Proposal: Template Editor Enhancements

Abstract

This is a proposal to make some minor usability and functionality improvements to the UI of the Template Editor pages. The functionality improvements allow a user to set the content-type and language for a page, with together make it possible to take advantage of the Roller rendering system's pluggable renderers.

Requirements

Templates page

• Remove Navbar, Hidden page and Edit columns
• Add Content-Type column where removed columns were
• Add icon to column one and make page name link to edit page
• Show hidden pages in italics and with different icon

Template Editor page

• Add proper subtitle and tip like all other page
• Create advanced settings area for things most users don't use.
• Provide up/down expand/contract buttons for template text area on Template Editor page.
• Provide link to page generated by template
• Provide feed-back to show users what the page URL will look like
• Provide content-type field for each page template.
  • Text field and combo-box with options:
    • Page (text/html)
    • CSS (text/style)
    • JavaScript (text/script)
    • Custom... (launches pop-up allows entering custom content-type).
• Provide language field for each page template.
  • Combo-box with options:
    • Velocity
    • (list of others specified in startup configuration).

All template pages:

• Switch out Struts logic tags for JSTL
• Use page model approach like other pages

Issues

None.

Design

List and describe new manager methods, Struts actions, JSP pages, macros, etc.

Database changes

• New table column webpage.outputtype which specifies MIME content-type that is generated by the template. If this is null or an empty-string then rendering system will assume text/html.

New Configuration properties

• Startup-configuration: new property rendering.templateLanguages, which lists the languages to be allowed in the Edit-Templates page.

Struts JSP and Action changes

• edit-page.jsp: Changes to meed requirements above. See screen-shots below.
• edit-pages.jsp: Changes to meet requiremets above. See screen-shots below.
• WeblogTemplateFormAction.java: Changes to meet requirements above.

Rendering system changes

• PageServlet.java: Use content-type specified by page, guess based on file extension of templates link or default to "text/html"

Edit-Pages screen-shot

NOTES:

• Name link leads to edit page, different icon used for hidden pages
• Link link opens page in pop-up window (i.e. target="_blank")
• In remove column: hover-over for lock is "Required", hover-over for remove is "Remove"

Edit-Page screen-shot

NOTES:

• If page is required we mention that in the help tip
• Link is reflected in URL and updated as user types
  • If link is un-changed, then "launch" will launch it in a pop-up window
• Note up/down buttons at bottom right of text-area
• Advanced Settings is a "toggle-control" like those on Weblog-Edit page
• Content type combo-box has "Custom..." option to allow additional types

Comments

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