Integrated web-based work item editor in EWM for Visual Studio
Introduction
The IBM® Engineering Workflow Management (EWM) client for Microsoft® Visual Studio (IDE) had a native work item editor since release 3.0. It was fully process aware work item editor which integrated seamlessly with other views in the Visual Studio client. Being process aware meant that the tabs and its layout would change dynamically as you modified the process for the team area.
Although it served the client well for several years, there were a few limitations that were reported by our users. For example, the missing support for customized attributes, absence of client-side validation and dependent attributes. We also wanted to make sure that the work item editor in the Visual Studio client is at par with all other clients, at all the times.
Integrated web editor
With the intent to achieve constant client parity, we decided to focus efforts on developing framework for integrated web editor in the Visual Studio client. This web editor is also integrated with other views in the client. It is the most appropriate and forward-looking approach since it provides a consistent user interface with the web client and keeps pace with the newer work item features. The integrated web editor also automatically eliminates the limitations that some of our users faced in the previous editor.
The new editor was introduced in the release 6.0.3 and has been a part of the EWM client for Microsoft Visual Studio since then.
Feature Comparison
Here are some of the key features of the integrated web editor which were missing in the native editor.
Feature | Details | Native Editor | Integrated web editor |
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Attribute customization | Support for user-defined custom attributes | ✗ | ✓ |
Client-side validations | Client-side validation of user input based on:
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✗ |
✓ |
Dependent attributes | For example, when allowed values for an attribute depend on value in another attribute. | ✗ | ✓ |
Tag Hints | View the list of matching tags by pressing Alt + Space. | ✗ | ✓ |
Rich Text Support | Support for entering rich text in description. | NA | ✓ |
Team Area specific iterations | List iterations based on the selected category in work item editor. | ✗ | ✓ |
Category and Iteration hierarchy | Display categories and iterations as hierarchical structure. | ✗ | ✓ |
The integrated web editor is not just an embedded web browser, but also has support for strong interaction with other native views in the Visual Studio client. So, all other prominent functionalities that existed in the native editor also continue to be present in the integrated web editor.
Feature | Details | Native Editor | Integrated web editor |
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|
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Duplicate work item | Create a copy of the work item in the same project area. | ✓ | ✓ |
Drag & Drop Support | Drag and drop artifacts on the work item editor to create a link. | ✓ | ✓ |
Work Item context menu | Context menu on the editor for operating on open work item. | ✓ | ✓ |
Context menu on attached change sets | Options like Accept in workspace, Open in change summary, and so on. | ✓ | ✓ |
Context menu on linked work items | Options like Open work item, Locate change sets, and so on. | ✓ | ✓ |
Multi-selection | Ability to select multiple change sets or work items in the editor.
| ✓ | ✓ |
Deep integration with rich client | For example, context menu action in rich client, available menu options in work item editor based on context, and so on. | ✓ | ✓ |
Limitations
There are a few limitations that we came across when using the integrated web editor approach.
- We use the web browser that is bundled with the .NET framework for the integrated web editor. Although we have taken care of the more common issue like memory leak when you open the web browser in the Visual Studio client, there can still be some limitation inherited from Internet Explorer browser itself.
- The web browser that is embedded with Microsoft® Visual Studio uses Internet Explorer 7 rendering engine by default, even though the most recent version is Internet Explorer 11. However it is possible to manually control the web browser compatibility version as explained in this blog article.
Despite the limitations listed above, the approach of the integrated web editor has turned out to be successful. We took it further to adopt the same approach for the work item query editor as well in the Visual Studio client. Our future roadmap is to move towards the latest browser technologies planned for the Visual Studio client.
For more information
Conclusion
In this article, we looked at the rationale behind moving from the native editor to the integrated web editor in EWM for Visual Studio client. We discussed the advantages of taking this approach, the limitations it might offer, and our intentions for the future.
About the author
Prabodh Mairh is a developer on the IBM® Engineering Workflow Management for Visual Studio client. He can be contacted at prabodhmairh@in.ibm.com
© Copyright IBM Corporation 2019
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