[Developers] Write grammar questions: question 4 -- when are links inserted?

[David Flanagan]

Tim,

Thank you for this very clear explanation.  I think it means that I'll 
have to add cookie handling to the metaweb.py module that I develop in 
my MQL documentation.  I think I've got some examples near the end of 
the last chapter that do writes followed by reads, and unless python's 
urllib2 is automatically handling cookies for me (which I don't think it 
does) those examples won't work anymore...

	David

Tim Kientzle wrote:
> David,
> 
> The mwLastWriteTime cookie is an innovation that we've come up with to  
> try to balance the performance requirements of most read-only users  
> with the need for users who are making changes to see immediate  
> response to their changes.  This is handled through a special cookie  
> that works transparently for most users but does occasionally confuse  
> developers:
> 
> * The mwLastWriteTime cookie is updated automatically by the  
> Freebase.com server whenever you write (including mqlwrite,  
> interactive client, blob upload, or otherwise).  As long as you're  
> working with a single application that tracks cookies (either a  
> browser or another application), you will read the results of your own  
> writes.
> 
> * By default, we cache pretty aggressively.  If you don't have a  
> suitable cookie, we'll provide cached results if we can.  This gives  
> faster responses to the majority of users who are readers.  Our cache  
> timeouts vary depending on the particular request, but about 1 hour is  
> typical.
> 
> * The only case where you'll see inconsistencies is if you have two  
> applications.  For example, people see this when they do writes from a  
> script and then try to see the results in their browser (or vice  
> versa).  The problem here is that the script will get an updated  
> cookie, but the browser has an old cookie.
> 
> * You can always get an up-to-date cookie from the "touch" service: / 
> api/service/touch.  In the Freebase.com web GUI, press 'F8' to bring  
> up the developer toolbar and click 'Refresh cache' to update your  
> cookie.
> 
> * We use a cookie instead of an envelope parameter because the value  
> needs to be set by and visible to the server.  Only cookies support  
> this style of usage.
> 
> * The contents of the cookie are determined by the server and are  
> subject to change.  Please do not try to synthesize it yourself.   
> (Even today, the cookie actually has more information than just a  
> timestamp; if you just synthesize a timestamp, you risk getting some  
> very strangely inconsistent results.)
> 
> Let me know if this isn't clear enough.
> 
> Cheers,
> 
> Tim Kientzle
> 
> 
> 
> On Jun 3, 2008, at 12:44 PM, David Flanagan wrote:
> 
>> Will M: Could you clarify this for the rest of the list?  I can't find
>> much documentation for this cookie.  What is the right thing to do  
>> with
>> it when writing apps that are not browser-based?  Should we always
>> insert a synthetic cookie with the current time into our mqlread
>> requests?  Or will the absence of the cookie ensure that we get the
>> lastest results?
>>
>> And why is this a cookie rather than an envelope parameter, anyway?
>>
>> 	David Flanagan
>>
>> Will Fitzgerald wrote:
>>> Will Moffat said it was that the 'mwLastWriteTime' cookie wasn't  
>>> being
>>> updated locally. He was right.
>>>
>>> Dr. Documentation, if you're reading this,  -- can you put this on
>>> your list of things to document?
>>>
>>> Will F.
>>>
>>> On 6/3/08, Will Fitzgerald <will.fitzgerald at pobox.com> wrote:
>>>> Using my own Ruby code, I'm trying to insert type links, but I'm
>>>> wondering what, if anything, I'm doing wrong.
>>>>
>>>> For example:
>>>>
>>>> http://pastie.caboo.se/207795
>>>>
>>>> It appears, although the link looks like its being updated, the link
>>>> isn't yet live to the final query. If I do the same list of  
>>>> actions on
>>>> the web-based MQL editor, there is no problem. Is there some
>>>> difference with authenticating changes between the web-based editor
>>>> and client software?
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Will Fitzgerald
>>>> weblog: <http://www.entish.org/willwhim>
>>>> Stop US torture: <http://www.unsubscribe-me.org>
>>>>
>>>
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