Not quote Python, but I've been busy exploring various Javascript
libraries and frameworks. I already knew YUI in 2008, and this year
I've explored JQuery and affiliated extensions quite a bit. I think I've had the most exploratory fun with JSON Template
(Python and Javascript implementations both). I started to use zest.releaser and this has made it a lot
easier for me to release Python packages. I only recently started using pyflakes, and it's been
quite useful. A neat tool to supplement my toolbox. There are other things I ran into that do seem cool but I can't
really feel I've fully discovered them as I haven't really had a
chance to use them. If I can count techniques I've been trying to pioneer myself:
Template-driven development where the web browser renders the
templates. This along with the notion of client-side views can
lead to surprisingly clean rich client-side apps. I also learned quite a bit about dependency management in
a large collection of related libraries. Grok and the Zope Toolkit. I'm not sure which one comes
first, but luckily they're related. The Zope Toolkt is a set of
libraries based on a refocused Zope 3. It's used by the Zope
community in a multitude of projects, including Grok. I also contributed a bit to JSON Template, making it possible
to distribute its Python implementation on PyPI. I've created a whole set of libraries: hurry.resource should get a honorary mention. I actually created it
in 2008, but it has seen quite a bit of uptake by others in 2009.
People have been wrapping a number of Javascript and
CSS frameworks with it. hurry.resource is a general way to distribute and reuse javascript
and css libraries in a fine-grained manner. You should be able to
integrate it with any web framework. In terms of bang for the buck, I think there were two projects I
was involved in that had the most effect: refocusing Zope 3 as the Zope Toolkit and improving the way
in which it is being developed and managed. cleaning up the dependencies of the Zope Toolkit. Cleaner
dependencies help us cut out unused code, making the
code base easier to understand, reuse and improve. In 2007 we had split up Zope into a collection of libraries. The
dependency relationships between these libraries was
rather convoluted, however, meaning that pulling in a single
library would frequently pull in all the others. We had a long-standing wish to clean up these dependencies
but unfortunately were making up slow progress. The project
was however daunting. In early 2009, I organized a sprint that tackled this project
head-on, cleaning up dependencies and also developing
techniques, insights and tools. This project has been picked up by a large group of
Zope developers throughout the year. Different people
at different time cleaned up this and that, resulting in
a vastly improved dependency structure compared to last
year. The gains made by the Zope Toolkit are now making their way
into Grok and Zope 2. I find it easier to say what I want to hack on, undoubtedly
learning much as a side effect: There's a lot more I'd like to hack on, so we'll see what I get
around to.
Mon Dec 28 2009 22:47 New Year's Python Meme:
planet.python.org, though that's of course lots of
blogs really. I've also read the Python programming
reddit a lot.
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