Thanks, for all your patients guys. @Braden Yes, somewhat this is cross purpose. I built my developer workflow around Cordova CLI tools, and since I keep stuff in the VCS, some minor stuff annoys me. Right now, I just have no time to look in the Cordova CLI and made a fix for that. When I free myself for some learning, I will comeback with fixes and reasoning for them.
@Brian I'm independent developer. Would like to contribute to Cordova iOS and Cordova Android if that would benefit my current projects. I could take responsibility for my additions and support them as long as I will stay in the mobile space (couple next years at least). @all +1 for simple 'plugman install' syntax. 2014/1/7 Braden Shepherdson <bra...@chromium.org> > I think we're talking somewhat at cross purposes. > > One of my goals with the CLI is to make the ./platforms and ./plugins > directories build artifacts, meaning that you could delete them (or check > out a new copy of your project that does not include them) and restore them > fully with a couple of commands. > > Currently the two commands would have to be: cordova platform add <all your > platforms> and cordova plugin add <all your plugins>. The latter is > unfortunately long, and we hope to fix that by allowing you to specify > required plugins for the project in the top-level app config.xml file, so > that the second command becomes simply "cordova plugin add" or "cordova > plugin add --deps" or whatever we decide it should be. > > Why I say we're talking at cross purposes is that there's nothing about any > of this that stops people from checking some or all of the ./platforms > directory into their source control. They'll have to spend some effort > maintaining it, as Cordova updates various files, but that's the case if > you have custom edits to the native code whether you put it in version > control or not. > > I mention the 99% of Cordova users because at some point it becomes > impractical to support 100% with the tool. There's always going to be some > esoteric use cases that will require some hand-holding to work with the > CLI. > > We have tried to extract most of the things that used to require tweaks to > the DroidGap/CordovaActivity subclass, AppDelegate.m, etc. into preferences > that can be set from config files. If there are tweaks that are needed by > more than a few users and are not covered by preferences, then they should > be added as new preferences. > > Braden > > > On Tue, Jan 7, 2014 at 6:14 AM, Andrey Kurdumov <kant2...@googlemail.com > >wrote: > > > Dan, Ross. > > > > I complexly agree with both of you. My workflow - my problems. I wrote > > about it just so you have background about needs of developers like me. > > When I read about number 99% CLI developers, I understand that I am from > > the not mentioned 1%. And tone of the discussion for me sounds like that > 1% > > would not be taken into consideration. > > > > Right now I have 2 small issues which would be important for you only if > > you keep you ./plugins, ./platforms source code in VCS. Don't think that > > they are valuable enough for you when you main use-case is keep ./plugins > > and ./platforms outside of VCS, so I better implement them myself and > > contribute back to the Cordova. > > > > What is not clear to me, are such contributions would be welcome or not, > > since it is for only 1% of people? > > > > Andrey K. > > > > > > > > 2014/1/7 Ross Gerbasi <rgerb...@gmail.com> > > > > > Hey Andrey, > > > > > > Much like you said 99% of the users will want to ignore platforms and > > > plugins from version control. Making this work properly would not stop > > > someone from including them if they wanted to. If your workflow is > better > > > including those folders you would have no problem doing so. > > > > > > Ideally though if you can keep your custom code off in plugins, even if > > > they are not public plugins, would be ideal. Also as Dan mentioned you > > can > > > look into hooks to help modify platforms as needed. > > > > > > Again though if you find checking everything in easier thats cool but > the > > > CLI should be setup in a way that we do not need to. > > > > > > > > > > > > On Mon, Jan 6, 2014 at 6:59 PM, Dan Moore <moore...@yahoo.com> wrote: > > > > > > > Hi Andrey, > > > > > > > > I have worked on two small, simple Cordova applications, but we still > > at > > > > times had to modify platform specific code. Not much, but some > > > > (AppDelegate.m for the iOS app, and the DroidGap subclass for > > > Android--this > > > > is a 2.9.x project for now). > > > > > > > > Here's my solutions to your issues. > > > > * if you need to modify native plugin code, you should fork the repo > > and > > > > manage your changes via a git project, not in your project. > > > > > > > > If you use a recent enough version of Cordova, you can even pull > > plugins > > > > off git branches ( see https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/CB-4981) > > > so > > > > you could have different versions of your apps for different clients > > pull > > > > different branches of the same plugin. > > > > > > > > * if you need to modify code under platforms, use an > after_platform_add > > > > hook, and keep your customized platform files elsewhere in your > project > > > > tree. > > > > > > > > This way, you aren't version controlling everything, just what you've > > had > > > > to change. Of course, when the Cordova platform changes underneath > you > > > > (perhaps a new method is added to AppDelegate.m, and the version you > > have > > > > in source control overwrites that), you need to check these files > > > > carefully. But when you version control everything and you upgrade, > > you > > > > have to merge in your custom changes into the new Cordova code in the > > > same > > > > careful manner, plus you are carrying around everything else under > > > > platforms. > > > > > > > > Of course, I'm a big believer in the CLI, having everyone use the > > entire > > > > CLI toolchain, and treating everything under platforms and plugins as > > > > derived code that you can replace at any time. If this isn't how you > > > > develop (if you prefer the 'native project dev' workflow, for > example), > > > > then this may not work for you. > > > > > > > > Thanks. > > > > Dan > > > > > > > > PS Can you explain how keeping all the code in source control makes > > your > > > > merges as you move from Cordova version to Cordova version easier? > To > > > me, > > > > that would seem to make them more difficult. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > On Monday, January 6, 2014 5:38 PM, Andrey Kurdumov < > > > > kant2...