I'm developing libraries and end-user software using the
qooxdoo framework
for 7 years now. I wonder if we can store version number in one place in Manifest.json and get it from the application to display it to users. As we use short development cycles and demo/test and serve our apps on different servers we rely extensively on version numbers to talk to users.
My question is : can we access data from Manifest.json in the application and particularly the info.version?
We currently use the generator from the
5.0.2 framework
and are migrating to
qxcompiler
and
6.0.0-alpha
framework.
Best
After trying different keys with the qx.core.Environment object and further looking into generated code I found that all I need was under the qx.libraryInfoMap key. This environment value contains basically all the data from all Manifest.json of included libraries (including the qooxdoo framework itself). Each map key is a library name and each value the respective Manifest.json map.
For instance, accessing the version number of the project (library) myProj can be done like that:
var lim = qx.core.Environment.get('qx.libraryInfoMap'); // get the map
var ver = lim['myProj']['version']; // get the 'version' of the library 'myProj'
Related
I have noticed on a number of platforms: iOS, Android and BlackBerry that when updating an app the entire app is downloaded again (others mobile platforms may work this way too but I have only been exposed to these platforms).
Why does the entire app need to be downloaded again for an update instead of incremental updates?
This seems very inefficient especially if you are dealing with large apps.
Your basic question is not true for iOS, as of 6.0:
Starting with iOS 6, the app store will automatically produce an
update package for all new versions of apps submitted to the store.
This package is optimized for updating an app from one version to
another, and contains files that have changed between the prior
version of an app and the new version of the app, excluding files that
have not changed.
When used optimally, an update package is significantly smaller to
download than the full package of the app and the update will install
more quickly. Also, in many cases, this mechanism allows updates to
large apps to be downloadable over cellular networks where app
downloads are subject to a size limit.
In addition to new content, the update package contains instructions
on how to transform the prior version of the app into the new version
of the app. New files will be added, modified files will be replaced
with their updated counterpart, and deleted files will be removed as
part of this transformation. As far as the developer and user are
concerned, this process is entirely transparent and the resulting
updated app will be indistinguishable from a full download of the
corresponding updated version of their app.
So, yes, it is possible to do delta application updates, as well as delta OS updates, on mobile platforms. This capability simply has to be added by the OS vendor.
Some of the code and other content might be updated and/or changed. This requires a update. Since Android does not allow you to change/delete/add files to the installation folder, you have to download and reinstall the whole app.
I made a simple CMS with CakePHP to handle a small (but growing) number of websites. The CMS is constantly evolving as I regularly add features to a development version on my own machine.
I use SVN to trace the evolution of this development version, and that's pretty much it. To make a new website, I basically copy/paste the dev folder and modify the necessary files before uploading the new website by FTP.
One problem is in the end, every website installation is independent and if I want to add some new features to existing websites, I have to copy files by hand.
Another problem is that some websites have modified versions of the CMS because of specific needs: some controller classes have specific methods not present on the local version.
To sum it up:
I have one base CakePHP app regularly evolving
There are multiple versions (=websites) of this app already installed on different servers
Some websites have custom code included not present in the base version
I want to be able to easily update all the present and future websites when I improve the base app, without breaking some possible specific parts
Knowing it's a CakePHP app, what would you do? How should I change my code to manage at the same time the core and the specific code?
Thanks in advance!
... some controller classes have specific methods not present on the local version.
You might also consider the option of setting up additional class paths within each of your website applications. You can tell CakePHP to check other directories entirely for files missing from the current application. For example, you could have the following directory structure:
/app1 - a standard client's website application
/app2
/app3 - a custom client's website application (with custom controller)
/core - the core CMS application
/cake
By adding the following to your /appN/config/bootstrap.php files, you are telling CakePHP to look for controllers in /core/controllers if it can't find one it's looking for in the current application.
App::build(array(
'controllers' => array(ROOT . DS . 'core' . DS . 'controllers' . DS),
));
This would, for example, allow you to put all your CMS controllers in /core/controllers and delete all your /appN/controllers directories. Only where a client needed a controller customized (ie. /app3 above) would you create a controllers directory, copy the specific controller across and make modifications (adding methods and such).
