FreeLists / openbeosnetteam / [openbeosnetteam] Network preflet, the future?

["Niels Reedijk" <n.reedijk@xxxxxxxxx>]

Hi,
I've been playing with the new network preflet, and I have a fair idea 
of how
everything should stick together. However, while I was working on this, 
I realised
not only the front end needs to be designed, but also the back end. 

There should be a main way of storing settings. I believe that normal 
BMessages
would suffice, however, a human readable (and editable) version perhaps 
is a good
idea as well. This, however, will mean that a whole new backend needs 
to be
designed, which, I'm sure, will be in R2, but not right now. I suggest 
using a BMessage
scheme. 

Furthermore, there should be a way to communicate these settings to the 
kernel
network modules. An option is that all the modules open the network 
preferences,
however, the kernel should learn BMessages then, and they should be 
informed on
what profile is loaded.

A better way would thus be to have an application start via the 
Bootscript (or 
something similar) that loads all the settings to the kernel modules 
using 
ioctl(...). It could be an application (let's just name it 'netconfig') 
that puts the
settings in the kernel, however, that would mean that add-ins should be 
written
for that app as well. In my opinion, a better way would be to have the 
'Network'
preflet, during boot time, load in a NON-GUI way, let it have it load 
its add-ins, and
have a specific handle in those add-ins, to set up the kernel modules 
they control. 

Any opinions?

Anyway, back to the thing that all started these thoughts: the network 
preflet. In
the attached screenshot, you see the basis of the preflet: A window 
with a general
profile. The main theory of operation is that the application maintains 
a list of
profiles, acts as a settings loader/writer for the add-ins, and 
provides the GUI facilities
for each add-in to have its own status message (if needed, so the 
ethernet module
can add status messages for all the interfaces it controls). A standard 
add-in, called
the common_settings add-in will be added for controlling the main 
stack, there'll
also be an ethernet add-in, and a lovely ppp add-in. Anyway, how does 
the GUI work?
(I know I'm not a GUI wizard, and I'm not referring to the actual look/
spacing of the 
preflet, but rather the place of the controlls, their descriptions, 
etcetera). Will it
suffice?

There's much more to be said, but I'd rather start a discussion, than 
presenting 
all the details in my opinion, which may be wrong anyway. Any flames?

Niels

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