
package com.smartgwt.client.docs;

/**
 * <h3>Skinning / Theming</h3>
 * Skinning (aka "theming" or "branding") is the process of modifying Smart GWT's default
 *  look and feel to match the desired look and feel for your application.  Smart GWT supports
 *  an extremely powerful and simple skinning system that allows designers with a basic grasp of
 *  CSS and JSON to skin any Smart GWT component.
 *  <P>
 *  <h4>Basics</h4>
 *  <P>
 *  <ul>
 *  <li> Smart GWT components create their visual appearance by dynamically generating HTML,
 *  within the browser, using JavaScript.
 * 
 *  <li> the HTML generated by Smart GWT components contains CSS style names and URLs to
 *  images
 * 
 *  <li> Smart GWT components can be skinned by replacing the CSS styles and images that
 *  the components use by default, or by setting properties on components to configure
 *  them to use new CSS styles and new image URLs.
 * 
 *  <li> You can change the appearance of an individual Smart GWT component by
 *  
 *  
 * calling setter methods such as {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.Canvas#getStyleName
 * setStyleName()} or
 * {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.Canvas#getBackgroundColor setBackgroundColor()}, or you can
 * skin all
 *  components of the same class at once, by using Canvas.setDefaultProperties()
 *  to change the defaults for the class.
 *  
 * 
 * 
 *  <li> CSS is used to control details of appearance such as fonts, borders and background
 *       colors and gradients, but component properties are used to control layout and
 * positioning of components.  See {@link com.smartgwt.client.docs.CSSStyleName} for more details
 * about correct
 *       usage.
 *  <li> A "skin" consists of:
 *  <ul>
 *  <li> a single CSS stylesheet containing all CSS styles used by Smart GWT components
 *  (<code>skin_styles.css</code>)
 *  <li> a single JavaScript file that sets component defaults (<code>load_skin.js</code>)
 *  <li> a directory tree of images organized by component
 *  </ul>
 * 
 *  <li>
 *  The example skins that come with Smart GWT are
 *  
 *  inside smartgwt.jar and smartgwt-skins.jar as GWT modules.
 *  The standard directory layout for a skin is:
 *  <pre>
 *         skin_styles.css
 *         load_skin.js
 *         images/
 *             ListGrid/
 *                 sort_ascending.gif
 *                 ...
 *             Tab/
 *             ... other directories containing
 *                 component or shared media ...
 *  </pre>
 *  <li>
 *  
 *  
 *  A skin is implicitly loaded when you add an &lt;inherits&gt; tag in your .gwt.xml file to
 * include SmartGWT components (name="com.smartgwt(ee).SmartGWT(Pro|Power|EE)").  To switch skins,
 *  add the "NoTheme" suffix to the "name" attribute of this &lt;inherits&gt; tag, then add
 *  &lt;inherits name="com.smartclient.theme.enterpriseblue.<i>SkinName</i>"/&gt;.  These
 * tags cause a &lt;SCRIPT SRC=&gt; tag to be injected into your bootstrap .html page, which loads
 *  load_skin.js for the appropriate skin.
 *  
 *  load_skin.js loads the stylesheet and sets the CSS styleNames and media URLs that
 *  Smart GWT components will use.
 *  <li><b>Some skins also provide Sass templates for easier customization via variables - see 
 *  the {@link com.smartgwt.client.docs.CustomSassSkins Custom Sass Skinning} discussion</b>
 *  </ul>
 *  <P>
 *  <h4>CSS3 mode</h4>
 *  <P>
 *  Smart GWT can make use of CSS3 features to render user interface component 
 *  details such as rounded corners, gradients and drop-shadows. Prior to the wide adoption
 *  of CSS3 by browsers such UI details could only be achieved by writing out HTML structures
 *  including images.<br>
 *  Using images is a less efficient approach - it leads to a more complex DOM structure and
 *  increased server load to retrieve media.
 *  <P>
 *  The most modern Smart GWT skins, <b>Tahoe</b>, <b>Obsidian</b>, <b>Stratus</b> and 
 *  <b>Cascade</b>, will always rely on CSS3 features for certain appearance details. If loaded 
 *  in a browser with no CSS3 support (such as Internet Explorer 8), developers can expect to 
 *  see some degredation in appearance (lack of certain drop-shadows, rounded edges becoming 
 *  square, etc).
 *  <P>
 *  Three of Smart GWT's other most commonly used skins, <b>Enterprise</b>, 
 *  <b>EnterpriseBlue</b> and <b>Graphite</b> will conditionally make use of CSS3 features.
 *  These skins have a "CSS3 mode" in which many images required by the skin are
 *  replaced with CSS3  settings that appear nearly identical to the image-based appearance. 
