[elm-discuss] Poll for Intermediate to Advanced topics that people struggle with

[Jeff Schomay]

Hello,

I am considering doing some training material on working with Elm in
production. I want to focus on areas that people struggle with after they
are already familiar with Elm. What concepts continue to confuse you?
What product requirements have been difficult to achieve with Elm? What
is most painful about your Elm codebase?

Some topics I have already thought of:

- decoders
- debouncing (http autocomplete input field for example)
- scroll to element
- testing
- unwieldy update functions
- api design

If you have anything you'd like me to consider, please add it to the list.
Thank you!

[Peter Damoc]

Scaling.

Most successful Elm adoption approach has been the NoRedInk approach of
implementing bits of the UI in Elm.
This effectively creates a self contained Component that one can interact
with from some container framework (e.g. React).

There is however another path, a more dangerous path, where one starts with
Elm and stays in Elm as much as possible.
On this path there is very little assistance.

Here are some topics:

- structuring large apps
- using build managers with Elm (webpack, gulp, etc.)
- options around responsibilities (e.g. using Elm with CSS libraries like
Bootstrap via webpack & SASS loaders)
- managing routing
- non-hash SPA routing
- managing authentication
- storage interfaces (interfacing the code with the databases with some
kind of Store construct)

Besides these topics, you could also explore integrating external libraries
with Elm

- implementing a command processor that allows an Elm app to interact with
a bunch of JS libraries though a single pair of ports.
- interacting with famous UI libraries like CodeMirror or Google Maps
- using web-components

Post by Jeff Schomay
Hello,
I am considering doing some training material on working with Elm in
production. I want to focus on areas that people struggle with after they
are already familiar with Elm. What concepts continue to confuse you?
What product requirements have been difficult to achieve with Elm? What is
most painful about your Elm codebase?
- decoders
- debouncing (http autocomplete input field for example)
- scroll to element
- testing
- unwieldy update functions
- api design
If you have anything you'd like me to consider, please add it to the
list. Thank you!
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[Kurt Mueller]

I really like this list. I would also like authorization discussed as well.

Kurt

Post by Peter Damoc
Scaling.
Most successful Elm adoption approach has been the NoRedInk approach of
implementing bits of the UI in Elm.
This effectively creates a self contained Component that one can interact
with from some container framework (e.g. React).
There is however another path, a more dangerous path, where one starts
with Elm and stays in Elm as much as possible.
On this path there is very little assistance.
- structuring large apps
- using build managers with Elm (webpack, gulp, etc.)
- options around responsibilities (e.g. using Elm with CSS libraries like
Bootstrap via webpack & SASS loaders)
- managing routing
- non-hash SPA routing
- managing authentication
- storage interfaces (interfacing the code with the databases with some
kind of Store construct)
Besides these topics, you could also explore integrating external
libraries with Elm
- implementing a command processor that allows an Elm app to interact with
a bunch of JS libraries though a single pair of ports.
- interacting with famous UI libraries like CodeMirror or Google Maps
- using web-components

Post by Jeff Schomay
Hello,
I am considering doing some training material on working with Elm in
production. I want to focus on areas that people struggle with after they
are already familiar with Elm. What concepts continue to confuse you?
What product requirements have been difficult to achieve with Elm? What is
most painful about your Elm codebase?
- decoders
- debouncing (http autocomplete input field for example)
- scroll to element
- testing
- unwieldy update functions
- api design
If you have anything you'd like me to consider, please add it to the
list. Thank you!
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"Elm Discuss" group.
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--
There is NO FATE, we are the creators.
blog: http://damoc.ro/

[Tolga Paksoy]

One thing I struggle with is setting up a project structure where I can be
the most productive when using Elm. Things like editors, tooling,
hot-reloading, not having to keeping my backend models in sync with my Elm
models, etc. I feel like I'm not as productive as I can be when I'm writing
Elm. It's a big step in the right direction, but tooling is very, very
important to me.

[Eric G]

Data modelling and refactoring. "Making impossible states impossible",
perhaps starting with basic problems and working up to more realistic
tangles of conditions.

Post by Jeff Schomay
Hello,
I am considering doing some training material on working with Elm in
production. I want to focus on areas that people struggle with after they
are already familiar with Elm. What concepts continue to confuse you?
What product requirements have been difficult to achieve with Elm? What
is most painful about your Elm codebase?
- decoders
- debouncing (http autocomplete input field for example)
- scroll to element
- testing
- unwieldy update functions
- api design
If you have anything you'd like me to consider, please add it to the list.
Thank you!

[Dmitry Utkin]

- Interacting with 3rd party libraries that use DOM and have multiple
event-related callbacks
- `Chaining` Cmds and Msgs
- Fighting the lack of interfaces while designing own data structures

Post by Jeff Schomay
Hello,
I am considering doing some training material on working with Elm in
production. I want to focus on areas that people struggle with after they
are already familiar with Elm. What concepts continue to confuse you?
What product requirements have been difficult to achieve with Elm? What
is most painful about your Elm codebase?
- decoders
- debouncing (http autocomplete input field for example)
- scroll to element
- testing
- unwieldy update functions
- api design
If you have anything you'd like me to consider, please add it to the list.
Thank you!

[Christophe de Vienne]

One thing I did not figure yet is how to make several components in a
page efficiently interact with each other.

Ideally I would like a single program with one model and several
sub-views mounted on several nodes in the dom-tree (for example a basket
widget and a "myaccount" one).

