edcrypt/Seaside

The framework for developing sophisticated web applications in Smalltalk.

The framework for developing sophisticated web applications in Smalltalk.

Status of automated builds

master

Pharo	Squeak	GemStone
	-
	-
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development

Pharo	Squeak	GemStone/S
	-
	-
-	-

Seaside provides a layered set of abstractions over HTTP and HTTP that let you build highly interactive web applications quickly, reusably and maintainably. It is based on Smalltalk, a proven and robust language that is implemented by different vendors. Seaside includes:

• Programmatic HTML generation. A lot of markup is boilerplate: the same patterns of lists, links, forms and tables show up on page after page. Seaside has a rich API for generating XHTML that lets you abstract these patterns into convenient methods rather than pasting the same sequence of tags into templates every time.

• Callback-based request handling. Why should you have to come up with a unique name for every link and form input on your page, only to extract them from the URL and request fields later? Seaside automates this process by letting you associate blocks, not names, with inputs and links, so you can think about objects and methods instead of ids and strings.

• Embedded components. Stop thinking a whole page at a time; Seaside lets you build your UI as a tree of individual, stateful component objects, each encapsulating a small part of a page. Often, these can be used over and over again, within and between applications - nearly every application, for example, needs a way to present a batched list of search results, or a table with sortable columns, and Seaside includes components for these out the box.

• Modal session management. What if you could express a complex, multi-page workflow in a single method? Unlike servlet models which require a separate handler for each page or request, Seaside models an entire user session as a continuous piece of code, with natural, linear control flow. In Seaside, components can call and return to each other like subroutines; string a few of those calls together in a method, just as if you were using console I/O or opening modal dialog boxes, and you have a workflow. And yes, the back button will still work.

Seaside also has good support for CSS and Javascript, excellent web-based development tools and debugging support, a rich configuration and preferences framework, and more.

Installation

Install in Pharo

To install the latest stable version of Seaside in a Pharo image, execute the following code:

Metacello new
 baseline:'Seaside3';
 repository: 'github://SeasideSt/Seaside:master/repository';
 load

To install a particular version (see releases, e.g. 3.2.1):

Metacello new
 baseline:'Seaside3';
 repository: 'github://SeasideSt/Seaside:v3.2.1/repository';
 load

Install in Gemstone

1. Upgrade to the latest version of Metacello and Grease using GsUpgrader:

Gofer new
  package: 'GsUpgrader-Core';
  url: 'http://ss3.gemtalksystems.com/ss/gsUpgrader';
  load.
(Smalltalk at: #GsUpgrader) upgradeGrease.

2. Install Seaside 3.2:

Install the latest commit from the master branch:

GsDeployer deploy: [
  Metacello new
    baseline: 'Seaside3';
    repository: 'github://SeasideSt/Seaside:master/repository';
    onLock: [:ex | ex honor];
    load ].

Install a particular version, e.g. 3.2.0 (see Releases for a list of possible versions):

GsDeployer deploy: [
  Metacello new
    baseline: 'Seaside3';
    repository: 'github://SeasideSt/Seaside:v3.2.0/repository';
    onLock: [:ex | ex honor];
    load: #('Development' 'Examples' 'Zinc') ].

Install in Squeak

Make sure you have installed Metacello. From there on, follow the installation instructions for Seaside in Pharo.

Install older versions in Pharo or Squeak

To install a version older than 3.1.3, you need to load Seaside from Smalltalkhub:

Metacello new
  configuration:'Seaside3';
  repository: 'http://www.smalltalkhub.com/mc/Seaside/MetacelloConfigurations/main';
  version: #stable;
  load

To install a particular version (e.g. 3.1.0):

Metacello new
 configuration:'Seaside3';
 repository: 'http://www.smalltalkhub.com/mc/Seaside/MetacelloConfigurations/main';
 version: '3.1.0';
 load

Community

We have a low traffic mailing list for questions (sign up here) and a (Smalltalk dialect independant) channel on the Pharo Discord (sign up here).

Contributing

If you would like to contribute, please visit the Seaside's contributors page.

More

Please check the Wiki for more information.