[dev] new prefs system (Was: gollem: working?)

[Keith A. Chayer]

Quoting Chuck Hagenbuch <chuck@horde.org>:

> > I like the new prefs code.  It looks very...complicated.
> 
> What part of it, out of curiosity?

Well, at first glance, there was just a lot there, which is a big change over 
what was there before.  It's all sensible, but now it requires more than just a 
simple yes-or-no, enable-or-disable answer.  That's not bad, and for the added 
functionality, it's unavoidable.  Maybe complicated wasn't the best word--how 
about detailed, or maybe intricate? :)

My initial reaction was to the two differnt sets of arrays used.  There are 
arrays for preference groupings and then arrays for the individual preferences 
themselves, and their names are derived from the values of the "members" nested 
arrays of the groupings.  I can see messing up the correlating members between 
the two, if one isn't careful when modifying his configuration.  I understand 
arrays and thus wouldn't have too much trouble adding a new preference, an 
entire group, or both, but someone that doesn't might have a little more 
trouble.  I don't know that there's a way around that--this system is already 
used in servers.php, only it's not as inter-array dependent.

I'm not griping, though, and I guess one has to expect a certain level of 
ability for sysadmins who will be installing this stuff.  While the 2.2 install 
is becoming more simplified as we move into 2.3/2.4, these types of things 
introduce new and different complexities.  However, there is nothing wrong with 
leaving things default in a situation like this; if someone has a reason to 
change it, he probably will know why and how.

..Keith

---------- - - .
Keith A. Chayer                                         Baptist Bible College
Network Technician                                         Springfield, MO
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