(This is the approach the developer of Wildflower CMS took - note the /wildflower directory.)
Using version control software (like SVN) would probably do the trick for you. Each website you work on could be a branch that follows the main branch of development. Every time you make a change that you want to apply to every site, you'd update the main branch and then have every sub branch import the changes from the main branch.
Mind you, I'm more used to how Git works, so this scenario might work better in Git than in SVN, ymmv.
I have a class library which is a set of helper classes to develop windows phone 7 applications.
One of core helper classes I have in this library is responsible to provide location service functionalities, so it uses ILocationWatcher and references to System.Device.
Now the problem is even if I don't use this helper class (i.e. LocationWatcher will never be started) after submitting the app in marketplace, it shows "Location services" as one of capabilities my app is using.
I believe the way marketplace detects this, is more or less analysing all codes and libraries within the project.
How can we somehow override this behaviour?
Capabilites are detected using static analysis when your xap is submitted to the marketplace.
The location capabiltiy is reported if you reference the assembly System.Device and use the namespace System.Device.Location.
All assemblies in your XAP are analysed. Even ones you get from 3rd parties.
If you don't want the capability to be reported in the marketplace then remove the references which triggers its detection.
You may want to consider how you structure your shared/common libraries/code with this in mind.
You can check your used capabilities with the free capability detection tool supplied with the second Mango SDK beta. If you use location without defining it at the WMAppManifest.xml, the user will get a "Access denied" message and your app will throw an UnauthorizedAccessException. Afaik there is no possible way to circumvent this behaviour. It is meant as a security feature to warn users before they install a app so they can check on marketplace what features the application will want to use.
I don't believe it is analyzing the code. Rather it is using the manifest's Capabilities section to determine what is required. You can learn more about that section here:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff769509(v=vs.92).aspx#BKMK_Capabilities
Does the application's manifest include ID_CAP_LOCATION? If it does, and you aren't using it - it can safely be removed.
So, yes, this is probably 1000th question on the subject. However, my question is somewhat different from others that were asked about this, so please bear with me:
I am looking to develop a single mobile-app that targets the three/four popular and/or growing mobile platforms (Iphone, Android, WinPhone7, RIM). This application is an extension of an existing SaaS system that my startup currently offers. This mobile-app would provide a quick-and-simple way to view up-to-date status & chart & report information for the data that SaaS application collects. Connection to the internet is required 100%. No data entry besides username/password. App is very simple with 5-6 "pages".
In phase 1, all that would need to be supported is for user to log in, get to see current status of his data stored in the cloud, get access to a few live reports
In phase 2, I'd like to be able to offer push-notification of certain key events from my servers in the cloud
My goals are:
1) The back-end processing that generates data for reports is already written in ASP.NET MVC2. I want to re-use it. It can be exposed as either a WCF service or published on a mobile-friendly website
2) I'd like to be able to deploy the patches faster than through the official app-stores/marketplaces.
3) I cannot afford to spend a lot of resources to target three-four proprietary platforms, for an app that is auxiliary to the vertical purpose of the business. I want to develop it once for all 3-4 platforms.
4) I do not have access, nor do I want to purchase a Macbook
5) I do want to deploy thru the vendor-specific application marketplaces
6) I'd like to stay way from proprietary languages/frameworks/lock-ins
Sounds like what I need is a shell around a mobile-friendly site that can be packaged as an app. Are there existing products that can make it REAL EASY for me to do so? Will doing so, preclude me from doing push notifications in phase 2?
Can anyone recommend a "shell" product that would make a wrapper around the website as well as Javascript library that would look the best across all 4 platforms. I've seen the names like Jqtouch, Jquery Mobile, etc... but not sure which ones are better for what I need.
Do I need PhoneGap? I am not 100% sure here. Can PhoneGap use online-only html/javascript pages to translate into native code or must html/javascript files be distributed with the application? I'd rather have the website itself drive the UI completely, as I can keep changing the website without various version approval processes from vendor market-stores.
