OF-1 Version History

OF-1 release 4.3 contains several great improvements covering automated Swagger descriptions for Business Entities, stability and HTML5 performance. Additionally theming of screens and widgets is enhanced.

Highlights of this release:

Component groups: A component group can be defined in the UI designer and contain one or multiple widgets with all basic functionality like CRUD or UI integration, that can be extended with custom logic to glue the components together. The created component groups act like smaller versions of the subscreens OF-1 features and can be used for repeating UI patterns.

Workflow engine editor: The graphical editor for the OF-1 workflow component is recreated from the base. By using Kendo UI components the new editor can be used in .NET and HTML5 to combine the visualization of the workflow with the classes and states.

DMS package with Abbyy integration: The DMS (document management system) package can be used with OF-1 or as standalone module for your ERP system. The new Abbyy Finereader integration adds automated detection of texts like invoice numbers, addresses or invoice amounts. This is used for semi automatic purposes like the assignemt of incomming documents to customers.

The OpenEdge framework OF-1 is evolving – the new version 4.0.1 shows precious positive developments:

• Integration of Kendo UI Components for HTML5 and .NETThis is a great step and enhances the ability of OF-1 to create better looking Apps (A generic container approach is used to simplify customization)
• Improved class based customization for UI and visuals
• DB structure consolidated, consistent namespace
• Various smaller bugfixes and enhancements

Our field proven OpenEdge framework OF-1 enables World-class productivity for OpenEdge developer teams to build applications, modernize, create AddOns for web and mobile and is a great system for digital transformation.

THIS NEW OF-1 RELEASE VERSION 3.4 IS A MAIN RELEASE, FOCUSING ON OVERALL PERFORMANCE.

WE HAVE SEVERAL PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENTS IN MANY AREAS:

• Asynchronous data fetching – get data for a subscreens with a separate AppServer call
• Screen-caching – when a screen is closed, it will be hidden and reused
• Performance and usability improvements regarding Ribbon Bars, Toolbars and Subscreens

When the new release will be installed it will speed up existing screens automatically from 20% to 50%, depending on used.
But when the high level features (Async calls, Screen caching) are activated for a screen, we saw speedups from 2 to 5 times, depending on the complexity of the screen.

WE IMPLEMENTED A FEW NEW COMPONENTS:

• Stack-Container – logical container to organize widget groups during design and run time
• In-Frame Toolbar support – introducing local toolbar to focus user attention. In the below example we have a screen with two browsers, each has a local toolbar. One is active and the other is automatically inactive.
• Enhanced format support for fill-ins and columns (display and edit), time chooser

Beside this, we made many bugfixes and minor enhancements, we have a total of 1399 file changes in our repository since last OF-1 release.

This OF-1 release is a major update, with a lot of improved and added abilities. The main changes are in the areas of platform support, component enhancements and productivity.
It may be noted here, that we had in the last eight month (from OF-1 version 3.2 to 3.3 more then 230 total commits and about 3700 file changes in our version control system.

PLATFORM SUPPORT ENHANCEMENTS

• OF-1 Designer (T4Plugin) OE 11.4/11.5 support (Eclipse 4.x)
• General OE 64-bit support: Designer, Runtime, UI, Libraries
• Support latest .NET Ultra Controls (Infragistics) shipped with OE 11.4/11.5
• PASOE support (Pacific Appserver for OpenEdge)
• New generic Windows client with auto-update for Java Skin-Client

COMPONENT ENHANCEMENTS

• Ribbonbar support for Skin-Client (Java + HTML5)
• Support for saving multiple custom / user-defined screen-layouts
• New visible component Fill-In List (a special kind of connection-browse)
• RGB-color handling everywhere (instead of Progress “Native” Color-Table)
• File-Upload component for all UIs
• New Component Grid (pure grid with direct access to cells: “Excel-style grid”)
• .NET RTF editor component enhanced with spell-check support

PRODUCTIVITY ENHANCEMENTS

• PCase supports maintainace of methods in in Business Entity classes
• Business Entity proxy classes for client-side usage
  Data-Binding free Business Entities in PCase (These BEs use no DB tables, they are useful for reporting, complex searches, external data sources…)
• Autologin support using Cookies (or local file-system for desktop applications)
• No-Login support (log in as default user)
• Custom icon sets per theme

This version is the OF-1 biggest update ever. It has tons of new features and major improvements in all kind of “designer” – Screen Designer, ERD Designer (PCase) and Viper Designer.

