Z
- Z Class 4
- Z Class object 5
- Z Classes 3
- Z Classes and Inheritance 7
- Z Classes in Depth 7
- Zope Content Manager's Guide 3
One very useful technique is to create a Python class which is subclassable by a Z Class. This way you can write your application logic in Python, and your user interface in Zope!
To create a Python class which is subclassable by a Z Class you need to create a very simple Zope Product in Python. Your Product should consist of a Python package installed inside the lib/python/Products directory. In the package's __init__.py file you need to register your Python class as subclassable by a Z Class.
To accomplish this simply create an initialize function in the package's __init__.py file like this:
This function is called by Zope to initialize a Product. See
lib/python/App/ProductContext for more information about
context.registerBaseClass(MyModule.MyClass)
Now your Python class is ready to be used as a Z Class subclass. You should note that your subclass's __init__ method will not be called when instances of the Z Class are created. You should also note that your subclass must obey the ZODB persistence rules, which basically state that mutable sub-objects should be treated immutably. For example,
self.map['bird']='parrot' # NOT OK, will not trigger persistence machinery
self.map=m # OK, treats a mutable object immutably
You should probably regard this kind of subclass as a sort of mix-in class. It's probably best to leave most of the Zope framework-specific methods to the Z Class and to concentrate on application logic in your Python class.