[Zope] Data-Aware Folder

[Roché Compaan]

> Igor Elbert wrote:
> > I looked at ZPatterns and TransWarp before and did not like them.
> ZPatterns
> > seem too heavy for the outcome. IMHO, the concept is good - 
> implementation
> > is convoluted. TransWarp is not ready. If it is going to be 
> anything like
> > ZPatterns, by the time the Zope community groks it, the package =
creators
> > will abandon it and move to something else.

Before you give up on ZPatterns completely, look at Steve Spicklemire's
examples:

http://www.zope.org/Members/sspickle/DumbZPatternsExample
http://www.zope.org/Members/sspickle/SQLZPatternsExample1
http://www.zope.org/Members/sspickle/SQLZPatternsExample2

We've been using ZPatterns extensively in a number of apps and it has
given us a lot of joy.  It is the best framework Zope _currently_ has
for data abstraction and it is really not that complicated - it's just
missing some documentation.  In the available docs to much is said about
what it can do for you and very little about how to do the simple things
- one just have to know what pieces to wire together. (Maybe I need to
write a howto if anybody is interested)

We have extended ZPatterns in a number a ways to make life really
really easy of which the two most interesting examples are:

1. We created a SQL DataManager (it's called a Rack in ZPatterns) that 
automatically creates all the SQL needed to store a object in a
RDB and creates the binding code.

2. We made ZPatterns skinnable like the CMF, making it really easy
for 3rd party developers to customize ZPatterns apps.  This solved
one major flaw in ZPatterns for us and has given us the best of
both worlds.  Just doing this immediately extended ZPatterns
lifetime by a mile.

We'll probably release the above in a week or two if there's any
interest ;-)

And of course, the undertones of Igor's message is as desperate
as ours - we wan't to build on a framework that will last for
at least a couple of years and we need it now.  In the mean
time we now our desires will change when Zope 3 comes along because
we'll want to do things the Zope 3 way :-)

-- 
Roché Compaan
Upfront Systems			http://www.upfrontsystems.co.za