Introducing OpenLaszlo
Introduction
This tutorial helps you get started on OpenLaszlo, which is an open source platform for creating zero-install web applications with the user-interface capabilities of desktop client software. OpenLaszlo programs are written in XML and JavaScript and transparently compiled to Flash. It is "write once, run everywhere." An OpenLaszlo application developed on one machine will run on all leading web browsers and on all leading desktop operating systems. Applications made on OpenLaszlo can also run in solo mode as a desktop client. You can learn more about OpenLaszlo here.
This article refers only to open source tools to set up a development environment for Laszlo. This is the actual setup I developed to start up on a personal project. Every step is narrated and illustrated with screenshots.
The tutorial also helps you to set up the environment with "IDE for Laszlo," an open source plugin available for Eclipse that offers very convenient features but uses Apache Ant for actual deployment. The goal is to reduce the building and deployment time while developing with OpenLaszlo.
The recommendation to use Ant for deployment is due to its simplicity and quick execution time. In comparison, the IDE for Laszlo plugin is slow. Besides, Ant can provide additional features such as automated testing, reporting, web application deployment, etc.
Application development using OpenLaszlo, however, is not within the scope of this tutorial. For more details on OpenLaszlo architecture, syntax, and tutorials, please refer to the documentation at the Laszlo website.
Download the Required Software
The following software is required to try out the different steps in the tutorial. You can download them at their respective locations, linked below.
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Get the latest jdk 1.5.0_02 https://java.sun.com
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OpenLaszlo 3.2 http://download.openlaszlo.org/3.2/openlaszlo-3.2-windows-dev-install.exe
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My Eclipse with the Web Tools Platform http://www.eclipse.org/downloads/download.php?file=/webtools/downloads/drops/S-1.0RC5-200512160606/wtp-1.0RC5.zip
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Apache Ant 1.6.5 http://apache.us.lucid.dk/ant/binaries/apache-ant-1.6.5-bin.zip
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Laszlo Ide for Eclipse http://openlaszlo.org/download-old/ide/laszloIDE-0.2.0-jdk1.5.zip
Make sure that your downloaded software is the same version mentioned in the steps, since the tutorial has been designed and tested only with this software.
Install the Software
Create a folder, Tools, in C:\ and install the following software. A common location will ensure better traceability since we may want to examine deployment folders often.
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Jdk 1.5.0_02 to C:\jdk1.5.0_02
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Open Laszlo 3.2 to C:\Tools\OpenLaszlo Server 3.2
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Eclipse to C:\Tools\eclipse
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Apache Ant 1.6.5 to C:\Tools\ant-1.6.5.
Figure 1. The C:\Tools folder with the required software installed
Follow the installation program wizard to install Jdk as well as the OpenLaszlo server. Eclipse and Ant can be extracted to their respective folders; they do not require an installation.
