Just got hit with this error:

And regrettably I spent a lot of time searching through Javascript in mootools javascript, and the small 2 lines of javascript Wicket adds to the page. Finally, I decided to actually google the error (which I should have done immediately).

Low and behold, because I was inlining some Javascript for the mootools Tip plugin, Internet Explorer 6 and 7 were upset because I hadn’t given them the chance to render the entire HTML yet. Easy enough to fix, and actually cleans up the code real nice, was to either add it to the body onload, or use javascript. In my case I used mootools goodness:

window.addEvent(‘domready’, Site.start); Gotta love Google. You can also check this site for some tips on avoiding the problem in the future (especially with GMaps).

UPDATE The site above seems to no longer be around, such is life. I’ve posted a quick update for several javascript libraries on how to ensure you are executing javascript when the DOM is finished loading.

The writing has definitely been on the wall for some time now. All the “agile” frameworks out there picking on Java and its love affair with XML had an effect. More and more projects have sprung up that tout one of their prized features, no XML required.

Wicket (currently undergoing incubation with Apache) is a good example of a web framework which throws caution to the wind, and has absolutely no XML needed. We here at Mystic have a lot of love for Wicket and are actively developing several projects with it currently. For another example of a no-XML web framework, check out Stripes.

Spring is a panacea of functionality for the Java Web developer. The biggest complaint we’ve heard, and made ourselves, is the bloated XML required. Just this week, “Crazy” Bob Lee at Google announced GUICE, looking to replace the IoC portions of Spring with an annotation-based approach. Again, the sans-xml approach in action.

Ant has been the build tool of choice for Java developers for many years now. Maven with the release of version 2 has gained traction as a viable replacement of the beloved Java build tools for web developers. Our own experience with it has dictated that once you get your pom.xml file in place, leave it alone, the XML is a bit odd to even deal with. Looking to move into the “no-xml” space is Gosling, which is still in its infancy, but already has several very nice features available.

With all the options available, its good to see teams thinking outside the box and pulling together some interesting new ways to solve problems in web space.

Happy Coding!

I’m sure this has already been heavily blogged, but I just noticed a new option in my “speakers” pull down available on the bottom right of iTunes if you have an Airport Express.

So effectively, probably according to bandwidth restrictions, you can have the song playing at your computer in one room, and in any number of external Airport Express locations.  You get a popup which displays a checkbox list of the speakers currently being broadcast to, and allows you to select more:

If more software / hardware companies thought through these seemingly insignificant additions, we’d have a life with better built software.  Simple is definitely harder, but better in the end.