Here are the top 6 new features and enhancements

#1 OF 6 – ERD DIAGRAMMER PCASE RENEWED

New integrated state-of-theart ERD designer, aka PCase. PCase as ERD Diagrammer for OpenEdge DBs and Business Entity Designer is a core element of OF-1. It is the tool to maintain DB structures, reengeneer existing DBs, create Trigger on the fly and to design Business Entites from the data model. Automated XML import and export for team work with repository (Roundtable, SVN…).
The visualization is completely new, all dialogues now are integrated seamless as property sheets into the OpenEdge Studio (click image for larger views).

A new standalone version of PCase will follow soon.

#2 OF 6 – VIPER DESIGNER REINVENTED

Viper, the program controlled OpenEdge printing engine made for OE is now available for Linux/Unix, 32 and 64 bit. That seems to be a good time to replace the old fashioned designer with a new one. The designer is flawless integrated into the OE Studio.

A new standalone version of Viper will follow soon.

#3 OF 6 – OF-1 SCREEN DESIGNER ENHANCED

The OF-1 Screen Designer has a lot of new features: Auto catch-lines, catch lines and better grid (snap in automatically screen objects), move and rename screens, rename hook class files, maintain screens easy, various new searches for screens and BEs…

#4 OF 6 – DEBUG MODULE

In the debug module there are VST screens on various levels (table, index, db). To find out which date a program is reading is now a simple task. The VST screens can be included into deployment and may be hidden by rights. So when a user complains about slow programs, the administrator can access these screens to debug on the fly.
To dig more into technical details (may also deployed), these debugging programs are now regular OF-1 screens: logmanager, profiler, setlogging, showbuffers, showsrvattr.

#5 OF 6 – WORKFLOW MODULE OVERHAULED

OF-1 has a simple Workflow module integrated. The designer to maintain workflows and the API to use them in OF-1 are reworked. Use of user defined attributes is possible and supported by OF-1.

#6 OF 6 – NEW COMPONENTS

OF-1 has a simple Workflow module integrated. The designer to maintain workflows and the API to use them in OF-1 are reworked. Use of user defined attributes is possible and supported by OF-1.

# 7 – ALL OTHER ?

• Customized loginbox using loginbox class, customer can use existing class and add or replace parts
• Optional password evaluation implemented, Password can expire, Max number of wrong pw entries, Pw validation from user for complexity or other rules
• History using of1, automatic history for fields like user, status, and now also history for calculated (virtual) fields
• OO API for printing
• Print engine improved
  Optional docxfactory module for printing
• Improved ColumnChooser usability
• Display screen image in tabfolder-page (You can have icons for screens, they can show up in menu trees, menues, task pane and now also in tabfolder-page).
• About 35 fixes.

OF-1 version 3.1 is a maintenance and feature release. It has implemented about 30 new features and fixed some dozens of mostly minor bugs.
A great feature is the support of the new HTML5 Skin-Client. Most OF-1 screens will immediately with the all new and modern HTML5 Skin-Client. Complete integration and final HTML5 Skin-Client will be release to the PUG Challenge November this year.

Skin-Client HTML5 Support

OF-1 version 3.1 is a maintenance and feature release. It has implemented about 30 new features and fixed some dozens of mostly minor bugs.
A great feature is the support of the new HTML5 Skin-Client. Most OF-1 screens will immediately with the all new and modern HTML5 Skin-Client. Complete integration and final HTML5 Skin-Client will be release to the PUG Challenge November this year.

Data Browse

The powerful OF-1 data browse is the central control of most applications.

• Excel export dialogue: This allows the user to specify formats (csv,xml,xls), select export columns and control the export behavior for each data-type. The user can also replace values like the Unknown Value (?) with a default value. This is working in any standard browse.
• Set Alignment: In browse columns you can set vertical and horizontal alignment via row layout.
• MultiChange: It is now possible to update multiple records using a single input in one transaction. For example, if you would like to set the status of some records, now you can mark these rows and set them in one call.
• Sets: Sets allow to have predefined sets of background-color, foreground-color and a font for usage in browsers.
• Browser Standard Formats using Dynamic Expressions: Use the sets to format lines or cells which fullfill conditions, like show a line in red when customer is not paying. The rules are defined in the Business Entities, so they can be used in the whole application. No need to manipulate the browse.
• Standard Filter and Filtering by Sets: Define reusable user based filters for searches you do often. You can use conditions and you can use also set definitions from the Business Entities.

