All-CoffeeScript Node.js project in c9.io IDE
                    Multi-platform including c9.io, Linux, Windows
                            Fresh Libs  ~  Freely Hosted

Sto!

Exploring how to structure a node store app.

Because this is a learning project, I implement certain things before looking at the way others do it or using a package. That shows in project stucture, crud, login, the client, etc. Grappling with these basic problems gives one a good feel for the platform while exercising creative problem solving, but this is not intended to be a recipe of best practices.

---

Install

cake install or npm install

• Size: Less than 20 MB with libs at this point.
• Node and npm are required: download and install from http://nodejs.org/
• Unzip to a location or checkout from github. You may need to be admin.
• On a command prompt, run this command in the install dir to fetch libraries.
• It should skip optionalDependencies bcrypt and jquery if they fail.
• Node jquery is commented-out, using superagent.
• If bcrypt is installed it is used, defaults to crypto.
• Note that passwords are not compatible/portable between the two.

Test

cake test

• Currently requires running server. See below.
• Currently needs model objects in db with "test" for all fields, hardcoded.
• Startup args in the Cakefile configure testing options.

Run

cake server or coffee app.coffee

• Runs on port 3000 or c9.io port by default
• Go to http://localhost:3000 or http://sto.apelade.c9.io
• First user has to temporarily disable checkUser to create own account.
• See app.coffee, line 65, which begins "# To skip checkUser". Edit and restart.
• Create user from /index "Add User" link or /user/add.
• Edit app.coffee to restore checkUser, restart. New user should work.
• Query routes are /model/field/match like:
• /user/login/your_login should find the user you created
• /item/price/100 would find an item you create with price of 100

Dependency

• Node and npm to install packages list in sto/package.json
• CoffeeScript, although it does compile to js so node could run it instead
• Express web server
• Mongoose object modeler
• Jade view templates
• Twitter Boostrap layout
• Mocha and Should, some kind of load tester
• Trying a shared mongod, Dharma 2.3 Experimental from http://mongohq.com, 512 MB
• JQuery for ajax and binding event listeners in catalog component
• Optional bcrypt instead of default crypto requires building native:
• The bcrypt README at https://github.com/ncb000gt/node.bcrypt.js worked great!
• It refers you to the node-gyp README https://github.com/TooTallNate/node-gyp
• python 2.x
• Right now I'm on Windows 7, so Windows OpenSSL 64-bit libs
• Visual Studio Express
• Win7 64-bit SDK, uninstalled prev versions of 2010 C++ Redistributable first

Resource

• cloudnine: http://sto.apelade.c9.io
• github: http://github.com/apelade/sto
• mongohq: mongodb://sto_user:*******@linus.mongohq.com:10083/mdbt

File

• Cakefile : cake command runner

• app.coffee : entry point and config for running the express server

• cloudnine-start.js : bootstrap launcher file to run coffeescript on c9.io

• packages.json : npm dependency file list

• README.md : this

• /model/ : mongoose models directory

• /public/ : files to be served, image, script, etc

• /route/ : routing files (called from app.coffee)

• /test/ : mocha and should test files in tests.coffee

• /view/ : jade view templates directory

Design

Server

• Express servers work by connecting url paths to execute functions from route files that deliver query results in pages, and redirects.
• Multiple routes files handle get and post of common Mongoose model CRUD ops.
• These are standardized toward possible future automation.
• These CRUD routes (and others) enforce login by using the optional checkUser middleware function.
• Login form posts action values containing original destination, to redirect on successful login.
• Rudimentary login currently has one implied role of admin for all users.
• Loop in route files enumerates query routes per model property.

Client

• Client application skeleton is defined by layout.jade template includes.
• These includes can be groups of javascript, stylesheets, meta tags, etc.
• There is one called /view/scripts.jade that loads the common scripts in order.
• There are also chunks which define cart, login, and catalog components.
• Cart and catalog components are compiled without the top-level function into javascripts for the client side.
• Cart binds it's own event listeners, controls user input, and redraws itself.
• Catalog uses JQuery event selectors and JQuery AJAX request to page the Items.
• Login uses no client-side scripts, instead a login session starts on the server when the user sucessfully logs in. Log out by logging in incorrectly.
• Cart currently uses localStorage only.