alloy hmvc php framework

Alloy FrameworkPHP 5.3+ Modular Hierarchical MVC

http://alloyframework.org

Wednesday, March 30, 2011



Vance Lucas (@vlucas) http://alloyframework.org

Who am I?Vance Lucas

http://vancelucas.com

@vlucas

Business: http://actridge.com

PHP dev since 1999 (PHP 3)

I love good OOP code and concepts, but hate the complexity it brings

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http://actridge.com

http://actridge.com

A Few Points...Kind of a disclaimer, but not really



You May NOT Like Alloy If...You are an Object-Oriented Programming Purist

You don’t care how complex code is as long as it’s “correct” OOP (because some guy’s book said so)

You LOVE using Zend Framework, Symfony, or FLOW3

You LOVE XML and Dependency Injection Containers

You are looking for a component library

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You MIGHT Like Alloy If...You think frameworks like Zend, Symfony, or FLOW3 make some things too difficult and cumbersome

You don’t think any PHP framework has it quite right

You don’t like “too much magic”

You want to know what your framework is doing

You value ease of use over everything else

You want good OOP code that follows known coding standards that is still easy to use and understand

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PhilosophyUsefulness, Simplicity and Strong Design

Minimum code, maximum impact

Use OOP principles and design, but don’t over-do it

PHP is not Java with dollar signs

Explicitness > “Magic”

Easier to understand & see what is going on

Design patterns should never trump user experience or get in the way

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Alloy Framework GoalsLightweight

Modular Organization

Hierarchical MVC (HMVC)

Easy to understand and use

Easy to make REST APIs and HTML pages

No config/setup necessary, works anywhere

Follow PEAR/Zend Coding Standards

Strike a balance between good OOP concepts and ease of use with low learning curve

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Alloy ArchitectureInside & Out



Alloy Architecture OverviewModular Organization

Kernel

Plugins

Hierarchical MVC (HMVC)

Controllers as Resources

Events and Filters

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Modular OrganizationAll related files in a single top-level named folder

No separate “controllers”, “models” and “views” directories at same level

Unlimited levels of nesting

Easier distributable packages

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Kernel

Core object available from anywhere in your app

\Kernel() - only global-scope function in Alloy

Multiple uses:

Config access

Lazy-loading Factory / Service Locator

Extension Point for Modules and Plugins

Sole Dependency

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Kernel - Config AccessGetter

Setter

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Kernel - Lazy-Load FactoryWrite This:

Not That:

Or This:

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Kernel - Extension Point

Proxies to callbacks added at runtime via __call

Enables all kinds of custom functionality

Factory methods for loading & using 3rd party libs

Exposing plugin methods for global use

Helper or utility methods

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PluginsThe primary way of extending Alloy



Plugin - Symfony2 FinderFile: app/Plugin/Finder/Plugin.php

Libs: app/Plugin/Finder/lib/Symfony/Component/ ...

Add finder method to Kernel for use

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Plugin - Add to ConfigFile: app/config/app.php

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Plugin - UsageUse finder method on Kernel instance

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Hierarchical MVCSolves the “widget problem”



Hierarchical MVCMultiple MVC dispatches to fulfill a single request

Solves the “widget problem”

Sidebar content can be self-contained module

Ads, tag clouds, blog headlines, etc.

Encourages module re-use & helps DRY

Not strictly “hierarchical” - more like nested

Hierarchy is not tracked or enforced in any way

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Vance Lucas (@vlucas) http://alloyframework.org 21


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Vance Lucas (@vlucas) http://alloyframework.org 22


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ControllersRespond to both internal and external requests



ControllersPart of the Module package that handles requests

Special name “scope” for web-accessible actions

GET = <action>Action

POST, PUT, DELETE, etc = <action>Method

Ensures HTTP methods are required for access

Alloy\Request object is first parameter

All named params from route set on Request object

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Controllers (cont’d)NOTHING is automatically or implicitly loaded

