Application architecture
Chaplin is an architecture for JavaScript applications using the Backbone.js library. Chaplin addresses Backbone’s limitations by providing a lightweight and flexible structure that features well-proven design patterns and best practices.
Some of Chaplin’s features:
- Better support for CoffeeScript class hierarchies as well as object composition
- Better support for inheritance: automatic merging of declaratively bound events (and some other props) from the whole prototype chain.
- Strict memory management and object disposal
- Module encapsulation and lazy-loading using AMD / common.js modules
- Cross-module communication using the Mediator and Publish/Subscribe patterns
- Controllers for managing individual UI views
- Rails-style routes which map URLs to controller actions
- A route dispatcher and a top-level view manager
- Extended model, view and collection classes to avoid repetition and enforce conventions
- A collection view for easy and intelligent list rendering
Downloads
Chaplin is available in two builds: AMD and Common.js. Pick AMD if you want to build your app manually with require.js or common.js if you want to get stuff handled automatically with Brunch.
There is no “global variables” build, so Chaplin explicitly prohibits any using without module systems.
Latest release is 0.9.0 (changelog, diff from 0.8.0)
- Chaplin for AMD (require.js modules)
- Chaplin for Brunch (common.js modules)
- If you’re using Twitter Bower package manager, Chaplin (AMD) is available there with
bower install chaplin#0.9.0
Chaplin depends on the following libraries:
- Backbone (> 1.0)
- Underscore (> 1.4) or lodash (> 1.2)
- jQuery (> 1.9) or Zepto (> 1.0)
If you’ll be using AMD version, you will also need an AMD module loader like RequireJS, Almond or curl to load Chaplin and lazy-module application modules.
Documentation
Documentation for Chaplin is available on GitHub.
There is also annotated source code available.
Articles, screencasts and talks:
Motivation
While developing several web applications using Backbone.js, we felt the need for conventions on how to structure such applications. Backbone is an easy starting point, but provides only basic, low-level patterns. Especially, Backbone provides little to structure an actual application. For example, the famous “Todo list” is not an application in the strict sense nor does it teach best practices how to structure Backbone code.
Backbone doesn’t intend to be an all-round framework so it’s not appropriate to blame Backbone for these deliberate limitations. Nonetheless, most Backbone use cases need a sophisticated application architecture.
This is where Chaplin enters the stage. Chaplin is derived from the codebase of moviepilot.com, a real-world single-page application. It draws attention to the top-level architecture: everything above simple routing, individual models, views and their binding.
Boilerplates
Chaplin needs a simple skeleton to start up and configure the core modules. We provide several boilerplates to make the start easier.
- Chaplin Boilerplate is a “Hello world” example project using Chaplin.
- Chaplin Boilerplate in JS is a clone of previous boilerplate for folks who don’t like CoffeeScript.
- Brunch with Chaplin is a skeleton application for service-based web apps, where brunch is used for assembling files & assets. It incorporates html5boilerplate and stylus / handlebars.js as app languages. It’s included by-default with Brunch.
- If you’re using Grunt, there’s application generator available.
- For Ruby on Rails users, we’ve compiled a Boilerplate Rails Application with Backbone, Chaplin and Require.js.
Examples
Are you using Chaplin too? Add your application to the wiki page and it will be featured here.
Ost.io
Ost.io is an open-source forum for GitHub projects (code). Uses Chaplin as app skeleton and Rails for backend.
Todos
Todos (code) is a port of the famous backbone todos example app. Uses localStorage to persist data.
Alternative versions:
- Symfony TodoMVC Bundle (code) — based on Symfony PHP framework.
Composing with Chaplin
Composing with Chaplin is an example that shows how Chaplin regions and compositions behave (code).
Facebook Like Browser
github.com/chaplinjs/facebook-example example uses Facebook client-side authentication to display the user’s Likes.
Tweet your Brunch
github.com/brunch/twitter is a simple twitter client. It uses Twitter client-side authentication to display user’s feed and to create new tweets.
Delicious
Delicious is a free service designed to be the best place to save what you love on the web, whether it's a video, picture, product, blog post, article or music. We then help you remember and find it later. It’s using Brunch as application builder and Chaplin as a framework on top of Backbone.
Moviepilot
Moviepilot is a home for upcoming movies, where you can discover and read about the movies that interest and excite you.
Community
- For general support and discussion, there’s a forum on ost.io, a Google Group and an IRC channel
#chaplinjson Freenode. - If you’d like to report a bug or propose a feature, please use the Github issues. The issue tracker can also be used for general questions and task management.
- Follow Chaplin.js on Twitter to get updates on new versions, major changes and the ongoing development.
- You can also ask questions with #chaplinjs tag at Stack Overflow
Commercial support and training
9elements — Berlin/Bochum, Germany
One of the creators of Chaplin, is offering commercial support and training for Chaplin and Backbone-based JavaScript applications. 9elements is a software and design agency located in Berlin and Bochum, Germany. Send us a mail for more information: contact@9elements.com.
Paul Miller — Kharkiv, Ukraine
Chaplin & Brunch maintainer is offering consulting & training for all Backbone-related stuff. Contact him: paul@paulmillr.com.
Concordus Applications — Sacramento, CA, USA
Offering commerical support and training for Chaplin and Backbone-based JavaScript applications. Concordus Applications is an enterprise integration and software development firm. Email us for more information: support@concordusapps.com.
La Coopérative des Tilleuls - Lille, France
Offering commercial support and training for Chaplin and Backbone-based JavaScript applications. La Coopérative des Tilleuls is a software, training and web-design cooperative enterprise located in Lille, France. Send us a mail for more information: contact@les-tilleuls.coop.
