Sakai Easy Tools

Information

This explains the idea of easy tools in Sakai. These are simple tools which are effectively basic webapps which a user can write by adhereing to a set of conventions. The easy tool could be easily written and the Easy Tool Manager UI would allow the tool to be uploaded and activated on a running Sakai server. The remainder of the webapp code would be generated automatically and the user could download the full app and develop it into a more advanced Sakai app later if desired.

Easy Tools

• Goals/Needs fulfilled
  • Easy tools are meant to meet the need of being extremely easy to write and deploy
  • Developers who have never really seen Java (only PHP or things like it) should be able to write an easy tool
  • Minimal Java knowlege should be required
  • No knowledge of maven should be required
  • No understanding of Spring/Hibernate/etc. should be required
  • Tools should be able to be controlled via a simple UI (probably admin users only)
  • Tools will only be able to do simple things (display information, generate URLs, handle very simple forms)
  • Easy tools would be able to be converted into a fully structured Sakai tool
• Sakai service/data access
  • Access to data within Sakai would be provided via a simple master static cover (probably called Sakai) or via component name conventions
    • The master cover would provide access to a limited set of Sakai services and data which are safe to access within Sakai
• Documentation
  • Comprehensive easy-to-use descriptions of how to build a tool
  • Clear explanation of service/data access
  • Several examples of commonly used techniques
  • Several examples of simple tools