We've been excited about and doing lots of interesting things with
plugins lately. From a big picture perspective I'm wondering where
we are headed. Some of my questions are:
- So do we all really agree that plugins are The Way and are we
prepared to reconsider how Geronimo is developed, built, and deployed
around that approach? Or should plugins remain as simply an
alternate mechanism for installing components and applications?
- What is the purpose of the framework assembly and how are the
other various assemblies built, installed, and configured?
- Can/should we build assemblies for TCK from plugins and if so how
would they be made available to end users? I heard some ideas about
using plugins as a component grouping mechanism that would allow
users to transform their server into a certified assembly by simply
installing their plugin of choice. That sounds promising and needs
more thought.
- There is some work going on in GERONIMO-3330 to improve the
robustness and maintainability plugin catalogs. What other
infrastructure type requirements do we have for making plugin
repositories easy to use and maintain?
- What usability improvements are needed in the plugin CLI and admin
console portlets?
- Is there any place for OSGI in Geronimo's plugin strategy?
- Java EE 6 (JSR 316) has a major theme of modularity and
extensibility in the application server[1]. How can we align our
plugin strategy with what's coming our way at a specification level?
Looking forward to your thoughts and follow on questions.
Best wishes,
Paul
[1] http://www.infoq.com/news/2007/07/jee6
