What's New in Oxygen XML Developer 23.1
March 4, 2021
Related version: 23.0
Version 23.1 of Oxygen XML Developer expands upon the substantial list of features that were recently added in Version 23.0 with further improvements, along with various brand new enhancements, fixes, and updates.
Dealing with errors and warnings is easier now with the new functionality that allows you to ignore validation problems, option offered by Quick Fix actions available in various places where the validation issues are presented.
The JSON Schema Documentation Generator tool was enhanced with new filtering options, syntax highlights, and options for splitting the output into multiple files or showing the location of the source schema.
A specialized YAML editor was added with various editing features including automatic validation, batch validation, syntax highlights, automatic indenting, tools for converting between YAML and JSON, and more.
Various updates and improvements were also integrated for users working with XSLT, XQuery, HTML, and CSS.
The SharePoint integration in Oxygen (available in the Enteprise edition only) was redesigned to use the SharePoint REST API v2 to offer authentication using the OAuth protocol. This means that you now have access to a new SharePoint Online type of connection, the various UI components that display the connection details (SharePoint Browser View, Data Source Explorer View, and the Browse for Remote File mechanism in the Open URL dialog box) were redesigned for better consistency and productivity, and quick actions were added in the SharePoint Browser View to make it easier to connect.
Some of the most popular Oxygen add-ons continued to be improved between release cycles. The Git Client add-on is even more robust with additional actions and options, as well as various UI and performance enhancements. Various new conversion possibilities were added in the Batch Converter add-on (e.g. convert between JSON and YAML), while the Oxygen Emmet Plugin received various improvements, and the XSpec Helper view add-on was updated.
Other highlights for this version include improvements to the shortcuts, they can now be assigned to show side-views contributed by plugins, editor variables can now be resolved in project resources created from a project template, and as always, this release includes new API methods, various bug fixes, and component updates.
Some functionality available in Oxygen was made available for automation outside of Oxygen, for example in a continuous integration server, with a separate Oxygen Scripting license. Starting with version 23.1 you can take advantage of new command-line scripts for comparing files or directories and for executing XML refactoring operations. Also, the Batch Converter script now supports converting between JSON and YAML and various arguments were added to existing scripts to offer even more configuration options.
There are changes in:
Validation
Ignore Validation Problems
Validation problems that have an ID can now be ignored using new
quick fix actions. Some of the details for this feature include:
- You can activate/deactivate this feature in a new Ignored Validation Problems preferences page. The options page also includes a table that displays the problems that have been ignored and you have the option to restore a validation problem by removing it from the table.
- For all validation problems that have an ID (error code), quick fix actions to ignore a problem in the current document or in all documents are included in the list of quick fix proposals.
- The quick fix proposals are available when clicking the light bulb icon for the problem, when hovering over the problem in the editor, and from the context menu in the Results pane.
- When you mark validation problems as ignored, they are no longer displayed in the editor pane. They are also marked with a gray color in the vertical stripe and Results view.
Ignore Schematron Validation Problems
Validation problems that are reported when validating XML with a Schematron
schema can also be ignored using the new quick fix actions. For the ignore validation
problems proposals to be included in the list of quick fixes, the Schematron
assert or report elements must have an
ID.Restore Ignored Validation Problems Directly in the Editor
Once a validation problem has been ignored (hence, it is added to the
Ignored Problems Table), you can hover over its gray marker in the
vertical ruler to access a Remove from ignored problems list quick fix
link (instead of going to the preferences page to remove it). Clicking this link results
in the problem being removed from the list and the problem will no longer be ignored. This
quick fix is also available from the contextual menu in the Results
pane.
Customize the Color of Fatal Validation Errors
The Document Validation preferences page now includes an
option to customize the color of validation errors that are marked as
fatal.
Option Added to Display Validation Problem IDs
You can select a new option called Include problem ID in
description that appears in the settings drop-down menu of the
Results view's toolbar to have the problem ID (as provided by the
validation engine) shown in the Description column. It can be helpful
when trying to debug validation issues.
Hide Ignored Validation Problems
A new toggle option (Show Ignored Problems) was added to the
Settings drop-down menu in the Results view. If you have
ignored validation problems, you can deselect this option to hide the ignored problems.
