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diff --git a/log/2011-02-16-less-code-more-dance.org b/log/2011-02-16-less-code-more-dance.org new file mode 100755 index 0000000..2384dd9 --- /dev/null +++ b/log/2011-02-16-less-code-more-dance.org @@ -0,0 +1,113 @@ +--- +title: Less code more dance +date: 2011-02-16 +layout: post +category: log +--- + +Yes, I've migrated my blog framework again. After several migrations, +there's finally a web framework that works for me. It's called Dancer, +and as redundant as this might sound; [[http://perldancer.org/][Dancer]], is an effortless web +framework. + +Last year, I started writing my own mini-blog engine with several +modules from CPAN; however, the engine became complicated and robust. +Processing different tasks with more than 5 modules, I was calling +more objects than actually outputting any useful data. I've known +about Dancer since its early development, but never expected to run in +my VPS hosting, [[http://nearlyfreespeech.net][NearlyFreeSpeech]]. + +*How does it work*\\ +Dancer works like [[http://www.sinatrarb.com/intro][Sinatra]] for Ruby. Just like Sinatra, +Dancer works with routes. I like to call them, dance moves. + +*For every request, there's a dance move...*\\ +A route is an HTTP request with an URL pattern. For every request, there is an associated block of code +that will handle a task in your web-app. + +Simple example:\\ +#+begin_src perl +#!/usr/bin/env perl +use Dancer; + +get '/' => sub { + ...do something + ...display something + ...call something +}; + +dance; +#+end_src + +Working example:\\ +#+begin_src perl +#!/usr/bin/env perl +use Dancer; + +get '/feed/:format' => sub { + my $db = connect_db(); + my $sth = $db->prepare($sql) or + die $db->errstr; + $sth->execute or die $sth->errstr; + my $feed = create_feed( + format => params->{format}, + entries => _get_entries( + $sth->fetchall_arrayref({})) + ); + $sth->finish(); + return $feed; +}; + +dance; +#+end_src + +To sum it up, the first example shows the structure of a route. The +second, shows a working example of my mini-blog engine feed request. +To get the working example, there has to be a request to +[[http://log.gnusosa.net/feed/rss][http://log.gnusosa.net/feed/rss]] or [[http://log.gnusosa.net/feed/atom][http://log.gnusosa.net/feed/atom]]; +which ever is the case, the route will display the desired feed +format. + +It took me more time studying Dancer's features and specs, than the +time it took for me to write the whole mini-blog app. In my case, my +runtime errors were caused by external modules. Debugging was an easy +task thanks to the logs generated by the Dancer core, and the error +message from Dancer's development environment. By the time, I finished +writing the main routes, there were several examples on how to deploy +the web-app in a CGI environment. + +*An environment becomes a dance floor...*\\ +Dancer comes with a standalone development server, that can bring up +your apps at http://127.0.0.0:3000/ . This is a handy feature that +helps to develop without a testing server, that way your focus stays +on building the web-app, instead, of focusing on transferring files. + +Easy as running:\\ +#+begin_src sh +$ cd App +$ perl bin/app.pl +>> Dancer server 16222 listening on http://0.0.0.0:3000 +== Entering the development dance floor ... +#+end_src + +Like most recent Web frameworks for Perl, Dancer supports [[http://plackperl.org/][Plack]]/[[http://plackperl.org/][PSGI]], +and work together as a built-in script that deploys the web-app in any +webserver. + +*In the dance floor...*\\ +Dancer is known to be fast, and minimalistic. PSGI compatible, Dancer +can be deployed in any recent webserver, including, the dominant +Apache. I've seen several instances of Dancer using Nginx, Lighttpd, +and even Apache with mod_proxy. However, many people don't recommend +robust web-apps in a CGI deployment, and mid-size apps in Fast-CGI. +Many add to this discussion that Dancer is capable of handling robust, +complicated, and resourceful web apps. I subscribe to that idea; with +a good webserver in a fast enviroment like Fast-CGI or in a lean +webserver like Nginx, Dancer can show its moves. + +To get a better idea of the cases in which Dancer can be opted for, +there is the [[http://search.cpan.org/dist/Dancer/lib/Dancer/Cookbook.pod][Dancer::Cookbook]], and the [[http://advent.perldancer.org/2010][Dancer Advent Calendar]]. For big +projects, there is always [[http://www.mojolicious.org/][Mojolicious]]. + +This log was made with Dancer, and is deployed in a CGI enviroment on +Apache in a VPS webserver. |