jQuery 1.4.3 Release Candidate 2 is released! This is the second release candidate of jQuery 1.4.3. The code is stable (passing all tests in all browsers we support), feature-complete (we’re no longer accepting new features for the release), and needs to be tested in live applications.

Grab the code:

• Regular: http://code.jquery.com/jquery-1.4.3rc2.js
• Minified: http://code.jquery.com/jquery-1.4.3rc2.min.js

NOTE: If you’re using jQuery 1.4.3rc2 and you run into an error please make sure that you’re using the regular version of the code, it’ll make it easier to spot where the error is occurring.

How can I help?

To start, try dropping the above un-minified version of jQuery 1.4.3rc2 into a live application that you’re running. If you hit an exception or some weirdness occurs immediately login to the bug tracker and file a bug. Be sure to mention that you hit the bug in jQuery 1.4.3rc2!

We’ll be closely monitoring the bug reports that come in and will work hard to fix any inconsistencies between jQuery 1.4.2 and jQuery 1.4.3.

More details regarding the 1.4.3 release can be found in the previous post on jQuery 1.4.3rc1.

jQuery 1.4.3 Release Candidate 1 is released! This is the first release candidate of jQuery 1.4.3. The code is stable (passing all tests in all browsers we support), feature-complete (we’re no longer accepting new features for the release), and needs to be tested in live applications.

Grab the code:

• Regular: http://code.jquery.com/jquery-1.4.3rc1.js
• Minified: http://code.jquery.com/jquery-1.4.3rc1.min.js

NOTE: If you’re using jQuery 1.4.3rc1 and you run into an error please make sure that you’re using the regular version of the code, it’ll make it easier to spot where the error is occurring.

How can I help?

To start, try dropping the above un-minified version of jQuery 1.4.3rc1 into a live application that you’re running. If you hit an exception or some weirdness occurs immediately login to the bug tracker and file a bug. Be sure to mention that you hit the bug in jQuery 1.4.3rc1!

We’ll be closely monitoring the bug reports that come in and will work hard to fix any inconsistencies between jQuery 1.4.2 and jQuery 1.4.3.

What to Watch For

There are a few areas in jQuery that have seen extensive changes since 1.4.2 was released:

• .css() and related css-handling methods were all overhauled.
• Logic for determining element visibility and toggling of display in animation code.
• Much of the traversing logic has been improved and changed (is, filter, closest, find).

Full details concerning the release are forthcoming – for now we just need your help in catch regressions.

With your input we should be able to produce a solid release. Right now we’re looking to get the final 1.4.3 release out in time for the jQuery Conference in Boston this next weekend. Thanks for your help in reviewing jQuery 1.4.3rc1!

As the jQuery project has grown, so have the needs of the developer community. As a project, we’re focused on building the best features possible and providing them in a reliable and open manner. Like most open-source projects, the software we’re able to offer is in no small part due to the generosity of many volunteers who donate their time and coding skills to make jQuery and jQuery UI some of the most widely used JavaScript libraries available.

In March, we announced at MIX 2010 that Microsoft had committed to supporting the jQuery Project via code contributions and resources. Shortly thereafter, Microsoft made available for public review their first jQuery plugin which provided client-side templating capabilities to the jQuery community. This was soon followed by their second plugin, jQuery Data Link, which offered data synchronization capabilities and, most recently, the jQuery Globalization plugin which offers globalization information to JavaScript applications for over 350 cultures ranging from Scottish Gaelic, Frisian, Hungarian, Japanese, to Canadian English.

During the seven months of development, the jQuery and Microsoft teams worked closely to ensure that the code conformed to the best practices specified by the jQuery project and filled specific needs of the jQuery community. We also ensured that any code contributed would be available to the jQuery community under the same non-restrictive licensing terms as the jQuery JavaScript Library.

Official jQuery Plugins

Today, we’re very happy to announce that the following Microsoft-contributed plugins – the jQuery Templates plugin, the jQuery Data Link plugin, and the jQuery Globalization plugin – have been accepted as officially supported plugins of the jQuery project. As supported plugins, the jQuery community can feel confident that the plugins will continue to be enhanced and compatible with future versions of the jQuery and jQuery UI libraries.

The jQuery Templates and jQuery Datalink plugin will be managed by the jQuery Core team while the jQuery Globalization plugin will become part of the jQuery UI project, allowing for extended globalization functionality for our rich UI library. In addition, the functionality found in the jQuery Templates plugin will be directly integrated into the jQuery Core library starting with version 1.5.

Documentation and Tutorials

To help you immediately use these plugins, we’re providing API documentation and tutorials that will help you ramp up on these new technologies.

