Re: [TCLCORE] CFV on small high-prio TIPs (#306)

[Jeff H. <je...@ac...>]

Damon Courtney wrote:
>> Let me note that I strongly favor some auto-naming of widgets.  I
>> advocate it and use it in the Perl/Tkx binding that I wrote.  However,
>> it conflicts with years of standard coding style in Tcl, especially  
>> wrt
>> megawidget libraries.  After looking a little further, snidgets  
>> could be
>> made to support this at the base level in one code spot (the advantage
>> of such a system).  However, many older systems spread out there  
>> widget
>> creation among the widgets in a way that is more fragile.
>>
>> Shall I take the opportunity to push TIP#180 again?  ;)
> 
>      I would like to note that not only should TIP 180 support the  
> auto-naming of widgets, I would go one step further and say that TIP  
> 180 should also support some sort of standard, default option on all  
> widgets to create an "alias" of sorts.  Then, I would add a single  
> configure command that handles them.
> 
>      90% of the widgets created in Tk are forgotten in the code  
> because we don't care or need to know anything about them.  This is  
> made even more so by things like -variable and -textvariable which  
> almost let us completely ignore the widget itself.  For the other 10%,  
> we all end up coding some crap like:
> 
> global w
> 
> set w(myEntry) [entry .e]
> $w(myEntry) configure -background blue
> 
>      This is where the new option comes in.  Something like:
> 
> entry .e -alias myEntry
> configure myEntry -background blue
> 
>      Throw in the auto-naming stuff, and you've got yourself a nice  
> way to work with what you care about and lose the rest in the noise.

Skip -alias, consider -tags (would any known widget conflict at the 
widget creation level?).

button .b -tags toolbar
button .c -tags {toolbar edge}
configure toolbar -state disabled
...

I simulate this at the higher level now.  It may be asking too much for 
8.6, but possibly worth considering.

Jeff