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Terms, Icons, and Labels

Many classes have shortcut names used when creating (instantiating) a class with a configuration object. The shortcut name is referred to as an alias (or xtype if the class extends Ext.Component). The alias/xtype is listed next to the class name of applicable classes for quick reference.

Access Levels

Framework classes or their members may be specified as private or protected. Else, the class / member is public. Public, protected, and private are access descriptors used to convey how and when the class or class member should be used.

Member Types

Member Syntax

Below is an example class member that we can disect to show the syntax of a class member (the lookupComponent method as viewed from the Ext.button.Button class in this case).

lookupComponent ( item ) : Ext.Component
protected

Called when a raw config object is added to this container either during initialization of the items config, or when new items are added), or {@link #insert inserted.

This method converts the passed object into an instanced child component.

This may be overridden in subclasses when special processing needs to be applied to child creation.

Parameters

item :  Object

The config object being added.

Returns
Ext.Component

The component to be added.

Let's look at each part of the member row:

Member Flags

The API documentation uses a number of flags to further commnicate the class member's function and intent. The label may be represented by a text label, an abbreviation, or an icon.

Class Icons

- Indicates a framework class

- A singleton framework class. *See the singleton flag for more information

- A component-type framework class (any class within the Ext JS framework that extends Ext.Component)

- Indicates that the class, member, or guide is new in the currently viewed version

Member Icons

- Indicates a class member of type config

- Indicates a class member of type property

- Indicates a class member of type method

- Indicates a class member of type event

- Indicates a class member of type theme variable

- Indicates a class member of type theme mixin

- Indicates that the class, member, or guide is new in the currently viewed version

Class Member Quick-Nav Menu

Just below the class name on an API doc page is a row of buttons corresponding to the types of members owned by the current class. Each button shows a count of members by type (this count is updated as filters are applied). Clicking the button will navigate you to that member section. Hovering over the member-type button will reveal a popup menu of all members of that type for quick navigation.

Getter and Setter Methods

Getting and setter methods that correlate to a class config option will show up in the methods section as well as in the configs section of both the API doc and the member-type menus just beneath the config they work with. The getter and setter method documentation will be found in the config row for easy reference.

History Bar

Your page history is kept in localstorage and displayed (using the available real estate) just below the top title bar. By default, the only search results shown are the pages matching the product / version you're currently viewing. You can expand what is displayed by clicking on the button on the right-hand side of the history bar and choosing the "All" radio option. This will show all recent pages in the history bar for all products / versions.

Within the history config menu you will also see a listing of your recent page visits. The results are filtered by the "Current Product / Version" and "All" radio options. Clicking on the button will clear the history bar as well as the history kept in local storage.

If "All" is selected in the history config menu the checkbox option for "Show product details in the history bar" will be enabled. When checked, the product/version for each historic page will show alongside the page name in the history bar. Hovering the cursor over the page names in the history bar will also show the product/version as a tooltip.

Search and Filters

Both API docs and guides can be searched for using the search field at the top of the page.

On API doc pages there is also a filter input field that filters the member rows using the filter string. In addition to filtering by string you can filter the class members by access level, inheritance, and read only. This is done using the checkboxes at the top of the page.

The checkbox at the bottom of the API class navigation tree filters the class list to include or exclude private classes.

Clicking on an empty search field will show your last 10 searches for quick navigation.

API Doc Class Metadata

Each API doc page (with the exception of Javascript primitives pages) has a menu view of metadata relating to that class. This metadata view will have one or more of the following:

Expanding and Collapsing Examples and Class Members

Runnable examples (Fiddles) are expanded on a page by default. You can collapse and expand example code blocks individually using the arrow on the top-left of the code block. You can also toggle the collapse state of all examples using the toggle button on the top-right of the page. The toggle-all state will be remembered between page loads.

Class members are collapsed on a page by default. You can expand and collapse members using the arrow icon on the left of the member row or globally using the expand / collapse all toggle button top-right.

Desktop -vs- Mobile View

Viewing the docs on narrower screens or browsers will result in a view optimized for a smaller form factor. The primary differences between the desktop and "mobile" view are:

Viewing the Class Source

The class source can be viewed by clicking on the class name at the top of an API doc page. The source for class members can be viewed by clicking on the "view source" link on the right-hand side of the member row.

Architect 4.2


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Files and Directories in the Architect Project Tree

This guide provides information about the files that are stored in an Architect project, custom app template, and user extension. Architect uses Sencha Cmd to build projects. In most cases, you do not need to delve to deep into Cmd because Architect handles the build process for you. If you want to learn more about the inner workings of Cmd, you can read the Advanced Sencha Cmd documents:

Storage Locations

The storage locations for projects, components, extensions,templates, and themes are configurable on the "File" section of the Architect Preferences screen.

Note: Architect will not work with Windows network paths in this format:

 \\ComputerName\SharedFolder\Resource

To utilize a network drive, users must map them like so:

 S:\sharedfolder

Project File Structure

The basic structure and the files that are required by all Architect projects are generated the first time you click the "Save" button for the project. This guide explains this file structure, including some optional files and others that are created later in the project cycle.

