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Friday, October 18, 2013PrintSubscribe
Universal Mobile/Desktop Client, Mobile Factory, Active Directory, Synchronization Service

Code On Time release 8.0.0.0 introduces support for Universal Mobile/Desktop Client. The unique architecture of generated apps allows re-interpreting of the application user interface presentation. The original “Desktop” client library now has a “Mobile” counterpart. Apps created with Unlimited edition will automatically detect a mobile device and render an alternative touch-friendly GUI for the app.

The mobile client library is based on popular jQuery Mobile framework. The current implementation of the library allows read-only access to data. We are finalizing the editing capabilities and expect to have them rolled out by the middle of November 2013. Sorting, filtering, and advanced search will be included in the mobile client in the next couple of weeks.

The new project Mobile Factory allows creating apps with “mobile-only” user interface. This project is available without restrictions in Premium and Unlimited editions. Free and Standard editions allow creating Mobile Factory projects with up to ten tables.

Membership and authentication options have been extended to include Active Directory. Application users can sign-in with the standard fly-over login window or custom login. User identity is authenticated by Active Directory server. User roles are derived from Active Directory groups assigned to the user. This feature is available in Unlimited edition only.

New cloud-based Synchronization Service allows automated synchronization of Project Designer logs to simplify team development. Single users will also benefit from a cloud history of designer logs. Online portal allows management of design revision. The new service is designed to complement existing source control systems, such as Team Foundation Server. The synchronization service is offered at no charge. Organizations interested in hosting their own designer synchronization service may request pricing here.

Unlimited edition now includes SaaS (Software as a Service) support with full user authentication. Code On Time apps can be integrated into external web sites while running side-by-side. Examples will be available in the near future.  We expect to use this model to support the newest version of Microsoft SharePoint and other similar products in the future releases.

This release includes the following features, enhancements, and bug fixes.

  • Web App Factory, Azure Factory, and Web Site Factory support “_mobile” URL parameter. The “true” value will enable mobile GUI on desktop computers. Value “false” can be used to disable mobile GUI on mobile devices when needed. Empty value will delete the cookie.
     
  • Mobile Client displays “Call” context option for the fields tagged as mobile-action-call. Data fields with “Phone” in the name are tagged automatically.
     
  • Mobile Client supports tags mobile-item-heading, mobile-item-desc, mobile-item-label, mobile-item-count, mobile-item-aside, mobile-item-thumb and mobile-item-para to enable easy formatting of grid views presented on mobile devices. By default, the Mobile Client will automatically choose the fields to display based on their Show In Summary flag. Presence of any tag on a data field will override the default behavior.
     
  • New “Device” property of pages supports “Auto”, “Desktop”, and “Mobile” options. The default value is “Auto”. “Desktop” pages are not accessible in the menu or address bar from mobile clients and vice versa. This allows implementing pages that work only on mobile or only on desktop devices.
     
  • The current implementation of Mobile Client is based on jQuery Mobile 1.4 beta.
     
  • Class ApplicationServices implement EnableMobileClient static Boolean property that allows disabling Mobile Client UI. Create a partial class ApplicationServices in a dedicated class file, override method RegisterServices and assign “false” to he EnableMobileClient to disabled mobile client.
     
  • Standard TableOfContents and Welcome user controls include markup of mobile content.
     
  • New JavaScript and CSS versioning system is available in Web App Factory, Web Site Factory, and Azure Factory. File “DataAquarium.Version.xml” is included in the root of the projects. The file stores the application version number. The number starts at zero. It is incremented every time the application is published from the app generator. JavaScript and CSS references are enhanced with a suffix to force seamless re-loading on the client machines after deployment. For example, the suffix of a 7th revision of an app may look as follows in the actual combined script reference:
     
    ”../appservices/combined-8.0.0.7.en-us.js?_mobile”
     
    The  first part “8.0.0” reflects the version of the app generator. The last number “7” if the application revision.
     
  • Data controller service will not create data controller requests if a client is not authenticated by the app.
     
  • App services are exempt from "Authenticated user" requirement imposed by Controller.CreateConfiguration method.
     
  • Desktop Client correctly selects a record in a grid view if the record was created or changed in a modal form.
     
  • Active Directory authentication and groups are supports in Web App Factory, Web Site Factory, and Azure Factory apps created with Unlimited edition.
     
  • Combined script is integrated in Web App Factory, Web Site Factory, and Azure Factory in apps created with Unlimited edition. A single compressed script is returned to the client browser. This improves the download speed of pages. The combined script name accounts for user interface culture, “mobile” flag, and version.
      
  • App generators now supports Azure SDK 2.1
     
  • REST serialization processor correctly serializes Guid values.
     
