Using ack

While developing my first MEAN.io app, I've found that I need to use grep alot.

The MEAN framework creates lots of files in separate directories. When you have a complicated project that uses a lot of modules and custom packages, keeping things organized is a necessity. However, as a newcomer, I am having a lot of trouble finding code.

To help alleviate the pain of tracking down code within the MEAN framework, I started using ack, which is supposed to be a version of grep that is optimized for programmers. I wonder how many non-programmers use grep? Anyway, here are a few optimizations that I noticed:

• It defaults to recursive searching (very important for frameworks that bury files in folders).
  So you use ack instead of grep -r .
• Results are returned with the search phrase highlighted in colors. However, if you try to pipe your ack results into another unix command like less, you'll lose that formatting.
• Syntax for adding custom flags seems more intuitive.
  Ex: searching for the word "debugger" in js files can be done like this:
  ack debugger --type=js

While ack certainly seems better than grep, I'm reluctant to completely abandon grep. Many times I need to log onto a bare-bones machine where ack might not be installed. On many of those machines, I don't even have access to the other flavors of grep like egrep or fgrep. In those cases, I'd have to remember how to use plain old vanilla grep again.

Mean packages are magic to me

I've been playing around with a Mean.io app for a few days now.

Working within a framework has had its advantages. For example, to set up a new model/view/controller package, I just entered this 1-liner command:

    mean package feeds

This created a nicely structured set of files that just worked. In the main menu of the app, a link is added which you can follow to discover how this new package works.

I wanted to understand how the framework was able to create a new package and how it was connected to the rest of the app, so I started diving into the code. Unfortunately, I couldn't figure it out. I'd account my inability to understand what is going on under the covers to a few factors: 1) I don't have and didn't spend enough time reading. 2) I'm a beginner to this style of Javascript coding. 3) Frameworks try to hide stuff from developers.

I should elaborate on that last point. Frameworks are not evil. Their goal is to abstract away difficult, messy, confusing parts of the code, so that you don't have to re-write or reconfigure those nasty parts. A side effect of this abstraction is that you may be left wondering, how does this all work? (as i am now).

As Arthur C. Clarke said, "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic." A lot of the MEAN framework is still magic for me. For now, I'll continue to rely on this magic, continue coding, and come back to it later when some of the magic starts wearing off.