[OpenAjax-Contributors] Alex's comments and questions

[Jon F. <jf...@us...>]

YAY! Alex has looked at the latest source code. I have captured his
comments and questions.

(1) Serialize.js:
Alex asks:  // FIXME: why do we have this file? It's not referenced fro=
m
anything else. Is it actually part of the hub?

Response: This file is used by some of the test cases in ../testsrc.
Because of this, it probably belongs in ../testsrc, not ../src. But bef=
ore
moving the file, I plan to change all of the old tests from the previou=
sly
manual (non-JSUnit) test cases into automatic JSUnit test cases. (Proba=
bly
in the next couple of days.) Maybe there will be no need to serialize a=
fter
this switch to JSUnit, so maybe this file will disappear.

(2) GlobalsCollisionCheck.js:
Alex asks:
// FIXME: doesn't just checking for the existance of
// OpenAjax.globalsCollisionCheck do the same thing? Why is there this
strange
// registry hanging off the side?
/* Register that the GlobalsCollisionChec module has been loaded. */
OpenAjax.features["GlobalsCollisionCheck"] =3D true;

Answer: What I had in mind was trying to address download issues where =
an
application developer or toolkit developer might only use pieces of the=
 Hub
rather than the whole thing. The point of OpenAjax.features would be to=

provide a well-documented and standard mechanism that works across the
entire Hub for seeing which modules have been initialized. But this is =
at
best a half-baked mechanism. Unless someone objects, I will yank out
"OpenAjax.features".

 (3) MarkupScanner.js
Alex says:
// FIXME: this "global constant" block is stupid, bordering on the usel=
ess.
Why
// are we not just doing string comparison instead of hoisting all this=

cruft
// around and making users memorize either constants or look them up?

// Global constants
OpenAjax.KEntireString =3D 0;   // For OpenAjaxType attribute analysis,=
 must
match entire attribute value
OpenAjax.KInitialChars =3D 1;   // For OpenAjaxType attribute analysis,=
 must
match initial chars in attr value

Answer: I agree. I will remove this useful bordering on stupid approach=
 and
replace with string comparisons.

(4) OpenAjaxFirst.js
Alex says:
            // FIXME: why is it ever acceptable for us to be showing er=
rors
to
            // users? Alert is perhaps the worst possible thing we coul=
d be
doing
            // here.
            alert("OpenAjax initialization error: " + message);

Answer: I agree. I wrote this code several days ago when I was so much =
more
ignorant and already had a note to myself to make sure all such similar=

bits of code are removed. (I believe there are several other places tha=
t
might produce alerts.) I will fix this. I'm not sure at this time exact=
ly
how to address it, but I suspect this routine can just be removed (best=
 fix
of all).

Thanks, Alex!

Jon

Jon Ferraiolo <jf...@us...>
Web Architect, Emerging Technologies
IBM, Menlo Park, CA
Mobile: +1-650-926-5865=