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Simple Log 2.0.1
[grlea]
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Package org.grlea.log

Simple Log: the simple way to log.
(See this package's description for the documentation.)

See:
          Description

Class Summary
DebugLevel A Java enum defining all possible debug levels.
SimpleLog Controls the configuration and formatting of a group of SimpleLoggers.
SimpleLogger Used to create log messages for a single class or instance of a class.
 

Package org.grlea.log Description

Simple Log: the simple way to log.
(See this package's description for the documentation.)

Sales Pitch

Simple Log is logging made easy.
Simple Log just works.
Er... I take that back.
You actually have to have a properties file called 'simplelog.properties' in your classpath, but it doesn't have to contain anything.
Then Simple Log just works. : )
[Note: this is a feature: no properties file, no logging! Easy way to disable logging in deployment.]

I call Simple Log a "Logging Anti-Framework" because it is a library made in protest of the many "logging frameworks" that exist.
Many of them are so "flexible" and "configurable" and "extendable" that you have to read an hour's worth of documentation, learn XML and write a two-page configuration file before you can write one message. Some of these things are so complicated they need whole books to explain them!

Now, don't get me wrong - I'm happy to assume that these frameworks have become complex because new features have been requested over time, and that some people use these frameworks for logging that really is a bit different and requires something flexible that can be configured and extended and what-not.
But most of the programs I write just don't need something like that. I need something simple that just prints stuff to the console, works with a minimum of effort and lets me change the logging level easily to see only the stuff I want to see.
And that's what Simple Log does. (Mmmmm... and a whole lot more, but simply.)

Design Goals

So, as you may have guessed, the whole idea of Simple Log is to be simple.
The second design goal was to make calls into the API brief, so that you don't have 3/4 of a line of code before you get to your actual log message.
The third design goal was to have a *really* easy configuration file.
The fourth goal was to make the API as simple as possible. To me, this means you have to know about as few classes as possible. (There's only three, and you can get by only knowing about one of them!)
The fifth goal was to make the configuration of the loggers accessible through code.
The sixth goal was... to not have any more than five goals....

Types of Logs

SO! What kind of logging can you do with this thing?
I provide for four specific types of log messages:

The following convenience methods are also provided as shortcuts to the above methods:

Advanced Features

Simple Log is easy to use, but not simplistic.
It has quite a few slightly advanced and very useful features, all of which are available without having to write any extra code.

Core Features

Optional Features (i.e. turned off by default):

Basic How-To

To use Simple Log, you basically want to just create a SimpleLogger at the top of your class, like this:

   private static final SimpleLogger log = new SimpleLogger(HelloWorld.class);
and then use that logger through your class!
Too easy!

Example (w/ Output!)

Here's an example of how you might use Simple Log:

public class
HelloWorld
{
   // Create a SimpleLogger:
   private static final SimpleLogger log = new SimpleLogger(HelloWorld.class);

   public static void
   main(String[] argv)
   {
      try
      {
         // Use it!
         log.entry("main()");
         log.debug("About to print 'Hello World!'");
         String helloWorldString = "'Hello World!'";
         log.debugObject("helloWorldString", helloWorldString);
         log.db(DebugLevel.L7_LUDICROUS, "I can't believe this library has a level called 'Ludicrous'!");

         System.out.println(helloWorldString);

         log.debug("Printed 'Hello World!'");
         log.info("Did you get that?");
         log.warn("This example is very contrived.");
      }
      catch (Throwable t)
      {
         // Just in case...
         log.fatal("Something really unexpected dropped by.");
         log.dbe(DebugLevel.L1_FATAL, t);
      }
      log.exit("main()");
   }
The default output (remember, the format is configurable) from running this class
(assuming the debug level is set to 7 / Ludicrous and tracing is turned on) would be:
Fri 2004/11/26 21:10:32.618|>>>|main|HelloWorld|main()
Fri 2004/11/26 21:10:32.618|   |main|HelloWorld|About to print 'Hello World!'
Fri 2004/11/26 21:10:32.618|---|main|HelloWorld|helloWorldString|'Hello World!'
Fri 2004/11/26 21:10:32.618|   |main|HelloWorld|I can't believe this library has a level called 'Ludicrous'!
'Hello World!'
Fri 2004/11/26 21:10:32.618|   |main|HelloWorld|Printed 'Hello World!'
Fri 2004/11/26 21:10:32.618|   |main|HelloWorld|Did you get that?
Fri 2004/11/26 21:10:32.618|   |main|HelloWorld|This example is very contrived.
Fri 2004/11/26 21:10:32.618|<<<|main|HelloWorld|main()

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Copyright (c) 2004-2006, Graham Lea. All rights reserved.
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