I did such a thing with react/redux in a transition phase toward a SPA,
and it was a nice way to iteratively integrate the new architecture in
an existing application.

The only way I can think of right with my current knowledge of elm is to
use ports to have some messages sent from a component to the others, but
it feels non optimal.

I think having a clear way to achieve this would makes it easier to
progressively integrate elm in an existing app.

Post by Jeff Schomay
Hello,
I am considering doing some training material on working with Elm in
production. I want to focus on areas that people struggle with after
they are already familiar with Elm. What concepts continue to confuse
you? What product requirements have been difficult to achieve with Elm?
What is most painful about your Elm codebase?
- decoders
- debouncing (http autocomplete input field for example)
- scroll to element
- testing
- unwieldy update functions
- api design
If you have anything you'd like me to consider, please add it to the
list. Thank you!
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
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For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.

[Alan McCann]

I echo Peter Damoc's entry + authentication (e.g. JWT)

Post by Jeff Schomay
Hello,
I am considering doing some training material on working with Elm in
production. I want to focus on areas that people struggle with after they
are already familiar with Elm. What concepts continue to confuse you?
What product requirements have been difficult to achieve with Elm? What
is most painful about your Elm codebase?
- decoders
- debouncing (http autocomplete input field for example)
- scroll to element
- testing
- unwieldy update functions
- api design
If you have anything you'd like me to consider, please add it to the list.
Thank you!

[Simon]

Like Peter, I think the key issue is how to build a large app with 1000
line files.

On authentication, this might
help: http://simonh1000.github.io/2016/05/phoenix-elm-json-web-tokens/

Post by Alan McCann
I echo Peter Damoc's entry + authentication (e.g. JWT)

Post by Jeff Schomay
Hello,
I am considering doing some training material on working with Elm in
production. I want to focus on areas that people struggle with after they
are already familiar with Elm. What concepts continue to confuse you?
What product requirements have been difficult to achieve with Elm? What
is most painful about your Elm codebase?
- decoders
- debouncing (http autocomplete input field for example)
- scroll to element
- testing
- unwieldy update functions
- api design
If you have anything you'd like me to consider, please add it to the
list. Thank you!

[Simon]

with should read 'without'

Post by Simon
Like Peter, I think the key issue is how to build a large app with 1000
line files.
http://simonh1000.github.io/2016/05/phoenix-elm-json-web-tokens/

Post by Alan McCann
I echo Peter Damoc's entry + authentication (e.g. JWT)

Post by Jeff Schomay
Hello,
I am considering doing some training material on working with Elm in
production. I want to focus on areas that people struggle with after they
are already familiar with Elm. What concepts continue to confuse you?
What product requirements have been difficult to achieve with Elm? What
is most painful about your Elm codebase?
- decoders
- debouncing (http autocomplete input field for example)
- scroll to element
- testing
- unwieldy update functions
- api design
If you have anything you'd like me to consider, please add it to the
list. Thank you!

[Erik Lott]

For the folks who are struggling with authentication, are you having issues
with authentication in general (elm, javascript, other), or is there an
issue implementing authentication specifically in Elm?

Post by Alan McCann
I echo Peter Damoc's entry + authentication (e.g. JWT)

Post by Jeff Schomay
Hello,
I am considering doing some training material on working with Elm in
production. I want to focus on areas that people struggle with after they
are already familiar with Elm. What concepts continue to confuse you?
What product requirements have been difficult to achieve with Elm? What
is most painful about your Elm codebase?
- decoders
- debouncing (http autocomplete input field for example)
- scroll to element
- testing
- unwieldy update functions
- api design
If you have anything you'd like me to consider, please add it to the
list. Thank you!

[Richard Feldman]

This open-source Elm SPA uses JWT authentication...maybe it's
useful? https://dev.to/rtfeldman/tour-of-an-open-source-elm-spa

Post by Erik Lott
For the folks who are struggling with authentication, are you having
issues with authentication in general (elm, javascript, other), or is there
an issue implementing authentication specifically in Elm?

Post by Alan McCann
I echo Peter Damoc's entry + authentication (e.g. JWT)

Post by Jeff Schomay
Hello,
I am considering doing some training material on working with Elm in
production. I want to focus on areas that people struggle with after they
are already familiar with Elm. What concepts continue to confuse you?
What product requirements have been difficult to achieve with Elm? What
is most painful about your Elm codebase?
- decoders
- debouncing (http autocomplete input field for example)
- scroll to element
- testing
- unwieldy update functions
- api design
If you have anything you'd like me to consider, please add it to the
list. Thank you!

[s***@zalando.de]

The biggest problems with Elm for me was (and maybe are):
- What is tagged type and how and why to use it.
- Cmd, Msg, Task, Subscription, effects - translation for a JS developer,
please.
- SPA routing (still a pain for something little more complex than "hello
world")
- Where is my UI components? (Reusing code, cross-component and child
-parent communication)
- Http, Json, store responses and errors (before and after RemoteData
package)

Post by Jeff Schomay
Hello,
I am considering doing some training material on working with Elm in
production. I want to focus on areas that people struggle with after they
are already familiar with Elm. What concepts continue to confuse you?
What product requirements have been difficult to achieve with Elm? What
is most painful about your Elm codebase?
- decoders
- debouncing (http autocomplete input field for example)
- scroll to element
- testing
- unwieldy update functions
- api design
If you have anything you'd like me to consider, please add it to the list.
Thank you!