Version 9

The version is not yet released - it is in bata.

Major New Features

1. BootStrap 5 support added
2. VoltBuilder integration improved.

Upgrading

If you have AppStudio 8 or older and don't have a subscription, you will need to get the upgrade to use these new features. You can order it here.

If you like would to try it first, download from the 'Check for Updates' screen in the Help menu. You'll get a demo copy.

Version 9.0.0

Here's a list of what is new.

If you own a previous version of AppStudio and do not have a subscription, you need to buy the upgrade to use Version 9. You can do this from within the app or from our order form.

Until you have bought the upgrade, you can use AppStudio 9 in Demo mode for up to 30 days. Once you buy, your copy will convert automatically to the full version.

IDE

General

1. AppStudio icon updated to a modern squared circle.
2. Registration and validation now uses new backend stem.

Code Window

1. Code formatting updated to use Prettier instead of jsBeautifier
2. Format Code is now in sync with Check Syntax.
3. Format Code now uses the latest JS best practices.
4. Now uses new indent preference as soon as it is changed.

Design Screen

1. Stability of dragging controls improved.
2. Avoid adding control to container it already is in.
3. Fix underlining and reporting of syntax errors in code.

Runtime

1. Change delays in startup to improve import of SQLite databases.

Deploy Methods

1. Cordova: remove option from Run menu.
2. VoltBuilder: Rename "VoltBuilder and Cordova" to "Cordova"
3. VoltBuilder: Remove "Cordova command" property.
4. VoltBuilder: Add "Release" and "Platform" properties.
5. VoltBuilder: properties renamed to be consistent with VoltBuilder docs.
6. VoltBuilder: Use utf-8 encoding to handle extended characters in Arabic, Hebrew, etc.
7. VoltBuilder: Improve handling of special characters in "description" property.
8. VoltBuilder: Update "config.xml" property template for latest requirements.
9. VoltBuilder Status: Work gracefully if job not submitted yet.
10. Electron: updated to latest version

PhoneGap

1. PhoneGap dropped - no longer in business.

Frameworks

Bootstrap 5 has been released. The developers continue to support Bootstrap 4 as well: both are supported by AppStudio.

Bootstrap 3 is no longer supported. We recommend [[Converting_jQuery_Mobile_to_Bootstrap_4|converting to Bootstrap 4] or Bootstrap 5.

jQuery Mobile is no longer supported. That's 5 years now. While the controls still work, for the most part, they throw error messages in Chrome for using insecure libraries. We recommend converting to Bootstrap 4 or Bootstrap 5.

Bootstrap 5

1. Complete new framework

Bootstrap 4

1. Select: name and required properties are now implemented.
2. New themes: morph, quartz, vapor, yeti and zephyr.

Common

1. Forms: iScroll no longer used - use native scrolling instead.
2. QRCode: setValue added to autocomplete in Code Window

jQuery Mobile (Obsolete)

1. Now marked as Obsolete in the Toolbox and Samples.

Samples

1. BootStrap 5 samples added.

Internals

1. jQuery updated to 3.7
2. Python updated to 3.8.10.
3. Many, many internal libraries updated.
4. PDFMake updated to fix unsafe-eval issue.

Breaking Changes

1. Calling Cordova to build your project locally is no longer supported. Use VoltBuilder instead - it's much easier and is mult-platform. (If you need to build locally, you can use the files in the VoltBuilder folder which is created on a deploy to VoltBuilder)