Tips

A better understanding of 4D REST sessions

In a previous blog post, we showed you how to get started with the 4D REST server. We walked you through different CRUD operations using Postman and pointed you to the full REST documentation. In this blog post, We’ll explain how sessions work in 4D. This understanding will ensure that you’ll be able to build a session-based authentication system using the 4D REST server.

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On resize… On resize… On resize…

Wondering how to create a nice and dynamic user interface? Typically when a form is resized, the form objects whose horizontal sizing or vertical sizing properties are set to move or grow, are automatically resized. In some cases  (e.g., finer user interface management), developers choose to manage form object size and position by programming. To do so, they check the “on resized” event which is triggered within the form method. But what happens when the form contains one or more subforms? On many levels? This blog post gives you the answers!

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Multiple 4D data sources, interested?

We’ve got an exciting new feature to announce in 4D v18 and the title may have already given you a hint!

This feature opens new possibilities for client/server work. Rather than being limited to the current database and requiring a permanent network connection, an application in 4D v18 can get data from another, remote 4D database that’s exposed on a 4D server!

A lot of options become available thanks to this feature. For example, you could organize your applications to work offline and only synchronize local data when remote data is reachable. Or you could consider publishing your data on multiple servers and switching from one to the other as necessary. Another option could be splitting your data model across different databases (e.g. local data, international data). What about having your data distributed in different places yet still accessible through a single 4D client code (project methods and form objects)? All of these scenarios are now possible and this blog post tells you how!

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CSS color strings for better readability

Improved and simplified 4D commands just keep coming. Now you can set colors in your form objects using CSS strings instead of numeric values. Previously CSS colors for objects were declared with a 4-byte longint (e.g., 0x00RRGGBB). But if you feel more comfortable writing BLUE instead of its numeric equivalent 255 (0xFF), we’ve got good news … 4D v17 R6 makes it possible!

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Retrieve the current execution call chain

When programming an application, you may need to know where you are in your code, especially when one method calls other methods, which may then call other methods. That’s why it’s very helpful to see the chain of methods, or the call chain, during the debugging process. For this, 4D v17 R6 provides the new Get call chain command to give you an insight into the executed code. Now you won’t have to worry about getting lost anymore!