Hello RoR: Talk,
I have been working on a declarative style template engine that differs
substantially from Haml and ERB. I’m calling it express_templates.
Express Templates uses Ruby’s block structure and execution order to
define document templates and fragments of markup as procs and blocks in
a declarative, macro-like Ruby DSL. Simple example:
ul {
li { “one” }
li “two”
li %q({{:three}})
}
Express Templates provides a Component concept that allows a component
developer to encapsulate template fragments and to re-use common logic
patterns in a Ruby class. No logic goes in the template code or
fragments. All logic is implemented via Components. The file extension
for an express_template is .html.et but the syntax is just Ruby.
Gem is on github: GitHub - aelogica/express_templates
More example code is in the README. There is ample test coverage and
documentation should you wish to play with it. It has only two runtime
dependancies, both of which I hope to remove for a 1.0 release:
active_support and parslet.
I am building express_templates to scratch my own itch on a substantial
internal project and to make my own and my teams’ efforts more
efficient. My goal is to facilitate a complete Ruby web UX framework
and component hierarchy where the page can still be rendered server-side
in the traditional way via the View Context and where the Rails app
still owns the layout. I think something like this is important for the
future of Rails.
Components in express_templates can leverage advanced client side JS
without requiring the user to handcraft markup or client framework code.
Express Templates itself has no opinion on JS frameworks. A library of
components built on express_templates could select any suitable JS
framework or none at all.
I presented express_templates in a lightning talk at RubyConf on
Tuesday. Slides here:
Your feedback or encouragement may help guide me to a 1.0 production
release sometime in Q1.
Have you been looking for something like this? What kind of pain do you
experience with large or new projects using current template schemes?
What approaches are others taking aside from going all in on JS heavy
apps? I want to know.
Thank you and kind regards,
Steven Talcott S.
Master Developer, Chief Happiness Officer
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