@googlemail.com> wrote: > > > > > > > > About plugin and platform version control. > > > > I heard a lot about that, and confused why you think that everybody > > would > > > > like to remove ./plugins and ./platforms folders from source > control. I > > > do > > > > agree that this is most likely the case for the simple applications > and > > > for > > > > the maybe 99% of current Cordova users, but I don't believe that this > > is > > > > truly important for the Cordova as the ecosystem for the > cross-platform > > > of > > > > the mobile development. > > > > > > > > Let me explain why I think that keep ./platforms and ./plugins under > > > source > > > > control very important. I would base my reasoning on my current > project > > > > needs. > > > > I currently develop 2 similar products for different clients from the > > > same > > > > domain. I understand that in future I will have another clients from > > same > > > > problem domain which would like to have similar applications, just > with > > > > different design. So I take the route of having 1 product line and > > > > customization of that product line for each client, depends on their > > > needs. > > > > This is client facing application, so I would like to cover as much > > > mobile > > > > platforms as possible with minimum amount of efforts. Currently I > > support > > > > only Android and iOS platforms, but envision that my clients will > > expand > > > to > > > > the Windows Phone soon, and maybe I will force them to support Tizen > in > > > > next year if that platform would be world-wide popular. > > > > I position my self as > > > > a) heavy Cordova user > > > > b) middle/low platform specific development. (I have to go deep in > each > > > > platform, but that's not priority for me as Cordova users) > > > > I maintain 3 Git branches. 1 branch for core product and 2 branches > for > > > > each client. In each branch I keep, platform specific code for the > > > > application (cordova-platform-ios/android code), Cordova plugins > code + > > > > plugins developed specifically to this application. > > > > I definitely sure that I will need to add some functionality to the > > core > > > > platforms, either iOS or Android which will benefit the my > > application. I > > > > would try to push to the core Cordova as much as I can, but possible > > that > > > > not all contribution would be useful for the Cordova. Either way I > plan > > > for > > > > update to next version of Cordova (3.4, or 3.5 whenether). To keep my > > > > changes, which I add to current version of Cordova (3.3) and make > > update > > > to > > > > 3.4 and later easier I keep all code in the source control to make > all > > my > > > > future merges easier. Same rules apply to the plugins,maybe I add > some > > > > code/fixes to plugins, or not don't matter - I have to plan for that. > > > > I would like to contribute to Cordova everything what will benefit > the > > > > community to meet my selfish goals: > > > > I want to make my upgrade path as straightforward as possible, for > > > platform > > > > code and for plugins code. > > > > > > > > Maybe I was too verbose, but that was just to explain that I plan to > > > align > > > > my long-term goals with Cordova's long-term goals. I try to gave more > > > > explanation, so you guys could plan not only for people which create > > > > projects which are working on the specific version of Cordova, but > also > > > for > > > > the guys which want to nurture their product together with Cordova. > > > > > > > > I plainly don't see: > > > > a) how I could work on my product not keeping ./platforms and > ./plugins > > > > directories in the source control, and > > > > b) why I should don't use Cordova CLI to update contents of my > > > ./platforms > > > > and ./plugins folders. I think that these tool has a good fit for > basic > > > > housekeeping of the files/plugins. Don't want to manually fiddle with > > > > content of plugins for each platform and use plugman/cordova > > executables > > > to > > > > do the job. > > > > > > > > Hopefully I was enough verbose to explain why I have needs what I > have > > > now, > > > > and not too verbose so you flood in details. > > > > > > > > To summarize my input is: > > > > 1. Keep tools that way, that it could work either when ./plugins, > > > > ./platforms in source control, or when these folders not in the VCS. > > > > 2. Take into account that people may want to customize Cordova > > > distribution > > > > and have path to future upgrades. > > > > 3. I want to take responsibility for some burden which this way could > > > > potentially create for you guys, > > > > > > > > Andrey Kurdyumov. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > 2014/1/7 Braden Shepherdson <bra...@chromium.org> > > > > > > > > > I've wanted to add Cordova plugin dependencies to the app's > top-level > > > > > config.xml for a long time, but it's never reached the top of my > > > > > priorities. I think with that support, we can avoid checking in > > > > ./plugins/ > > > > > and ./platforms altogether for 99% of app developers. If it doesn't > > > solve > > > > > anyone's use case, I'd love to hear about it. > > > > > > > > > > Braden > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > On Tue, Dec 31, 2013 at 2:03 PM, Ross Gerbasi <rgerb...@gmail.com> > > > > wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > CB-4624 is exactly what I am looking for. I am not sure if it > > should > > > be > > > > > > config.xml or some other config file, it probably doesn't matter > > much > > > > > when > > > > > > it comes down to it. Is there any rules currently in place, like > > CLI > > > > > > doesn't touch config.xml? > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > On Tue, Dec 31, 2013 at 12:27 PM, Andrew Grieve < > > > agri...@chromium.org > > > > > > >wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > > > I think https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/CB-4624 is the > > > > relevant > > > > > > > issue > > > > > > > here. Please add comments to it if it's not spec'ed or good > > enough. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Also related is https://issues.apache.org/jira/browse/CB-5006- > > > > meant > > > > > to > > > > > > > address local repos of plugins. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > On Tue, Dec 31, 2013 at 3:02 AM, Andrey Kurdumov < > > > > > > kant2...@googlemail.com > > > > > > > >wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Hi all, > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Would be very helpful if you change formatting of the plugins > > > > > manifest > > > > > > > > files (android.json, ios.json). Currently it is print all > JSON > > > > string > > > > > > to > > > > > > > > the big single line, which difficult to merge when needed. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >
