Mithat Konar (the wiki)

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====== Notes for Alternative Architectures for Hybrid Applications ======

===== Server =====
  * Create test case(s) using PHP and/or Node.js to get an idea of app responsiveness and interaction issues.
  * Attach WebSockets, Server-sent events, long polling, or similar to determine multiple client behavior and scalability.

==== Notes/questions/issues ====
  * Persistence: config file or sqlite w/nice wrapper
  * Security model alternatives:
    * Accept connections only from localhost? CORS?
    * Password (in request) or API key (basic auth) property in app?
    * Notify and accept (cookie/session)?
    * Firewall
  * Embedded (i.e., one-and-only-app) vs. desktop app

==== PHP ====
  * Attractive because it facilitates a lot of web developers get into embedded development (i.e., lots of devs know PHP very well).
  * What server?
    * Is the built-in server good enough for a limited number of connections?
    * Is there a native PHP server that is good enough?
    * [[https://nginx.org/|nginx]]
    * [[https://www.lighttpd.net/|lighttpd]]
    * Bitnami?
  * What PHP?
    * Can "standalone" PHP be installed easily? Or is it best to use the global PHP? (Easy for Linux, dunno about Windows & MacOS.)

The above are not issues for embedded application as the machine's global Apache (or whatever) server and PHP can be used.
  * Frameworks
    * Silex
      * Good community support.
      * Good Composer and module support.
      * Documentation is a bit obtuse.
      * Out of the box twig support. Redbean support is available.
      * Has a good ReST code structure but you wouldn't know it from the docs.
    * Slim
      * Slim 3 has removed some functionality that might be good to have.
    * Fat Free Framework
      * Compact, more than what's needed.
      * Excellent ReST code structure.
      * Twig and Redbean support are available.
      * Not sure Composer is well supported.
    * Check cookies/session (secure) support.
  * Persistence
    * Redbean 
    * ini and other format file (search Packagist for [[https://packagist.org/search/?q=ini%20|ini]] and [[https://packagist.org/search/?q=config%20|config]]).
      * [[https://packagist.org/packages/hassankhan/config|hassankhan/config]] looks good.
    * [[http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2015715/fastest-way-to-store-easily-editable-config-data-in-php|text file with native functions]] and [[http://psoug.org/snippet/How_to_write_a_config_file_234.htm|this]].

==== Node.js ====
  * Doesn't have the "which server?" issue as the script is the server.
  * There is also a "persistence" advantage in that app vars can be used to deliver same data to many clients.
  * Frameworks
    * I don't see much reason not to use Express.js.
    * Persistence
      * My [[http://nodejs-configfile.saved.io/|config file bookmarks]]
      * My [[http://nodejs-sqlite.saved.io/|sqlite bookmarks]]

==== Python ====
  * Python is attractive because RPi developers will know it.
  * Flask and Flask-RESTful are a good combination.
  * Has a development server that might be good enough for a limited number of clients.
  * Has the "persistence" advantage of Node.js (if run on development server?)
  * Config files and sqlite are TODO.

===== Client =====
  * To be served or simply loaded from file?
    * I suspect the former is better because of security/CORS/whatever. 
    * If served, by a separate server or by the same server that's handling the API?