Ext

InfoQ.com, an independent online community focused on change and innovation in enterprise software development, recently interviewed Ext founder Jack Slocum about the latest release of Ext, version 2.0 alpha.

Jack offered great insight into Ext 2.0 and how the framework is positioned in the marketplace:

“Ext can definitely be used as a stand-alone framework. In fact, barring any other requirements, that is the preferred choice as it offers the smallest file footprint and tightest support and integration. However, we also offer the ability to integrate with jQuery, YUI or Prototype as the base library for core services like DOM and event handling, Ajax connectivity and animation. One reason one might opt for such integration is when they have a requirement to use an existing library-specific widget that Ext does not natively offer — the YUI history control is a perfect example.”

“The Ext components were designed to work with other Ext components so the process of using them together is seamless. That type of interoperability can only come when a close knit team is doing the design and development with the same goal in mind, which is something generally not found in open source projects. All of our components have been built from the ground up with presentation, performance, interoperability and extensibility in mind, and we think it shows.”

When asked what the driving force of ExtJS 2.0 is, Jack’s answer was clear and straight to the point:

“Developer productivity and a solid, consistent foundation to build on. Although the 1.x version of Ext was a great library to build on, there were certain areas identified that could be made easier and require less expertise and code by the developer. We want to tackle some of the more difficult problems when building a complex application, such as deferred rendering and component life-cycle and not require developers to handle it manually. The other major improvement for 2.0 in a more robust foundation in place for customizing components (plugins), grouping components (containers) and component initialization. The new consistency across layouts and components means that once you understand how to configure and work with one component in Ext, you will be able to work with any component in the framework in the same way. That leads to faster and easier development for the end user, while sacrificing nothing in terms of Ext’s size or performance.”

You can read the complete interview at InfoQ.com ExtJS Creator Jack Slocum Discusses Upcoming 2.0 Release.

This entry was posted on Saturday, October 6th, 2007 at 1:14 pm and is filed under News, Ext JS. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.