 *  <P>
 *  For these skins, CSS3 mode is automatically used in modern browsers such as 
 *  Firefox, Chrome, Safari, IE 9 in standards mode, and IE 10+.<br>
 *  Internet Explorer version 8 and earlier does not have sufficient
 *  CSS support to create a close match to the existing image-based skin, so CSS3 mode is not
 *  enabled by default. If CSS3 mode is manually enabled for IE when not automatically enabled,
 * this will result in a degraded appearance that is similar across IE6, 7, and 8: rounded
 * elements
 *  such as tabs will become square, and backgrounds will have lower quality if not disappear.
 *  <P>
 *  To override the default decision on whether to use CSS3 support, set the JavaScript global
 *  variable <code>isc_css3Mode</code> before any of the Smart GWT libraries are loaded.  For
 *  example:
 *  <pre>
 *    &lt;script&gt;isc_css3Mode = "on";&lt;/script&gt;
 *  </pre>
 *  <P>
 *  Possible settings are:
 *  <P>
 *  <ul>
 *    <li>"supported" :<br><i>(default setting)</i> CSS3 mode will be used for browsers that fully
 *        support it (including rounded edges and full gradient support)</li>
 *    <li>"off" :<br>CSS3 mode will never be used</li>
 *    <li>"on" :<br>CSS3 mode will be used for all browsers</li>
 *  </ul>
 *  <P>
 *  For more control than the above settings provide, you can create a custom skin based on one
 *  of the above 3 skins and modify load_skin.js - whether CSS3 mode is used is controlled by a
 *  JavaScript variable <code>useCSS3</code> defined in this file.
 *  <P>
 *  <h4>Spriting</h4>
 *  <P>
 *  Smart GWT also makes use of a CSS technique known as "spriting" to improve performance
 *  when rendering certain user interface images. This technique improves performance when
 *  rendering a number of small images within an application. Instead of loading a separate
 *  image file for each element, this technique involves creating a single composite
 *  image file consisting of smaller images sewn together, and using css background-sizing and 
 *  offset to display the desired portion of this larger image within elements on a page.
 *  <P>
 *  This reduces the overall file size for the media as the combined image's size will 
 *  typically be significantly less than the sum of the sizes of the smaller images. It also
 *  allows the browser to issue a single HTTP request for the composite image instead of
 *  separate requests for each image element showing parts of this composite image.<br>
 * For example, the up and down arrow images of a {@link
 * com.smartgwt.client.widgets.form.fields.SpinnerItem} in
 *  the normal, "Focused", and "Disabled" states can be combined into one image. The file size of
 *  the combined image is typically ~65% smaller than the sum of the file sizes of the 6
 *  constituent images, and a single HTTP request provides media for all 6 states.
 *  <P>
 *  Spriting typically results in reduced load times and
 *  eliminates noticeable delays in changes of component appearance while the browser downloads
 *  a required image. It is natively supported in all browsers.
 *  <P>
 *  One consideration when using spriting is how to handle images being rendered at different
 *  sizes on the page. Simply increasing the size of an element using CSS to display a 
 *  portion of a larger background image will not change the scale of that image - instead 
 *  more of the image will be revealed to the user. This can result in visual glitches,
 *  for example, the user may be able to see other sprited elements from the larger
 *  background image.<br>
 *  If the "native" size of the image sprite is known as well as the desired rendered size
 *  scaling can be achieved. For Smart GWT image attributes that support the special
 * {@link com.smartgwt.client.docs.SCSpriteConfig sprited image URL} format, this can be
 * specified, allowing the image to
 *  be rendered at various sizes.
 *  <P>
 *  The <b>Tahoe</b>, <b>Obsidian</b>, <b>Stratus</b> and <b>Cascade</b> skins makes use of the 
 *  sprite-URL capability to ensure that sprited images appear correctly regardless of the size 
 *  at which they are being drawn.<br>
 *  The <b>Enterprise</b>, <b>EnterpriseBlue</b>, and <b>Graphite</b> skins 
 *  also support spriting of user interface images, but do so via settings embedded in the css 
 *  applied to certain elements instead of using the sprite-URL capability. As such if certain 
 *  component metrics (such as the height of a component or padding) are changed, then the image 
 *  sprites may no longer work. In this case, spriting can be disabled by setting the JavaScript 
 *  global variable <code>isc_spriting</code> to "off" before any of the Smart GWT libraries 
 *  are loaded.
 *  For example:
 *  <pre>
 *    &lt;script&gt;isc_spriting = "off";&lt;/script&gt;
 *  </pre>
 *  Possible settings are:
 *  <P>
 *  <ul>
 *    <li>"supported" :<br><i>(default setting)</i> Spriting will be used in browsers that fully
 *        support it</li>
 *    <li>"off" :<br>Spriting will not be used</li>
 *  </ul>
 *  <h4>Modifying Skins</h4>
 *  <P>
 *  To modify a skin, first create a copy of one of the skins that comes with the Smart GWT
 *  SDK, then modify the copy.  Full instructions are provided in Chapter 9 of the
 *  
 *  
 *  <a href='http://docs.smartclient.com' target='_blank'>QuickStart Guide</a>.
