CLJStron (ClojureScript's Electron)

Project

A library to manage and develop electron applications in ClojureScript... and Clojure?

Goals

• Library for main and renderer parts of electron.
• Offer standard operations on electron.
• Use a maximum of declarative programming, sending modified states instead of function mutating the state. This will enable to manage a react-like management in the main process and so to be able to figwhell in node.js and Clojure app
• Offer loading external modules into application.
• Centralized configuration storage (.cljstron). Storage management is a module.
• Usable as a NPM library.
• Usable as a ClojureScript library (through clojars).
• Usable as an electron application, with configuration of one's IDE through tool modules that should be composable:
  • Editors
  • REPLs
  • State managements
  • Sandboxes (DevCards, ...)
  • Project management
  • Compilers
  • Linters
  • Configuration tools
  • Packagers
  • ...
• Monitoring of an external electron project. (module(s)?)
• Compiler agnostic. Compiler is a module. Idea, to be able to integrate every language compiling in JavaScriopt.
• Editor agnostic. Editor should be a module.
• Modules are language agnostic. The library and modules have a clear JavaScript API for inter-operation.
• A Java (minimum 8) version of the main process : .
  • As a JavaScript container for electron main process.
  • As a Clojure electron (CLJtron) and a ClojureScript electron (CLJJStron) module to encapsulate corresponding IPC communication with electron.
• A native-react module (CLJSNATIVEtron), as node.js is now on the electronic devices. This will too have it's own IPC communication management.
• Projects should be (if possible) completely and transparently moved from an environment to another and work seamlessly, one with any other one, with the same code:
  • Desktop application
  • Desktop client
  • Clojure server
  • node.js server
  • Browser client
  • Mobile node.js main
  • Mobile client
  • One Page Application (OPA)
  • Standalone server
  • ... :sweat:

State of project

Project is now a WIP in pre-alpha stage as of 22th of October 2017. :mask:

It is only as for now a simple experimental electron app used as a sandbox.

Version

• @ivanpierre/[email protected] first beta version will be moved to cljstron on NPM as [email protected].
• GitHub repository: https://github.com/cljstron/cljs-node-electron-boot. First beta version will be moved to cljstron/CLJStron repository with release 0.0.1-beta1.

Dependencies (as for now)

NPM

• [email protected] It's necessary to compile the project. Why? because of the compiler... :unamused:.
• [email protected] The compiler for now, but this will be in a module afterward (compiler agnostic). Root compilation will be a raw lein project.

Clojars

• [camel-snake-kebab "0.4.0"] It's used to manage snake-cased and camelCased keys. I will change to the camel-case library included in electron package, or not... :wink:

Installation

As it's an alpha release, I suppose you already know how to install programs and the configuration of your computer... :yum:

Prerequisites

• leinigen
• git
  • If you're on a mac, you'll probably will have to install XCode which is in the Apple Store.
  • hint : if when you use git you have message about XCode, that's it... :grin:
  • If you install it you'll have to aggree to the licence aggrement : type 'sudo xcodebuild -license', give your password, hit the space key, or enter, until you're at the end of the licence, type aggree [ENTER], and you're done.
• node.js that includes npm, the package manager. You can also use the yarn manager if it's your favorite tool. I figure out you know how to translate the following npm commands... :innocent:
• Not mandatory but useful, a node version selector nvm so you can play with the lastest node.js version.
  • if you do it, change version before proceeding...
• with npm install :
  • latest version of npm : 'npm i -g "npm@latest"'
  • shadow-cljs : 'npm i -g "shadow-cljs"'
  • electron : 'npm i -g "[email protected]"'

Installing project

Go in a developpement directory or create it.

create and download the project directory :

'git clone https://github.com/cljstron/cljs-node-electron-boot.git'

You should be in the project directory :

'cd cljs-node-electron-boot'

And download the needed libraries :

'npm i --save'

Compiling project

Compile the mainand renderer applications in development mode:

• 'shadow-cljs compile main'
• 'shadow-cljs compile renderer'

If you've got errors... you're at work... :grin: Go to the Editing the project part. And try to figure out why, by reading the error messages.

I'll try to only push working versions, but I'm on a mac now, so Windows and Linux releases have not been tested.

You can also put an issue on the project's GitHub repository issues page.

Lanching the project

It's just :

'electron .' or 'npm start'

Normally you have an open window with infos on the versions of your eclipse environment.

For mac users, closing the windows doesn't stop the program, you have to go to the menu and close the application. Bad mac habit, but you can change it, see editing code.

Editing the project

You can use whatever editor that support Clojure and ClojureScript

• EMACS
• Atom
• Eclipse
• Vi
• LightTable
• NightCode
• Sublime
• IntelliJ
• ...

ou même qui ne le supporte pas. Personellement j'utilise Visual Sudio Code avec les packages Clojure (I test for now), ParInfer, Rainbow Brackets (buggy), and I use the Integrated Terminal to lauch compilation as I wait for the REPL, Compilation and Reboot On Edit modules.

Application structure

├== -> generated code     ├**  -> downloaded libraries     
[directory]               ├++  -> compiled libraries and runtime in development mode
                                  all integrated in generated code on production
.
├── README.md                      This page
├── [docs]                         Documentation directory
│   └── Home.md                    Junk file
├── LICENSE                        Licence file
│
├── cljs.edn                       Futur project file for cljsjs "Lumo"
├── clojure.clj                    Futur project file for leiningen
├── project.boot                   Futur project file for boot
├── shadow-cljs.edn                The working project file for shadow-cljs
├── package.json                   Project file for the application as npm package
│
├** package-lock.json              Control file for the loaded npm packages
├** [node_modules]                 Repository of the npm packages
│
├++ [target]                       Compiled AOT, cache and runtime of main application libraries
│
├── [resources]                    Public HTML root directory for the renderer
│   ├── [plugs]                    Directory of plugins' resources
│   │   └── [cljstron_simple]      Resources for a plug
│   │       ├── plug.edn           Plugin descriptor, windows, menus, dependences, ...
│   │       ├── [css]              CSS directory
│   │       ├── index.html         Optional HTML pages
│   │       └== [js]               Compiled AOT, cache an executables for renderer
│   │           ├++ [cljs-runtime] Library and runtime for renderer
│   │           ├++ manifest.json  Manifest of libraries and runtime
│   │           └== simple.js      The compiled main program for the renderer
│   │
│   ├── app.edn                    Application descriptor
│   ├── index.html                 Empty page to create content from javascript
│   └== main.js                    The compiled main program of the application
│
└── [src]                          Sources root
    │
    ├── [cljstron]                 Root of cljstron library
    │   ├── [main]                 Root for helper function for main application
    │   │   ├── interop.cljs       A file to translate recursively JS->CLJS structures (unused)
    │   │   └── window.cljs        Helper for windows management, containers of renderers
    │   ├── [common]               Root for helper function for both applications
    │   └── [renderer]             Root for helper function for renderer application
    │
    ├── [cljstron_simple]          Sources for plug
    │   ├── [main]                 Main plug sources
    │   │   └── main.cljs          Source for main. Manage the windows and events
    │   ├── [common]               Both main and renderer plug sources
    │   └── [renderer]             Renderer plug sources
    │       └── simple.cljs        Source for renderer.
    │
    └── main.cljs                  Main entry point. Activate cljstron_simple 

A last thing... the doc for electron is here. It may help... :innocent: