Proposal for new combined paths/packages config format

[unscriptable]

We've been thinking that the paths and packages configuration syntax is bulky. It's also not clear to new devs which to use: paths or packages?

This new syntax would make it succint to declare the two most common types of packages: those like when.js and those like jquery:

packages: { 

    // a typical package wherein the ancillary modules 
    // are siblings to the main module
    when: 'packages/when/when',

    // a typical mega-module-just-wrapped-in-amd package
    jquery: 'packages/jquery1.9.1/jquery.min',

    // a package whose modules are in a sub folder
    funky: {
        main: 'packages/funky3.1/funky',
        modules: './lib'
    },

    // back-compat with current syntax
    wire: {
        location: 'packages/wire',
        main: 'wire'
    }
}

We could offer the back-compat syntax by sniffing for the existence of location.

Thoughts?

[gehan]

That looks great @unscriptable, would make things a lot simpler. Would making declaring jQuery, poly, curl packages a lot cleaner

I assume you could still used paths if you wanted to?

[unscriptable]

I was hoping we remove paths. I guess we should keep it for cross-loader compat and back compat. :)

[briancavalier]

Yeah, cross/back-compat seems like the only good reason to keep it, imho.

[gehan]

I wouldn't use it now! However it's standard with other libs I assume

[teehemkay]

Nice!

+1 on the simplified packages syntax. +1 on keeping paths for 'for cross-loader compat and back compat' :-)