Re: Creating API pages

Thanks Dave!
+Scott



On Thu, Nov 15, 2012 at 9:05 AM, David Gash <dgash@google.com> wrote:

> Scott,
> Settled enough for me to move ahead. Barring any major objections, I'll
> start on the Web Audio API docs using the revised structure.
> Dave
>
> On Thu, Nov 15, 2012 at 8:51 AM, Scott Rowe <scottrowe@google.com> wrote:
>
>> Thanks PhistucK - my thoughts in-line...
>> +Scott
>>
>>
>>
>> On Wed, Nov 14, 2012 at 11:53 PM, PhistucK <phistuck@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> See my comments inline.
>>>
>>> ☆*PhistucK*
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On Thu, Nov 15, 2012 at 1:12 AM, Scott Rowe <scottrowe@google.com>wrote:
>>>
>>>> Thanks to everyone who particpated on the call today to discuss the
>>>> proposal and the apis architecture. Ahead of meeting notes, I'd like to
>>>> review some of the main points and revisit the issues that were not fully
>>>> resolved at the end of the call. It's rather imperative that we be able to
>>>> move forward with the documenting the APIs, and I think we've resolved
>>>> enough of the issues to be able to move forward without having to do too
>>>> much revising or reorganizing of our docs down the road.
>>>>
>>>> Could everyone please take a moment to read this and respond? Thanks!
>>>>
>>>> *apis architecture*
>>>>
>>>> We decided to remove the "intermediate" pages (objects, events,
>>>> methods, and properties) from the namespace to keep the URLs shorter and
>>>> eliminate the need to fill these pages with queries or redirects. The new
>>>> api namespace architecture is as follows:
>>>>
>>>> apis
>>>> apis/<apilist>
>>>> apis/<apilist>/<apiObject>/<foo-event>
>>>> apis/<apilist>/<apiObject>/<bar-method>
>>>> apis/<apilist>/<apiObject>/<baz-property>
>>>>
>>>>
>>> Great!
>>> Just to be clear. This would be the final URL -
>>> apis/webaudio/MediaStreamAudioNode/createMediaStreamSource
>>> And not this -
>>> apis/webaudio/MediaStreamAudioNode/createMediaStreamSource-method
>>>
>>> Right?
>>>
>>
>> Right - that's my understanding.
>>
>>
>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>> Note: further discussion about the <apilist> namespace identifier is
>>>> further on, but assumed here to be maintained.
>>>>
>>>> I will begin rewriting the proposal for this and reorganizing the
>>>> webrtc docs.
>>>>
>>>> *constants*
>>>>
>>>> We discussed the possibility of providing for constants (enumerations)
>>>> that are shared across several methods within an object. I spoke with our
>>>> own Dimitri Glazkov about this. Turns out that an API may provide for the
>>>> case where a property could use only part of the enumeration (values 1 and
>>>> 2, but not 3) while another property would use all values (1, 2, and 3) of
>>>> a given enumeration. Constants are defined for the object, so this scenario
>>>> is quite common.
>>>>
>>>> Now the challenge is how to represent the valid constants for a
>>>> particular property. We need a way to specify constants 1 and 2 (but not 3)
>>>> for property A, and specify constants 1, 2, and 3 for property B. Probably
>>>> the best way is to follow the same approach we take with events, methods,
>>>> and properties pages and the "Applies to" field.
>>>>
>>>> So, each constant would have its own page, i.e.
>>>> apis/<apilist>/<apiObject>/<FOO-constant> and the properties page would
>>>> have a summary table listing each of the valid constants. The trick here
>>>> would be to provide each <FOO-constant> page with multiple "Applies to"
>>>> fields so that these could be shared.
>>>>
>>>> This needs some thought and design expertise. For now, let's just move
>>>> forward with constants listed per property.
>>>>
>>>>
>>> Creating a page for every constant seems like a real overkill.
>>> I am not sure if this is technically possible, but I propose we add a
>>> constant section on every API Object template. Instead of the "Applies
>>> to..." approach, we can define a "Possible value" approach. Draw the value
>>> from the API Object page.
>>>
>>> Example -
>>> dom/Node has a (special) constants section that is not drawn from
>>> anywhere, it is inline. Every constant has a category (node types) a name,
>>> a value, a type and a summary.