 *  
 *  <P>
 *  For the most modern skins, <b>Tahoe</b>, <b>Obsidian</b>, <b>Stratus</b> and <b>Cascade</b>,
 *  the recommended approach is to take advantage of the Sass templates provided with those 
 * skins.  See the {@link com.smartgwt.client.docs.CustomSassSkins Custom Sass Skinning}
 * discussion for more 
 *  detail on leveraging that mechanism to customize a skin.
 *  <h4>Locating Skinning Properties</h4>
 *  <P>
 *  <b>Starting from the name of the component</b>
 *  <P>
 *  
 *  
 *  Given a Smart GWT component that you want to skin, open its JavaDoc:
 *  
 *  <ul>
 *  <li> for properties that set CSS styles, look for properties whose name includes "style", eg
 *  {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.Button#getBaseStyle Button.baseStyle}
 *  <li> for properties that control URLs to media, look for properties whose name includes
 *  "src", "image" or "icon", such as {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.Img#getSrc Img.src}
 *  <li> for subcomponents that also support skinning, look for properties that are documented
 * as being {@link com.smartgwt.client.docs.AutoChildUsage "AutoChildren"} and check the reference
 * for the type of
 * the AutoChild for settable properties.  For example, {@link
 * com.smartgwt.client.widgets.Window#getMinimizeButton Window.minimizeButton} is an
 * ImgButton and therefore supports {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.ImgButton#getSrc
 * ImgButton.src}.  
 *  </ul>
 *  
 *  <P>
 *  <b>Starting from a running example</b>
 *  <P>
 *  
 *  <P>
 *  Specific browsers offer alternate approaches to quickly discover the images or style names
 *  being used for a part of a Smart GWT component's appearance:
 *  <ul>
 *  <li> the Firefox browser offers a dialog via Tools-&gt;"Page Info" that gives a manifest of
 *  media used in the page.
 * <li> the <a href='http://www.getfirebug.com/' target='_blank'>Firebug</a> extension for Firefox
 * has an
 *  "Inspect" feature that allows you to see the HTML, CSS and media in use for a given area of
 *  the screen
 *  <li> right clicking (option-click on a Mac) on an image and choosing "Properties" shows a
 *  dialog that provides the image URL in most browsers.  Tips:
 *  <ul>
 *  <li> if a Smart GWT component is showing text over an image, right-click at the very edge of
 *  the underlying image to get image properties rather than information about the text label
 *  <li> on some browsers, in order to see the full image URL, you may need to drag select the
 *  partial URL of the image shown in the properties dialog
 *  </ul>
 *  </ul>
 *  <P>
 *  <h4>Image URLs in Smart GWT</h4>
 *  <P>
 * Properties that refer to images by URL, such as {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.Img#getSrc
 * Img.src} and {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.Button#getIcon Button.icon}, are
 *  specially interpreted in Smart GWT to allow for simpler and more uniform image URLs,
 *  and to allow applications to be restructured more easily.
 *  <P>
 *  Unlike the URL used with an HTML &lt;IMG&gt; element, the image URL passed to a Smart GWT
 * component is not assumed to be relative to the current page.  See {@link
 * com.smartgwt.client.docs.SCImgURL} for a
 *  full explanation of the default application image directory, and the meaning of the "[SKIN]"
 *  prefix.
 *  <P>
 *  <h4>Specifying Image URLs</h4>
 *  <P>
 *  Default image URLs for Smart GWT components are specified in <code>load_skin.js</code> via
 *  JavaScript, using calls to  Class.addProperties() and
 *   Class.changeDefaults().  For example, the <code>load_skin.js</code> file
 *  from the "Enterprise" skin includes the following code to establish the media used by
 *  {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.Window#getMinimizeButton Window.minimizeButton}:
 *  <pre>
 *     isc.Window.changeDefaults("minimizeButtonDefaults", {
 *          src:"[SKIN]/Window/minimize.png"
 *     });
 *  </pre>
 *  <P>
 *  <b>NOTE:</b> These are JavaScript APIs and hence do not appear in SmartGWT
 *  JavaDoc - you may want to refer to the &#83;martClient Reference available at
 * <a href='http://www.smartclient.com/product/documentation.jsp'
 * target='_blank'>Isomorphic.com</a> for these specific
 *  APIs.
 * 
 *  <h4>Specifying Image Sizes</h4>
 *  <P>
 *  Many Smart GWT components must know some image sizes in advance, in order to allow those
 *  components to autosize to data or content.
