We are pleased to announce the release of BoxLang 1.0.0-Beta 5! This latest beta version includes improvements and essential bug fixes.

What is BoxLang?

BoxLang is a modern dynamic JVM language that can be deployed on multiple runtimes: operating system (Windows/Mac/*nix/Embedded), web server, lambda, iOS, android, web assembly, and more. BoxLang combines many features from different programming languages, including Java, ColdFusion, Python, Ruby, Go, and PHP, to provide developers with a modern and expressive syntax.

It is also a drop-in replacement for Adobe ColdFusion and Lucee Engines.

How to get started?

Visit our docs at https://boxlang.ortusbooks.com and get coding today. If you want to try it out on the web then go to our online REPL at https://try.boxlang.io. You can also checkout our YouTube playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNE-ZbNnndB-40LvAbeSeT2Oi3V2gm_B8

Release Notes

Here are the latest release notes: https://boxlang.ortusbooks.com/readme/release-history/1.0.0-beta-5

New Features

BL-319 Ability to call on `navigate( String... paths)` on the `Configuration` to create data navigators

The entire boxlang.json has now been updated to match the CFConfig project as much as it can. This ticket introduces a new method on the Configuration object that the core team and module developers can use to navigate the configuration structures fluently. The navigate() method produces a BoxLang DataNavigator object, which allows you to navigate in, get keys, cast them, do defaults, and so much more.

Configuration
    .navigate( "modules" )
    .ifPresent( "security", value -> this.name = Key.of( value ) );

Check out our data navigator docs for further information.

BL-320 Store the original last configuration seeded into the runtime as `originalConfig`

The configuration object also stores the original configuration struct from the last loaded boxlang.json. You can navigate it or retrieve it from anywhere within the BoxLang code. This is great for module developers, so they can have any setting they can retrieve later.

var renderInHtml = Configuration
    .navigate( "originalConfig", "modules", "pdf" )
    .getAsBoolean( "htmlREnder", false )

BL-322 New StringBind() bif and member function to bind a string with placeholder replacements using the `${Setting: key not found}`

We use this methodology everywhere in BoxLang core, so we now expose it as a BIF and member method for strings. The stringBind() allows you to pass in a string template, and bind it with a map of variables for you as long as it adheres to the binding pattern of: ${Setting: key:defaultValue not found}

You can use it for mail merging, data merging, string templates, and so much more.

function renderMail(){
    myTemplate = """
    Hello ${Setting: name not found},
    
    I hope you have an awesome ${Setting: action not found} using BoxLang v${Setting: version:snapshot not found}
    """
    
    return stringBind( myTemplate, { 
        name : "Luis Majano",
        action : "Day"
    } );
}

function renderMail(){
    return """
    Hello ${Setting: name not found},
    
    I hope you have an awesome ${Setting: action not found} using BoxLang v${Setting: version:snapshot not found}
    """.bind( { 
        name : "Luis Majano",
        action : "Day"
    } );
}

BL-324 attempts now have an isNull() to explicitly determine if the value is null

We have just started talking about our Attempt class in BoxLang, a Java Optional on Steroids. It allows you to track values and act upon them depending on whether they exists or truthy/falsey. It provides many functional methods to produce fluent DSLs and is easier to work with any attempt at external resources or other things. The core will be moving towards returning attempts whenever it makes sense.

var userFound = attempt( userService.findBy( rc.id ) ).isNull()

Please see our docs on Attempts for further information.

BL-325 Allows Java methods to be referenced and passed around as a variable and invoked later like UDFs

BL-338 Allow Java functional interfaces and SAMs to be wrapped and used as functions

We’ve added more goodies to our BoxLang Java interop, this time around method references and high-order functions. BoxLang already allows you to grab a reference to a UDF or closure as a variable, pass it around, and invoke it.

myInstance = new myClass();
myInstanceMethod = myInstance.myMethod;
myInstanceMethod();

BL also allows you to grab a reference to a static method from a Box class as well using the :: notation.

myStaticUDF = src.test.java.TestCases.phase3.StaticTest::sayHello;
myStaticUDF();

Now, in BoxLang, we’ve elevated Java methods, both instance and static also to be objects you can pass around, invoke, and send into a higher-order function (a function that accepts functions).

When you reference a method on a Java class without the parenthesis (just like our BL examples above), you will get a special Function instance that wraps up the Java method, allowing it to be treated as a function, passed into any argument which is typed as a function, and invoked headlessly.

Here, we capture the static value of the Java String class valueOf() method from and place it into a variable, where we invoke it.

import java:java.lang.String;
javaStaticMethod = java.lang.String::valueOf;
result = javaStaticMethod( "test" ) // New string of "test"

This example captures the toUpperCase method from a String instance. Note the method is still bound to the original String instance and, when invoked, will be invoked against that original instance

javaInstanceMethod = "my string".toUpperCase
result = javaInstanceMethod() // "MY STRING"

And finally, here we use a Java method to pass directly in place of a UDF or Closure to a higher order function.

import java.util.Collections;
// Use the compare method from the Java reverse order comparator to sort a BL array
[ 1, 7, 3, 99, 0 ].sort( Collections.reverseOrder().compare  ) // [ 99, 7, 3, 1, 0 ]

We grab the compare method from Java’s reverse order comparator and pass it directly into the array sort method in BoxLang, reversing our array! Stay tuned, as more features are coming on Java interop.

