OPath ported for Java object model

I have been thinking about alternate uses of OPath I created for EVars plug-in. And it occurred to me that I can very well use it for my unit testing (which involves pretty complex insurance object model) and for things like JSPs where I really hate to write ten lines of Java code just to display some value.

So I wrote a port of OPath for Java object model (less than 200 lines of real code). Following example should explain how it can add some value to your development efforts:

Consider an example of code for simple Accessible Swing Table :


If you are writing a UI test to see specific table's column heading, you just write following

Collection<Object> findAll = OPathReflectiveInterpreter.findAll(frame, "//dataModel//@val\\$column.*");
assertEquals("First Name",((Object[])findAll.toArray()[0])[0]);

This is very trivial test, of course. But it is sufficient to express the power of OPath micro-scripting.

If you like to try it out for unit-testing or templating check-out the download here (You will also need opath.jar).

Disclaimer: This is experimental work at best, it might be slow and it might have bugs at this time.

EVars Update

Based on the awesome feedback, I have been doing some offline development on EVars plug-in lately. I have added some basic documentation on wiki. Installation is now easy, let P2 do the work to install/update the plug-in (it's a struggle to host update-site with google code).

One of the most exciting feature (Which I can't stop talking about) is value based filtering. Now you can have all the powers of predicate expression, how about searching a map like map//key['@user.*']/.. to select entries matching regular expression user.* ? This update also includes support for relational operators so you can search exactly you want like this //value[count > n] .

I have uploaded OPath grammar for the language enthusiasts (left factored, left recursion free). One feedback was 'experiencing some unresponsive behavior for huge graphs' I have addressed that to some extent by integrating progress monitoring and asynchronous interpretation job.

Thanks for the feedback! Also, for those at EclipseCon have fun with your sessions!

Improve your debugging speed with EVars Eclipse plugin

Update: Added alternate link to screen-cast. Workaround to start plug-in

I have been debugging a lot lately which included open source libraries, closed source web-service engine and parts of closed source application server (WebLogic). During this painful debug-fest I felt a strong need for several features missing in Eclipse (NetBeans as well, for that matter) . Debugging closed applications is a pain beyond imagination, even with IDE integrated decompilers, it takes incredible amount of patience and time to debug.

To improve productivity (or prevent burnout), I jotted down a plugin to export/import live variables, filter variables view with a xpath like expressions etc. The plugin, called 'evars', features a small expression interpreter (similar to xpath) which can do a wonderful job of filtering variables on current stackframe. It also allows you to export variables to a file and reload them at a later point.

For the first time, I have attempted to create a screencast to explain its usefulness. You may watch it over here [10mb non-streaming, 1275x860], alternate link (open with your browser).

I have also created a beta release to see if it finds any interest which you can download it from here [JAR ~800kb, Jdk6] (Click here for Java 5 version) and drop it in dropins folder [Eclipse 3.4+]

If you find it interesting, please leave feedback here.

Two types of Architects

I am amused by these creatures called 'Architects' in software development. In recent phenomena, They are available under numerous headings such as 'Software architect', 'Solution architect', 'Front end architect', 'Enterprise architect' and so on. To me, in what they really do, there are only two broad types of architects. My brain timed out while guessing fancy names for them so their description is in order with uninteresting machine generated type names, it is up to you to decide what to call them.

The Type1 Architect:
A Type1 architect lives near 'The well of Eternal dreams' in his tranquility. He speaks high of latest technologies, buzzwords from internet meme. He actively attends all expensive technology conferences, management meetings, and is excellent at presenting management with summaries of what he may possibly be capable of.
The ideal Type1 architect rarely talks to developer and/or QA teams, he doesn't really waste his time for trivial details and is religious about development-by-exception (don't stop coding/testing till you hit the roadblock); he would rather express his greatness with another Type1 architect who can really appreciate him. He is a huge fan of his super-mega automated, ultra-modern cloud-based, universally-ultimate end-of-the-world web 9000.0 ready architecture, which he thoughtfully insists in applying wherever it's not needed. His thinking is beyond languages, frameworks, platforms and business needs, no mortal can grasp what he thinks. He usually masters the skill of overkill and is full of without-the-box ideas. I can really go on for next few weeks talking about this type of architects but I need to talk about the other type so I will stop here.

The Type2 Architect:
This type of dude is a very simple earthliving guy, he lives by the belief that success of software development efforts is dependent only on the people who are involved in it rather than tools and technologies. He holds the shared vision of what the end product is likely to be and thrives at driving the team efforts in that direction without managing them. He doesn't fear coding (more like the existing code fears for its life when he starts coding), testing or training whenever he needs to do it. He believes in pleasing management with frequent stable releases than presentation of the obvious. He communicates with everyone, right from tester to business analysts and managers frequently, this guy is often found roaming around discussing with different team members.

So if you are an architect, what type are you?