suggesting XUL
On Apr 5, 2004, at 10:07 AM, Andre Turrettini wrote:
> Check out xul. You can write an application in and write a delimited
> file
> to the harddrive each time someone enters their email. Its kind fo
> an xml
> _javascript_ approach to writing web apps. Similar to the approach
> used by
> longhorn and breeze. Its got a pretty sick grid bult in. I dont
> think its
> much harder than using the hta and fso in ie and when the computer
is
> eventually connected, just upload it to your cf or php
> server. requires
> mozilla but that should be ok on a mac.
I don't yet understand all I know about it, but I like what I see.
It gives you much more control of the DOM than DHMTL ever did, and it
works predictably. Coding XUL is different, but not much more
difficult than HTML --- though a better tutorial would help.
Tags are XML so they are more verbose than HTML, but that should be
offset by fewer, more powerful tags.
One thing I really like is that the developer has complete control of
the entire page real estate. We are not limited to a fixed portion of
the page for a Java Applet or Flash Movie (Though we can contain these
and html too, if desired).
I guess that we as developers have another option for developing
platform-independent RIAs and RIDs (Rich Interface Desktop
Applications)
Dick
On Apr 6, 2004, at 8:06 AM, Andre Turrettini wrote:
> potent stuff isnt it? Kinda makes you rethink application design and
> chucks
> out the window the need to learn flash to make a ria.
> DRE
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Dick Applebaum [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Sent: Tuesday, April 06, 2004 4:31 AM
> To: CF-Talk
> Subject: Re: desktop application
>
> I have been googling and playing with XUL for several hours and I am
> impressed with what it (you) can do.
>
> XUL has been out there for a while --- guess I just missed it.
>
> Here's a start (a little dated):
>
> http://www.sitepoint.com/article/xul-nets-biggest-secret-1
>
> XUL is a framework for creating a UI and writing application
> programs.
>
> These programs can be launched and run from a local hard disk or from
> a
> web server (or both)
>
> XUL is platform independent -- anywhere Mozilla runs, XUL runs
>
> XUL provides a consistent UI and program execution
>
> The above 2 points are similar to Flash advantages
>
> A XUL program can read and write (with user permission) to the local
> file system.
>
> A XUL program can (by itself) consume web services.
>
> There are XUL extensions that can directly interface a local SQL
> database (currently Postgres and MySQL)
>
> There are XUL extensions that can execute local programs and scripts
> in
> C++, Python, Ruby and Perl, with PHP coming -- these are
> programs/scripts running on the local machine
>
> So, I guess it is possible, today, to write a desktop application to
> meet the objectives of the originator of this thread:
>
> You can easily write an XUL app that:
>
> 1) Runs on the desktop
>
> 2) Allows people to enter their email addresses (a simple form)
>
> 3) Saves it (the data from each form submission) to a [local] text
> or XML file
>
> 4) Uploads the file to web server and parsed into the database
>
> In the near future, you should have the option of parsing the data
> with
> a local php program and storing the data in a local database -- this
> would allow data validation, check for duplicates, etc.
>
> Actually, you can do this now using a combination of _javascript_ and
> XUL
> extensions. But, it will be easier with PHP.
>
> What would really be nice if you could use CFMX as the local scripting
> language and db interface... yeah, that would really be nice...
>
> HTH
>
> Dick
>
> > From: Burns, John D [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> > Sent: Friday, April 02, 2004 2:58 PM
> > To: CF-Talk
> > Subject: SOT: desktop application
> >
> > I have a question about what the best practice would be for
> creating a
> > desktop application. I do websites for some different bands, and
> they
> > all have an e-mail sign-up on their website. Most of them also
> have
> > some kind of a paper sign-up at concerts for people to sign up
> for
> the
> > email list. I was considering building an app that would run on
> a
> > desktop to allow people at concerts to enter their email address
> and
> > write it to a text or xml file that could then be uploaded to the
> > webserver and parsed into the database.
> >
> > My question is what would be the best method to do this? I was
> > thinking
> > of doing the front end in Flash but I'm not sure how to write to
> a
> > file
> > from there. In theory, this app would need to work on a mac and
> a
> pc.
> > Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.
> >
> > John Burns
> >
> > _____
> _____
>
[Todays Threads] [This Message] [Subscription] [Fast Unsubscribe] [User Settings]