BL-326 New Application global defaults in the boxlang.json

Our configuration is now solid leveraging cfconfig and we have now added several configuration items that will be used as defaults for all applications running under BoxLang. You will find this in the boxlang.json

// The default timezone for the runtime; defaults to the JVM timezone if empty
// Please use the IANA timezone database values
"timezone": "",
// The default locale for the runtime; defaults to the JVM locale if empty
// Please use the IETF BCP 47 language tag values
"locale": "",
// If true, you can call implicit accessors/mutators on object properties. By default it is enabled
// You can turn it on here for all applications or in the Application.cfc
"invokeImplicitAccessor": true,
// Use Timespan syntax: "days, hours, minutes, seconds"
"applicationTimeout": "0,0,0,0",
// The request timeout for a request in seconds; 0 means no timeout
"requestTimeout": "0,0,0,0",
// The session timeout: 30 minutes
"sessionTimeout": "0,0,30,0",
// Where sessions will be stored by default.  This has to be a name of a registered cache
// or the keyword "memory" to indicate our auto-created cache.
// This will apply to ALL applications unless overridden in the Application.cfc
"sessionStorage": "memory",
// Set client cookies on applications
"setClientCookies" : true,
// Set domain cookies on applications
"setDomainCookies" : true,
// A collection of BoxLang mappings, the key is the prefix and the value is the directory
"mappings": {
	"/": "${Setting: user-dir not found}"
},
// A collection of BoxLang custom tag directories, they must be absolute paths
"customTagsDirectory": [
	"${Setting: boxlang-home not found}/customTags"
],
// A collection of directories we will class load all Java *.jar files from
"javaLibraryPaths": [
	"${Setting: boxlang-home not found}/lib"
],
// You can assign a global default datasource to be used in the language
"defaultDasource": "",
// The registered global datasources in the language
// The key is the name of the datasource and the value is a struct of the datasource settings
"datasources": {
	// "testDB": {
	// 	  "driver": "derby",
	//    "connectionString": "jdbc:derby: memory:testDB;create=true"
	// }
	// "testdatasource": {
	// 	  "driver": "derby",
	// 	  "host": "localhost",
	// 	  "port": 3306,
	// 	  "database": "test"
	// }
},

BL-330 new interception points when a session get's created and destroyed

We have introduced two new global interception points that modules can listen to:

Event	Data	Description
onSessionCreated	Session	When a new session is created and registered
onSessionDestroyed	Session	When a session is about to be destroyed

BL-339 All locations in the cache that returned optionals, now returns BoxLang Attempts

We have now moved internally from Optionals to Attemps in order to have consistency in our APIs. I am sure there are more things to do, but all cache interfaces and operations now rely on BoxLang Attempts.

return getBoxCache()
    .get( "maybeExists" )
    .orElse( "not found" );

BL-340 getAsAttempt() on the IStruct default methods for convenience

This is mostly for internal usage, where we can add native Java casting to struct operations to attempts.

BL-341 BoxCacheProviders now have a localized interceptor pool alongside the runtime pool

The BoxLang Cache now has a localized interception pool so it can also announce events locally and globally to the runtime. This allows you to have interceptors that can listen only at specific caches instead of all caches. We use this for example, to listen when sessions expire in applications:

// Register the session cleanup interceptor
this.sessionsCache.getInterceptorPool()
    .register( data -> {
	    ICacheProvider targetCache = ( ICacheProvider ) data.get( "cache" );
	    String		key			= ( String ) data.get( "key" );

	    logger.debug( "Session cache interceptor [{}] cleared key [{}]", targetCache.getName(), key );

	    targetCache
	        .get( key )
	        .ifPresent( session -> ( ( Session ) session ).shutdown( this.startingListener ) );

	    return false;
    }, BoxEvent.BEFORE_CACHE_ELEMENT_REMOVED.key() );

Which brings about the next ticket:

BL-342 Sessions are now monitored by cache interceptors to detect removals so as to shutdown the sessions before removal

BL-343 application, session, request timeouts in the boxlang.json are now string timespans

We have now added the capability to influence the application, request and session timeouts in configuration using the cfconfig standard of a string timespan:

// Use Timespan syntax: "days, hours, minutes, seconds"
"applicationTimeout": "0,0,0,0",
// The request timeout for a request in seconds; 0 means no timeout
"requestTimeout": "0,0,0,0",
// The session timeout: 30 minutes
"sessionTimeout": "0,0,30,0",

BL-344 App Timeouts are now working

The default timeout for applications in BoxLang is 0, which means they live forever. If you want to change it, then you will change it at the boxlang.json level or in the Application.bx/cfc

Improvements

BL-209 Combine config settings into a single struct

BL-318 Allow optional attribute delimiters in ACF tag-in-script syntax

BL-321 Refactor dump loading of CSS to use caching again

BL-323 Refactor page pool to be per-mapping

BL-329 jsessionID is the internal standard for boxlang sessions, move to this instead of cfid

BL-332 getOrSet() in the cache should return the object not an optional

Bugs Squashed

BL-164 BL Compat module should coerce null values to empty string

BL-252 MSSQL DROP TABLE throws 'The statement must be executed before any results can be obtained'

BL-306 Adobe Compatibility: Missing support for new java() and new component()

BL-308 cfinvoke does not support params as attribute-value pairs

BL-316 If the global runtime `javaLibraryPaths` is already a jar/class location, then use it, else it breaks

BL-317 allow "var" before CF catch variable in script

BL-331 ResetSession on the scripting request context was invalidating the new session instead of the old session

BL-333 Session creation if the default timeout is not a duration, it should treat it as seconds, not milliseconds

BL-334 Session object was not serializable

BL-335 Cache was evicting items without reaping

BL-336 DateTime toString() not accounting for formatter being null

BL-337 sessionRotate() not copying over old keys due to nullification of keys when invalidating the old session