Wakanda

We JavaScript developers always write clean code without any bugs. Not a single one. We follow all the rules that the JS gurus have established. Variables are declared once per scope. We're totally aware of the risk of semi-colon insertion. We've ... [More] learned to be fanatical about where to put spaces, where to put opening square brackets, how to indent several if…else if… statements. We strictly respect the basic naming conventions. We comment our code. Not too much. Only what needs to be commented. We "use strict". In function scopes. Our code produces zero errors and zero warnings when tested with JSLint, JSHint or any validation tool we can find. With all "strict” settings turned on and all “tolerate” settings turned off. We unit-test every single part of our code. Despite the fact that our code is perfect(1), we still need a debugger. Can you believe it? Client-side, we already have all we need, whatever the system and browser. Server-side, we need a modern debugger with breakpoints, jump over, jump into, stop and continue. One with watch expressions, variables per scope, tip displaying a variable’s value when the mouse is over it, and tuti quanti. Wakanda has one that rocks(2). Set breakpoints, run code, and enjoy! There are basically three ways to launch the debugger: Set a breakpoint, Call the debugger API, Or - well, this is embarassing - have an error in your code, not catched within a try...catch statement. We'll end with an interesting note: If you're performing benchmarks server-side, think about disabling the debugger, because it slows down code execution. A lot. As of today, the debugger is enabled by default when the server is launched. To disable it, use the "Run" menu and uncheck the "Start debugger" line(3). Have fun with the server-side debugger! (1) Yeah! (2) Reminder: Developer Preview. May have some (little) bugs that can't be debugged by themselves. (3) Yes, we know. We should provide a simpler way to enable/disable (and to disable it by default in a production environment). [Less]

We are excited to announce that Wakanda Developer Preview’s second public build is now available for download.Build number 93452 provides a number of enhancements described in the corresponding release note.Among these enhancements, you will ... [More] certainly appreciate the new localization feature that lets you seamlessly manage display formats for dates, numbers, and strings (e.g., phone numbers).An important option has been added to the Datastore Model Designer that allows you to disable the "Guided Mode" for scripts. This default mode offers you a simple way to assign code to entities, classes, and collections. With a simple click of the mouse, the appropriate method is created and inserted at the right location in the model object. The parts that are automatically filled in the method are locked. In this build, you can now unlock the “Guided Mode” so that you can manually create and edit the contents of the methods, reorganize them in different files, etc. Methods created manually are synchronized in the Datastore Model Designer and inserted in the corresponding model so you can find them easily. A forum post has been published with more details while the documentation is being updated.We now offer you a new way to manage themes and color palettes in the GUI Designer so that you can design consistent and elegant interfaces without having to modify the CSS files. With this build, we provide you with two themes and three color palettes that you can use in your web applications. In the future, we will be providing you with an API that lets you create and include custom themes and color palettes in the GUI Designer. We have also added an innovative way for you to define a background gradient for your Interface pages and widgets.Regarding code maintenance, you'll be happy to know that the remaining style definitions are no longer stored in the widget’s HTML tag but in the Interface page’s CSS file.Auto-completion in the Code Editor has also been enhanced. We will give you more details about this feature in a further post.At runtime, a new auto-binding capability has been added, which we will show you instead of describing how it works:  [Less]

Anyone who's ever worked with gradients in CSS knows how hard it can be to adjust the colors and the transitions between them.That's why we're currently implementing a gradient editor in the GUI Designer, taking advantage of Wakanda's integrated ... [More] HTML5 capabilities.With point-and-click manipulation, you can get elegant gradients while letting Wakanda manage their cross-browser compatibility.This feature is coming soon to an upcoming build... [Less]

Generally speaking, in order to design an application page, you can currently manage themes that can be applied to the whole page or to widgets in particular. This allows for a coherence in interface design and can be finely customized by using style ... [More] properties. We're in the process of implementing a more global method of "skinning" a page.A page's skin will comprise:a theme defining various parameters of the page: the shape of widgets, fonts, etc.a color palette allowing you to apply complementary colors to themes We can thus define a theme and apply to it colors chosen from pre-defined color palettes that offer a multitude of possible choices. The "developer-designer" can then have fine-grained control over the skin and its style properties. Wakanda goes beyond the skinning functionality in other frameworks, adding more possibilities and greater granularity. Furthermore, what's really new in Wakanda, the "inner magic" part, is the GUI Designer's WYSIWYG management: There's no need to know CSS3 to become a true artist!The skinning feature should be a huge productivity gain when designing an application. We hope you like it! [Less]

After a two-year incubation period, Wakanda has finally hatched!As of today, we’re introducing our baby to the public in the form of a Developer Preview release. Anyone who wants to can try Wakanda out and see what we’ve been putting together. ... [More] Starting now, you may download Wakanda Developer Preview at http://wakanda.org/downloads and start playing with what will become a whole new platform for developing business web applications with JavaScript.Naturally, Wakanda’s not yet in its final form, and is still taking its baby steps. So we ask you to be gentle and not throw it into the workforce right away! But this is the time to be critical, pick out the faults, and make any suggestions for its future growth. You can do this by reporting any bugs you find at the Wakanda forum, where a bug tracking system is in place.Every newborn needs a family, so we encourage you to participate in the forum and eventually in the open source community we hope to build around Wakanda as the project continues its development.In the meantime, we invite you to download Wakanda. Read the FAQ. Check out the documentation, including overviews about Wakanda in general and about Wakanda's architecture. Try out the Quickstart tutorial (PDF) and some advanced How-Do-I examples. And soon enough, we'll hopefully be working on something special together. [Less]

Wakanda has been under development for some time now, and we've been working hard to get the first public version out the door.If you were already an early user before the public release, here's what's notable and new in the initial public Developer ... [More] Preview (Build 92237), released on June 8, 2011. New widgets available: menumatrixautomatic formslive grid (ready for mobile and smartphone)Advanced server-side JavaScript debugger:multi-context supportJS consolewatch expressionsImproved instant help for coding:advanced autocompletionoutlinego-to definitionImproved DataStore Model Designer:tested with 350 DataClass Models without slowdownBetter skin customization in the GUI Designer:more style propertiesHTML5 and CSS3 supportNew APIs:WAF: How to create Wakanda widgetsSSJS: System Worker, Web WorkerAll new items and modifications can be consulted in the Nit3rSi+ [at] ftp [dot] wakanda [dot] org/ReleaseNotes/DP/Wakanda-ReleaseNote-92237.pdf">release notes.This latest build can be downloaded at http://wakanda.org/downloadsInterested users may also want to follow the release of nightly builds available at the download page linked above. [Less]