JSON
Specify the Included Components in JSON Schema Documentation
The JSON Schema Documentation dialog box now includes options for
filtering the generated content. You can choose whether or not to show the following
components in the generated documentation: Annotations,
Constraints, Source, Location,
Used By, Properties, Pattern
Properties, and Enumerations.
Split Output into Multiple Files for the JSON Schema Documentation Generator
When generating JSON Schema documentation, there is now an option for splitting
the output into multiple files. You can choose between splitting them by component name or
by location.
Source Code for JSON Schema Documentation Presented with Syntax Highlights
The text-based schema source from the generated JSON Schema documentation is
now presented with syntax highlights, making it easier to visualize.
JSON Schema Documentation Shows Schema Location
When generating JSON Schema documentation, you now have the option to show the
location of the source schema in the generated documentation. The location contains the
relative link to the source schema and the JSON Pointer to the location of the definition
or property within the file.
Convert between JSON and YAML
Two new useful tools are now available for converting JSON
to YAML content, and for converting YAML
to JSON. They are available in the Tools > JSON Tools
sub-menu.
YAML
YAML Editor
A specialized YAML editor was added with various editing features, including:
- Syntax highlighting
- Automatic validation
- Batch Validation
- Well-formedness checks
- Automatic indenting
- Common text editing actions
Format and Indent (Pretty Print) YAML files
Support for formatting and indenting YAML documents was added. Some of the
formatting actions that are performed include:
- Indents the document with the specified indent size.
- Removes empty lines and extra spaces between keys and values.
- Compacts the string values (e.g. description) and limits them to 80 characters per row.
You can also batch format/indent multiple YAML files by using the Format and Indent Files contextual menu action in the Project view.
Convert between YAML and JSON
Two new useful tools are now available for converting YAML
to JSON, and for converting JSON
to YAML. They are available in the Tools > JSON Tools menu.
When converting YAML to JSON this tool also handles files that contain multiple YAML
documents (separated by three hyphens
---). XSLT
Generate XSLT Profiling Reports Using a New Saxon Option
A new option called Enable Profiling was added in the advanced
Saxon settings in XSLT transformations and it allows you to gather timed tracing
information and generate a user-friendly HTML profiling report.
Easily Create an XSLT 3.0 Package (xsl:package)
A new document template called XSLT Package was added in the
new document wizard and it can be used for easily creating a new XSLT 3.0 file with
xsl:package as the root element. Also, the xsl:package
element is one of the proposals in the content completion window for the root element in
XSLT 3.0 documents.Set Static Parameters in Saxon-based XSLT Transformation Scenarios
When transforming an XSLT with Saxon HE/PE/EE, values for static parameters
can now be set in the transformation scenario and they are now properly evaluated as
XPath.
XQuery
Generate XQuery Profiling Reports Using a New Saxon Option
A new option called Enable Profiling was added in the advanced Saxon settings in XQuery transformations and it allows you to gather
timed tracing information and generate a user-friendly HTML profiling
report.
HTML/CSS
HTML to XML Well-Formed Improvements
When HTML5 documents are converted to be XML well-formed, entity references that are
allowed in the HTML5 specification are converted to the corresponding characters.
Oxygen Emmet Plugin Improved for CSS/LESS
To help make expanding the Emmet abbreviations easier, now you can use the
Ctrl+Space keyboard shortcut in CSS and LESS documents.SharePoint
SharePoint Integration Redesigned to Use OAuth Protocol
Now Oxygen uses the OAuth protocol enabling you to perform the
authentication in your web browser. Also, the SharePoint integration was redesigned to use
the SharePoint REST API v2 (instead the deprecated SharePoint Web Services).
SharePoint Online Connection Support
A new SharePoint Online type of connection was added in the
database connection mechanism. This enables you to use OAuth support for connecting to
your organization's SharePoint Online repository.
Easily Configure Your Connection Using Quick Actions in the SharePoint Browser View
Quick actions were added in the SharePoint Browser view to allow you to create
and configure a SharePoint or SharePoint Online connection, or to quickly start the
authentication process for an already configured connection.
