Basset::Container::Hash 1.04

Basset::Container::Hash Perl module implements a layered hash. The easiest way to explain is with an example:
my %x = (a => b);

tie my %y, Basset::Container::Hash, %x; #<- %x is the parent of y.

print $x{a}; #prints b
print $y{a}; #prints b (inherited from x)
$y{a} = foo;
$y{z} = bar;
print $x{a}; #prints b
print $y{a}; #prints foo (overriden in y)
print $x{z}; #prints undef (not defined in x
print $y{z}; #prints bar (overridden from x)
delete $y{a};
print $x{a}; #prints b
print $y{a}; #prints b (inherited from x)
$x{b} = c;
print $x{b}; #prints c
print $y{b}; #prints c (inherited from x)

So why another new framework? Well, first of all its not all that new. You are getting a reasonably hardened piece of software that has been around and developed for a while.

But the main reason is that I just dont like how a lot of the stuff on CPAN works together. One author writes his persistence layer with exceptions, and another writes his object framework with error codes, and another has an observer implementation, and nothing ever quite plays right together. Sure, itll mostly work, once you hack it up a bit, but you tend to end up with comments sprinkled through your code like, "catch the exception here, since we cant use error codes, since Foo::Bar::Baz doesnt work with them." The miracle of open source software making your life easier crashes down.

Basset is designed to tie it all together. Things are implemented in a very specific, very consistent fashion, but youre not tied to any of it. You want to inherit from a different root class? You can inject one. You want to use a different persistence layer instead of the built in one? You can change it. You want to use a different templating engine? Go right ahead. You may lose some of the consistency that I feel is so valuable, but Im not going to stop you. Basset is a framework framework - you follow the rules and you can tie together everything in your system very easily.

Whys it called Basset? Well, I figure if there can be a framework out there called Maypole, I can call mine Basset. Its somewhat adequate - basset hounds are loyal, trustworthy, play well with others, and easy to get along with. Noble qualities in software. Mainly I just like basset hounds.