[Web-SIG] Standardized template API

[Robert Brewer]

Ian Bicking wrote:
> Just because there is a standard doesn't mean anyone has to 
> use it.  I don't see why every standard has to satisfy
> everyone; if 50% of people use a standard instead of
> using framework-specific ad hoc interfaces, that's useful
> enough.  Especially a standard like this which doesn't
> imply much of any logic, it's just something you use.

That's true, but I'd caution that "it's just something you use" hides a
mountain of difficulties. A standard like WSGI can be relatively free in
its interface design (in order to meet a host of specialized needs),
because it has a limited user group. A template standard, in contrast,
will need much more attention paid to "ease of use", which will
constrain its interface design.

Don't forget that the current template landscape is fragmented in part
because the contenders compete over "ease of use". If a template author
feels their primary value lies in their "Pythonic API", then a common
proxy interface will be perceived as reducing their value. All of which
is to say, there's as much of a social issue to solve here as there is a
technical issue.


Robert Brewer
System Architect
Amor Ministries
fumanchu at amor.org