API unification meeting: Will, Chris, Ola, Jean-Marie, Josh (9:30 UK) * Initial * Will: Still have cleaning up to do * Jean-Marie: Need to prevent explosion of gateway methods * Start with mgmt methods * ... * Primary question: Do we keep the two synchronized? * createGateway * Adam used it * Will used it in his scripts & examples * Chris: have 3 gateways in Python * script_utils, GatewayPrx, omero.gateway.BlitzGateway * Overview (Will): * Certain number of methods in gateway module ("ton of wrappers") * Caching (Python-y stuff) * Extension point (historical, for Carlos & Ola to work together) * Some methods (getComments...) shouldn't necessarily be there * Jean-Marie: doesn't scale * Will: trying to make it more generic * Trying to get rid of "getDataset" etc. * getX(id) * listY() - convention * In Python, you only retrieve the root of the graph * Jean-Marie: load methods get whole graph. * Chris: @Wrapper around IQuery to prevent pain * Good number of the methods are single object retrievals * IQuery methods to mirror getObjects identically * Will: Wraps with appropriate wrappers. * Jean-Marie: purpose is to not have to know which service you are using * Jerome etc. want something simplified * Josh: are we trying to get away from services? * If so, then I'm for a unified API (Java & Python) * Chris: endemic of large number of services * Band-aiding core issue: to do work need 1/2 objects * Purpose would be to get common gateway in place. * Will: some of condensed methods have in lower-level service? * Jean-Marie: would rather do that. * Chris: currently methods expose that findAllByQuery is needed * Easy to push down * Jean-Marie: have to push them down * Will * Python would wrap * Various * Chris: pojos hide lack of utility in services * Josh/Jean-Marie: could also use this as a method to get rid of pojos (i.e. message passing) * Will: can we tell people to start using it * Chris: Get rid of script_utils (4.3) in favor of blitz gateway * Remove server side gateway for 4.3 * In the mean time, start moving logic to session or IQuery * For 4.3, no large changes to blitz gateway * Names are the same as in the model * Unifying some of blitz gateway methods * Chris: look at all retrieval methods and all getX * Figure out what lowest common denominator (e.g. "findExperimenterByName") * Need something like findByAttribute * Mark a good number as deprecated * Start marking methods & services deprecated (gateway, deleted, ...) * getObjects and some other are not yet released so can be removed * Summary: * Need to unify these things and clean up our mess * Need to do our damndest that this does not continue * Everyone CANNOT create methods where they want * Is it documentation? Or is it not asking? * TODOs * Wiki page for new remote API: *.slice file (Ice-compatbile objects) * Native binding page: omero.client, BlitzGateway/OMEROGateway.java (non-Ice tools) * Language- or Framework-specific