From 332726981fc0b3ec7e533db0fab35583bf2ee34c Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Adrian Holovaty Date: Wed, 3 May 2006 21:21:25 +0000 Subject: [PATCH] Changed docs/faq.txt MVC question to use clearer argument made in Jacob's Google presentation. git-svn-id: http://code.djangoproject.com/svn/django/trunk@2825 bcc190cf-cafb-0310-a4f2-bffc1f526a37 --- docs/faq.txt | 32 ++++++++++++++++++++++++-------- 1 file changed, 24 insertions(+), 8 deletions(-) diff --git a/docs/faq.txt b/docs/faq.txt index e8bf09a7d3..d63c02550e 100644 --- a/docs/faq.txt +++ b/docs/faq.txt @@ -125,16 +125,32 @@ Feel free to add your Django-powered site to the list. Django appears to be a MVC framework, but you call the Controller the "view", and the View the "template". How come you don't use the standard names? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -That's because Django isn't strictly a MVC framework. If you squint the right -way, you can call Django's database layer the "Model", the view functions the -"View", and the URL dispatcher the "Controller" -- but not really. +Well, the standard names are debatable. -In fact, you might say that Django is a "MTV" framework -- that is, Model, -Template, and View make much more sense to us. +In our interpretation of MVC, the "view" describes the data that gets presented +to the user. It's not necessarily *how* the data *looks*, but *which* data is +presented. The view describes *which data you see*, not *how you see it.* It's +a subtle distinction. -So, although we've been strongly influenced by MVC -- especially in the -separation-of-data-from-logic department -- we've also strayed from the path -where it makes sense. +So, in our case, a "view" is the Python callback function for a particular URL, +because that callback function describes which data is presented. + +Furthermore, it's sensible to separate content from presentation -- which is +where templates come in. In Django, a "view" describes which data is presented, +but a view normally delegates to a template, which describes *how* the data is +presented. + +Where does the "controller" fit in, then? In Django's case, it's probably the +framework itself: the machinery that sends a request to the appropriate view, +according to the Django URL configuration. + +If you're hungry for acronyms, you might say that Django is a "MTV" framework +-- that is, "model", "template", and "view." That breakdown makes much more +sense. + +At the end of the day, of course, it comes down to getting stuff done. And, +regardless of how things are named, Django gets stuff done in a way that's most +logical to us. does -- why doesn't Django? -----------------------------------------------------