osteele / lzosutils

= LzOsUtils

This package contains a grab-bag of utilities that I've used for
writing OpenLaszlo applications.  It defines extensions in these
areas:


== Browser JavaScript Compatibility

The +console+ object is compatible with the Firebug +console+ API.  It
can also proxy console methods to the browser console, for debugging
applets that have been compiled without the inline OpenLaszlo
debugger.

The browser compatibility file removes warnings on reference to an
undefined property of an object.  I put this warning into OpenLaszlo
in 2002; it was arguably a mistake then, and is definitely a mistake
now.  Without it, you can write code more easily, and you can write
libraris that run in both the browser and OpenLaszlo.

Most of the other files in this package require the console and
browser compatibility functions in order to run without warnings.


== Ajax

The +ajax+ file defines +ajax+, +get+, and +post+ functions with
jQuery-compatible arguments.  When used with FlashBridge (below), it
has an option for proxying AJAX calls to the browser, in order to use
the browser's domain when the Flash application is served from a
separate CDN.


== FlashBridge

FlashBridge is a mechanism for browser<->flash communication.  This
particular implementation has these properties:

* One component (the Flash application, or the browser JavaScript) can
  *call any* function, or any method on any object, in the other
  *component -- you don't have to register objects explicitly.

* This facility also queues calls from the page into the flash applet
  until the applet has loaded, solving some tricky race conditions.

* You can define a proxy object in one component that delegates calls
  through the bridge to an object in the other component.

* The Flash application can call with a callback function to receive
  return values as a continuation.


== Other Extensions

* collection methods, compatible with ECMAScript 1.7 and Prototype
* xml syntax for filter effects
* a grab bag of functional programming methods
* a grab bag of view, string, and "multithreading" utilities

== License

LzTestKit is copyright (c) 2008-2008 Oliver Steele.  It is open-source
software, and may be redistributed under the terms of the MIT
license. The text of this licence is included in the LzTestKit
distribution.