Some paying attention to the commit messages may have noticed a wierd stream of stuff into contrib/temporary/struts-velocity/... This is a small experimental 'package' that allows one to use Velocity templates in the Struts web application framework. ( http://jakarta.apache.org/struts/ ) I hope this doesn't rub any Turbiners the wrong way. It's not meant to. There are lots of reasons why I am interested in doing this, but primarily to get Velocity out there into the world, in front of people doing development. There is lots of work to be done, but it's a start. I placed it into a new contrib tree : as I am going to personally support this (and y'all are invited to join), I didn't think it belonged under whiteboard. It clearly, clearly doesn't belong in the regular Velocity build. Ideally, I think this should go into the Struts source tree, but lets crawl before walking... I sent the following to the struts-user list. Note that Struts is entirely JSP based, so this might bring JSP users to our lists.... ------------------------------ Velocity is a general template engine that is well suited for the View layer in web applications. It is considered an excellent alternative to JSP. Velocity is a Jakarta project just like Struts, and has it's homepage at : http://jakarta.apache.org/velocity/ I have been exploring the possiblity of using Velocity templates in the Struts framework, and would like to invite any interested Struts users and developers to participate. Currently, I have it far enough where the struts-example has been converted, and for the most part works 100% like the original. There is support for : 1) Integration of normal velocity templates (*.vm) into the Struts action/forward framework. These templates can co-exist with JSPs in the same application. 2) The excellent Struts message resource management. 3) The Struts Action error system. The package doesn't modify or replace any Struts code, so there will be no disruption of your normal application development. I am looking to guage interest in this continuing, and having people try out Velocity in their Struts-based application. Further, I am very interested in re-purposing the taglibs for general Velocity use, so actual use cases will be good to drive that forward. If you are interested, the package can be found in the Velocity CVS under jakarta-velocity/contrib/temporary/struts-velocity Please read the README.txt for any interesting build or other notes. The example, bundled as a WAR and tested on Tomcat 4.0 an Tomcat 3.2.1, can be found at http://jakarta.apache.org/builds/jakarta-velocity/contrib/struts/ I look forward to working with you. geir P.S. Note - I said 'alternative to...' rather than 'replacement for...'. Some of you may be familiar with the debate over JSP vs template engines(specifically Velocity and WebMacro), and may be familiar with some of the provocative information we have on the Velocity web site regarding this issue. I am not interested in that debate with this - I simply am interested in seeing Velocity as a choice for web development specifically here in the Struts framework, interested in evolving Velocity through comparison with other technologies [yes, I will steal every good idea I see :-) ], and understanding more about approaches to web development frameworks. So be nice :) --------------------------------- geir -- Geir Magnusson Jr. [EMAIL PROTECTED] Developing for the web? See http://jakarta.apache.org/velocity/
