Bootstrap Initiative (was: Ofbiz Menu widget)

Adrian Crum Fri, 31 Oct 2014 03:26:49 -0700

I think we got disconnected somehow. The Visual Themes list can bedisplayed with a form widget (used as a list) - so we don't need a menuwidget for that.

Regarding the main navigation - Due to its unique nature, I think weshould create a widget for it:


<main-navigation/>

The widget model would contain the logic currently found in theindividual visual theme header templates. This would eliminate a lot ofduplicate FreeMarker code.

I would also like to change how applications insert themselves in themain navigation menu. Maybe something like (in ofbiz-component.xml):


<webapp name="accounting"
        title="Accounting"
        server="default-server"
        location="webapp/accounting"
        base-permission="OFBTOOLS,ACCOUNTING"
        mount-point="/accounting">
    <navigation>
        <main>

<title-property resource="AccountingUiLabels"property="AccountingAccounting"/>

        </main>
        <!-- or secondary nav menu...
        <secondary>

<title-property resource="AccountingUiLabels"property="AccountingAccounting"/>

        </secondary>
        -->
        <!-- app-menu element enables main nav drop-downs -->

<app-menu name="AccountingAppBar"location="component://accounting/widget/AccountingMenus.xml"/>

    </navigation>
</webapp>

The <main-navigation> widget would use this information to render itself.

Adrian Crum
Sandglass Software
www.sandglass-software.com

On 10/31/2014 7:39 AM, Gavin Mabie wrote:

I'd be interested to see just how you would go about it, given the fact
that unlike screens, trees and forms, the widget-menu.xsd does not allow
for actions such as entity-condition etc.

Gavin

On Fri, Oct 31, 2014 at 8:33 AM, Adrian Crum <
[email protected]> wrote:

Some of those lists can be rendered with the form widget.

We can create a widget for the main navigation.

Adrian Crum
Sandglass Software
www.sandglass-software.com

On 10/30/2014 11:15 PM, Gavin Mabie wrote:

You referred to such a case in point in an earlier mail - i.e the
displayApps/displaySecondaryApps in the main-navigation. Other examples
that come to mind are a list of available languages, list of visual
themes,
a task list - all of which could be presented as dropdown options -
eliminating the need for a additional request and screen.

Gavin

On Thu, Oct 30, 2014 at 6:45 PM, Adrian Crum <
[email protected]> wrote:

  That is not possible with the current architecture. The widget models are

supposed to be read-only.

What is the use case?

Adrian Crum
Sandglass Software
www.sandglass-software.com

On 10/30/2014 3:17 PM, Gavin Mabie wrote:

  Wish


It would be super cool if we had an iterator inside the menu widget.
That
would allow for dynamic menu item generation. Or does it exist?

Gavin

On Thu, Oct 30, 2014 at 1:12 PM, Scott Gray <[email protected]

wrote:

   Yeah he did a great job implementing the macro renderer.  We discussed

the
idea many years ago and he turned it into something real (which is
definitely the hard part).

I'd be interested to hear what integration steps you might take for
angularjs, I've been through the tutorials lately and it looks
promising
as
a front-end framework.  But it seems to use static html templates
delivered
to the client so I'm unsure how OFBiz would play a role other than
providing the web services.

Regards
Scott

On 30/10/2014, at 11:21 pm, Adrian Crum <
[email protected]> wrote:

   Actually, the idea was Jacopo's - when he first introduced the macro


  screen renderer years ago.

I exploited that feature to use the Sencha JS framework in OFBiz for
one

  of our clients. Our current client uses Angular JS, so I expect to be

integrating Angular for them. And right now the OFBiz community is
working
on integrating Bootstrap.

So, the capability has been there all along, but no one used it until

  now.

Adrian Crum
Sandglass Software
www.sandglass-software.com

On 10/30/2014 9:51 AM, Scott Gray wrote:

  That's a great idea! Thanks for implementing it


On 30 October 2014 20:31:06 GMT+13:00, Adrian Crum <

  [email protected]> wrote:


  I modified the MacroScreenViewHandler in rev 1635411. Themes can

create

their own HTML now.

Adrian Crum
Sandglass Software
www.sandglass-software.com

On 10/30/2014 6:37 AM, Gavin Mabie wrote:

  Julien,


I think that we are actually in agreement about minimizing (even

  avoiding)


  framework modifications. Maybe we need to further explore exactly


  what


  qualifies as part of the framework. As Adrian stated in an earlier


  mail on


  the subject: "The Widget Models and Renderer are output agnostic -


  they


  don't "know" what type of output is being generated. So those


  artifacts do


  not need to be changed to support Bootstrap.


