GeneXus X Evolution 2 Beta 4

This page is intended to show the main differences between Beta 3 and Beta 4.

Beta 4

Beta 4 is a major step towards GeneXus X Evolution 2, including many features intended to help you build applications that have a great user experience. It adds support for new web technologies such as HTML5 and CSS3, better javascript in web, and a new built-in Theme, so that your web apps are built using the latest technology available in the industry. Performance in both web an SD apps has been improved too. All this plus a lot of bug fixes and minor features have allowed both Artech and the GeneXus community to build great applications in the latest months, many of them you will be able to see at the XXI GeneXus Meeting.

Another fact that underscores the major advances in Smart Devices Generation is the many applications already available at the different Stores:

XXI GeneXus Meeting
http://itunes.apple.com/mx/app/evento-genexus-xxi/id459930715?mt=8
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.artech.evento_gx3.XXIGXMeetingAndroid

PesoBook
http://itunes.apple.com/mx/app/pesobook/id458717860?mt=8
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.artech.pesobook.PesobookSD

Cartelera
http://itunes.apple.com/tw/app/id461883420?mt=8
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.artech.cartelera.Cartelera

Blood Pressure Control
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.artech.bloodpressure.BloodPressure

GeneXus Events
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.artech.genexusevents.GeneXusEvents

Decano.com
http://itunes.apple.com/uy/app/decano-mobile/id464043272?l=es&mt=8

+ the many apps developed by the participants of the GeneXus Smart Challenge Community & University Editions

More specifically, Beta 4 adds to Beta 3 the following

New features for Smart Devices:

• Default rule and other that can be inferred at startup in insert, are triggered / taken into account in Smart Devices too (Android + Java and Ruby)
• Broader Themes support
• New Wheel Control more...
• New SD Paged Grid Control (iOS)
• New SD Geolocation Control (iOS) 
• New Tab Control (iOS)
• New GeoLocation API more...
• New Linear Gauge Control More...
• Timezone support (new DateTime storage timezone property) 
• Grids and fields can be based on SDT and loaded from user data providers (useful to get data using complex navigations or web services)
• Improvements and new properties for customization in the different Controls (maps, charts, etc)
• Dynamic Combo boxes (Android and Ruby)
• VersionCode and VersionName can be set in main object properties

Features that now are supported in more platforms

• Android: SD Chart - Time line control added
• Android: Size of Platform is taken into account in Android. so you can design different layouts for Android Tablet than for Android Phone
• Android: Dashboards as tabs
• BlackBerry:Advanced Search (filters?) added 
• BlackBerry: Order by added (should appear on menu key pressed) 
• BlackBerry: Radio Button UC added. 
• BlackBerry: List view in Dashboard now supporte
• BlackBerry: Added support for User Controls
• BlackBerry: Component and HTML Domain support added
• BlackBerry: web panels can be called in actions
• BlackBerry: Flexible client library removed and now the whole solution is compiled in build time allowing better BtoC Solutions, and coexistens of different applications built on different builds in the same device.
• iOS: Group by and Groub by up to properties supported
• Androd: new Dynamic Services URL and Services URL properties added 

Web

• HTML 5 support has been implemented (and is the default document type in new KBs)
• A new Theme GeneXusXev2 is built-in with GeneXus (and is set as the default one in new KBs). This Theme, in concordance with HTML 5, uses new CSS 3 properties and gives the applications generated by default a new fresh look and feel.
• Both, HTML 5 and CSS 3 (resulting from the new Theme) are validated by W3C
• New CSS 3 properties in Themes
• CSS can be imported in a Theme, what adds to Team integration with designers.
• Themes can be set in run-time : New SetTheme() and GetTheme() functions
• Timezone support (new DateTime storage timezone property) 
• Performance improvements (up to 34%)
• New Web Linear Gauge control
• Class property at attribute and domain level
• Customizable Client side validation 
• PDF Reports support 'justified' text

Other

• Improved bandwith use on Deploy too cloud in Java
• Security:
  • Login with Facebook in Web and Smart Devices
  • Authentication with external web services
  • Improvements in GAM, new options in Tools/GAM to initialize tables, etc.
• GeneXus Server
  • Locking support added. If you send a KB to GXserver you can specify wheter you want to work with Locking or not on that KB. (Lock , Unlock, Steal Lock, Revert, etc)
• GXflow: several improvements in Diagrams

And a lot of fixes and improvements to existing features. (See GeneXus X Evolution 2 Beta Night Builds)

Take a look at the GeneXus X Evolution 2 Samples to get the most out of this version.

Keep following the Twitter hashtag #xev2beta to get instant news.

And now, let's keep making ideas happen!

Steps to update your Beta 3 to  Beta 4

1) Download Beta 4 from www.genexus.com/xev2beta.

2) Install GeneXus and run it. 

3) In existing KBs you need to import <gx install dir>\Packages\Patterns\WorkWithDevices\Resources\SDAPI.xml again

4) Take into account the following compatibility issues:

Audio and Video and Photo Domain deprecated - please use the Audio and Video and Image Types instead.
iOS: xcode 4.x is required in order to compile / prototype on Mac
Some SD Theme classes have changed

Rebuild your apps + run it

5) Enjoy!

6) Learn  from provided  Examples.

7) Keep sending feedback to the Beta testers Forum and stay tuned.

Beta 4 Temporary restrictions

Take a look here.