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Hello everyone, Last week I (unsuccessfully) tried to use the Rapid.Generics library in a specific project. After replacing the std TDictionary/TList with the Rapid.Generics equivalents, the application fell apart within the first 10 seconds of testing, which was quite disappointing. Having some spare time during the weekend, I decided to give it a shot and see if I could make it work properly, at least fixing the most important and visible issues. As a result, I am now sharing my changes so others can benefit from them or contribute. https://github.com/Alexandre-Atozed/Rapid.Generics.v2 Improvements (Readme contains a more detailed list): Fixed multiple bugs Refactored and streamlined the code Removed some unused code Added 123 unit tests, creating a comprehensive test suite The modified code passes all tests and is also free of memory leaks. The real world application is being tested with it now and the initial results are promising. One specific scenario where I replaced the std TDictionary with the Rapid.Generics one (a notification bus where a dictionary is used to map the instances) had a performance increase of 10x or more which is beyond what I would expect and too good to ignore. Any feedback or contributions are welcome! Cheers,

After much contemplation (and asking Claude AI for advice), I'm proposing a new programming language with roots in Delphi (thus the name) but with some interesting and revolutionary ideas that will take into account concepts never before attempted in software development. Some of these ideas include syntax checking that changes based on the time of day, optimization that improves when builds are automated, and crypto-mining to lessen the cost of the IDE. Some will argue that that reporting compilation errors to social media could hurt the reputation of some programmers but I think it will incentivize them to become better (or at least more careful) programmers. What do you think? Read the full article here.

You could have given spring4d a try, which is actively maintained

I was just curious. I expected the fact that it's a drop-in replacement to be a reason. Rapid is quite an achievement and damn those collections are fast - I use them to challenge my implementation from time to time. The design decisions are different, and for the extensive API of spring, I have to sacrifice a few nanoseconds here and there, as much as I dislike that

The venerable Delphi IDE extension GExperts is about to undergo a revolutionary transformation, with plans announced to completely rewrite it using artificial intelligence and simultaneously port it to COBOL. This unexpected development marks a significant shift for a tool that has been a staple in the Delphi programming community for decades. The AI Rewrite: Starting Now The development team has just announced their decision to leverage artificial intelligence for the rewrite after facing increasing challenges maintaining the extensive codebase. What’s remarkable is the anticipated timeline – the team expects the entire process to take only a few hours once it begins. This unprecedented speed is attributed to advancements in AI code transformation technology. The AI system will analyze the entire GExperts source code, understanding its purpose, functionality, and even the quirks that make it uniquely useful to Delphi developers – all in a fraction of the time it would take human developers. Why COBOL? Perhaps the most surprising aspect of this transformation is the announced port to COBOL. This decision has raised eyebrows among the development community, as Delphi and COBOL represent dramatically different programming paradigms and eras. However, the team cites strategic reasoning behind this choice. COBOL continues to power critical systems in banking, insurance, and government sectors worldwide. This port will open GExperts to an entirely new ecosystem, potentially breathing new life into the project while serving developers maintaining legacy systems. Expected Timeline The project has not yet begun, but development is scheduled to start immediately. With the AI-powered transformation expected to take only a few hours from start to finish, the team anticipates having a functional COBOL version of GExperts available for testing within days rather than the months or years such a port would traditionally require. Looking Forward For developers interested in this innovative crossover, beta releases are expected to be available remarkably soon, with the team promising updates on the progress within the next 24 hours. This bold reinvention of GExperts, once completed, will demonstrate how established developer tools can evolve in unexpected ways, leveraging new technologies to reach broader audiences while maintaining their core value proposition. (Yes, AI is great! Even for writing April Fools jokes. Thanks to Claude.ai writing this only took a few minutes and it actually sounds like a press release some cool cloud AI blockchain outfit could have written.) Original blog post here.

Nice thought experiment

🔥 libFPC v1.0.0 is out! Compile & run Pascal code at runtime—directly from memory. EXEs, DLLs, icons, version info, source-from-string, and more! Perfect for plugins, sandboxes, & scripting. 👉 https://github.com/tinyBigGAMES/libFPC

Thanks! Sure, see Test04 and Test05 as examples of in-memory generation/execution. Just program the running host app to run at the specified time. It should work just fine. The possibilities are endless.

Thanks, this is a great library and introduction. Can your libFPC also be configured to generate and run an Pascal code in memory at specific periodic schedules, lets say like every 1st of April or so?

Yes, Android 8.0 has a bug that prevents the Delphi debugger from starting. One solution is to upgrade to Android 8.1, if you can.

Good to know. In projects used in older Delphi releases (or for open source) I suggest to replace the unit by this code if you still use FireDAC Encryption for SQLite : {$IF CompilerVersion >= 36.0} // Delphi 12 Athens FireDAC.Phys.SQLiteWrapper.FDEStat, {$ELSE IF CompilerVersion >= 34.0} // Delphi 10.4 Sydney FireDAC.Phys.SQLiteWrapper.Stat, {$ELSE} FireDAC.Phys.SQLiteWrapper, {$IFEND}

There is actually a connection between COBOLand Delphi: The company formerly known as Borland, who originally developed Delphi, was sold to Microfocus after spinning off the development tools to CodeGear. Microfocus was well known for Microfocus COBOL, which nowadays is called Visual COBOL and possibly includes some technologies Microfocus acquired in this process. But the real reason I came up with COBOL was the announced intention of DOGE to port the COBOL software to Java using AI in just a few months. So, if they succeed, we can expect to easily port the COBOL version of GExperts to Java.

Does the code re-factoring make an FMX port more achievable or is that still out of scope?