Jesus Garcia - Ext JS in Action

For online information and ordering of this and other Manning books, please visit www.manning.com. The publisher offers discounts on this book when ordered in quantity. For more information, please contact

Special Sales Department Manning Publications Co. 20 Baldwin Road PO Box 261 Shelter Island, NY 11964 Email: orders@manning.com

2014 by Manning Publications Co. All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, or otherwise, without prior written permission of the publisher.

Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in the book, and Manning Publications was aware of a trademark claim, the designations have been printed in initial caps or all caps.

Recognizing the importance of preserving what has been written, it is Mannings policy to have the books we publish printed on acid-free paper, and we exert our best efforts to that end. Recognizing also our responsibility to conserve the resources of our planet, Manning books are printed on paper that is at least 15 percent recycled and processed without the use of elemental chlorine.

Manning Publications Co.20 Baldwin RoadPO Box 261Shelter Island, NY 11964

Development editors: Sebastian Stirling, Frank PohlmanCopyeditor: Tiffany TaylorProofreader: Melody DolabTypesetter: Dennis DalinnikCover designer: Marija Tudor

ISBN: 9781617290329

Printed in the United States of America

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 MAL 19 18 17 16 15 14

I started my career in the world of Sencha back in 2006 when the precursor to what is known as Ext JS today (Senchas desktop JavaScript framework) was something of an experiment. Soon after my introduction, I became addicted to the design patterns that were promoted by the quickly evolving framework. But, more importantly, I fell in love with the thriving community of developers looking to give back.

I was inspired by many of the active members in the community, and decided to become a contributing member myself, spending tens of hours per week answering questions, writing blog posts, and eventually publishing instructional screencasts. Times were certainly interesting back then, as design patterns emerged from the community.

This second edition of Ext JS in Action, originally published in 2010, reflects a new era of desktop web front-end development that was ushered in by Ext JS 4.0. This version brought forth an extremely robust class system and offers many capabilities that extend those of JavaScript. Add to that a very well-designed event system, data package, UI, and MVC, and in Ext JS 4.0 you have a powerful framework that will allow you to develop applications to be used for many years to come.

We are delighted to share our knowledge of Ext JS with you and hope you enjoy this journey.

J AY G ARCIA

The authors would like to thank the following:

• The Sencha CommunityWithout you, this book would simply not have been possible.
• Sebastian SterlingThe publication of this book has taken a lot longer than we anticipated. As our primary developmental editor at Manning, you challenged our writing and helped us bring out the best content. Thank you for all of your hard work. Thanks also to Frank Pohlman, who helped usher this book through its final stages and hand it off to production.
• The Manning production teamYou guys are absolutely amazing! We feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with you, on this book as well as our previous ones, and we value the work youve done through the years. Thank you so very much!
• Our MEAP (Manning Early Access Program) readersThank you for your helpful corrections and comments in the Author Online forum.
• Our reviewersThey read the manuscript in its various stages during development and contributed insights and feedback that helped make this a better book. Thanks to Bradley Meck, Brian Crescimanno, Brian Daley, Brian Forester, Chad Davis, Darragh Duffy, Efran Cobisi, Jeet Marwah, John J. Ryan III, Loiane Groner, Mary Turner, Raul Cota, Robby OConnor, and Todd Hill.
• Doug WarrenYour technical proofread and thorough review of the chapters and the code during production has proved invaluable to us. Thank you!

Jay Garcia

Writing this book took a lot of effort on my part, but I certainly wouldnt have been able to do it without the help and contributions of others. I owe each of the following a personal thank you:

• My wifeErika, this book has been in the works for a few years. When people congratulate me, they often dont recognize that I couldnt have written this book had you not provided the much-needed support for me to do so. I love you with all of my heart and am very grateful to have you in my life.
• My sonsTakeshi, Kenji: I wont forget the constant running around the house as I wrote this book. I thank you for your sacrificed time with me to allow me to complete it. You boys are the reason I work so hard, and I love you very much.
• Mitchell SimoensIm grateful to call you my friend. Watching your development both professionally and personally has been something Ive taken great pride in. Always remember to push the envelope with your knowledge.
• Abe EliasI have been amazed to see you evolve as you worked through the many years with Sencha to lead a team of top-notch professional engineers. Whenever I talk about great people, youre one of the names that always comes to mind. Keep staying awesome!
• Grgur GrisogonoMeeting you has changed my life for the better. Im grateful to your friendship and look forward to many more years.
• Jacob AndresenYour contributions to this manuscript have been valuable, and I thank you for the hard work you put in to get chapters cranked out.
• Don GriffinThank you for allowing me to take part in conversations regarding Sencha Cmd and other Ext JSrelated tools.

Grgur Grisogono

I want to thank my loving wife Andrea and kids Laurenco and Paulina for their constant support and encouragement. They provided me with the resources and the love that I needed to generate, channel, and renew energy to write the content for this book. Im forever indebted to the incredible reviewers who shared their energy and knowhow to make a much better book for the good of the community.

I would also like to extend my gratitude to Modus Create for supporting me and granting me new challenges that have made me a better professional. Special thanks to Sencha and its core team engineers, who have been incredibly helpful, providing insight into the latest and greatest to make the content of this book up to date with the most recent Ext JS and Sencha Cmd upgrades.

The most sincere appreciation is due to two of the most prominent Ext JS community members and tremendous people: my coauthors, Jesus Garcia and Jacob Andresen. They were a tremendous team to work with, the perfect guides and reviewers, and the never-tiring locomotive that constantly pushed the project forward.

And finally, Im forever indebted to my incredible friend, role model, and co-worker, Jay G. for his amazing support, energy, and patience. His insights have been a constant source of awe, sharp observations, and great ideas.