Too ambitious, may be! but definitely laughable!

[eliasmu]

J!Desktop

The idea here is inspired by e-bay desktop, a cross platform desktop application based on Adobe Air.

The problem:
Users can not take a joomla website offline as desktop application.{}

The solution:
using the Adobe Air runtime, and Extjs as an object oriented javascript framework, implement the following basic front end features of joomla as an offline application
1. The Menu system,
2. components especially com_content
3. template.
4. modules.

Major additional features:
1. export the joomla database into sqlite database that will be accessible to the Air runtime.
2. update the offline database using xml-rpc,
3. compiling the air application on the fly!
4. Ability to switch between online and offline modes.

The challenges:
1. Ability to port existing components to the javascript application
2. Ability to port existing templates to the javascript application

if anybody can help me make some better idea out of this, i would most appreciate the opportunity because i will be working not on 1 framework i love, but 3. Joomla, extjs and AIR.

[willebil]

There is a simple option in the Joomla! backend to take your site offline. What does this option offer more then this?

I also want to point out that there is aready an Java based Joomla! client, it was part of SoC 2006 and is called j!explorer from Laurens Vandeput (see http://www.joomlatools.org).

[eliasmu]

There is a simple option in the Joomla! backend to take your site offline. What does this option offer more then this?

I mean take the joomla application offline and access it with out an internet connection as a desktop application. not like temporarily disabling the site.

I also want to point out that there is aready an Java based Joomla! client, it was part of SoC 2006 and is called j!explorer from Laurens Vandeput (see http://www.joomlatools.org).

[/quote]
Yes, I have seen such efforts. but the problem i see with them is that they mostly target the website administrators, not the website visitors. with my proposal, i am targeting the visitors. a quick example can be, assume that the joomla site is a product catalog. A visitor looks at a few of the products and decides that he wants an offline version of the product catalog. s/he can download the adobe air package that my product compiles.

the adobe air application guaranties
1. a very great performance,
2. ability to switch between offline and online modes
3. ability to automatically synchronize the offline version with the one online.

Asides from the above difference, the adobe air application will be a desktop application with the web richness.

[willebil]

Joomla! gears....rock on!

[eliasmu]

Joomla! gears....rock on!

Thanks a lot willebil, i think joomla + Google Gear, make more sense than Joomla + Adobe Air. Should i go for it with a formal proposal?
Elias,

[Laurens]

I'm not sure Google Gears could benefit to the Joomla performance at the moment. Google Gears is mainly developed to improve latencies and browser respond times. Web application that have proven to benefit with Gears are GMail and Google Docs. Why? Simple, because they are very heavy AJAX applications. The Joomla backend uses some AJAX, but not in the way GMail does (in Joomla, each time the user clicks on a link, the browser makes request to the server using the HTTP protocol).

I think it is very important to understand the clear distinction between Google Gears and Adobe AIR. Google Gears is developed to improve web-apps performance wise. Adobe Air's true purpose is to run web application in a desktop chrome.

What could be interesting, is combining these 2 technologies. Run your web-application in Adobe Air, with the backing of Google Gears (the LocalServer and Database in particular).

HTH,
Laurens

[eliasmu]

I'm not sure Google Gears could benefit to the Joomla performance at the moment. Google Gears is mainly developed to improve latencies and browser respond times. Web application that have proven to benefit with Gears are GMail and Google Docs. Why? Simple, because they are very heavy AJAX applications. The Joomla backend uses some AJAX, but not in the way GMail does (in Joomla, each time the user clicks on a link, the browser makes request to the server using the HTTP protocol).

I think it is very important to understand the clear distinction between Google Gears and Adobe AIR. Google Gears is developed to improve web-apps performance wise. Adobe Air's true purpose is to run web application in a desktop chrome.

What could be interesting, is combining these 2 technologies. Run your web-application in Adobe Air, with the backing of Google Gears (the LocalServer and Database in particular).

HTH,
Laurens

Actually, with Adobe Air, you can deploy online application as well as an application that works on a local data store that works on the same sqlite database system as Google gears. The only big difference I see between the two is the chrome that you have mentioned.

Any ways, what do you think will be the bottom line? do you think any variation/ improvement to this idea could be a summer of code idea?

[willebil]

I personally think this is an awesome idea. It still needs some technical consideration like Laurens mentions, but I really like the idea.

[earthsite]

Word Press is now using Google Gears to make updates to your blog while offline.

Joomla should certainly follow suit. Not only would it speed up Joomla admin (relief for all Joomla admins!), it would enable updating of Joomla websites while offline (update while on the plane ride...!).

This project should be seriously considered!

~joey

[ruigato]

Word Press is now using Google Gears to make updates to your blog while offline.

Joomla should certainly follow suit. Not only would it speed up Joomla admin (relief for all Joomla admins!), it would enable updating of Joomla websites while offline (update while on the plane ride...!).

This project should be seriously considered!

~joey

I cant agree more.
Specialy the ability to cache all admin files locally will improve much the administrators job..

[willebil]

I really like this offer! Please contact me so we can discuss how we can get you going.

[Laurens]

Why not continue this discussion on the public forums, so other forum members can follow the progress as well, and collaborate on the subject?

[willebil]

This is a public forum, but probably not the most logical place for people to find it...feel free to start a topic, best place will be the developers section.

[PhilTaylor-Prazgod]

again. sorry to drag up an old post - but you really need to check out my last nights work

Read about it here:

http://www.phil-taylor.com/Turbo-Gears- ... in-Console

FREE
GPL
Stable
Joomla 1.5.x
PHP5+ Only