ColdFusion 9: What’s Hot

Jul 14

ClaudePlatform , , , , No Comments

I just read an article by Ben Forta on the new features of ColdFusion 9. Here is my initial take on them.

What I Like

  • I’m really excited about CF9’s support for Object Relational Modeling. I think thorough testing must take place to make sure it scales properly under load. I imagine it’s solid since it’s based on Hybernate, but I’ve seen a few promising ORM frameworks flame out before they had a chance to be adopted due to their inability to scale.
  • Access to server variables is also good. There is nothing worse than having to create service initializer hacks to pre-cache components in a clustered load balanced environment (think 4 physical boxes with 7 instances each) after server/instance restarts.
  • Multi-server admin tools. Enough said.
  • Although I prefer to code JavaScript applications separately from CFML, I am glad Ext-JS (3.0) continues to be the official JavaScript framework that ships with ColdFusion.

Not so Hot

I don’t think the new “local” scope adds any value. It seems we’re trying to hard to allow people to write inefficient code by being careless about scoping. Using “var” is fine with me as it is similar across multiple languages. “local” will just add another thing to remember when coding in CFML.

The Jury is Still Out

I’d like to get more testing done with the IDE, ColdFusion Builder, before making up my mind. I’ve been a fan of Aptana, the Eclipse-based IDE, for working with my favorite JavaScript frameworks, PHP and HTML/CSS. I hope the tool is both capable and fast, which has been tough to achieve with Flex Builder.

ColdFusion 9 and ColdFusion Builder Now Available on Labs

Introduction to Ext.Direct

May 13

ClaudeArticles, Ext JS, Framework, JavaScript, Platform, Protocol , , , , , , , , , No Comments

Evan Trimboli of the Ext-JS team just published an article describing Ext.Direct, a remoting API that is part of Ext 3.0. The team has created a remoting specification that you can use to implement the server-side stack of your choice.

Details about server-specific implementations already being maintained can be found here.

Ext.Direct is a new package in Ext JS 3.0 that helps alleviate many of these issues by streamlining communication between your client and server. When using Ext.Direct, you can expect to write 30% less code by eliminating common boiler plate code.

The Ext.direct namespace introduces several new classes for a close integration with the server-side. New classes have also been added to the Ext.data namespace for working with Ext.data.Stores which are backed by data from an Ext.Direct method.

Ext.Direct uses a provider architecture, where one or more providers are used to transport data to and from the server. There are several providers that exist in the core at the moment, for example a JsonProvider for simple JSON operations and a PollingProvider for repeated requests. One of the most powerful providers is the RemotingProvider.

Read the rest here.

Ext-JS to Provide Free CDN Hosting for its Framework

Nov 18

ClaudeExt JS, Framework, JavaScript, Platform , No Comments

This is great news for the Ext-JS community. Here is why you should take advantage of a content delivery network.

We are pleased to announce that Ext has partnered with CacheFly, a global content network, to provide free CDN hosting for the Ext JS framework. Cachefly’s globally distributed network and aggressive caching accelerate the delivery of web content like JavaScript and CSS, making for an even faster Ext experience.

The Ext CDN also provides the ability to create your own custom builds using Ext’s Build It! tool, and host them on the CDN. The custom builder implements features to intelligently cache your component selections, adapter, and Ext version to create a unique custom build. These custom builds are cached across sessions and used by anyone who makes the same selections as you have – allowing for caching of custom builds across applications to fully realize the benefits of the CDN.

WordPress for the iPhone

Jul 23

ClaudePlatform No Comments

In case you haven’t heard, WordPress is now available for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Head over to the App Store to get your free copy.

“Where on Earth” Platform by Yahoo!

May 14

ClaudePlatform , , , , No Comments

It is actually the newly released Yahoo! Internet Location Platform, which allows applications to share predefined location identifiers, known as WOEIDs.

You can use the platform to match a WOEID to a place on earth, find parent and child relationships to that location and neighboring areas.

The Yahoo! Internet Location Platform provides a resource for managing all geo-permanent named places on Earth. Our purpose in creating the Internet Location Platform is to provide the Yahoo! Geographic Developer Community with the vocabulary and grammar to describe the world’s geography in an unequivocal, permanent, and language-neutral manner.

The Internet Location Platform is designed to facilitate spatial interoperability and geographic discovery; users can traverse the spatial hierarchy, identify the geography relevant to their users and their business, and in turn, unambiguously geotag, geotarget, and geolocate data across the Web.

Where is ColdFusion Headed Under Adobe?

Dec 12

ClaudePlatform , No Comments

From the ColdFusion Developer Journal:

“Adobe has been very successful in selling into the enterprise. This can only help ColdFusion going forward,” says Dave Mendels, SVP of Adobe’s new Enterprise & Developer Solutions business unit (pictured), in this exclusive interview with ColdFusion Developer’s Journal. ‘Scorpio’ is still on course, Mendels confirms, and the ColdFusion product development team is already hard at work devising the best way to harness synergies between CF and Adobe’s LiveCycle products.

Read this CFDJ article…