Avalon 5 (Spearhead) Roadmap

Here's an effort to define Avalon 5 (once codenamed Spearhead). Please join in!

The process:

  • Assembly a list of concerns and goals that both the developer and user communities wish to see addressed in the forthcoming year. This helps us
    • Make sure nothing falls through the cracks
    • Identify how are users are using Avalon and what they want out of it
    • Identify developer resources – who wants to do what
  • Structure these concerns and goals into a general roadmap of specific milestones for the next year or so
  • Map these milestones into JIRA which we will use to track our progress
  • If necessary, the PMC will exploring updating our Charter to reflect the goals of the community

Please note that the majority of discussion surrounding this material should happen on the mailing lists.

Concerns and Goals

Okay, here's your chance to be heard! What's important to you? Where do you see Avalon in a year or two from now? What itches do you want scratched? These are in no particular order!

Note: this initial list was gleaned from thoughts and concerns brought up in Jan and Feb 2004 on the developers mailing list.

  • "Put Avalon4 into maintenance and get on with Avalon5"
  • Create an Avalon TCK, or set of TCK's including specs and tools (only worry about A5 for now?)
  • One scalable container solution per language. ie- a real reference implementation
  • Define Fortress as the Avalon 4 reference implementation. Promote Merlin as the eventual Avalon 5 reference implementation.
  • Define an Avalon security model (include support for JAAS?)
  • automated component publishing
  • Container facilities: http, jmx, jms, iiop, rmi (altrmi)
  • Support various IoC "types" (isn't that Avalon PI?)
  • Cross container interoperability ( A5 should support A4 via adaptors. )
  • publisher federation technologies (uh, what is this? (smile))
  • Single meta format (between A4 and A5?)
  • Service AvailabilityContract in the framework
  • Circular dependency handling
  • JCA client for/in Avalon
  • Full Tutorial
  • Update of "Developing With Avalon"
  • Cooperation with the Repository/Depot folks and our own repository code
  • Better (re)use and cooperation with Jakarta Commons – stop reinventing code, prefer Commons solutions to home grown when possible
  • Make A5 "simplier" – less axioms to learn, more intuitive
  • Unit Tests!
  • IDE plugins (like Merlin Developer)
  • "Codenames"
    • Merlin = Avalon 5 container (should support A4 – ECM/Fortress)
    • Fortress = the Avalon 4 reference implementation
    • Spearhead = ??? (enhancements, adjustments to the actual framework?)
  • For Avalon 5 nothing should be sacred. Depricate or actually drop marker interfaces, etc.
  • Better documentation of Merlin's decomposition – how it works together, what's the absolute smallest container you could build from it
  • An Avalon "kitchen sink" distribution – a full fledges Avalon app server like EnterpriseObjectBroker
  • Cooperation and discussion with the larger IoC Community – get ideas and discussions with JContainer people, Pico, Spring, etc.
  • Component libraries – what to do with Cornertone and Excalibur? What stays in Avalon, what goes to Commons or elsewhere. Will Avalon host a Component library/registry?
  • Migration tools and documentation from A4 to A5
  • A JSR?
  • ... add more by editing this page

Possible design:

Roadmap Milestones

A preliminary list of milestones.

[fixme by editing this page!!!]

note: the old material is here

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