  • User Controls are correctly opened in Visual Studio when selected in Project Designer.
     
  • Membership bar will detect and clear anchors from the URL when reloading a page.
     
  • Missing “type” attribute on “command” node of a data controller will not cause a runtime error.
     
  • Project Designer will clear contents of "empty" nodes when an empty text is assigned to an element. This eliminates the need to create unnecessary revisions in source control systems.
     
  • Solutions files are not re-generated anymore to allow modifying the solutions contents.
     
  • All projects types will now correctly reload if the source code has been opened in Visual Studio at the time of code generation.
     
  • BLOB Adapter implementation has been enhanced to work better with MySQL databases.
     
  • EASE auditing will correctly work with read-only fields.
     
  • Multiple business rule firing has been corrected. Caused by business rule blacklisting by ID instead of name.
     
  • Method MembershipProvider ResetPassword in custom membership providers has been fixed to support hashed passwordAnswer.
     
  • jQuery 10.2 and jQuery UI 1.10.3, are integrated in the client library.
  • New Watermark property is now available for data fields.
     
  • Fixed Oracle 4.5 projects not correctly hooking up ODP assembly. 
      
  • Desktop Client makes use of jQuery when dealing with various dimension calculations. We are abandoning Ajax Control Toolkit in the future releases.
Friday, June 28, 2013PrintSubscribe
“Data-” Attributes, Chart, and Import Processor Enhancements

Code On Time release 7.0.10.0 includes the following features and enhancements:

  • Legacy attributes with the namespace "factory:*" previously used in the page markup were replaced with "data-" attributes to ensure compatibility with the upcoming Mobile Client Library, Cloud On Time, and SaaS Integration feature in Unlimited edition.
     
  • Chart views will retain the height after the first rendering.
     
  • Chart views will render with the correct width and height in FireFox.
     
  • Import processor allows overriding error reporting and handling.
     
  • Fixed the issue with the Login page title not being assigned correctly.
     
  • Fixed closed "placeholder" spans in Main.master.
     
  • Fixed the bug in lookups with the style “Auto Complete” that was freezing actions in data views.

Mobile Client Library and 2nd Generation Datasheet View are planned for the next release.

Mobile feature will be based on the latest jQuery Mobile 1.3.

Next release is also expected to include SaaS Integration  feature to enable integration of Web Site Factory, Web App Factory, and Azure Factory apps with any hosting platforms without the need to create native apps. This will dramatically increase ability to create a “cloud” solution from any existing web app created with Code On Time.

Wednesday, June 19, 2013PrintSubscribe
ASP.NET 4.5, DotNetNuke 7, Upload on Insert, CKEditor, Dynamic Wait Indicators, Azure SDK 2.0, Native CSV Import, Container “page”

Code On Time release 7.0.9.0 includes major enhancements  providing the foundation for the upcoming Mobile Client Library and 2nd generation datasheet view. Both will be included in the follow-up release in July of 2013.

ASP.NET 4.5 has been available for awhile. We now offer support for the newest .NET Framework in  Web Site Factory, Web App Factory, and Azure Factory projects.

Starting with this release any new apps configured to use ASP.NET 4.5 (default option) will be created without dependency on Ajax Control Toolkit DLLs. We will be phasing out the toolkit by replacing any dependencies with jQuery equivalents. Existing projects that do use components of ACT will continue to be generated with the binary libraries.

Master page, theme, and script references where enhanced to further reduce application footprint and speed up page loading. Mobile client library requires this enhancement.

DotNetNuke 7 is now supported in DotNetNuke Factory. Create ASP.NET 4.0 line-of-business web apps as modules for the latest version of the populate open-source content management system. New theme Gravity is included to provide a matching look-and-feel for the apps packaged as DNN modules.

Upload on Insert is a frequently requested feature that was previously absent in the application framework. Binary content is uploaded independently from the data fields of a new record. This creates a unique challenge to delay uploading until a record has been successfully persisted. The new client library does just that. New projects will automatically include BLOB fields in createForm1 to allow upload on insert. Just make sure that the binary columns are not marked as required in the database. Drag binary fields to the createForm1 view to enable this capability in existing apps.

CKEditor is a popular web-based rich text editor embedded in many online products. We are offering a simple integration of this editor in any project created with the new release of the app generator. The built-in rich text editor is now implemented without server-side support and works entirely on the client, which makes it lightning-fast.

Dynamic Wait Indicators are now  a permanent feature of the client library. If a server-side operation takes longer than 3/4 of a second to complete, then a thin marquee line will be displayed at the top of the data view. Modal views will display a wait indicator at the top of a page. This applies to data paging/sorting/search, action execution, reporting, import, upload, and download. Consistent integration of dynamic wait indicators improves usability by offering intelligent visual clues about long running requests. Navigate to our demo web site and try printing a list of customers to see the wait indicator in action.