The only things that need to be changed to support Bootstrap (sic
or

  any


  other frontend framework) are the FreeMarker macros - so that they


  output


  Bootstrap HTML + CSS instead of the current OFBiz-specific HTML +


  CSS."

Following this line of thinking, creating specific Bootstrap macros

  should


  not be considered as changing the framework.  Maybe we need a


  practical


  example to illustrate this.


Regards

Gavin



On Wed, Oct 29, 2014 at 11:19 PM, Julien NICOLAS

  <[email protected]>


  wrote:

Hi,


I'm sorry but I'm not sure to understand well the goal...
We'll modify the framework to match with bootstrap but, if we have

  to do


  UI modification, we have to do it in the framework ?!

If macros stay in the framework I don't understand how to be as

  flexible


  as we need if anytime we have to change framework...


My question is : with your example, you'll define compatible

  bootstrap


  navbars. But if I want to add something new in it (like avatar


  picture or


  other feature), do I must change the framework ?

If the answer is yes, I think we are on the wrong way...

Regards,

Julien.

Le 29/10/2014 17:09, Gavin Mabie a écrit :

     Hi Julien, Adrian

IMO that we should try to define all menus via menu widgets. So
I'm
inclined to agree with Adrian on the issue of the main-navigation

  menu.

  Maybe this is something we should include in our Bootstrap project.

Loading macros as Visual Visual Theme resources might also address

Julien's
wish to have a more generic way to integrate front-end
frameworks.

  I also

  support the suggestion that we copy the existing macro to the to be

created

Bootstrap theme and to modify them, as per Adrian's suggestion.
We

  can

  then address the sub-menu issue in the macros.

Gavin

On Wed, Oct 29, 2014 at 4:50 PM, Adrian Crum <
[email protected]> wrote:

     If you are referring to the main navigation menu:

<div id="main-navigation">

that uses a template instead of a menu widget - it is done that

  way

  simply

because no one has tried to do it differently. Personally, I would


  like

to

see it changed to a menu widget.


Regarding the existing FreeMarker macros: those should be copied

  to the

  Bootstrap theme and modified to output Bootstrap-specific HTML. To

use

the

Bootstrap theme, you will need to modify widget.properties to


  reference

the

Bootstrap macros.


It would be nice to have a more dynamic way to change macros,
but

  it

  might

be best to put that idea on the shelf for now. (Maybe we can make

the

  macro

file locations Visual Theme resources - store them in the


  database.)

Adrian Crum
Sandglass Software
www.sandglass-software.com

On 10/29/2014 2:28 PM, Julien NICOLAS wrote:

     Adrian,

It's just : Why html structure for sub-menu is not managed like

  main

  menu


Is it possible to use sub-menu like main menu ?
Maybe we can move macro from framework folder to theme folder.

hope you understand better in this way :)

Thanks for your help,

Julien.


Le 29/10/2014 15:22, Adrian Crum a écrit :

     I don't understand the question. Could you ask it in
another

  way

  please?

Adrian Crum
Sandglass Software
www.sandglass-software.com

On 10/29/2014 1:39 PM, Julien NICOLAS wrote:

     Hi Gavin, Adrian and all,

I was thinking about move sub-menu generation by header.ftl
or
appbarOpen.ftl in theme folder like main menu...
Can we move the macro in the theme folder or create a service

  that

  send

sub-menu entry sorted list ?


It could be useful to create specific webdesign if this
section

  could

be

managed manually.


What's your opinion ?

Julien.


Le 29/10/2014 12:07, Gavin Mabie a écrit :

     Hi,

As I'm working on the bootstrap theme branch, I notice that:
1. menuStringRenderer is out-commettted in the

  MacroScreenViewhandler

  class;

2. This being the case, that menus get rendered by default


  through

the

HtmlMenuRenderer class;

3. The latter automatically creates <ul><li><ul> opening
tags

  for

  every

menus included in a screen definition with a menu item count


  bigger

  than 0;

4.  This results in an extra <ul> - the first one;

5.  menu item count does not take sub-menus into account -
in

  fact,

  although defined in the xsd, I could not find any examples of

the

  sub-menu

attribute in any of the *menu,xml.


Is this an issue?Common sense tells me that the

  menuStringRendere was

  (is)

part pf the architecture, but that a conscious decision was


  made to

  rather

leave it out.


Some guidance please?

Gavin

Bootstrap Initiative (was: Ofbiz Menu widget)

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