the Jellybean Object Web Server

Current Version!

0.13 was released on 26 June 2001, slightly behind schedule. Note that this version is not available from SourceForge (because I can't log in and they haven't fixed it yet.) You owe it to yourself and the people you love to update.

Clothe yourself in Jellybean. Briac's clever design and a witty slogan will attract the most discerning members of the appropriate gender. Or we'll apologize.

If You're Stuck with Version 0.12:

Here's a bugfix to make the Docs object work correctly. You'll have to modify conf/init.pl. The Docs object must be added to an HTMLContainer:

my $HASH0x83f5884 = Jellybean::HTMLContainer->new();
my $HASH0x83f0813c = Jellybean::Docs->new();

$HASH0x83f584->add({
	docs => $HASH0x83f0813c,
});

What is it?

Jellybean is a Perl Object Server with an HTTP interface. (If you're dedicated, you can telnet into it, but you'll get tired of typing.) Parts are becoming something similar to Zope. (Jon Udell put that idea in my head, but don't blame him.) Other parts are completely different, with peer to peer uses. Perhaps. A similar project is Iaijutsu, also known as Iaido. Check that out if you think Jellybean does it incorrectly. We do promise to keep our project name pronounceable, even if you don't know Japanese.

The point of an Object Server is to provide a framework which you can use to write lightweight and desktop-appropriate applications. For example, if you normally access your contact list on a remote server through a web browser, why not stick Jellybean on your laptop, download your client list, and take it on a trip with you?

The potential also exists to manage a personal web site with Jellybean. You can provide different views of the same data depending on the access method. You can keep a diary. You can do lots of things with a very small but powerful and easily extended web server on your desktop.

What's it look like?

It's a daemon process, but if you really want a screenshot, here's one from my machine (12k) and one from jlp (8.5k). Note the functional and clean interface. (Hey, we like to see this when we're testing, okay?) Jellybean is themable, so if you don't use Eterm it will look different. Yes, this is mostly a joke.

What's the current progress?

Version 0.13 (26 June 2001) is an important milestone. The infrastructure is in place to do very cool things in the future. Soon, you'll be able to access Containers and Objects via XML-RPC. If you code them right, you won't even have to edit them when we add support for other access methods. Amazing! This also means that you can listen on multiple ports. Incredible!

Version 0.12 (11 April 2001) breaks all previous records. We've scaled back on adding clever new features in lieu of polishing existing stuff. Of course, we've added a personal Wiki to show off what Jellybean can do -- this is the tip of the iceberg. The big new thing is the personal Wiki, so give it a try. (Or read up on Wikis at the source.)

Unfortunately, the Everything Engine doesn't quite run on Jellybean 0.13. Besides chromatic, only nate was that crazy. You're can still use it as a miniature CGI testbed, if you don't want to do much configuration or to run Apache or PWS or whatever on your own machine.

What features does it have?

Jellybean provides some compelling features to recommend it over other solutions:

You've sold me. Where do I get it?

You can download a current tarball. It's tested on Linux (but ought to work on any Unix with no tweaking) and works on Win32, in our testing, in a ZIP archive. If you're particularly adventurous, head over to SourceForge and check out the CVS tree.

What can I do about it?

Take a look at the current code and tell us if there's a more elegant way to do what I'm doing -- the latest version escaped on 11 April. Make your own Object! Read the developer documents listed in the README file! Write snippets! Please!

I just don't know where to start.

Though we will still sell you the standard Free Software disclaimer (more documentation is on the way), the improved Jellybean::Docs object makes everything in the docs/ object look pretty. Especially in a CSS-capable browser. So read that! If you're motivated to help, visit the SourceForge page, join the jellybean-dev mailing list (optionally browsing the archives), and send a message telling us what you'd like to see, what you might like to work on, or asking if there's anything you can do. We're happy to answer design and architecture changes if it's okay that your question and the answer go into the documentation. We might even send you development stuff to play with! (Don't get too excited, as some dev code is kinda ugly. It gets buffed and polished before we make a release.) Check out the code and the docs/TODO file.

What is the license and where do I send patches?

It's under the GPL/Artistic licence combination, just like Perl. You can send patches, suggestions, and critiques to: jellybean-dev@lists.sourceforge.net. Thanks!


It sounds cool enough to make any selfrespecting geek chick swoon...
-- kamileon (herself a respectable and intelligent lady)

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