Extjs compare

[sedon]

Hi guys, just a stupid questions. I've used extjs in some of my application. How do you compare smart client/isomorphic to this nice js framework(extjs) ^_^.
There was such a thread on their website, n i want to hear from u here.
Make every reason objective.

[Isomorphic]

Hello Sedon,

In a nutshell:

1. SmartClient LGPL has much greater breadth and depth of functionality as compared to ExtJS, especially when it comes to actually editing and saving data as opposed to just loading and viewing it. For a very long list of feature areas where SmartClient has a lead, see this page.

2. The Enterprise version of SmartClient provides yet further functionality not even contemplated in the ExtJS roadmap. See this summary of server-side features, but note this is only a partial list.

3. Unlike ExtJS, SmartClient LGPL is actually free for use in a commercial, closed source application or product

4. Isomorphic is generally respected by the open source community, whereas Ext is broadly reviled. It may surprise you to find out how many prominent open source luminaries have spoken out against Ext - someone collected a few here.

On the flip side, many people express a preference for ExtJS's default look and feel. To address this, Isomorphic has had several new skins professionally designed for use with SmartClient LGPL, free - some screenshots are here.

Some people point to Ext's smaller size. We would argue that from a compactness perspective (functionality delivered per byte) SmartClient is comparable to Ext, YUI, or other compact systems - SmartClient is larger simply because it delivers more functionality. In most sites where SmartClient is used, size is a non-issue, but SmartClient is also used in sites where small size matters (eg Intuit Quickbooks Online), and in those cases we recommend background download via the FileLoader - implemented properly this technique makes a much larger difference in user experience than any difference in framework/application size.

[sedon]

Every statement that you said looks promising. Yup i've heard before about ExtJs License matters, when open source not really open. I'm gonna take a look at isomorphic commercial version, still need a time to dig it deeply.

You're right that they have good look n feel, this really makes them cool at the first. One reason why i'm enjoy with isomorphic is that the framework it self, the way the code works. I was compare datagrid code in extJs and isomorphic , that isomorphic is more clear in my opinion. May be it was just flavour n taste matters.

Isomorphic documentation is cool n the examples are really motivate me stay to keep trying every line of code.

Thanks again to make everything happen

[Isomorphic]

Flavor and taste definitely matter, but dig deeply into complex use cases like databound dependent selects in grid editing, or areas like ResultSet cache management, and you'll find clear objective differences. The Features page is a good way to browse through examples and docs for areas where we feel SmartClient has a large lead.

Dig deep. The deeper you go the more you'll convince yourself. Have fun :)

[ymk41]

I've used extjs in some of my application.

I've used extjs in some of my application.

www.universitekulis.com

[ecdragon]

Our shop uses both Ext js and SmartClient. I would like to add my 2c to Iso's nutshell.

1c) Documentation
SmartClient's Feature Explorer, Reference, and Forums are all you need for finding the information you need quickly and in a superior format.

Compare Iso's --
Feature Explorer
http://www.smartclient.com/docs/6.5.1/a/system/reference/SmartClient_Explorer.html
Reference
http://www.smartclient.com/docs/6.5.1/a/b/c/go.html#group..docViewerHelp

with Ext's Community Learning Center --
http://extjs.com/learn/

SmartClients docs are clear, concise, descriptive, and have great cross-references (that even just pop-up in the page you're looking at in the Reference), while Ext's docs are largely created "by the community". nuff said.


2c) Debugging / Prototyping

Talk about fast debugging and prototyping.. just navigate to some example in the Feature Explorer, write some stuff in the JS tab, and click the "Try It" button at the bottom.

The thing is so dynamic you can drop in an entirely different chunk of code (including a data source!) that has nothing to do with the original page widgit you're looking at, and it'll still render it and give you a fairly meaningful error message to help you find your bug (not that I ever write code with bugs that I need help finding), as well as let you see how your shiny new stuff will work in a page. Fantastic!

[Isomorphic]

Thanks for chiming in ecdragon, much appreciated.

By the way, the rapid Prototyping you've been doing in the Feature Explorer can also be done in the Developer Console. Just put code - including new components and even new *classes* - into the "Evaluate JS Expression" area of the Results Tab of the Developer Console.

