For idiots — About + the demo button, in plain words
Class:
guide(beginner). Design:common-framework-design.md.
The big idea
All the nordisk apps (nornir, dwarves, korp, holger) are built to feel the same — like how every JetBrains app has the same menus. They share the plumbing instead of each copying it:
- one way to install/start/stop the service (skidbladnir),
- one network server loop (nornir-service),
- one job manager that tracks background work and can start containers (jera),
- one UI toolkit (facett).
holger already used most of that. This work added the pieces it was missing in its window: an About box, a demo button that uses the shared job manager, the shared tab shell (which also shrinks nicely on a small screen), and a Sign in box — all borrowed from the shared UI toolkit instead of hand-built.
About box
Click ℹ About at the top. A little window shows holger's logo, name, version, and the list of shared pieces it's built on. Click Close to dismiss it. That's it.
Sign in box
There's a Sign in tab. Click it and you get a code + a web link: open the link, type the code, and you're signed in — the same little sign-in box korp uses (it's borrowed, not re-built). holger only ever shows who you are, never your actual password or token.
Small screens
On a narrow window the top row of switches tucks itself behind one ⚙ Controls button so the main area still has room. Make the window wide again and the switches come back.
The demo button
Go to the Tools tab and pick 6 · demo appliance. Click Start demo appliance…. holger asks the shared job manager (jera) to start a small demo package registry in a container.
- Normally it just writes down the job ("I would start this container") and shows you a job id — no container software needed on your laptop.
- If you start holger the special way (
--features gui,containers), it actually starts the container, and you can openhttp://127.0.0.1:5000.
Why through the job manager and not "just start it"? So there's always a record of what was started, exactly like every other app in the family. No hidden background threads.