[Pipet Devel] Web interface

[Carlos Maltzahn]

    > Also, don't underestimate the things you can do with JavaScript and newer
    > versions of HTML. I found
    > http://developer.netscape.com/viewsource/index_frame.html?content=archive/archivelist.html
    > useful to get an impression.
    > 
    > See also
    > http://developer.netscape.com/viewsource/goodman_drag/goodman_drag.html
    > for (at least to me) surprising applications.
    
    These are examples of both JavaScript and DHTML (Dynamic HTML).  
    The first is Netscape's proprietary scripting language, and the
    other is Microsoft's proprietary extension of HTML.  I am aware of
    how well they both work, and yes they can do some amazing things.  
    The HTML interface can make use of these, but I would like some
    feedback on using these proprietary languages in a GNU project.  
    I had rejected doing that before, which is one of the reasons why
    we aren't using Java or Tcl/Tk.  Maybe we should stick with open
    source everywhere...?

JavaScript is open source isn't it? It's part of Mozilla. Supposedly the
Raptor/Gecko layout engine is going to support "HTML 4.0, CSS 1/2, XML
1.0, and the Document Object Model" (first stable version of Gecko is due
sometime during first half of 1999). For example for dragging and dropping
stuff around you need layers (HTML4), event handling (JavaScript/DOM), and
absolute positioning of elements (CSS2/DOM). I'm not sure how soon Mozilla
is going to support all this, but I suspect within this year.

Because there is no open source version that supports a sufficiently
dynamic interface yet - but it might arrive within this year -, it is
probably a good idea to implement the UI in GTK first. Once the design
stabilizes and the open source web interface language implementation
becomes available, some of us can then see how far one can push a dynamic
web interface.

Carlos