Subject: Re: [RFC PATCH 10/10] gitweb: Show appropriate "Generating..." page when regenerating cache (WIP)

From: Jakub Narebski <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 2010 01:03:37 +0100

On Sun, 24 Jan 2010, Petr Baudis wrote:

>   I have stupid question, common to both the original patch and this
> RFC.
> 
> > [RFC PATCH 10/10] gitweb: Show appropriate "Generating..." page when
> > regenerating cache (WIP)
> 
>   Just why is a "Generating..." page appropriate?
> 
>   I have to admit I hate it; can you please at least make it
> configurable? Why is it needed at all? It generates unnecessary
> redirects, clears my previous page in the browser by a useless
> placeholder, confuses non-interactive HTTP clients and I just can't
> see the real purpose.
> 
>   What's the gain?

Don't ask me, I am just following original patch by John 'Warthog9' 
Hawley (J.H.) here, splitting it into smaller and hopefully easier to 
review parts, with each separate feature in a separate patch (so that 
features like this one are more visible).  I _think_ that in original 
patch by J.H. this feature was configurable (at least to some extent).  
As this series is more proof of concept than ready to apply patches, 
some of configurability is missing currently.

I think that adding the "Generating..." page follows behavior of other 
well known web applications, such as for example GMail.  Currently
if caching is enabled, and there is no appropriate entry in cache (not
even [slightly] stale entry) the page is shown only when it is generated
in full: there is no streaming (although I planned to add it).  So for
example for 'blame' view or for pickaxe search you could wait quite
a bit for a page to be shown.  The "Generating..." page is a kind of 
activity indicator here.

Note that the JavaScript-using Ajax-y version from the following patch 
'[RFC PATCH 11/10] gitweb: Ajax-y "Generating..." page when 
regenerating cache (WIP)'
  http://permalink.gmane.org/gmane.comp.version-control.git/137896
is not visible in browser history, as it simply replaces "Generating..."
page with the result.  So there is no 'unnecessary redirect', and there
is no 'useless placeholder' in browser history.

-- 
Jakub Narebski
Poland