Notes 8.5 Goodies for Developers

Several posts are showing up from Lotusphere regarding the 8.5 goodies for developers. Declan Sciolla-Lynch has posted some highlights from AD302 : Lotus Domino Web Server Apps Development Directions.

I'm particularly interested in xPages; can't wait to see this one in more detail.

xPages ( just a code name right now so may change ) is a new feature in Domino 8.5. It leverages JSF based java runtime from Lotus Components. xPages are builtin design elements for creating modern web apps with builtin Ajax features.

xPages is built ontop of JSF. there is no need for JSP or Java. Allows use of scripting languages like JavaScript XPath etc. Built in XML support and most importantly all done in the Domino environment. No need to deployment to a JAR like on WebSphere Portal.

xPages can be looked at as a pure XML file and every property is computable. There is a palette of prebuilt controls and you can add your own custom controls. The custom controls are like subforms on steroids or you can support Java controls.

Loads of AJAX support to make page refreshes lighter, Ajax typeahead can be added to any control and implemented via a formula on the page design No need to write your own AJAX service.

The look and feel is driven by CSS. This can help enforce a look and feel acrosss all your apps. This also allows you to skin your apps, there is a default style used for controls but they can be overridden in the CSS skin.

Skins can also detect the browser so you can have different skins for different browser types ( IE, Firefox, Windows Mobile, iPhone etc ).

I'm also eager to see LotusScript in the "Eclipse" environment. The tools like type-ahead, the class browser, and the properties panel make Java coding so much easier; can't wait to start coding LotusScript the same way!