Thank you for help
I don’t think you need Phonegap after reading about your project goals. You might consider a Web App instead of a native one if you 1) dont want to buy a mac (required for iOS even tho you can compile it in the cloud: https://build.phonegap.com/), and 2) want to apply and deploy updates anytime without going thru those platform independent marketplaces and approval processes.
jQuery Mobile would be an excellent choice, currently (at this very moment) in Alpha 3 but a very stable one and you can deploy your system on any of those platforms. Note that if you focus your efforts in a Web App you can’t target the second phase you mentioned: Push Notifications.
If you decide going Native, then Push Notifications services can be deployed into your Phonegap project once you setup the proper web services and certificates (take a look # http://easyapns.com);
..and one quick note, the idea of phonegap is that all resources (html, js, images. etc) have to be distributed locally within the app and then getting online data (like reports, etc) using JSON from another web service, and that’s another easy task to accomplish. Phonegap DOES NOT compile your HTML files into native code (ObjectiveC or Java), it just load your Web App into a UIWebKit component at run time (in the case of an iOS app)
Another alternative could be using Titanium - http://www.appcelerator.com but this approach is more javascript oriented and your final app looks much more native. (not HTMLs here so I think thats a drawback for you)
Hope it helps :)
Currently I have a working Silverlight application that uses .Net RIA Services.
It's structure:
Client-side
Application.Client.UI.dll (Xamls and
basic UI stuff)
Application.Client.BL.dll (Contains the Link to RIA and most of the business logic)
Server-side
Application.Server.Data.dll (Server-side dll that holds the Entity-model and it's generated domain service)
Application.Server.Web.dll (Only the ASP.net hosting container, which references the
Application.Server.Data.dll)
I placed most of the business logic on the client side (Application.Client.BL.dll) for better user-experience (fast reactions) and to free up server resources. My challenge is now to re-use this client-side dll including it's RIA data access capabilities, in a server-side windows service. I'm wondering, is that possible at all? Is the Application.Client.BL.dll still able to consume the existing RIA service, or does that dll require the Silverlight runtime to identify/locate it's service target, and therefore will not work anywhere else.
Curious for your answers
You really shouldn't put any business logic on the client, the guys in security and / or architecture will hate you for it ;-). Furthermore you can't use Silverlight assemblies in ASP.Net or Desktop projects and vice versa. If memory serves correctly, Silverlight uses an entirely different CLR altogether.
I encountered similar needs when working with compact framework assemblies I also wanted to compile for the full framework. I'll describe how I would work around this scenario.
If there exist any issues referencing the Silverlight assembly, consider building two projects as follows:
Project #1 would be your Silverlight library, and should contain all the source files you want to use on the client.
Project #2 would be your Windows Service. Instead of including source files directly, use the "Add Existing Item", find the original source file in project #1, then (and this is the magic), drop down the Add button to choose, instead, choose "Add as Link".
By including the source file as a link, you retain the ability to maintain your source code in one location, but add the ability to compile your code for multiple frameworks. As long as the code relies on assemblies available in both the Silverlight framework and the full .NET framework, then you're money.
Now, regardless of whether you choose a multi-project approach, know that domain context classes have additional constructors that allow you to specify contextual information, such as the URL, for the corresponding domain service. I use the following code in one application to construct a domain context for a domain service that provides personnel data:
var context = new PersonnelDomainContext(
new Uri(ConfigurationManager.AppSettings["PersonnelServiceUrl"]))
In this case, the URL looks something like:
http://website-url/Services/Hyphenated-Namespace-PersonnelDomainService.svc
Of course, when writing a Windows Service, nothing is stopping you from referencing the server-side domain service (not context) assembly directly. With the domain service in hand, you can instantiate a service instance without all the additional configuration and without the additional network XML payload. There are trade-offs to this approach, such as forfeiting centralized configuration management (such as connection strings), but depending on your circumstances, you may find the trade-offs to be worth it.
Happy coding!
Have you considered using fork-reuse? Take a look at:
http://sharednow.blogspot.com/2011/05/its-not-just-reuse.html