Re: [Help-smalltalk] GST for web

[Janko Mivšek]

Esteban A. Maringolo wrote:
> ¿Is anybody using GST as a scripting/programming language for web applications?
>
> I think it would be a very good lightweight alternative to languages
> such as PHP, Perl, etc.

Lightweight, but for heavyweight web apps in terms of complexity, as 
other Smalltalks are. Is there any obstacle for GST not to be as good as 
other Smalltalks there?

> One of the strong benefits I see in GST is the possibility of
> using/deploying Smalltalk "the language", without having to use
> Smalltalk "the environment".

This is definitively a benefit of Linux users which prefer command line 
against GUI, so the GST can be a good magnet for them, especially when 
GST got the web frameworks from other Smalltalks, which are better to 
other offerings like Ruby on Rails. And if they were able to learn Ruby, 
then GST should be simple for them.

While for deployment I still prefer GUI because it is much simpler to 
debug problems. And if you have a VNC connected headless image as it is 
possible with Squeak, well, that's just a nirvana :)

> I don't want to rent a dedicated webserver just to host my smalltalk
> of preference.

You can host such an image on any virtual server out there, no X needed,
but you still have a GUI view of your image! That's what Squeak with
it's VNC server in an image can do.

Janko

--
Janko Mivšek
AIDA/Web
Smalltalk Web Application Server
http://www.aidaweb.si