Enable finer control for ajax-using modules of the trigger response in the ajax object

This patch should have absolutely zero apparent functionality change to core, other than the anonymous function being replaceable.

As a bonus, by naming the function I was forced to document it.

Bump. Can one of you give this a review? CTools is waiting on this to be able to implement the cache-warming feature properly.

rfay: Did you read the initial post? I explained pretty thoroughly, I thought. Do I need to explain again or are there specific parts of my explanation I can clarify?

In answer to part two -- we can't test javascript that I know of, so I can't help there.

Let me clarify:

All this code is doing is replacing two anonymous functions with named functions. In terms of actual functionality change, there should be zero.

Anonymous functions are bad because they cannot be referenced. Once they are created, they just hang around (anonymously) and that's all you can do.

Named functions on the ajax object can be called externally and/or replaced.

Two benefits:

1) Someone wanting to use the ajax framework and the Drupal.ajax object can replace the event responder (i.e, the code that actually responds to the click event) with something else. As a back-of-the-napkin example:

var ajax = new Drupal.ajax(element_settings);
ajax.storedEventResponse = ajax.eventResponse;
ajax.eventResponse = function (trigger) {
  // do something additional
  return this.storedEventResponse(trigger);
}

You could use this to do something before or after the actual ajax call. You could use it to replace the guts of the ajax call with something else. Right now, it is very difficult to affect things. The actual use-case for cache warming is way too complicated to explain here, it would only confuse the actual issue.

2) Someone wanting to control the event that triggers the AJAX can do so by directly calling the object. Right now, I have example code (that I'm presenting Saturday and will post somewhere for people to peruse) that performs AJAX operations on a timer. It works, but it's mildly annoying because the only way to trigger the AJAX call is through a single event. That's doable but it's limited. Here is the actual code I have in place, right now. This code is based largely on the current use of the 'use-ajax' class in ajax.js right now:

    // Attach a timer event.
    $('.aajax-example-use-timer:not(.ajax-processed)').addClass('ajax-processed').each(function () {
      var element_settings = {};

      // Clicked links look better with the throbber than the progress bar.
      element_settings.progress = { 'type': 'throbber' };

      // For anchor tags, these will go to the target of the anchor rather
      // than the usual location.
      if ($(this).attr('href')) {
        element_settings.url = $(this).attr('href');
        // Here is the magic. We'll trigger a custom event rather
        // than a click
        element_settings.event = 'AJAXExampleCustomEvent';
      }

      // ::::: Here we add a query parameter.
      element_settings.submit = { js: true, xyzzy: true };

      var base = $(this).attr('id');
      var ajax = new Drupal.ajax(base, this, element_settings);

      $(this).click(function() {
        if (!ajax.timer) {
          // We use a trigger because, as of right now, the function
          // that actually handles the AJAX initiation cannot be
          // called directly or changed because it is anonymous.
          // If http://drupal.org/node/939568 gets committed we could
          // instead do:
          // ajax.eventResponse($(ajax.element));

          // Trigger one right away so there's immediate response:
          $(ajax.element).trigger('AJAXExampleCustomEvent');

          // Set up the interval so that it will keep happening.
          ajax.timer = setInterval(function() {
            $(ajax.element).trigger('AJAXExampleCustomEvent');
          }, 3000);

          // Change the text of the link so that the user can
          // turn it off again.
          $(this).html(Drupal.t('Deactivate timer'));
        }
        else {
          // Remove the interval.
          clearInterval(ajax.timer);
          ajax.timer = 0;

          // Change the text of the link so the user can reactivate it.
          $(this).html(Drupal.t('Activate timer'));
        }

        return false;
      });

      Drupal.ajax[base] = ajax;
    });

The comment in there shows where calling ajax.eventResponse() would probably be more straightforward than having to go through an event. Plus, if there are multiple paths that could call this, a single event could become problematic, since right now the event cannot carry any payload. Plus, we can't actually change the behavior of the event response anyway.

Actually I did, Randy, in my very first post:
By being named, this means that it can be replaced by a contrib module,

And then I followed up and wrote a book. What more do you want? This is way, way, way, way, way more work than a patch that doesn't do much should take. :/

This really needs love from someone to get in. I've done all I can to demonstrate what it is and why it's important.

Tagging per webchick's advice.

Ok, reroll of the patch. I have:

1) Confirmed everything using node/add/poll and the ajax response example in my D7 presentation, which is available on my blog.

2) Confirmed that the eventResponse function is swappable by modifying the aajax response module with this:

      ajax.oldEventResponse = ajax.eventResponse;

      ajax.eventResponse = function(trigger) {
        alert('this dialog makes you wait for the trigger');
        return ajax.oldEventResponse(trigger);
      };
      Drupal.ajax[base] = ajax;

Ok testbot: Tell me this is ok!

I also confirmed that both clicks and keypresses trigger ajax appropriately.

aw crap. I didn't see your reroll, sun, and we crossposted.

Comparing sun's patch to mine, they both had bugs. sun's reverted the setClick bug that was fixed recently and mine didn't properly pass the actual triggering event through (which most things did not really use).

This merges the two patches.

Nope, missed one other item. Not sure how that disappeared.

Looks good.