 *  <P>
 * For example, the {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.tab.ImgTab}s used in {@link
 * com.smartgwt.client.widgets.tab.TabSet}s are capable of automatically sizing
 * to a variable length {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.tab.Tab#getTitle Tab.title}.  To make
 * this possible, Smart GWT must know the
 *  sizes of the images used as "endcaps" on each tab in advance.
 *  <P>
 *  Like image URLs, image sizes are specified in <code>load_skin.js</code>.  The following code
 *  sample establishes the default size of the "endcaps" for tabs, by setting a default value
 *  for {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.tab.ImgTab#getCapSize ImgTab.capSize}:
 *  <pre>
 *      isc.ImgTab.addProperties({
 *          capSize:4
 *      })
 *  </pre>
 *  <P>
 *  <h4>Statefulness and Suffixes</h4>
 *  <P>
 *  Some components or areas within components, including buttons and the cells within a grid, are
 *  "stateful", meaning that they can be in one of a set of states each of which has a distinct
 *  visual appearance.
 *  <P>
 *  Stateful components switch the CSS styles or image URLs they are using as they transition
 *  from state to state, appending state information as suffixes on the style names or URL.
 * See {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.Img#getSrc Img.src} and {@link
 * com.smartgwt.client.widgets.Button#getBaseStyle Button.baseStyle} for details and examples.
 *  <P>
 *  Smart GWT has built-in logic to manage a series of state transitions, such as:
 *  <ul>
 *  <li> "rollover": showing a different appearance when the mouse is over a component
 *  <li> "button down": showing a different appearance when the mouse is pressed over a
 *  component
 *  <li> "disabled": showing a different appearance when a component cannot be interacted with
 *  <li> "selected": showing one of a set of components in a different state to indicate
 *  selection
 *  </ul>
 * Flags on some components, such as {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.ImgButton#getShowRollOver
 * ImgButton.showRollOver}, allow you to control whether the
 * component will switch CSS style or image URL when the component transitions into a given state.
 *  <P>
 *  <h4>StretchImg: 3-segment stretchable images</h4>
 *  <P>
 * A {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.StretchImg} is Smart GWT component that renders out a
 * compound image composed of 3
 *  image files: two fixed-size endcaps images and a stretchable center segment.  Like stateful
 *  components, the names of each image segment is appended to the image URL as a suffix.  See
 *  {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.StretchImg#getSrc StretchImg.src} for details.
 *  <P>
 *  <h4>EdgedCanvas</h4>
 *  <P>
 * Similar to a StretchImg, an {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.EdgedCanvas} provides an
 * image-based decorative edge
 *  around and/or behind another component, with up to 9 segments (a 3x3 grid).  Decorative
 * edges can be added to any component by setting {@link
 * com.smartgwt.client.widgets.Canvas#getShowEdges showEdges:true}.
 *  EdgedCanvas is also used to construct dropshadows, which can be enabled on any component via
 *  {@link com.smartgwt.client.widgets.Canvas#getShowShadow showShadow:true}.
 *  <P>
 *  
 *  
 *  <p>
 *  <h4>Advanced: setScClassName()</h4>
 *  <p>
 *  In rare situations, such as trying to share a skin between a &#83;martClient and Smart GWT
 *  application, you may have a &#83;martClient class that has been defined to hold certain skin
 *  settings where there is no corresponding Smart GWT class.  For example, you might have a 
 *  &#83;martClient subclass of ListGrid called "LedgerGrid" that changes cell styles to appear
 *  more like a ledger.
 *  <p>
 *  In this case, you can generally use the Smart GWT class that is the nearest superclass of
 *  the &#83;martClient class (ListGrid in this case), then use a call to
 *  setScClassName("LedgerGrid") to cause the &#83;martClient class to be used as the underlying
 *  &#83;martClient class used by the GWT ListGrid instance.
 *  <P>
 *  <h4>Where to put skin-related JavaScript</h4>
 *  <P>
 * If you're creating a custom skin, you can place JavaScript snippets such as those shown above
 * in your
 * custom skin's load_skin.js file.  If you prefer not to create a custom skin for small
 * customizations,
 * you can execute JavaScript via a <a href='http://www.google.com/search?q=gwt+jsni'
 * target='_blank'>JSNI</a> method in
 * your Java code.  With this latter approach, be sure to change "isc." to "$wnd.isc." wherever it
 *  appears, and to call the JSNI method before creating any SmartGWT components.
 *  
 *  <p>
 *  <h4>Limitations</h4>
 *  <P>
 *  In most cases, using newer CSS features such as CSS3 prefix attribute selectors or CSS3
 *  pseudo-classes in a skin will just work, provided the browser supports those CSS features.
 *  However, in some cases, Smart GWT needs to be able to extract style information from
 *  CSS style declarations. For this reason, only single class name selectors are officially
 *  supported (e.g. <code>.myButton, .myButtonDown</code>) and @-rules are not supported.
 */
public interface Skinning {
}
