[Sugar-devel] [DESIGN] Examples objects support for activities.

[Martin Abente]

Very nice :) We still need to get this idea shaped/designed first so then
we can continue with the hacking (fun) part!

On Fri, Jul 20, 2012 at 8:43 AM, Agustin Zubiaga Sanchez <aguz at sugarlabs.org
> wrote:

> Hi, some days ago I was talking with Walter also about it.
> And I have started with the examplechooser, it isn't very difficult to do,
> only using a treeview and modifying his base color to white, you can obtain
> a very similar widget.
> I sent my advance in the attachment, lacks a lot, but we can start from
> here.
>
> Regards,
> aguz.
>
>
> 2012/7/20 Walter Bender <walter.bender at gmail.com>
>
>> On Thu, Jul 19, 2012 at 8:02 PM, Gonzalo Odiard <gonzalo at laptop.org>
>> wrote:
>> > Hello Tincho! Nice to read you here again :)
>>
>> Yes. Nice that Tincho is back.
>>
>> >
>> > I agree this can be a very good addition, and I see think we need
>> > solve two different parts:
>> >
>> > 1) Access the examples in the activities: using a widget similar to
>> > the object chooser,
>> > but showing files in a directory. I think Silbe said, the actual
>> > Object Chooser can't do it,
>> > due to limitations in the actual Journal implementation. (Sascha, can
>> > you confirm?)
>> > Probably we can create a a similar widget if is not possible use the
>> > original ObjectChooser,
>> > and should be great can show a preview if available.
>> >
>> > 2) Distribution of examples: This can be more controversial, but is
>> > related and should be good
>> > address in a related proposal. Today, there are activities as Turtle
>> > Confusion or Amazonas Tortugas,
>> > based on TurtleArt and may be can be data files added to TurtleArt.
>> > Also, if we provide a way to distribute
>> > examples, the deployments could generate them based in local needs.
>> > Other activities can be enhanced
>> > using examples, and if they have text should be difficult support i18n
>> > in the data files.
>> > May be we can create a variation of the infamous XOL files, with the
>> > information about what activity
>> > should manage them, and improve the installation to install them in a
>> > different place than Library
>> > (or the activities can look at the Library for examples)
>> >
>> > Gonzalo
>> >
>>
>> Sounds dangerously close to the plugin mechanism I implemented for
>> Turtle Art. Be nice to think that through in a more general way but I
>> think that would be a different thread.
>>
>> regards.
>>
>> -walter
>> > On Thu, Jul 19, 2012 at 2:40 PM, Martin Abente
>> > <martin.abente.lahaye at gmail.com> wrote:
>> >> Hello Everyone:
>> >>
>> >> In a recent conversation with Walter, he mentioned that it would be
>> very
>> >> useful if activities could include examples objects. From my
>> experience in
>> >> the field, I can tell this feature can be a really useful indeed.
>> Therefore
>> >> I would like to bring this idea to the general discussion and see what
>> >> others think.
>> >>
>> >> The idea is  simple: Activities include examples objects that can be
>> bundled
>> >> with and accessed from the activity.
>> >>
>> >> For the ones that also think this could be useful: I am sure you must
>> have
>> >> your own vision of how this feature should work and look like, so
>> please
>> >> share it here.
>> >>
>> >> In general terms and from my POV it should be something:
>> >>
>> >> (a) simple to access.
>> >> (b) with a familiar interface to the users.
>> >> (c) low-cost for activities developers to include.
>> >> (d) Safe.
>> >>
>> >> One of the ideas, that meets these requirements, is to include a
>> standard
>> >> "Examples" folder in the activities root directory that would be
>> accessible
>> >> through a regular ObjetChooser. The ObjectChooser is already capable of
>> >> presenting any folder's contents, thanks to recent years improvement
>> in the
>> >> journal to present external-media and documents-folder contents.
>> >>
>> >> Accessing to these objects would be as easy as just opening a
>> ObjectChooser
>> >> instance, many activities already do this (but limited to journal
>> content).
>> >> As I just said, the ObjectChooser interface is widely used, therefore
>> users
>> >> are already familiar with it. To ease the costs for activities
>> developers I
>> >> think that having this standard folder approach is crucial. One open
>> >> question I still have is how this ObjectChooser should  be opened from
>> the
>> >> activities in a standard way (suggestions?). By "safe" I mean that it
>> should
>> >> guarantee that it only presents this standard folder objects in
>> read-only
>> >> mode (at least from the GUI POV).
>> >>
>> >> I will stop here and I would like to hear what you guys think
>> regarding the
>> >> general idea first.
>> >>
>> >> Saludos.
>> >> tincho.
>> >>
>> >>
>> >> _______________________________________________
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>> >> Sugar-devel at lists.sugarlabs.org
>> >> http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/sugar-devel
>> >>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Walter Bender
>> Sugar Labs
>> http://www.sugarlabs.org
>> _______________________________________________
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>> http://lists.sugarlabs.org/listinfo/sugar-devel
>>
>
>
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