A tip is, if you're trying to rapidly iterate on something like a form design, just give all the components involved "ID" attributes. As you iterate and Eval the code again, SmartClient automatically destroys the old components that had the same ID, so you get automatic cleanup.

Some advanced SmartClient users have taken this a step further and made whole modules of their applications reloadable so they don't have to reload the page to try out code changes.

[atarikg]

Well,Apparently SmartClient is way better than ExtJs.It's more useful and integrated.

You can do more things with a just couple of codes in SmartClient library, and that's what makes it special for me and other developers.

[rreddi]

SmartClient vs ExtJS

SmartClient

Pros:
Very well designed.
Very mature, comprehensive and stable system.
Friendly license.

Cons:
Very slow (trust me on this!). It is a shame that I could not use SmartClient just for this reason alone.

ExtJS:

Pros:
Super fast.

Cons:
Not easy to extend the system.
Not mature enough like SmartClient.
GPL license. (this alone kill me!)

I spent lots of time to figure these out. Hope somebody use this info before deciding.

[davidj6]

What is a shame is that your very first post states that SC is "Very slow (trust me on this!)" but you provide no details on this nor any reason to "trust you". Many people/companies use SC very successfully and I personally have been quite satisfied with the performance.

Maybe you should be asking for help finding the problems you have introduced that make your SC code slow.

[KevinC]

I second David. I can't trust SC is "Very slow (trust me on this!)". I don't have performance issue either. I walked away from extjs when they switched license during a minor release without any warning/notice which left me a bad taste. I didn't find much performance difference between the two, though extjs' default theme looked attractive. But SC has much more pros.

[nlarson]

Try a large grid or complex data entry form in Ext and then tell me it's super fast. It might be good for light weight apps designed for firefox and with small amounts of data on display, but as soon as the complexity goes up the performance goes into the toilet. We've been building on Ext for about 1 year and early on it seemed awesome, light fast, easy, pretty... now I'm just sick of the excuses.

I am a product manager, so I can't give heavy details on the tech side but all I have heard for the last 5 months from my dev team is... 'seems like the ext team did not consider that, we'll have to roll our own solution'. These are telented Pro's and they are feeling as let down as I am, it's very frustrating, so I am here to check out Smart Client.

It does not help that we use some legacy ActiveX controls for desktop integration, and we build business application for enterprise clients so we're bound to IE for the time being ----> major sad face :( Intresting side note, we've found FF w/ no plug-ins and IE8 to be comparable on complex pages, but Chrome gives a 50% performance bost for most stuff.

Isomorphic, it would be really nice to see a head to head grid of features of Ext 3.0 vs.the latest smart client build. The list on page one is good but'm looking for something pretty to help make a case to the executive team.

[Isomorphic]

@rredi About perceived slowness, 99% of the time it's either:

1) testing performance with Firebug enabled. This has a gigantic speed impact, but end users won't suffer from this problem

2) incorrect settings for autoDraw causing every component to draw 2-N times

Furthermore, beware of other technologies that seem to have a small speed advantage in a trivial demo involving one or two components. What matters is not a demo but whether the technology can handle your complete application, or will just fall over at a certain degree of scale. As nlarson already touched on, Ext grids don't scale like SmartClient's grids - SmartClient grids are the only Ajax grids we know of that actually work when using inline editing with a gigantic number of rows and columns.

@nlarson As far as a head-to-head feature comparison, we do plan to put one up, but the nutshell case is simply that if you look at just the comparison between different SmartClient editions, Ext has a subset of our free product (SmartClient LGPL). Ext has none of the Pro or Enterprise features.

[nlarson]

What matters is not a demo but whether the technology can handle your complete application, or will just fall over at a certain degree of scale.

That hits the nail on the head.

[kevintrio]

Hi, i might not be too late to add up :) the said ExtJS didnt satify me since, it slows down if lots of columns and rows are to be rendered on grid. Using Buffer already, and columns are not hidden if not shown... and license issue :( too bad..

@Isomorphic: I have a question though, we would like to develop an application w/ a MDI style layout, with menus above, statusbar at the bottom, and render windows/dialog at the center.. so this window would have items like grid specially, so would that slow down the rendering and dragging of windows?