Re: [sqwebmail] Re: folder.html, left.gif & right.gif

[Jesse Guardiani]

On Friday 27 June 2003 10:18, Sam Varshavchik wrote:
> Jesse Guardiani writes:
> > What I'd really like to do is move towards a system where all page
> > specific code is handled at the very top of the page, possibly by
> > inserting a tag similar(but unique for each page) to this:
>
> [ ... ]
>
> Unless there's some tangible benefit to all this, I don't care.  Each time
> a change is introduced, there's a possibility of introducing a bug. 
> Cutting things apart just to introduce a higher theological level of design
> purity will not result in any tangible benefit, and then you'll need to
> spend even more time fixing bugs that were introduced in step 1.

Sure Sam. People cut things apart to 'introduce a higher theological level of design'
all the time. It's necessary, and when it's finished it makes life easier. Otherwise
people wouldn't do it.


>
> If I had all the time in the world, then maybe.  But I don't have all the
> time in the world, and I'd rather spend what I do have on things that will
> actually result in something productive.
>
> > Then, as do_output_form_loop() works it's way down the page it will
> > encounter tags like this:
> >
> > [#display_email_table#]
> >
> > [#display_Next_Page_icon#]
> >
> > etc...
> >
> > Each of the 'display_...' tags would translate to a simple function in
> > do_output_form_loop() that would simply print the necessary data
> > stored in the data structure created by 'init_page_x'.
>
> That's nice, except that in many instances this is not a fill-in-the-blanks
> type of deal.  In many cases you need to remove entire sections of HTML, or
> generate new ones.

Where do you remove entire sections of HTML?

Generating tables of information is one thing, but grouping buttons and
other items in with the same function that generates the table is another.

And even then you can usually make a one of two row table template to
work from.


>
> I don't have any particular need to win any design purity contexts.  I'm
> not going to fix anything that's not broken.


"Design purity" serves a purpose when it helps people do work more
efficiently.

I can't modify sqwebmail's templates in the ways I want because sqwebmail
doesn't have a clear separation of code and content. There's your 'tangible
benefit'.

And sifting through sqwebmail's code trying to determine what the heck #G#
is supposed to do is a real pain in the butt. Self commenting tags, and page
specific and global tags would really make things easier.

I think I'll just do the work and make a patch. You can take it or leave it at
that point.

-- 
Jesse Guardiani, Systems Administrator
WingNET Internet Services,
P.O. Box 2605 // Cleveland, TN 37320-2605
423-559-LINK (v)  423-559-5145 (f)
http://www.wingnet.net