The application files for an Architect project named MyApp1 are stored under the myapp1 directory with the following structure.

myapp1/
    myapp1.xds                    # File used as entry point to saved project
    .architect                    # User settings for your project such as nodes in Inspector
    index.html                    # HTML index file
    app/
        controller/                  # .js files for components in Controllers node
                override/         # Optional folder that contains override files     
        form/                
                override/         # Optional folder that contains override files     
        model/                    # .js files for components in Models node
                override/         # Optional folder that contains override files     
        Readme.md
        store/                    # .js files for components in Stores node
                override/         # Optional folder that contains override files     
        view/                     # .js files for components in Views node
                override/         # Optional folder that contains override files     
    app.js                        # Launches the Application class
    app.json                      # Application descriptor
    README.md
    bootstrap.css
    bootstrap.js
    bootstrap.json
    build/                        # Folder where build output is placed
    build.xml                     # Defines the app build process
    ext/                          # Copy of the Ext JS SDK 
    index.html                    # Entry point to your application
    metadata/                     # Files that describe the pieces of the project
        Application               # Metadata for the Application node
        model/                    # Metadata for components in the Models node
        resource/                 # Metadata for components in the Resources node
        store/                    # Metadata for components in the Stores node
        view/                     # Metadata for components in the Views node
    overrides/
    packager.json                 # Configuration for native packaging
    packages/                     # Sencha cmd packages
    resources                     # Library file plus project files developed outside Sencha Architect
        project-images/           # (optional) Contains images to use for styling the app
     sass/
     .sencha/
     theme/                       # Custom Themes and Themes applied from Toolbox 

Top-level Directory

The top-level directory for your project contains the following files:

.xds file

Architect's entry point to a project is an .xds file. The prepended name will be whatever you set when you first save your project. This file contains a small amount of meta data that Architect uses to open and maintain your project.

The .xds file contains a simple JSON object. It is the only file that is directly modified as you are working in Architect. Every time you build your project, Architect creates all the code files needed to run your project.

index.html and app.js Files

The index and app.js file are your application's entry points in the browser when you preview and run your project. They contain all of the application's initialization logic.

.architect File

The .architect file contains user settings for your project such as the nodes that are expanded and contracted in the Inspector.

Note: You will likely want to exclude this file from source control.

app Directory

The app directory contains .js files for each top-level component in your project. These files are arranged in sub-folders that correspond to the nodes listed in the Project Inspector such as:

  • Controllers

  • Models

  • Stores

  • Views

  • Forms

You should not directly edit any of these files. Architect creates them and overwrites them every time you save or build your project.

An optional override subfolder contains overrides created with the "Create Override" button in the Code Editor. These should be created whenever you need to do something not provided by the Architect facilities.

Every top level component or class allows for this treatment. Override classes are saved in an override sub-directory under the appropriately typed directory such as view/override or store/override.

Note: Overrides created with the "Create Override for this Class" become new classes, not sub-classes. This option may be accessed by right-clicking a component in the Toolbox.

bootstrap.js, bootstrap.css, and bootstrap.json

These files are used when building your app in dev mode, which means you are previewing the index.html file without a build.

bootstrap.css pulls in the correct theme in dev mode. You may need to add your .css file to the app.json file or include it in your index.html file outside the bootstrap comments.

For more information, see Building a Web App.

build.xml and the Build Directory

The build.xml file defines the build process for your application. It is generated by Cmd and is not normally modified, although reading it may provide insight into the the build process.

The build output is located under the build directory.

metadata Directory

The metadata directory contains the files that describe all of the pieces of your project. Each class (Controller, View, Model, Store, and Resource) has its information stored in its own file.

You should not edit the metadata files directly. However, they are important to your project and should be tracked in your source control repository. Normal source control operations, such as revert changes, update from source code control, etc. will alter these files. This is completely expected.

packages Directory

The packages directory contains framework packages that are auto-generated for your application.

resources Directory

The resources directory contains files and folders that were created and edited outside of Architect. Examples include manually created custom CSS files, images, SCSS files, and JavaScript. These are integrated into your app as external resources. For example, after adding an external .css file to the archive, you would add a CSS resource to your project and point it to this file.

See Using Resources for more information.

CSS and JavaScript files that are added as resources may be edited using the Architect Code Editor.

Project files that are edited outside Architect can be imported into Architect as Resources or packaged as a user extension.

Note: While a "Library" node is displayed under "Resources" in the Project Inspector, there is no file that represents the library in the folder structure.

theme

The theme folder Contains files that are auto-generated by the Sencha Architect theme building process.

ext Directory

Each saved Architect project includes a directory tree that contains a copy of the framework SDK being used for that project. This includes libraries for both GPL and Commercial builds as well as debug and production versions of the libraries. When you first open an Architect project, it is set to access a copy of the framework SDK that is located on a Sencha server. However, when you first save your project, it pulls a copy of the SDK into your project tree.

If you are creating and maintaining multiple applications that use the same framework SDK, you may want to create an ext directory outside any single application directory. This enables you to share a single copy of the framework SDK among all of your applications instead of embedding a private copy of the SDK in the directory for each application.

If you do this, you must inform the build tools of the location of your SDK by selecting the Library Node under the Resources Node and changing the value of the "Library Base Path" config to reflect the location of the framework SDK directory.

For example, if you put your ext directory at the same level as the extensions, projects, and templates directories, set this config to ../../ext.

For more information about how Sencha Cmd uses the framework SDKs to generate an application, see:

Architect 4.2