>>> dom/Node/nodeType has a possible values section/field with the following
>>> value - dom/Node#ELEMENT_NODE, dom/Node#TEXT_NODE (and so on), or a
>>> category of constants - dom/Node#node-type-constants.
>>>
>>> Creating pages for every constant and adding all of the
>>> properties/methods (parameters? sounds complicated. Example -
>>> document.evaluate)/objects it applies to sounds like a real pollution.
>>>
>>
>> Yes, I share your concerns. My first thought was, how often does a
>> constant need to be reused within a given api object, and how much benefit
>> to the user (us) is there in building an infrastructure to support this
>> case? In short, is this really necessary? Sure, it would be nice to achieve
>> an elegant solution here, but is it a priority? To tell you the truth, I'm
>> not convinced.
>>
>>
>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>> *exceptions*
>>>>
>>>> We need to describe the exceptions for a method. Same re-use scenario
>>>> as with constants. So apis/<apilist>/<apiObject>/<Bar-exception> and the
>>>> ability to "Applies to" to different methods. Note that often API methods
>>>> use DOM exceptions, so this template needs to work for both dom and apis.
>>>> Could get kind of hairy with multiple "Applies to" fields.
>>>>
>>>> Needs some thought and design expertise, too. For now, let's just move
>>>> forward with exceptions listed per method.
>>>>
>>>
>>> Note that properties can raise exceptions as well when set, I believe.
>>>
>>> While I agree that common exceptions should have their own pages, I
>>> propose a model similar to what I proposed for constants, for exceptions.
>>> Instead of adding all of the methods to an "Applies to..." field, fetch
>>> the exception from the method page and not the other way around.
>>> And in the case of rarely used exceptions (or maybe only exceptions that
>>> are used in a single method), add them inline in a special constant section.
>>>
>>
>> As with constants, I'm not convinced that providing for an elegant UI for
>> the reuse of exceptions is a high priority. But I think we should continue
>> noodling on the subject - good mental exercise!
>>
>>
>>
>>>
>>>
>>>> *Move all apis under dom*
>>>>
>>>> It was suggested that all of the api pages could be moved under the dom
>>>> namespace.
>>>>
>>>> Early on we decided to keep the dom namespace separate from the apis
>>>> namespace. The "non-dom" apis are more clearly defined on their own, and
>>>> fitting them within the dom does not add any value. While it is true that
>>>> most of the time an API is accessed within the context of a dom object,
>>>> i.e. navigator.getUserMedia() or  window.indexedDB.open(), usually this
>>>> context is only necessary to create the initial object, i.e. a
>>>> LocalMediaStream object or an IDBOpenDBRequest object. That much is
>>>> adequately covered in the documentation and needn't be spelled out in the
>>>> URLs. And, as was pointed out in the call, our purpose is not to mimic the
>>>> document object model in our URLs, but to provide for location and
>>>> navigation. Furthermore, nesting everything under a DOM object page
>>>> makes the URL longer.
>>>>
>>>
>>> I am also against this, but not strongly. For the same reason as below.
>>> However, an argument in favor is that it is kind of hard to decide
>>> whether something should be added to dom/ or to apis/.
>>>
>>
>> Yeah, dude, I'm with you! We have to draw the line somewhere though.
>>
>>
>>
>>>
>>>
>>>>
>>>> *API Listing pages*
>>>>
>>>> It was suggested that we remove the API Listing pages from the apis
>>>> namespace. I strongly urge us not to do so.
>>>>
>>>> The API listing pages describe the API by its common names - the names
>>>> by which users search for information about the API. It provides
>>>> for find-ability where an API has multiple "listing names" - as is the case
>>>> with the WebRTC API which is further sub-divided into the MediaStream,
>>>> PeerConnection, and DataChannel APIs. These need to be included as
>>>> sub-headings in the listing page to fully describe the API.
>>>>
>>>> The API listing pages provide an overview of how to use the API objects
>>>> included in the specification. The best place to do this is within the apis
>>>> namespace, rather than a "concepts" or "guides" or other namespace.