Access Resources From a SharePoint Online Repository Using the Open URL Dialog Box
The Open URL dialog box now includes support for browsing a
repository defined using the newly introduced SharePoint Online connection
type.
Add-ons
Oxygen provides access to a variety of add-ons that extend the functionality
of the application.
Git Client Improvements
Various improvements were made to the Git Client add-on:
- Added an Abort merge button for when conflicts result after a Pull (merge) operation. It allows you to abort the current conflict resolution process.
- Added a set of options in the Git Client preferences page that can be used to decide whether to always switch to a newly detected working copy from a project, to never switch, or to always ask.
- Added a Preferences action in the Settings menu that acts as a shortcut to the Git Client preferences page.
- The Git History view now includes a text filter field at the top that you can use to conduct searches (i.e. by Date, Author, or Commit ID).
- Updated the JGit component to version 5.10.0.
- Integrated numerous bug fixes, UI improvements, and speed improvements.
For a complete list of updates added in version 2.4.0 of the Git Client, see https://github.com/oxygenxml/oxygen-git-plugin/releases/tag/2.4.0.
Batch Documents Converter Improvements
Various improvements were made to the Batch
Documents Converter add-on:
- New conversions were added for converting JSON to YAML, and vice versa.
- Added a new option that allows you to convert Markdown or HTML documents with multiple headings into DITA maps with referenced DITA topics.
- Added a new option that allows you to create DITA short description elements
(
<shortdesc>) in Markdown to DITA conversions. - Improved the Markdown to DITA conversion, allowing you to convert documents that start with a high heading level or increase the heading level with more than one unit.
- Fixed some cases where Word to DITA and HTML to DITA conversions created a document without its root.
- Fixed the escaping of invalid characters from the IDs of the topics in Word to DITA conversions.
- The actions for batch converting between the various document types are now easier to access via an Additional conversions submenu located in File > Import, as well as an Import submenu located in the Append Child, Insert Before, and Insert After submenus and the contextual menu of the DITA Maps Manager.
DITA References View Improvements
Various improvements were made to the DITA
References View add-on:
- Added a new tab where incoming references are presented for the current DITA topic.
- Added support for translating the view's user interface in English, German, French, Japanese, or Dutch.
- Fixed various small bugs.
XSpec Helper View Add-on Now Bundles XSpec 2.0.7
The XSpec Helper
View add-on was updated to include XSpec version 2.0.7.
Scripting
The all platforms distribution of Oxygen is bundled with a
scripts sub-folder that contains scripts for automating and running
various utilities from a command line interface. To run any of these scripts, you are
required to purchase a special scripting commercial
license.New Command-Line Script for Comparing Files
A new command-line script (
compareFiles) is now available that
can be used to compare two specified files in one of three available output formats. You
can also add numerous options as arguments and filter the results according to your needs.
For details, see Scripting
Oxygen: Compare Files. Note that this script requires a special scripting commercial
license.New Command-Line Script for Comparing Directories
A new command-line script (
compareDirs) is now available that
can be used to compare two specified directories in one of six available output formats.
You can also add numerous options as arguments and filter the results according to your
needs. For details, see Scripting Oxygen: Compare Directories. Note that this script requires a special scripting commercial
license.New Command-Line Script for Running XML Refactoring Operations
A new command-line script is now available that can be used to execute XML
Refactoring Operations. The
xmlRefactoring script requires a
special scripting commercial license and
it helps to reduce the time and effort required to perform various structure management
tasks.Batch Convert JSON to YAML and YAML to JSON
The Batch Converter script (
batchConverter)
now supports converting multiple JSON documents to YAML or multiple YAML documents to
JSON. For details, see the Oxygen Scripting: Batch Converter documentation topic.Create a Short Description Element from First Paragraph when Batch Converting Markdown to DITA
A new argument (
-csd) was added for the Batch
Converter script. When set to true, it creates a short
description element from the first paragraph before the headings.Convert Sections into Separate Topics when Batch Converting Markdown or HTML to DITA
The argument (
-ss) used for converting sections into separate
topics in the Batch Converter script can now be applied on Markdown to
DITA or HTML to DITA (previously, it was only available for Word to DITA conversions).
