Application Factory

Please take a look at the Roadmap for 2016/ 2017. It covers the next six months of the development cycle.

Numerous new features and bug fixes are included in the release 8.5.10.0.

Batch Edit

This release re-introduces Batch Edit capability in both Desktop UI and Touch UI applications. If multiple selection is enabled and two or more rows are selected then Batch Edit command becomes availabe in the context menu of data rows.

Select the menu option and a standard form will display a list of fields.

Specify the field values and choose Update Selection to update the selected data rows. A similar dialog is displayed in Desktop UI.

For the feature to work, you must enable Multi-Selection. Also specify an action with the command name set to “BatchEdit” in the group with the “Row” context. If there is no argument then the “grid1” will become the source of fields. If  you have a form with a large number of fields then specify the form view ID in the action argument. For example, try editForm1.

You can also enable Batch Edit everywhere if you set the corresponding option in the Grid Properties of Features section in your project settings. Make sure to refresh the project and the Batch Edit action will be added to all data controllers.

Surveys

The dynamically created Batch Edit form is implemented as a data controller produced on demand with the help of the new technology called Survey Controller.  We will post a tutorial explaining how to work with the survery controllers. See the rodmap for more details.

In the future releases, we will utilize survey controllers to re-implement several features in the Touch UI:

• Advanced Search
• Field-Level Search
• Import
• Standard Calendar Event Dialog

Survey controllers can be used as replacements for “confirmation” data controllers. Here is an example of a confirmation survey controller that allows selecting Customer, Order, and Order Detail.

All questions asked in the survey are accessible to the server-side business rules with the “Parameters_” prefix.

This is the defintion of the controller stored in ~/scripts/surveys/ThreeLevelMD.js file:

The survery will be loaded and displayed for any action if you specify the following in the Confimation property of the action.

_survery=ThreeLevelMD

You will be suprised to learn that the new “survey” controller is essentially a repackaged version of XML data controllers. The difference is only in the language used to define it.

Code On Time v9 will introduce the visual designer that will enable drag & drop development of traditional and “survery” data controllers.

The roadmap provides some additonal insights into our wide-ranging plans for the surveys.

Universal Input

Countless enhanements are made to Touch UI.  Continue reading to learn more about individual capabilities and bug fixes.

We would like to highlight the ability to create new items directly from with the list inputs with the style of items set as List Box, Radio Button List, and Check Box List. The option is shown as the last item of Category Name in the screenshot.

Note that the lookups with Drop Down List style have a distinctive icon as shown in Discontinued field. Users can select items with Up and Down keys, via auto-complete, or via direct selection of options from the menu.

All inputs now provide excellent support for keyboard data entry and navigation.

Make sure to clear New Data View property of lookup fields with these presentation styles if you do not want your users to create new items.

Retired Project Types

We have retired Azure Factory and Mobile Factory projects. Microsoft considers Cloud Service apps to be in the legacy category. We recommend creating standard Web App Factory projects instead.

Mobile Factory projects are effectively Web Site Factory projects minus the ability to display Desktop UI. We have removed this project type from the menu of new projects.

Any existing projects of the retired types will still work. We recommend considering a conversion to the remaining project types.

Date Time Processing

We have completely re-designed handling of dates to eliminate any issued with the time zones.

Features and Enhancements

The list of features and enhancements introduced in relese 8.5.10.0 is presented below.