>>>>
>>>> The API listing pages provide for disambiguation between like-named API
>>>> objects. Consider two objects:
>>>>
>>>>    - The MediaStreamAudioSourceNode object from the Web Audio API
>>>>    - The MediaStream object from the WebRTC API
>>>>
>>>> In fact, both of these are the same thing, as creating a
>>>> MediaStreamAudioSourceNode is simply passing to that object an object of
>>>> type MediaStream:
>>>>
>>>> MediaStreamAudioSourceNode createMediaStreamSource ( MediaStream
>>>> mediaStream );
>>>>
>>>> If our URLs read, apis/MediaStreamAudioSourceNode and /apis/MediaStream
>>>> without any context to differentiate them, users are likely to get confused.
>>>>
>>>>
>>> Listings are very useful wherever they are. I am also against removing
>>> listing pages. The more, the merrier.
>>>
>>
>> Well of course I agree. The close approximation - that is, within the
>> apis namespace, as in apis/<apilisting> - provides a level of meta data,
>> certainly within the current URL-as-navigation methodology, but also long
>> term where eventually we collate all of the page meta data into a taxonomy
>> and use it to serve up search results.
>>
>>
>>
>>>
>>>
>>>> *Action Item: Proving out the apis architecture*
>>>>
>>>> I'm concerned that there may have been a miscommunication about the
>>>> action item captured at the end of the meeting. This happened while the
>>>> meeting was adjourning, and may have been misconstrued. Here's the snippet
>>>> from the IRC channel:
>>>>
>>>> 9:57 AM <sierra_> TASK: someone sanity-check how actual APIs would work
>>>> 9:59 AM <sierra_> in apis/<apilist>/objects/<apiObject>/properties , go
>>>> to apis/APIobject/properties
>>>> 10:00 AM <sierra_> sorry, apis/APIobject
>>>>
>>>> What I heard was that the action item is to review the apis namespace
>>>> to see if there would be collisions between api objects without the
>>>> intervening <apilist> object. First, it is unlikely that within our very
>>>> limited apis namespace that this will happen (we currently have some 8 or 9
>>>> APIs, not counting DOM APIs); second, we can never fully prove the lack of
>>>> collisions because we don't have time to review the entire set of standard
>>>> APIs - and we certainly can't vet the ones that haven't been created yet.
>>>>
>>>> Perhaps someone could fill in here why this exercise is necessary and
>>>> what it hopes to prove?
>>>>
>>>> Would it not be more efficacious to simply proceed with maintaining the
>>>> <apilist> namespace identifier - as in apis/<apilist>/<apiObject>/<etc.>?
>>>>
>>>>
>>> apilist is useful for context. However, how many developers actually
>>> look at the URL of the documentation? I know I do, but I think most do not.
>>> I am against removing the apilist part, but not strongly, because I
>>> realize it is not that useful for everyone.
>>>
>>
>> Agreed. The URL structure is ultimately a facility for locating - that
>> is, for us when creating articles. It is less important as a navigation
>> facility for users *once we get our search house in order*. But
>> presently search is so crappy that users can't even use it. While
>> it's embarrassing to force the users to divine the structure and find
>> articles through the URLs, it's pretty much all we've got right now.
>>
>>
>>
>>>
>>>
>>>> Thanks for helping out here!
>>>>
>>>> +Scott
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Tue, Nov 13, 2012 at 12:23 PM, PhistucK <phistuck@gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> I am planning on adding fields for constants within the API Object
>>>>> template/form. It might take a few days, though. I hope to work on it on
>>>>> Friday or Saturday.