When set to true, it converts multiple headings from a Markdown or HTML
document into separate individual DITA topics that are also referenced in a newly created
DITA map.New Extended Version of the XML Instance Generator Script
The XML Instance Generator command-line script now has an
extended version with additional arguments. For example, the
-s argument
can be used to specify an XML schema file to be used for the file generation,
-r specifies the root element, -o specifies the output
directory, -i specifies the number of XML files to be generated, and
more.Other
Set Shortcuts to Show Side-Views Contributed by Plugins
In the Menu Shortcut Keys preferences page, shortcuts can now
be assigned to the actions that show side-views contributed by plugins.
Resolve Editor Variables in Projects Created from Templates
Editor variables can now be resolved in project resources created from a
project template (by default, the variables are not resolved). This feature can be
activated using the
expandEditorVariablesIncludeFilter property in the
.properties file that corresponds to the project template. If a subset
of the included resources needs to be excluded, the
expandEditorVariablesIncludeFilter property can be used.New Document Wizard Now Includes a "Popular" Category
The New Document wizard now includes a
Popular category. It contains a collection of popular framework
templates. This category can be customized using properties files for the framework
templates.
Custom Frameworks Created With a Script Are Automatically Loaded
If you create a custom framework using an extension script, you no longer need to
compile it. You just need to save the script inside the framework directory and Oxygen
will automatically load it for you.
See History of Recently Closed Files in the "Switch Editor Tab" Dialog Box
You can now see the history of your recently closed files in the Switch
editor tab dialog box. This feature allows you to switch to a particular editor
tab by selecting it from a filterable list of currently open files, and it now also
includes recently closed files.
Special Oxygen Distribution for Apple Silicon
An Oxygen distribution is available for macOS aarch64 (Apple Silicon). It
does not have a Java runtime bundled. It requires OpenJDK (or similar)
11 - 15 for the macOS aarch64/ARM64 architecture to be installed. It is recommend to use
Zulu JDK FX 11 or 15 for macOS ARM 64-bit (
.dmg
installer).API
Create a Process and Keep a Reference to It
The
WorkspaceUtilities.createProcess(ProcessEventHandler, String, File, String,
boolean) API method was added and can be used to start a process and
keep a reference to it. This reference can later be used to stop the
process.Replace the URL Input Fields with Labels in the Diff Tool
Two new methods were added in the
DiffAndMergeTools interface that can be used to replace the
URL input fields at the top of each editor in the Diff tool with labels.openDiffFilesApplication(String leftLabelText, URL leftURL, String rightLabelText, URL rightURL)- For 2-way comparisons.openDiffFilesApplication(String leftLabelText, URL leftURL, String rightLabelText, URL rightURL, URL ancestorURL, boolean showAncestorURLPanel)- For 3-way comparisons. This method can also be used to choose whether or not to show the base URL.
Terms of Use Changes
DocBook WebHelp Classic with Feedback Transformation Deprecated
The DocBook Webhelp Classic with Feedback transformation
scenario is now deprecated. WebHelp Classic for DocBook can now be integrated with the new
Oxygen Feedback commenting platform instead.
API Method 'createXQueryUpdateTrasformer' Removed
The
XMLUtilAccess.createXQueryUpdateTransformer method was
removed due to licensing limitations. This means that it is no longer possible to create
XQuery update transformers from third-party add-ons.Component Updates
Apache Commons Codec 1.14
Updated the Apache Commons Codec library to version 1.14.
Apache Log4j 2.14
Updated the Apache Log4j library to version 2.14.
Calabash 1.2.5-99
Updated the Calabash engine to version 1.2.5-99.
Eclipse 4.18
Updated the Eclipse plugin to support version 4.18.
Everit 1.12.2
The Everit library was updated to version 1.12.2.
JSON-Java 20201115
Updated the JSON-Java (org.json) library to version 20201115.
JAXB 2.3.3
Updated the Java Architecture for XML Binding library to version
2.3.3.
Saxon XSLT and XQuery Transformer Add-on 9.9.1.8 and 10.3
Updated the 9.9 version of the Saxon transformer
add-on to support Saxon version 9.9.1.8 and the 10.x version to support
10.3.
Java Native Access Libraries (JNA) 5.7.0
Updated the bundled Java Native Access (JNA) libraries to version
5.7.0.