Azure SDK 2.0 is now supported in Azure Factory projects.

Native CSV Import classes are  implemented in web apps created with Premium or Unlimited edition. The new importer is built into the application framework, which eliminates the need for Microsoft Access Database Engine installation on the server. “Import” action is now also included under Actions menu of data views in Azure Factory web apps. Import dialog simplifies mapping of fields by hiding “mapped” fields from available mapping options.

Container “page” allows defining user controls that will be displayed in page header, title, sidebar, or footer.

The following enhancements, bug fixes, and features are included in this release:

  • ASP.NET 4.5 is now supported in Web App Factory, Web Site Factory, and Azure Factory projects.
     
  • Application Framework now includes a native CSV parser based on the work of Sébastien Lorion. Both SharePoint Factory and Azure Factory projects are now supporting the “Import” action with native CSV parsing.
     
  • Web Site Factory solution files are now located under [Documents]\Code OnTime\Solutions\Web Site Factory\PROJECT_NAME folder. The new solution file will be created if a website factory project is regenerated. If you are using a source control system then make sure to change the project bindings accordingly.
     
  • Theme file is referenced with the app generator version number in the page header.
     
  • Azure SDK 2.0 is now supported in Azure Factory.
     
  • Ajax Control Tookit 7.0429 is now integrated in the apps based on ASP.NET 3.5 and 4.0.
    Upgrade instructions for ASP.NET 4.0 projects:
    • Make sure to delete file ~/App_Code/Controls/RichEditor.* from the source code of your Web Site Factory project.
    • Delete the files MyCompany\Controls\RichEdit.* from other project types where MyCompany must be replaced with the Namespace of your project.
    • Select the project on the start page of the app generator and choose Refresh, do not select any controllers and click Refresh.
    • Re-generate the app.
       
  • Custom *.rdlc reports are now published with Web Site Factory projects.
     
  • CKEditor is seamlessly integrated in web apps created with Code On Time.
     
  • Removed references to "stub" images from the master page.
     
  • Main master page is not using “cellpadding”, “cellspacing” and “valign” attributes. It relies on new CSS rules instead.
     
  • Built in Rich Text editor and CKEDITOR will take at least as much space as specified by the CSS class "dataview-rich-text". Define a custom CSS rule with “width” and “height” property to set up a non-standard size for rich text editors.
     
  • Application pages include “lang” and “xml:lang” attributes in “html” tag when loaded in a browser.
     
  • Application framework stylesheet Core.css incorporates the core styles from AjaxControlToolkit to handle calendar, tab container, color picker, and HTML editor to minimize the number of CSS links in application pages.
     
  • Thanks to Giampaolo Bulleri for contributing Italian localization.
     
  • Membership component of the client library explicitly sets up the path to Authentication_JSON_AppService.axd of a web app when initialized.
     
  • App generator will place controls with IDs 'header', 'title', 'sidebar', and 'footer' into appropriate regions of a page if the controls belong to a page container 'page'.
     
  • Enter NoSeeAlso class in "Custom Styles" property of a page to hide the corresponding area created automatically by the class library.
     
  • The "Reset" button on automatic search bar has been replaced with "Clear" button. The new button will simply remove all filters.
     
  • BLOB fields can now be added to the "createForm1" or any other view that offers Insert command. BLOB uploading is deferred until the primary key is returned after a successful insert operation.
     
  • New projects will automatically include BLOB fields in 'createForm1'. Developers can add BLOB fields to existing data controller views 'createForm1' manually.
     
  • CSS class "dataview-loading" is added to a data view container when a data view makes a first call to fetch data. Class "dataview-loaded" will replace "dataview-loading" after the first call has been completed.
     
  • Client library will open a new window when the original of a BLOB field is downloaded by user. The data view will display a marquee indicating the download progress. The new window is twice smaller than the main browser window.
     
  • Server-side business rules (Code and SQL) do not interfere with Blob Adpaters updating utility fields.
     
  • Data fields with text mode set to "Static" work correctly in grid view when inline editin of row values is performed by a user.
     
  • Application framework includes FileSystemBlobAdapterBase class to allow override of file system blob adapter property IsPublic.
     
  • "Soft" date filters created with SQL business rules will correctly filter the data.
     
  • Import automatically adjust the list of the available unmapped fields to ease selection of mappings.
     
  • Main and Help master pages are using a short form of DOCTYPE declaration.
     
  • Methods AccessKey, SecretAccessKey and property Bucket of S3BlobAdapter are now virtual