T5 IDE support: what do we need?

[Inge Solvoll <in...@gmail.com>]

Hi!

I was checking out the t4eclipse plugin, and I've been using Loom for a
while. I don't think I've seen a real discussion on the mailing list about
what kind of IDE support we really need. Everyone's saying that we don't
really need IDE support. But there are some spots where I find myself
copying stuff from old code because it is too hard figuring out.

- Defining namespaces when creating a template. This can be configured into
the default template in Loom, which is nice: xmlns:t="
http://tapestry.apache.org/schema/tapestry_5_0_0.xsd". I also need typing
help from the IDE for "parameter" namespace and similar things. Would be
nice with autocomplete for such things in a plugin. I also would like to
have different templates for pages and components, in Loom you can only have
one.

- Component autocomplete and inline doc, also (especially) for parameters.
For most components, there exists standard online documentation, especially
the tapestry core modules. I often need to look up the documentation for the
component I'm using, to check out parameter names and usage. It will boost
my effectivity if this just shows up in Eclipse while writing the code, like
with javadoc in java files. The docs should be visible when selecting a
component, and when filling out parameters. As I see it this can be achieved
quite easily just by utilizing the javadoc already present in the component
java source.

- The ability to switch between template and java is great, Loom already
provides this.

I believe a discussion on this could be a useful input for the guys who make
an effort in creating the nice plugins we have seen so far.

Regards
Inge