Hello everyone and welcome to another round of Front-End News. Here is what I prepared for you today:
Microsoft holds the headlines with three major announcements:
- The Beta version of Microsoft Edge is available for download
- There is a new Bounty Program for Microsoft Edge Chromium
- Developers can now use the second iteration of Web Template Studio
Next is a larger than usual software updates section, as well as a special Developer of the Week. So stay with me until the end to find out all the details.
As always, I have also prepared a video version for those that prefer listening instead of reading. If you enjoy this format, I would appreciate it if you would subscribe to the YouTube channel as well.
Microsoft Edge Beta goes live
The public Beta version for the new Edge browser is finally available for general download. This is the third and final preview channel which will come online before launch and it marks the moment people can start using the new browser for everyday use.
Naturally, I had to try it for myself. The installation process is fast and painless and I was running the new browser in no time. Despite looking like the old Edge, under the hood, the Chromium is clearly visible, from the menu options to the Developer tools. You can even install Chrome extensions, once you activate the option to allow extensions from other stores.
Overall this is a major milestone both for Microsoft and the web at large. Therefore, if you are a developer yourself or simply want to see what the new browser has to offer, head over to the official site and download your copy.
Updates for Microsoft Edge Insider Bounty
You may not know it, but Microsoft already had a Bounty program for its existing version of the Edge browser. With the release of the Beta for the new Chromium-based Edge, they also expanded the program in a bid to increase the security of their newest browser.
The program offers up to $30.000 for finding important and critical vulnerabilities in the Beta and Dev channels for the new Microsoft Edge browser. This is double than the amount offered for issues with the old Edge browser.
More details, including the rules of the program, are available on the official page linked below.
Growing Web Template Studio
Web Template Studio is an extension for Visual Studio Code, that provides a wizard interface for creating new full-stack web applications.
The extension has been produced as part of the Garage Internship program and it has three main steps: frameworks, app pages, and cloud services.
React, Angular, and Vue.js are the three frameworks currently supported for the front-end part, while for the back-end you will have to use either Node or Flask. The program also packs a dependency checker to make sure the required versions of Node and Python are loaded.
The second step allows you to to pick page templates for your app like a simple blank page, common layouts and pages that implement common patterns (*e.g., grid, list).
Lastly, you specify which Azure cloud services you want to use. Currently supported services cover storage (Azure Cosmos DB), and hosting (Azure App Service).
Web Template Studio is completely open-source and available now on GitHub. There is a public roadmap currently available and a set of contribution rules for anyone wanting to join the fun. You can find more info in the links below.
- https://blogs.windows.com/windowsdeveloper/2019/08/21/growing-web-template-studio/
- https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/garage/blog/2019/08/garage-interns-add-new-services-launching-web-template-studio-2-0/
Software updates and releases
Release Notes for Safari Technology Preview 90
The WebKit team published the release notes for Safari Technology Preview 90. By far, the most numerous updates are focused on the Web Inspector, but there are a lot of other changes and improvements and you can see them all in the article linked below.
NodeJS 12.9.0
NodeJS continues its update cycle with version 12.9.0, with the most notable change being the upgrade of the V8 engine to version 76. Full info is available in the official release notes.
Angular 9.0.0-next.3
Angular released the next.3 preview of their upcoming 9th version. They are shipping a bunch of bug fixes, some new features and a load of performance improvements. Be sure though to check all the breaking changes when you are upgrading your code.
StandardJS v14.0.0
StandardJS is a JavaScript style guide, linter, and formatter and has advanced to version 14.0.0. The most important changes are support for ES 2019, automatic lint for *.mjs and *.cjs files and the inclusion of funding, the open source experiment that helps maintainers get paid. Full details are available in the release notes linked below.
NuxtJS v2.9.0
NuxtJS v2.9.0 bring lots of bug fixes, new features, refactors and dependency updates. Full details are available in the release notes linked below.
vue-cli 4.0.0-rc.0
Next, we have vue-cli v4.0.0-rc.0. This release brings over some bugfixes, updated documentation, and some new features as well. You can find the full list in the release notes.
The Developer of the Week
Today the Developer of the Week is a real unicorn of the community. She designs, she codes, she writes, she runs a podcast, she tweets and she speaks at events all over the world. I give you the one and only Una Kravets.
Una loves to travel, listen to audiobooks, and do brush lettering. She is a co-host to a podcast about tech tools called “Toolsday”, she curates and makes “Dev Doodles” and makes contributions to open source software.
Una’s career is marked by big names like IBM Design and Digital Ocean and she became a Google Developer Advocate for Material Design earlier this year. Now she no longer needs to take time off to speak at events, as it is part of her job description. If only someone would organize a conference in Antarctica so that she can visit that continent as well…
Una is very active online on Twitter and her cute puppy, Disco, is melting hearts both in the Google offices and on Instagram. So go and follow her there to keep seeing glimpses from the land of the unacorns.
Question of the Day
Do you intend to give the new Edge browser a chance? Please leave your answers in the comment section or send them to https://twitter.com/frontendnexus.
That’s all there is in this edition. Follow Front End Nexus on Twitter at https://twitter.com/frontendnexus to be notified as soon as a new update happens. I also want to encourage you to subscribe to the YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgACtqiDmnSaskDIBsK54ww. I can unlock some more options once the channel hits 100 subscribers, so your support is highly appreciated.
Have a great and productive week and I will see you next time!
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