[Twisted-Python] Documentation overviews

[Dave Britton]

Twisted masters,
As a twisted newbie, who still doesn't really feel like I get it, but is really drawn to it anyway, my humble advice is to teach how to navigate the use of the libraries,. especially with respect to how data is passed from one process to another, and how to understand the process flow, and how to integrate your own code for your application into the library correctly. It seems like there is an expected but unstated right approach or style that will work best and most easily... the tao of twisted so to speak... but what is this path?
   Being old I still think in terms of sequences, conditionals and iterations, so it took a while to get that if I wanted a sequence of operations to happen as an asynchronous event (a Deferred) that went off on its own for a while, (and when it returns, whatever was going on wherever it was called from is long gone, like the deferred was some spaceship returning from a long near-lightspeed journey!) I had to construct that sequence as a string of callbacks, each attached to the previous, and to get any conditional or iterative activity within that sequence I had to figure out how to pass arguments that would provide enough information to the next callback. That has been extra tricky for me in the context of how to correctly use the library of classes available, especially how and/or when to extend or subclass them. In part this is because although I have used python for a number of years, I have never pushed the envelope in terms of power programming techniques. Thus, it would be helpful also if there was a subsection of the documentation that discussed how advanced python techniques (eg Factories) are used (more about python than twisted, per se, but essential to understanding and using twisted). The Protocol class and how to use it viz the Factory a Protocol goes with is especially confusing to me, for example, yet this is essential in twisted.
   So I admire you guys tremendously and appreciate your work. I hope someday I grok it enough to be able to contribute to the documentation in some way.
-Dave Britton
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Cary Hull 
  To: Twisted general discussion 
  Sent: Thursday, April 02, 2009 11:05 AM
  Subject: [Twisted-Python] Documentation overviews


  Hi folks,

  One of the goals for the Pycon sprint was to develop user oriented overviews for existing documentation.
  These would ideally guide users through everything they would need to read in order to accomplish a desired goal with Twisted.

  I've formulated the following 'track' suggestions based on a conversation in the sprint room a few nights ago.
  Feedback would be greatly appreciated.

  ---

  Overviews

  #   The basics of event driven applications (beginner)

  #   No hand holding, just the facts (advanced, already familiar with concepts involved)

  #   Testing Twisted applications

  #   Driving processes (interactively or otherwise)

  #   Custom protocols

  #   When it makes sense to use threads

  #   Persisting application data (Would cover various options including Axiom)

  #   Task scheduling (Would cover various options including Axiom)

  #   Web clients

  #   Web applications using just Twisted

  #   Web applications using WSGI (Maybe show how to run Django)

  #   Mail clients

  #   Mail servers

  #   SSH clients

  #   SSH servers

  #   XMPP (Jabber) clients

  #   XMPP (Jabber) servers

  #   Multiple servers in a single application

  #   GUI applications (non web)

  #   Networked video games



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