docs(skill): distil ssr-form-migration skill from transaction-edit reference (Phase 1)

Capture the proven whole-form hx-select swap method as a reusable skill so every
later modal migration is cheaper and consistent. No app code changes.

- SKILL.md: the per-migration playbook (classify → baseline → characterize →
  consolidate render fns → templatize → wire HTMX → collapse routes → verify →
  commit → feed skill) + Growth contract + non-negotiables.
- reference/swap-doctrine.md: the four swap rules, focus invariant, Alpine-survives-
  swap hardening, target-selector strategy — worked from the real edit.clj swaps
  (memo no-request, account→location targeted cell, amount→totals sibling-tbody,
  vendor/mode/row whole-form). 0 OOB.
- reference/render-functions.md: explicit-data or top-rooted cursor; the MapCursor
  fake + transaction-account-row-no-cursor* twin as the smell to remove.
- reference/form-vs-wizard.md: classification + the data-driven session-backed
  (formtools SessionStorage) engine that replaces the snapshot round-trip + protocol.
- reference/selmer-conventions.md: STUB, validated in Phase 2.
- component-cookbook.md / gotchas.md / test-recipes.md / scorecard.md: seeded from
  what transaction-edit proves (7 cookbook entries, caret-survival + typeahead test
  recipes, scorecard baseline LOC 1608 / ~12 routes / 1 no-cursor twin / 2 faked
  roots / 0 OOB).

Scorecard (Transaction Edit baseline, before Phase 2): LOC 1608, routes ~12,
no-cursor twins 1, faked-cursor roots 2, snapshot merges ~75, OOB 0, mixed hx- 8.
This commit is contained in:
2026-06-03 00:05:11 -07:00
parent 246df6996e
commit 3ecd115f76
9 changed files with 832 additions and 0 deletions

View File

@@ -0,0 +1,115 @@
# Forms vs. wizards (and the data-driven wizard engine)
## Classify first
| Signal | Classification |
|--------|----------------|
| One logical step — even with a `?mode=` toggle, $/% radio, or add/remove rows | **plain form** |
| The user genuinely advances through ordered steps, each validated before the next | **wizard** |
| In doubt | **form** |
Most "wizards" in this codebase are single-step forms wearing wizard costumes: they
implement the multi-step protocol (`mm/ModalWizardStep` + friends), serialize an EDN
snapshot into hidden fields, and register 1020 stacked-middleware routes — all for one
step. That is pure overhead to delete.
## The machinery being replaced
`transaction/edit.clj` today still carries the old shape, useful as the "before":
```clojure
(defrecord LinksStep [linear-wizard]
mm/ModalWizardStep
(step-name [_] "Transaction Actions")
(step-key [_] :links)
(edit-path [_ _] [])
(step-schema [_] (mm/form-schema linear-wizard))
(render-step [this {{:keys [snapshot step-params]} :multi-form-state :as request}] ...))
```
…plus the snapshot round-trip: the whole accumulating form state is serialized to hidden
fields (custom EDN readers), then rebuilt every request by merging the posted pieces back
into the snapshot (`:multi-form-state :snapshot` is read ~75× in `edit.clj`). The
serialization needs custom readers, the merge is error-prone, and the payload grows each
step.
---
## Single-step → plain form
Two routes: `GET` (render) and `POST` (validate + save). State is plain form fields + an
entity id. No snapshot, no server state, no protocol.
```clojure
{::route/edit (fn [req] (html-response (render-edit-form {:entity (get-entity req)})))
::route/edit-submit (fn [req] (validate-and-save req))}
```
A `?mode=` toggle is just the `GET` re-rendering with a different query param — still a
plain form. An add-row interaction is one extra `POST` that appends a fresh row and
re-renders (the `+1` route).
---
## Genuinely multi-step → data-driven engine with session-stored step state
> **Inspiration — Django `formtools` `WizardView`.** Django's wizard does *not* round-trip
> a serialized blob of the whole form through the page. Each step's validated data is
> written to a **storage backend (the user session by default)** under that step's key,
> and the steps are combined only at the very end via `get_all_cleaned_data()`. We adopt
> the same model: **replace the EDN snapshot + piecewise merging with per-step form state
> stored in the Ring session.** A step writes its own data under its own key; nothing is
> merged into a snapshot and nothing about other steps rides through the form.
> Refs: `formtools.wizard.views.WizardView`, `SessionStorage`, `get_all_cleaned_data()`
> (https://django-formtools.readthedocs.io/en/latest/wizard.html).
A wizard is **data**:
```clojure
(def vendor-wizard-config
{:steps [{:key :info :schema info-schema :fields [...] :render render-info-step
:next (fn [data] :terms)}
{:key :terms :schema terms-schema :fields [...] :render render-terms-step
:next (fn [data] :done)}]
:init-fn (fn [req] {...})
:submit-route "/admin/vendor/wizard/submit"
:done-fn (fn [all-data req] (save! all-data) (html-response "Saved"))})
```
with a tiny engine (no protocols) whose state lives **in the session**, keyed by a wizard
instance id, each step's data under its own step key — the formtools `SessionStorage`
model. No snapshot, no custom EDN readers, no merge-into-snapshot:
```clojure
;; Storage backed by the Ring session. Path: [:wizards <wizard-id> :step-data <step-key>]
(defn create-wizard! [session config]
(let [id (str (java.util.UUID/randomUUID))]
[id (assoc-in session [:wizards id]
{:current-step (-> config :steps first :key) :step-data {}})]))
(defn put-step [session id k data] (assoc-in session [:wizards id :step-data k] data)) ; replace, not merge
(defn set-step [session id k] (assoc-in session [:wizards id :current-step] k))
(defn get-all [session id] (->> (get-in session [:wizards id :step-data]) vals (apply merge)))
(defn forget [session id] (update session :wizards dissoc id))
```
The render emits only a **reference token** (`wizard-id`, `current-step`) in the form —
never the form's state. The submit handler validates the posted step, `put-step`s it,
computes `:next`, and either advances (`set-step`) or finishes (`get-all` + `:done-fn` +
`forget`). Every fn returns the updated session for the handler to thread into the Ring
response (`(assoc resp :session session')`).
**Two routes per wizard:** open (`partial open-wizard config`) and submit
(`partial handle-step-submit config`). State is namespaced by `wizard-id` inside the
session, so multiple in-flight wizards (and browser tabs) don't collide, and it is
discarded on completion (`forget`).
### Storage lifetime (Open decision 1)
State lives in the Ring session, scoped to true multi-step wizards (plain forms hold
none). Lifetime follows the session; `forget` on completion prevents session bloat. For
long-lived wizards, confirm the session backend (in-memory vs. durable) is acceptable or
pick a durable store. **This engine is built in Phase 6** (Transaction Rule) — until then
this file describes the target; validate `components/wizard_state.clj` +
`components/wizard2.clj` against it when they land, and update this doc from the real
implementation.