>>>>>
>>>>> ☆*PhistucK*
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On Tue, Nov 13, 2012 at 9:06 PM, David Gash <dgash@google.com> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Scott,
>>>>>> For tomorrow's call, apart from the basic issue of the API content
>>>>>> architecture, let's discuss the web audio list before I set off creating
>>>>>> ~150 pages. Also, I have a few questions about certain parts of the
>>>>>> interface that you (or someone else) may be able to answer, below. The
>>>>>> numbers refer to the W3C spec<https://dvcs.w3.org/hg/audio/raw-file/tip/webaudio/specification.html>,
>>>>>> and are linked to the specific sections for easy reference.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> 4.3<https://dvcs.w3.org/hg/audio/raw-file/tip/webaudio/specification.html#AudioSourceNode>
>>>>>>  AudioSourceNode
>>>>>> Listed as an "abstract" interface, has no documented properties or
>>>>>> methods.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> 4.11<https://dvcs.w3.org/hg/audio/raw-file/tip/webaudio/specification.html#MediaElementAudioSourceNode>
>>>>>>  MediaElementAudioSourceNode
>>>>>> Created in an Audiocontext, has no documented properties or methods.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> 4.14.1<https://dvcs.w3.org/hg/audio/raw-file/tip/webaudio/specification.html#PannerNode-sub>PannerNode Constants
>>>>>> There's no API structure/path for constants.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> 4.18<https://dvcs.w3.org/hg/audio/raw-file/tip/webaudio/specification.html#ChannelSplitterNode>ChannelSplitterNode and
>>>>>> 4.19<https://dvcs.w3.org/hg/audio/raw-file/tip/webaudio/specification.html#ChannelMergerNode>ChannelMergerNode
>>>>>> Also have no documented properties or methods.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> 4.24<https://dvcs.w3.org/hg/audio/raw-file/tip/webaudio/specification.html#WaveTable>WaveTable and
>>>>>> 4.25<https://dvcs.w3.org/hg/audio/raw-file/tip/webaudio/specification.html#MediaStreamAudioSourceNode>
>>>>>>  MediaStreamAudioSourceNode
>>>>>> Also have no documented properties or methods.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I'm not sure whether to create pages for the objects with no
>>>>>> properties or methods, and whether to document the PannerNode constants as
>>>>>> properties or... something else. Any input appreciated.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Dave
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On Mon, Nov 12, 2012 at 12:06 PM, Scott Rowe <scottrowe@google.com>wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Thanks Dave! Be sure to share any issues you encounter on this
>>>>>>> thread.
>>>>>>> +Scott
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On Mon, Nov 12, 2012 at 11:16 AM, David Gash <dgash@google.com>wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Scott / all,
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I'm starting to document the web audio API. Based on Scott's
>>>>>>>> proposal doc and the W3C specs, the first few topics' URLs will be
>>>>>>>> structured thus:
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/AudioContext/properties/destination
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/AudioContext/properties/sampleRate
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/AudioContext/properties/currentTime
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/AudioContext/properties/listener
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/AudioContext/properties/activeSourceCount
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/AudioContext/methods/createBuffer
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/AudioContext/methods/decodeAudioData
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/AudioContext/methods/createBufferSource
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/AudioContext/methods/. . . etc.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/AudioNode/properties/context
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/AudioNode/properties/numberOfInputs
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/AudioNode/properties/numberOfOutputs
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/AudioNode/methods/connect
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/AudioNode/methods/disconnect
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> apis/webaudio/objects/. . . etc.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> There are a lot more objects, properties, and methods in this API,
>>>>>>>> of course, but Scott has reviewed this plan and, barring any objections,
>>>>>>>> that's the path structure I'll be following.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I plan to outline the entire set before creating any pages, then
>>>>>>>> create all the stubs, then go back and fill in.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Cheers,
>>>>>>>> Dave
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> On Thu, Nov 8, 2012 at 12:03 PM, Scott Rowe <scottrowe@google.com>wrote:
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> When I sat down to document the process for creating API pages,
>>>>>>>>> using the WebRTC documentation as the poster child, I found more questions
>>>>>>>>> than answers. I realized that we did not have a good story here, so I did
>>>>>>>>> my best to fill in the holes with a methodology that attempts to solve the
>>>>>>>>> problems I found.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> You find this methodology described in WPD:Creating_API_pages<http://docs.webplatform.org/wiki/WPD:Creating_API_pages>
>>>>>>>>> .
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Note that it started out as a how-to for contributors, but quickly
>>>>>>>>> became a proposal. So parts of it will read either way. Don't be alarmed.
>>>>>>>>> The purpose of the document is to provide you with a methodology to try on
>>>>>>>>> as you do what I did - test it out with your own API pages.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> As you do, please don't update the methodology in that page -
>>>>>>>>> let's discuss it first. We can use this thread for the discussion.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Thanks for your help!
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> +Scott
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>
>