[webkit-dev] SearchBox API

[Darin Adler]

There’s no simple recipe to tell us what to build into WebKit and what goes into client applications. Explicit support for search fields and API directly related to the configuration of browser search has been left out of WebKit up until this point.

Reasons for putting things into WebKit include things that have complicated interactions with other aspects of web technology, or are difficult to implement correctly and thus it’s good to share them among multiple WebKit clients.

There’s no principle that would forbid starting to put technologies in WebKit to help implement features like APIs to control the search field or even other search field related features such as Safari’s search field snap back feature. On the other hand, just because API is exposed to websites does not on its own justify putting the API into the engine.

I still stand my my original objection—this API should not go in WebKit at this time—but it’s not a simple black and white case of what can and can’t be in WebKit.

    -- Darin