• Visible When for data fields and categories is now fully supported in Touch UI. We have a brand new implementation designed specifically for the Universal Input controls.
• Read Only When for data fields is now fully supported in Touch UI.
• BLOB utility fields are correctly captured in Touch UI.
• GEO utility fields are correctly captured in Touch UI.
• Collapsible categories are now collapsing in Touch UI in response to user actions and when configured in Project Designer.
• Touch UI now supports Causes Calculate with Universal Input.
• Touch UI now supports cascading lookups with Universal Input.
• JavaScript business rules do not trigger recursive Calculate in Touch UI.
• JavaScript business rules of confirmation controllers can refernce the current row data fields as $current.FieldName.
• Tab selection remains when user switches between read and write mode in a form in Touch UI.
• Llong text fields and many-to-many fields have a 40 column minimum width in grid in Touch UI.
• Ttooltip remains next to the input field when the page has been scrolled to set the focus in Touch UI.
  Touch UI correctly handles "_blank:" prefix in Hyperlink Format String property of data fields.
• Method RefreshChildren works correctly in Touch UI and modal forms of Desktop UI.
• Sidebar calendar remains inactive until it becomes visible.
• Multi-selection mode does not reset selected row when activated more than once.
• Fixed JavaScript business rule compilation issues related to field references.
• Automatic configuration of "Copy" property now ensures fields are copied, even when lookup contains self-referring FK.
• Model Builder no longer creates lookups if the field is borrowed from a different table.
• Capture of exception on Windows 10 Build 1607.
• Removed dependency on MSXML6.dll fromt he app generator.
• User theme is now stored in cookie.
• Touch UI themes are now served individually based on browser cookie.
• ApplicationServices.UserTheme property added.
• Web App Factory contains proper DLLs for ReportViewer.
• DataView fields are hidden in grid1 and createForm1 at rutnime.
• Added 'calendar-drag-disabled' tag to disable dragging in Calendar view.
• Added "Normalize Model Names" checkbox to allow disabling removal of underscores and other non-word characters.
• Fixed issue with "Edit Rule" in Visual Studio not looking in correct folder.
• Touch UI  enables Google Maps for localhost only. Any production deployments now require a Google API key due to the policy changes by Google Inc.

Yoga aficionados will testify that the world looks quite different if one masters the position known as a “Headstand”. The point of view changes, and interesting ideas will rush to one’s head when Up is Down and Down is Up. 

That is exactly what we have done with Code On Time application generator.  We have turned a few things upside down.

The fundamental principal of the product has been based on the premise that a foundation of a line-of-business  app can be automatically constructed by application generator from a selection of database entities and subsequently refined by a developer. Think of it this way – you buy a fully furnished apartment, move in, and start redecorating. But there is also a large group of people who will prefer to decorate their apartment from scratch.

The next release of application generator is introducing a new development workflow based on a new built-in tool called Model Builder. The purpose of this tool is to enable fast construction of line-of-business apps from scratch by building out a model, one database entity at a time.

New Development Workflow

Let’s consider how the process is changing when building a classical Northwind sample. First, a developer sets up a database connection for a project.

Next, a list of database entities is displayed on the Data Model & Business Logic page of the Project Wizard. This list includes database tables and views.

The developer selects a desired entity to be added to the project. The Model Builder window is displayed.

Application generator automatically constructs the data model for Products entity by linking in Suppliers and Categories tables and borrowing their identifying fields CompanyName and CategoryName.

Developer adds Country column from Suppliers table to the model to complement supplier information and selects Data tab to preview the output. Previously, application configuration has been performed on top of the baseline model constructed by application generator. It was relatively difficult to select tables joined in the table query. Model Builder enables direct and effective participation of the application developer in the construction of the baseline models. Model Builder allows visual configuration of virtual primary keys and foreign key relationships.

The developer can review the raw output of the model. They can also activate the “end user view” of data with labels instead of field names. Primary and foreign key fields are hidden and data format strings are applied to field values when “Raw Data” option is unselected.

The data model for Products is acceptable.  Developer saves the model and proceeds to generate the app.

An application with a new menu option Products is now displayed in a default web browser.

The process can be repeated multiple times until the model is refined to perfection. Display labels, field names, data format strings, sort order, and calculated fields can be defined directly in the model with inline editing and instant data preview. More than one model can be defined for each database entity.

Model Options

The “Options” tab of Model Builder provides a collection of quick configuration options for the model. The upcoming release will introduce a handful of options to enable quick selection of supported view styles, default view style, and a few more.

