---
name: alloy-guides
description: "PRIMARY SOURCE for ALL official Alloy MVC framework documentation. Contains complete reference for models, views, controllers, data binding, TSS styling, widgets, and CLI tools. ALWAYS consult this skill FIRST for ANY Alloy framework question before searching online. Covers: (1) Alloy MVC components (models, views, controllers), (2) Data binding with Backbone.js, (3) TSS styling, (4) Widgets and components, (5) Alloy CLI code generation, (6) Migrations and sync adapters, (7) PurgeTSS integration."
---

# Alloy MVC Framework Guide

Complete reference for building Titanium mobile applications with the Alloy MVC framework and Backbone.js.

## Table of Contents

- [Alloy MVC Framework Guide](#alloy-mvc-framework-guide)
  - [Table of Contents](#table-of-contents)
  - [Quick Reference](#quick-reference)
  - [Project Structure](#project-structure)
  - [MVC Quick Start](#mvc-quick-start)
  - [Key Concepts](#key-concepts)
  - [Common Patterns](#common-patterns)
    - [Creating a Model](#creating-a-model)
    - [Data Binding](#data-binding)
    - [Platform-Specific Code](#platform-specific-code)
    - [Widget Usage](#widget-usage)
  - [Compilation Process](#compilation-process)
  - [References](#references)
  - [Related Skills](#related-skills)

---

## Quick Reference

| Topic                                            | Reference File                                                          |
| ------------------------------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Core concepts, MVC, Backbone.js, conventions     | [CONCEPTS.md](references/CONCEPTS.md)                                   |
| Controllers, events, conditional code, arguments | [CONTROLLERS.md](references/CONTROLLERS.md)                             |
| Models, collections, data binding, migrations    | [MODELS.md](references/MODELS.md)                                       |
| XML markup, elements, attributes, events         | [VIEWS_XML.md](references/VIEWS_XML.md)                                 |
| TSS styling, themes, platform-specific styles    | [VIEWS_STYLES.md](references/VIEWS_STYLES.md)                           |
| Dynamic styles, autostyle, runtime styling       | [VIEWS_DYNAMIC.md](references/VIEWS_DYNAMIC.md)                         |
| Controllers-less views, patterns                 | [VIEWS_WITHOUT_CONTROLLERS.md](references/VIEWS_WITHOUT_CONTROLLERS.md) |
| Creating and using widgets                       | [WIDGETS.md](references/WIDGETS.md)                                     |
| CLI commands, code generation                    | [CLI_TASKS.md](references/CLI_TASKS.md)                                 |
| PurgeTSS integration and features                | [PURGETSS.md](references/PURGETSS.md)                                   |

## Project Structure

Standard Alloy project structure:

```
app/
├── alloy.js              # Initializer file
├── alloy.jmk             # Build configuration
├── config.json           # Project configuration
├── assets/               # Images, fonts, files (→ Resources/)
├── controllers/          # Controller files (.js)
├── i18n/                 # Localization strings (→ i18n/)
├── lib/                  # CommonJS modules
├── migrations/           # DB migrations (<DATETIME>_<name>.js)
├── models/               # Model definitions (.js)
├── platform/             # Platform-specific resources (→ platform/)
├── specs/                # Test-only files (dev/test only)
├── styles/               # TSS files (.tss)
├── themes/               # Theme folders
├── views/                # XML markup files (.xml)
└── widgets/              # Widget components
```

## MVC Quick Start

**Controller** (`app/controllers/index.js`):
```javascript
function doClick(e) {
    alert($.label.text);
}
$.index.open();
```

**View** (`app/views/index.xml`):
```xml
<Alloy>
    <Window class="container">
        <Label id="label" onClick="doClick">Hello, World</Label>
    </Window>
</Alloy>
```

**Style** (`app/styles/index.tss`):
```javascript
".container": { backgroundColor: "white" }
"Label": { color: "#000" }
```

## Key Concepts

- **Models/Collections**: Backbone.js objects with sync adapters (sql, properties)
- **Views**: XML markup with TSS styling
- **Controllers**: JavaScript logic with `$` reference to view components
- **Data Binding**: Bind collections to UI components automatically
- **Widgets**: Reusable components with MVC structure
- **Conventions**: File naming and placement drive code generation

## Common Patterns

### Creating a Model
```bash
alloy generate model book sql title:string author:string
```

### Data Binding
```xml
<Collection src="book" />
<TableView dataCollection="book">
    <TableViewRow title="{title}" />
</TableView>
```

### Platform-Specific Code
```javascript
if (OS_IOS) {
    // iOS-only code
}
if (OS_ANDROID) {
    // Android-only code
}
```

### Widget Usage
```xml
<Widget src="mywidget" id="foo" />
```

## Compilation Process

1. **Cleanup**: Resources folder cleaned
2. **Build Config**: alloy.jmk loaded (pre:load task)
3. **Framework Files**: Backbone.js, Underscore.js, sync adapters copied
4. **MVC Generation**: Models, widgets, views, controllers compiled to JS
5. **Main App**: app.js generated from template
6. **Optimization**: UglifyJS optimization, platform-specific code removal

## References

Read detailed documentation from the reference files listed above based on your specific task.

## Related Skills

For tasks beyond Alloy MVC basics, use these complementary skills:

| Task                                      | Use This Skill |
| ----------------------------------------- | -------------- |
| Modern architecture, services, patterns   | `alloy-expert` |
| Alloy CLI, config files, debugging errors | `alloy-howtos` |
| Utility-first styling with PurgeTSS       | `purgetss`     |
| Native features (location, push, media)   | `ti-howtos`    |