Dispatcher Glossary

1. This glossary is incomplete, please help where you can by adding definitions to existing items where needed. Also, add new Dispatcher related Items to the glossary as appropriate.

1. A contract is a snippet of re-usable code that gets used in a structurer file.
2. Contracts can be used or omitted as neccessary, though a few are really compulsary in order to define a basic skeleton structure and to include some styling (CSS)
3. Contracts mainly come in three (3) types, static, semi-static & dynamic.
Static Contracts are pre-defined snippets of code that need no further information.
Semi-static Contracts can include extra configuration variables, these would over-ride otherwise default variables.
Dynamic Contracts can have extra configuration variables, but can also define their own snippets of code information. (Such as extra CSS elements, or generic markup elements).

1. In the context of the dispatcher, a Class is used as an optional attribute to the forrest:hook. This converts to <div class="example"></div>.

1. The Dispatcher is the codename for the Forrest Implementation of the Core J2EE Dispatcher View. java.sun.com has more information on its origins.
2. What we at 'Forrest' relate the Dispatcher to, is the overall technology and implementation of the replacement 'skins' system. Combining 'Views', 'Contracts' , 'Themes' enables separation of concerns to provide a fast and efficient documentation framework.

1. forrest:hooks is a concept of defining format independent hooks to structure the output.
2. Hooks are used to help define the layout of a page. Hooks are only used to define the structure in our output that is required to enable a theme to apply its look and feel.
3. Hooks convert to layout <div></div> container blocks and usually only consist of forrest:contracts
4. Hooks are applied currently in the themes.core plugin as part of a themes structurer configuration file such as %themename %-html.panel.xml (e.g pelt-html.panel.xml) or included in such configuration files via a panel file such as %themename%-%format%.panel.xml (e.g pelt-html.panel.xml)

1. In the context of the dispatcher, a name is used as an optional attribute to the forrest:hook. This converts to <div id="example"></div>.

1. forrest:property - Todo:open

1. Panels is the new name for a tile - a collection of contracts.

1. The Structurer allows a user to define the layout and content of a site or parts of a site.
2. Structurer files contain hooks & contracts which you can include to build up a site structure template
3. A completed structurer file defines an overall theme (look and feel) for a site

1. Skins is the name of the older alternative way for structuring and styling your site pages.
2. Skins is still used in Forrest versions 0.7 and 0.8-dev, though for 0.8-dev and beyond it can be concidered an option with Dispatcher being the other.(It is enabled as the default option currently)

1. A tile is a collection of contracts that are grouped together for easy inclusion into a theme.
2. Tiles was the original but deprecated name for a collection of contracts, it is now re-named and re-implemented as a 'Panels'

1. A more extensible and adaptable solution than its alternative 'Skins'. A 'Theme' is an overall content & style set.
2. A master 'common' theme provides the basis in which you can extend, over-ride or add to in order to make your own theme, you do not have to create a complete theme from scratch, simply include/exclude/over-ride/add what you need. The current 'Pelt Theme' based on its 'Pelt Skin' counterpart, but uses functionality and extends/inherits what it needs to from the 'common' theme.

1. Views is the older now deprecated name for what is now the 'Dispatcher'
2. Views also, confusingly, was used as a term for the Structurer, and forrest:views is a deprecated code that has been replaced with forrest:template.