"process", "node", "window" and the global scope

[r...@tinyclouds.org]

There has been some discussion about simplifying the namespace.

- At the moment there is a top-level "node" object which contains
various random functions and objects which do not appear in external
libraries.

- A "process" object which is also the global scope (like "window" in
browser js) it has a couple of methods and emits some events like
"exit" and signals.

People like the sound of "process". "process.exit()" has a certain
nice ring to it. However any method added to it is necessarily then a
global object - which pollutes the global namespace.

To correct this I propose the following:

1. disconnect "process" from the global scope. it will become it's own object.

2. move everything in "node" into "process", remove the "node" object
completely.

3. add a new global object reference called "window" whose members
will only be "process" and "require".

Thoughts?

[Felix Geisendörfer]

Yes, that sounds very good. Except the part with the name 'window' for
the global namespace. If we decide to part with the CommonJS
convention, why not go for something clean & understandable like
"GLOBAL"?

Alternatively I could imagine 'node' to stay and become the global
namespace. node.require() is a no-brainer and node.process also makes
quite some sense.

I certainly think we should not name the global namespace 'window'.

-- Felix Geisendörfer aka the_undefined

[ry]

Came to some agreement on irc. Change commited in
ad0a4cefb8b4bf469bb1caa6e671a1009e40a81f
Sorry for the API disruption!