RE: [FormProc-developer] New rules written

[Nick B. <ni...@co...>]

> The reason I like passing an Element in is because 1.) it allows the
> class to configure itself and 2.) the configuration information can
> take advantage of the nice structures which XML provides.

I don't understand how you get something more than what Collections provide
in XML, especially since XML is still a moving target in a lot of areas. A
rule can still configure itself if you hardcore model the contract with
either a Collection (easiest) or with a FormProc-specific class. Collections
don't take away Rule's self configuration. Maybe it just seems that way
because you're using DOM, which I still think you should revisit.

> As for loading goodies at runtime, I totally agree.   What do you
> propose as an adapter API?

Not enough available buffer space in my brain at the moment (I have a 1k
buffer). Will get to it as soon as I can.

> Something else I think would be good is to be able to use a custom
> class loader to load validators which are not in the classpath at
> startup.  This would allow you to package your validators in a JAR,
> drop them in a directory and off you go - no need to set up the
> classpath.  I am doing this in a couple other projects and it is very
> nice.

Totally agree. I'll consider it. Right now I'm focusing on reloading a
changed config from the filesystem without engine restart and more rules,
rules, rules.

Did you notice how the credit card stuff is far more flexible than ever?
Supports something like 7-8 different card types, too.