API Documentation

• jQuery Templates API – http://api.jquery.com/category/plugins/templates/
• jQuery Data Link API – http://api.jquery.com/category/plugins/data-link/
• jQuery Globalization API – Available soon

Tutorials

• jQuery Templates and Data-Linking
• Introducing jQuery Templates
• jQuery Templates in the wild
• Not Using jQuery JavaScript Template? You’re Really Missing Out
• jQuery JavaScript Templates Tutorial: Nesting Templates

Available for Download

Source code for the new plugins can be found on Github and we encourage the community to evaluate & enhance the functionality. The new plugins are available immediate download and the code can be found here:

jQuery Templates – http://github.com/jquery/jquery-tmpl
jQuery Datalink – http://github.com/jquery/jquery-datalink
jQuery Globalization – http://github.com/jquery/jquery-global

New Contribution Vehicle

We’d like to thank Microsoft for their commitment to helping the jQuery Project and providing new and exciting functionality for the jQuery libraries. This has been a rewarding experience for both teams, laying the foundation for future collaboration and creating a new path for meeting the needs of the jQuery community.

Please be sure to read Microsoft’s joint announcement outlining the history of the effort and the importance of these contributions to Microsoft and the jQuery community:

jQuery Templates, Data Link, and Globalization Accepted as Official jQuery Plugins – Scott Guthrie, Corporate Vice President in the Microsoft Developer Division

jQuery Templates is now an Official jQuery Plugin – Boris Moore, Microsoft

jQuery Templating in the wild – James Senior, Microsoft

Web Camps TV #5 – Microsoft Commits Code to jQuery! – Channel 9 Video

We’d like to open up submissions for talks for our conferences in London and Boston.

The dates are currently being firmed up, but currently we’re eyeing these days: London: Sept 13-14 Sept 8-9th or the 22-23rd; Boston: Oct 16-17. Please fill out the form if you’re interested in speaking at either of these events.

We will be sharing more information about these two epic events in the coming weeks.

On Monday, July 5th, John Resig will be at the Seattle jQuery/JavaScript community meetup at Amazon’s brand new Van Vorst Meeting Center in South Lake Union for an afternoon of learning, openspace, hacking and, of course, pizza!

The fun begins at 1pm with a quick keynote and explanation of open space technology then the group will self organize into smaller sessions run in an open space style until 6pm.

There will be plenty of pizza, refreshments and networking space to meet like minded developers, so come and meet, eat, learn and play with some of the Pacific Northwest’s best front end and interface developers. Topics will be suitable for beginners all the way through to advanced jQuery and JavaScript programmers.

This awesome event is provided for free and but you need to register to get in. Be sure to get your ticket quick.

Microsoft has submitted it’s second proposal to the jQuery Project outlining a plugin that allows properties within objects to be linked to each other. Termed “data linking”, the new plugin would allow changes made to a property of one object to effect a change on the property of a secondary object. The plugin leverages jQuery’s “special events” API to create a new event that will trigger when a change occurs on a bound object property. This would allow a developer to link properties in the following way:

var person = {};

$(“#name”).linkTo(“val”, person, “name”);

$(“#name”).val(“foo”);

alert(person.name); // foo

// … user changes value …
alert(person.name); // user typed value

The proposal has been submitted via the jQuery forums and Microsoft is actively soliciting community feedback:

http://forum.jquery.com/topic/proposal-for-adding-data-linking-to-jquery

A prototype of the data linking is available for review via Github:

http://github.com/nje/jquery-datalink

We’re pleased to see Microsoft’s continued contribution to our open source community and ask that you provide feedback in guiding this effort along.

The jQuery Project is excited to announce that Microsoft is expanding its support of the jQuery JavaScript Library through new initiatives, to include code contributions, product integration, and the allocation of additional resources.

Building on two years of collaboration with the jQuery Project, Microsoft announced today at MIX 2010 that it will be working with the jQuery Core Team and community to provide source code that will help to further advance the jQuery JavaScript Library. The planned contributions target specific functionalities in areas of mutual interest. They include:

• Templating
• Script Loading
• Data Binding

The initial focus will be on a new templating engine that will allow for easy and flexible data rendering via defined templates. Microsoft has submitted a proposal for public review along with an experimental plugin, and is actively collaborating with the jQuery team and community on a unified implementation. The templating engine will be reviewed and considered for inclusion into the jQuery JavaScript Library or maintained as an official jQuery plugin.

Microsoft will also ship a current release of the jQuery JavaScript Library in both Visual Studio 2010 and ASP.NET MVC as well as continue to host current versions of the library on the Microsoft CDN.

Lastly, Microsoft will be providing resources to assist in QA testing of jQuery in new environments to ensure continued stability and longevity of the library.

We see these contributions as a tremendous benefit to the jQuery effort and community and look forward to continued collaboration with Microsoft.