Designer

The designer is deep and smooth integrated into Eclipse. You design the screens, place widget classes and set the attributes. Build here the screens and subscreens which are the face of the application in the supported UIs: .NET, HTML5 and Java as UI. Program here the specific user interaction in client and server hooks.

Short Class Reference: The property d-session:lFullyQualifiedClassName can be used to allow to use direct class names, like using “new c-parameter()” instead of “new of1.cclasses.components.c-parameter()”. This will make hook-files, parameters and user-defined objects much easier to read (and to write).

Subscreens

Subscreens are containers, which look in the first moment like a view area in a tab. But they are much more, they can be added or removed during runtime, they can be reused, they can be rearranged free on the working area, they can be filter, browser, data viewer… The Screen layout with every single Subscreens in it can be stored individually, resetted to default or you can make subscreens invisible for some users.

Userright and Translation: Setting userrights and translating a subscreen can now be done online in the Subscreens.

Zoom Objects

When you look up connected data, you often use zoom fields. Theses filds can show up a window or dialogue where you search or in the second form they allow finding data by type a phrase (Auto Search). The auto search is seamless and integrated into your screen. Looks like you start entering a phrase in Google and then get immediately popping up matches.

Call Master Data from Zoom: Use a hotkey to jump into the Master Data program from a Zoom Field. This allows you to enter missing data on the fly.

Show additional data for Auto Search: Image you are searching in person names and will also see the city, where the person is living. But you will not search in the city. New attributes in Auto Search Zoom Fields will allow to do this (“FilterFld” and “Visible” in designer property sheet.

Components

The client components are holding data, information about visibility and workflow.

General Drag & Drop Support: External files (file-system, outlook) can be dropped to OF-1 and handled using hooks. This is possible in every component.

Data History

With OF-1 you have access to a customizable audit functionality, called “Data History”. See who changed something and what without diving deep into complex to handle audit tables.

• Simple Start: A set of tables int he OF-1 DB allow a fast start to try the history. When you deploy, you will have them in your target DB, but initially you can try easy with these ?
• Support in any Container: Now any OF-1 container can save data to Data History.
• Extent Field Support: Now we support the OpenEdge style of Arrays, the Field Extents. Modern DB design will avoid these, but when you build an AddOn to an older Legacy DB, you will need it.

Business Entities

Business Entities can bundle data and business logic. They reside on the server, they allow calculated fields, virtual fields and fields which are from other tables. Using BEs you can handle all kind of data like it is data in your actual main table, e.g. the Sales-Rep is a mapped field in the Customer table. Sorting, filtering and batching is easy in BEs, no matter what kind of fields you are using. Business Entites are the powerful backbone of your application. You will generate them from PCase DB design and modify them via Server Hooks.

Zoom Find with ID: When you have a record selected in a zoom field, then the ID or RECID of the selected record is enough to find the record. The other query information is ignored and this fastest possible method is used.

Help extended: OF-1 help (chm) is now containing the BE help. Until now it was only in the documentation (pdf). Done for user convenience.

Debug

I know, you and I are perfect, but other often need some support for debugging… ?
So we added some debugging functionality and much more is coming.

Rework on debug window: Debug windows support for Java SC, copmpletely changeover using a regular “file” and the ABL’s log-manager.

Tools

Cleanup: Cleaned up in the tools area, make overview better – unreferenced and outdated parts removed.

New Component Features

• New container types: floating subscreens and split-container
• New RTF-Editor component
• Dynamic settings and presets for ColumnChooser and ConfigurableFilter (quick filters)
• Enhanced support for OE-11
• Support for the new infragistics controls

Development Enhancements

• New class-based per screen hook files, offering easier container interaction, static type checking, enhanced error detection by the compiler
• Configure OF-1 system properties inside the IDE
• New and better wizards
• Catch Line support for Screen designer
• New REST adapter

stability and maintenance release

major update with a lot of new functionality!

powerful improvements for usability and stability

maintenance release, focus on stability and usability

a lot of new key features

Maintenace release

Performance and HTML5 improvements

Enhancements for toolbar, splitter, sonic adapter, bugfixes