I agree that the debugging experience of GWT can be improved. That might happen either by trying to resurrect DevMode by hacking on Chromium and the JVM, or by implementing Java watch expressions and conditional breakpoints in Chrome Devtools / Eclipse SDBG.
I think the second approach might be easier, but it will require hacking on GWT itself, because evaluation of Java expressions in the debugger would need support from the compiler. That might be easier to do with J2CL once it is out. Let's see - rumor goes, initial beta or something is expected this quarter... On Friday, January 13, 2017 at 1:45:05 AM UTC+2, Predrag Remark wrote: > > I agree 100% with everything you said. I was thinking exactly about this > idea (when I first saw dartium). I was wondering why it's not done in gwt > the similar thing long time ago (DevMode with special version of Chromium) > ? SDM in Chrome or Eclipse (with sdbg) is nothing comparing to DevMode. It > does not really replace DevMode it's just a bad hack that I personally > don't find useful at all. It's faster than DevMode, but that is it. It's > not really a debugger if you are not able to watch Java expressions and > variables, it looks more like some kind of hacking than debugging. I still > prefer to use DevMode with Mozilla 26 and IE11 than the latest Chrome and > it's source maps (so called) "debugger". > > > On Thu, Jan 12, 2017 at 10:43 PM, [email protected] <javascript:> < > [email protected] <javascript:>> wrote: > >> Hello, GWT people. >> >> <rant> >> >> GWT got its popularity because it allowed DevMode in the browser (run >> java in VM in browser, manipulate DOM, use your IDE!). In fact, the GWT >> project appeared as clever hack on hack on hack to stretch limits of >> possible, to be ahead of its time, and that was cool. Nobody did that >> before. Now GWT turns into much like... i don't know, more like typescript >> compiler. No, really, with announcements like those "Let’s examine >> <http://blog.lteconsulting.fr/gwt/2016/2016/04/10/gwt-2016-en.html> the >> parts of GWT doomed to extinction: generators, Widgets, GWT-RPC, UiBinder … >> " it's just another typescript. Typescript also looks like Java! Its >> transpiler is and will always be faster than GWT. There's no reason for GWT >> to be anymore. And there's no GWT events, reddit comments on its >> announcement are like >> <https://www.reddit.com/r/programming/comments/593c3w/gwt_280_released/d95k7go/> >> >> "oh, it's still alive?". >> >> So while GWT is essentially already dead for me with removal of DevMode >> (I understand this removal happens because of browsers architectural >> changes, not because the idea failed), I still think about various >> workarounds. >> >> </rant> >> >> I remember, in GWT 1.0 special mozilla-based internal browser was shipped >> with GWT. It was long before GWT DevMode plugins for all browsers. And >> nobody thought it's bad option, although it didn't support SVG which was >> already in firefox, canvas, etc. It was the way to go. IT WAS the cool part. >> >> With removal of NPAPI and devmode plugins, maybe it would be feasible to >> take chromium, maintain one (1) patchset that allows it to run alongside >> with JVM (maybe even same process!) on all platforms, allowing DevMode via >> direct calls, and distribute it on manner they do it with dartium? >> gwtromium? >> >> You ask "what about other browsers"? You don't need other browsers. >> Citing same source: "modern browsers are now more standard and compatible >> <http://blog.lteconsulting.fr/gwt/2016/2016/04/10/gwt-2016-en.html>, and >> we no longer need to have the homogenization layer that GWT gives", and >> this is in fact true. For other browsers, use SuperDevMode, it's useful >> enough to catch browser-related issues. But main program logic should be >> allowed to be developed (and debugged!) in Java. Because GWT is... Java. >> >> By introducing more strong ties and even sharing process with JVM it >> would be possible to speed up roundtrips java<->browser due to absence of >> TCP connection and serialization, so it will be even noticeably faster than >> before. >> >> So, does this idea make sense? <rant>Or javascript-transmitted disease >> finally won?</rant> >> >> Thanks. >> >> -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "GWT Contributors" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/google-web-toolkit-contributors/a5b2d7d3-6092-4d73-a801-928b4d01585e%40googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
