a MAJOR ideological issue that is much harder than it seems. Today, 99.99% of e-commerce sites only require SSL integration, which we can accomplish today by using Netscape, Apache/SSL, Stronghold or IIS, and in fact we have several customers who use this exact situation. Integration with PKI is a speculative issue today. > And besides its on the TODO list > for the Zserver... It should be removed, and will be. I will categorically state that integration into ZServer is not on the horizon in any form of "near future" for both resource and export issues. > Pyhon SSL modules ARE available in source... This is a non-issue. > the question is where and how...(and preferably offshore i.e. NON US > developement). Not today, not by us. If someone else wishes to do this, deal with all export (and import in some countries) issues, etc., and deal with the multitude of crypto issues which again, are not trivial, then they are more than welcome to do so. Our "roadmap" is based on integration with well know, well tested servers which implement SSL in a known way. Chris -- | Christopher Petrilli Python Powered Digital Creations, Inc. | petrilli(a)digicool.com http://www.digicool.com

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Ask Slashdot - Zope's the Topic!
by Scott Cropper 02 Aug '99

02 Aug '99

Check out http://slashdot.org/askslashdot/99/07/31/0323235.shtml. Someone named "Codeshark" is asking about Zope and its reliability, stability, and ease of use. Lets all join in and give Zope (and of course, Digital Creations) a well deserved pat on the back. Scott Cropper scropper(a)earthlink.net

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SMTP access
by Joerg Wittenberger 02 Aug '99

02 Aug '99

Hello folks, the other day I've got an idea, which IMHO is worth to consider, but I'm not sure about. I find zope a very intersting thing, but there is a drawback: you can't operate disconnected. Proposal: It would be really cool if I could prepare a xml message with the same content as a filled in formular or just a http/get request would have and send this to an object. Zope would reply with a mail message containing the reply. To illustrate that a little more: a form like that: <form method="post" action="..." ><input type=text name="phone"></form> would be sent in as phone=mynumber for http but as <phone> mynumber </phone> for email. The url would have to be encoded within the user name somehow e. g. an action url like http://www.dom.tld/foo/bar could be encoded as say: "foo/bar" <zope(a)www.dom.tld> Cookies, when required could maybe encoded in message-ids. I must admit: this is just an idea, I'm a bit too new to zope to judge about feasibility. How is yours, gurus? /Jerry ------- End of forwarded message -------

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BUG in online help?
by Robin Becker 02 Aug '99

02 Aug '99

I'm getting this when clicking on certain items in the help system eg DTML Document Zope Error Zope has encountered an error while publishing this resource. exceptions.AttributeError Sorry, a Zope error occurred. Traceback (innermost last): File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\ZPublisher\Publish.py, line 256, in publish_module File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\ZPublisher\Publish.py, line 161, in publish File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\ZPublisher\mapply.py, line 154, in mapply (Object: objectitem) File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\ZPublisher\Publish.py, line 98, in call_object (Object: objectitem) File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\App\special_dtml.py, line 120, in __call__ (Object: objectitem) (Info: C:\Python\devel\Zope\lib\python\HelpSys/objectitem.dtml) File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\DocumentTemplate\DT_String.py, line 502, in __call__ (Object: objectitem) File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\HelpSys\HelpUtil.py, line 151, in get_docstring_html (Object: DTMLDocument) File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\StructuredText\StructuredText.py, line 527, in __str__ File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\StructuredText\StructuredText.py, line 610, in _str File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\StructuredText\StructuredText.py, line 557, in normal File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\StructuredText\StructuredText.py, line 508, in ctag File C:\Python\devel\Zope\lib\python\ts_regex.py, line 174, in __call__ File C:\Python\Lib\regsub.py, line 38, in gsub AttributeError: regs Object Reference gives Zope Error Zope has encountered an error while publishing this resource. exceptions.AttributeError Sorry, a Zope error occurred. Traceback (innermost last): File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\ZPublisher\Publish.py, line 256, in publish_module File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\ZPublisher\Publish.py, line 161, in publish File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\ZPublisher\mapply.py, line 154, in mapply (Object: objectref) File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\ZPublisher\Publish.py, line 98, in call_object (Object: objectref) File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\App\special_dtml.py, line 120, in __call__ (Object: objectref) (Info: C:\Python\devel\Zope\lib\python\HelpSys/objectref.dtml) File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\DocumentTemplate\DT_String.py, line 502, in __call__ (Object: objectref) File C:\Python\devel\Zope\lib\python\DocumentTemplate\DT_In.py, line 689, in renderwob (Object: hs_objectvalues) File C:\Python\devel\Zope\lib\python\DocumentTemplate\DT_With.py, line 132, in render (Object: sequence-item) File C:\Python\devel\ZOPE\lib\python\HelpSys\ObjectRef.py, line 118, in __getattr__ (Object: Chart) AttributeError: __call__ -- Robin Becker

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Dynamic SQL statement construct
by HCSCCS＠prudential.com.my 02 Aug '99

02 Aug '99

As usual, I'm beeen using Zope-1.10.3-src, Zap-1.10, RedHat 5.2 and lately ZPyGresql Database Adaptor. I wonder whether we can dymanicaly construct an SQL statement. Below is the following situation: DTML Method 1 :- ============ Contain 3 same combo box as the first, second and third sort key. Each combo box contains 3 sort keys, Aeg. A, B, C. User will choose the combination of keys they want and submit the page.. DTML Method 2 : ============ Display the information as the sorted manner defined in the earlier page. So how do you guys think? Can Z SQL Method do that? The followings are the possible key combinations: ABC ACB BAC BCA CAB CBA AB AC BA BC CA CB A B C Do we need to BUILD 15 Z SQL Method?? If not, what is the proper way? Please reply to hcsccs(a)prudential.com.my as well. Thanks a lot, Paul Chung Paul Chung Executive IT Department Prudential Assurance Malaysia Berhad

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Strange Characters and Zope
by Robin Becker 02 Aug '99

02 Aug '99

I was demonstrating the implementation in Zope of my Generational Accounting web model. The Academic saw how marvellous it was and wanted immediately to change some of the text in the pages. It was in word so I said 'save as html' and then we'll hack it into the database pages. Foolish me. Word inserts many strange characters into it's version of HTML. One of them being character 0x92. This causes the page to start flinging out save as dialogs. Can someone enlighten me as to what characters may be safely embedded/used in Zope DTML. We figured 0x92 fairly easily. The next document had something else weird and I haven't yet found out what. -- Robin Becker

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