Hi Susan, Gulp.js is a task-runner used to assist uPortal front-end developers with compiling the LESS files found in the skins, along with copying files over into a local dev server (such as Tomcat) in order to view the changes. It uses the Node.js platform (which needs to be installed on your machine locally in order to use). To see Gulp.js in action, I recommend the following tutorials:
Getting Started with Gulp (Travis Maynard) Managing Your Build Tasks with Gulp.js (Tuts+) An Introduction to Gulp.js (SitePoint) The build process of uPortal completes these tasks already; it also includes minifying the CSS and JavaScript for efficiency. However, when developing the front-end in a local environment, it can be time-intensive to wait for uPortal-war to build every time a simple CSS or LESS change is made. This is where Gulp comes in. There is another similar task-runner called Grunt which also uses the Node.js platform. They have some differences (Grunt use JSON configuration, Gulp uses Javascript; Grunt requires plug-ins to do tasks, Gulp has many of them built in). However, they both do the same thing - compile the LESS files and copy those files over to the dev server, eliminating the need to rebuild uPortal-war after every change. Also, there are IDEs that include these tasks in their environment. Sublime Text has some great packages that can assist with compiling LESS and copying files over. For those familiar with .NET, Visual Studio Express also has many Nuget packages that will do the same thing, along with setting up a deployment process to move files over into a dev environment. I personally use WebStorm by JetBrains which has Node integrated into the IDE, allowing me to create my own task-running system without worrying about configuration files or writing JavaScript. As far as the Wiki page, I appreciate you bringing this to our attention. Gulp files are not included in the uPortal code base, so this article needs to be rewritten to reflect preferences you (the developer) would prefer when compiling and deploying the front-end. Feel free to add a ‘Watch’ to the article, so you can contribute or offer feedback when this page is updated. I hope this helps you. Let me know if you have any additional questions or comments. Cheers, Jodie Muramoto User Experience | Unicon, Inc. c: (623) 810-1344 [email protected] On Aug 4, 2014, at 10:17 AM, Susan McCarthy <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi, > > I was wondering if anyone has been successful using gulp on uPortal? I found > this link discussing how to use gulp but it looks like it has not been fully > flushed out yet. Any help/ suggestions would be appreciated! > https://wiki.jasig.org/display/UPC/Using+gulp+to+help+streamline+the+Skinning+process > > Thanks, > > Susan McCarthy > Manhattan College '15 > -- > > You are currently subscribed to [email protected] as: > [email protected] > To unsubscribe, change settings or access archives, see > http://www.ja-sig.org/wiki/display/JSG/uportal-dev -- You are currently subscribed to [email protected] as: [email protected] To unsubscribe, change settings or access archives, see http://www.ja-sig.org/wiki/display/JSG/uportal-dev