We will provide hundreds of quick configuration options to speed application construction with an open API that will enable 3rd party developers to create custom configuration wizards for private consumption and for commercial use in the follow-up releases.

Project Designer remains to be the primary tool when it comes to further project customization. Model Options will equip the baseline model with large chunks of pre-defined functionality, which may reduce and sometimes eliminate the need to use the Project Designer.

Model Query

The live preview of data is based on the query constructed from the visual model of an application entity.

Sample Data Models

This is the model of OrderDetails entity of the Northwind sample.

Mouse over a table to see direct connections highlighted with the primary database table/view of the model.

This is the model of JobHistory entity in HR, a sample database well known to Oracle developers.

User Interface Changes

All fields of the entity model are included in grid1, editForm1, and createForm1. Data Sheet view style with horizontal scrolling of columns is introduced in Touch UI for that reason. We expect this view style to be included in the “Model Builder” release 8.5.6.0.

The pages are not configured as master-detail by default. The developers will have the option to set unlimited levels of master-detail relationships manually, which is available in the current version of Code On Time.

We are also introducing a brand new data field type called “DataView”. Any entity can have a collection of DataView fields defined in its options or in Project Designer. A relationship between the data model of a DataView field and its owner must be configured. Grid, Data Sheet, and List view styles will support expanding and collapsing of rows to show linked data, which will enable creating unlimited levels of table-in-a-table presentation.

The form views will also support “data view” fields and display linked child rows within the form boundaries in both Desktop and Touch UI. The form views will support the flow of categories creating new columns and new rows.

The new field type will be recommended as a primary method of configuring master-detail relationships. It uses exactly the same master-detail features that were a part of apps created with Code On Time from its inception. A little bit of JavaScript magic is the only ingredient that will significantly enhance presentation. 

Tight coupling of master-detail relationships expressed as “DataView” fields will also make the following possible:

• Efficient offline data caching and persistence with easy configuration
• Hierarchical presentation of data with unlimited depth
• New data access objects with child records
• Drag & drop linking of child data rows with master rows by end users

Legacy Development Workflow

If you do plan to try the “Headstand”  Yoga position, then you better make sure that you are not going to break anything! Applications created with previous releases will not be affected. Model Builder will be available in Project Wizard but its use will not be required.  Model Builder is an optional tool in the legacy projects.

Only the new projects will require explicit definition of models for database entities. We are confident that if you try the new development workflow then you will love it! A simple switch in the project configuration file will make it possible to have the legacy development workflow activated for any new project should you feel an instant dislike of visual data modeling.

Inline editing capabilities make it very easy to assign custom field names, labels, and display format strings in Model Builder. This feature is intended to replace the need for Tools for Excel.

Why?

Why are we making these changes given the extensive roadmap for 2015/2016?

The two primary goals in the near future for Code On Time is to support offline mode of operation for generated apps and to provide a completely online development environment called http://cloudontime.com.  We have found it to be difficult to implement master-detail offline editing with the current page-based relationships between data views. It also difficult to build an online database app without seeing the data model as a diagram. New “DataView” field type addresses the offline editing issues with unlimited depth of master-detail levels.Visual Model Builder is a tool based on HTML5. It is actually taken from Cloud On Time code base. This will ensure to seamless transitions from online to desktop development.

We are also experiencing a significant level of interest from former IronSpeed developers who are used to the “page generation” concept based on numerous configuration options instead of a more holistic approach exercised by Code On Time. Model Builder and model configuration options are introduced to appeal to broader group of developers while simultaneously increasing value for the existing customers.

Availability

The next release will have the version number 8.5.6.0 and is expected to go out by the end of November 2015 or in the early December 2015. Full support for Visual Studio 2015 and latest Azure SDK  will be included.

Buy Code On Time application generator now and be ready for tremendous productivity improvements when a prompt to install the next release is displayed!

Open a support ticket to request a presentation and see the new features in action!