Re: [jsr-314-open] Evaluating EL in resource files

Greetings EG, We have two problems here. First, let me restate the intent of the feature. FEATURE SHORT DESCRIPTION: ========================== Let JSF2 resources refer to other resources in a way that the browser can make GET requests to load them via the ResourceHandler. RATIONALE for FEATURE: ====================== CSS files may refer to other files using the following syntax url( some URL ) The url() element may appear in several places in a CSS file, most commonly to the right of @import, as in @import url(layout.css) @import url(typography.css) @import url(colorAndMedia.css) Unfortunately, this doesn't "just work" when the CSS file in question is in a JSF resource library, for obvious reasons. The solution we chose was to allow EL expressions in CSS files. That way, you could say this in your css file: @import url(#{resource['this:layout.css']}) @import url(#{resource['this:typography.css']}) @import url(#{resource['this:colorAndMedia.css']}) and when the file actually gets served up it would look like: @import url(/jsf-ezcomp02/javax.faces.resource/layout.css.jsf? ln=ezcomp); @import url(/jsf-ezcomp02/javax.faces.resource/typography.css.jsf? ln=ezcomp); @import url(/jsf-ezcomp02/javax.faces.resource/colorAndMedia.css.jsf? ln=ezcomp); PROBLEM 1. This behavior should have been specified in the javadocs for Resource.getInputStream(). I've added this to the ChangeLog. PROBLEM 2. JavaScript resources have the same problem; they can refer to other javascript files and the browser needs to know how to fetch them. We employed the same solution: put EL in there and it gets evaluated on the way out. Unfortunately, the prototype JavaScript library uses #{} to mean something important. SUGGESTED SOLUTION to PROBLEM 2. Let's assume PROBLEM 1 didn't exist. I suggest we modify the spec for getInputStream() to say that all resources EXCEPT JavaScript resources, must do the EL evaluation on the way out. We need some way for users to enable the feature for JavaScript resources because, let's face it, not everyone uses prototype. Ryan and I suggest we adopt a protocol that says, "if the resource name ends in '-el' we always turn on the EL evaluation on the way out". Thoughts? Ed -- | ed.burns(a)sun.com | office: 408 884 9519 OR x31640 | homepage: | http://ridingthecrest.com/