No views, models, or anything else

Explicitly return response or content to send

Controllers are not factories

Controllers are extremely lightweight

Controllers do not hold the context of their requests

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Example REST ControllerNotice <name>Action vs <name>Method

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Controller Response TypesSending output and manipulating control flow



Simple StringsSends 200 OK status with string content as body

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Any object with __toStringSends 200 OK status with string content as body

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View TemplatesMost common Module response type

Returns object - template not yet rendered

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Resource ObjectsAuto-converts array to JSON or XML for API response

Accepts objects with toArray methods

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Generic ResponseBody + HTTP Status

Base Alloy\Module\Response that view templates and resources extend from

Can set custom layout, errors, headers, etc. using a fluent interface just like templates and resources

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Boolean FalseGeneric 404 (Throws Alloy\Exception\FileNotFound)

Plugins can filter on ‘dispatch_exception’ event to produce a custom global response

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Why Explicit Returns?Easier to manipulate responses and control flow



Easier to re-use ActionsRe-use form template from ‘newAction’

No forwarding or other indirection necessary

Object return lets you modify it further before display through fluent interface

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Modify Dispatches at WillTemplate object returned is not yet rendered so we can modify it at will

Change path to a local template

Change layout

Add errors

Change response code or headers, etc.

Very flexible

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... Even pull out valuesSince the template is not yet rendered, we can even pull out values that have been set and re-use them however we want to

We don’t even have to render the dispatch result at all

No wasted resources

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URL RoutingSimple named parameters, full control



Parameter Types<:alpha>

Matches [a-zA-Z0-9\_\-\+\%\s]+

<#numeric>

Matches [0-9]+

<*wildcard>

Marches .*

Does NOT split the URL by “segment”

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Some Default RoutesFluent interface allows route modification

REST verb params will override defaults and matches

POST /module/add => Module::postMethod

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Custom RoutesCan be literally anything

URL does not have to map <controller>/<action>

Example from Autoridge.com

/<#year>/<:make>/<:model>

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Static RoutesMap arbitrary static path to Module::action

No PREG matching overhead

Path can include slashes and be as long as necessary

Router does not split URL into segments

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Making an AppHTML + JSON API, single Controller method



app/Module/Blog/Post.php

Using Spot ORM (Ships with Alloy, but NOT required)

Spot provided with a plugin, not tied to Alloy in any way

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Blog Exampleapp/Module/Blog/Controller.php

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app/Module/Blog/views/index.html.php

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http://localhost/path/blog

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Magic Datagrid?Alloy has View Generics

Extensions of view templates

Generic HTML template markup with custom functions that accept Closures to enable fully custom PHP markup in designated areas (like table cells) with no special syntax or recursive includes

You don’t have to use them, but they can be huge time-savers if you do

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Adding an APITemplate for HTML, Resource object for API

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http://localhost/path/blog/index.json

Array -> JSON via Resource response type

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API Errors?

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HTML

JSON

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Layouts & BlocksMake your App Look Nice



LayoutsReally just another view template with a special location

Includes both header & footer, content placed inside

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BlocksNamed regions that content can be pushed to from any view template in your app

Static to current request so no data has to be passed

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app/layouts/app.html.php

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app/Module/Blog/views/viewAction.html.php

Post tag list in layout sidebar

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app/Module/Blog/views/viewAction.html.php

HMVC dispatches as “widgetized” content

Promotes better code re-use, DRY principle, allows polymorphic associations for generic types of content

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Events & FiltersDynamic Behavior & Manipulating Responses



Layout PluginLayout wrapping is achieved with a plugin in Alloy

Filters ‘dispatch_content’ event

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Main Dispatch Content Filter

Many other events and filters not shown in this diagram

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Layout Plugin - wrapLayoutReturns template wrapped in template

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Thanks!Alloy on the web:


http://github.com/alloyphp

Vance Lucas

Personal: http://vancelucas.com

Business: http://actridge.com

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http://actridge.com

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alloy hmvc php framework

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