With the 1st release out, let's get to know Ode a little better: Introduction

Now that the first release is out I want to make sure you know what Ode can do. Though all of Ode's features are discussed in the annotated source, it's also true that they're not apparent otherwise. I want to be clear that I do not expect you to go digging through the source every time you have a question.

Ode's motto is 'simple means you know how it works', so let's get to know Ode a little better.

Ode is extensible. That means the app allows developers (that means you) to redefine how the script works and extend what Ode is capable of doing.

Ode's extensions are called 'addins'. You may be familiar with other projects where this same sort of thing is referred to as an extension, module, addon, plugin, etc.

The first release ships with a single addin which provides support for the Markdown text formatting syntax.

More about Markdown from the official website:

The overriding design goal for Markdown's formatting syntax is to make it as readable as possible. The idea is that a Markdown-formatted document should be publishable as-is, as plain text, without looking like it's been marked up with tags or formatting instructions.

Because Ode's posts are discrete text files intended to be created and modified using a plain text editor, Markdown is a nice complement.

This extensibility is an integral aspect of Ode's design. However, the ability to 'add in' features raises the question,

"What should Ode do itself, in absence of any installed addins?"

There is no easy answer. Too far in one direction the app might be lean (small and fast) but lacking even the most basic features, and so utterly useless. Small and fast sounds good, but not if it only compels nearly all users to install a set of addins to provide needed functionality that should have been built-in. Alternatively, the core script might be feature rich but relatively large. If we go too far this way, Ode will include features that aren't beneficial to some users. It might be possible to ignore those aspects of the script, but it's possible, even likely, that everyone will pay a performance penalty for their inclusion. Furthermore, it could be necessary to install addins just to get rid of unwanted features, further impacting performance. A big app is also hard to understand, and more difficult to support and maintain.

The goal then is to find just the right compromise. We want Ode to be legitimately useful but not excessive.

The basics really are pretty simple.

Ode is an app designed to dynamically generate a website from individual posts, which are collectively the content of the site. The presentation of this content is determined by one or more themes, which dictate the overall look and layout.

That brief description introduces two important elements:

• Posts
• Themes

In addition to these topics I want to introduce two others:

• Date restrictions
• Query string parameters

Next

Wondering where to go next? Let's take a closer look at posts