Thursday 1st May, 2014

DataTables 1.10.0 released

I'm delighted to announce the release of DataTables 1.10.0 today! This latest version of DataTables enhances the feature set, performance and usability of DataTables in just about every way, making this the biggest step forward for DataTables since its original release.

DataTables 1.10 sees a number of new features, while I'll cover in summary below, but if you are keen to get going immediately:

DataTables 1.10 has been in development for 18 months with 585 commits and building upon the feedback given in the forums, how I've seen DataTables being used and how I use it myself. I'm really very excited about this release, and can't wait to see how it is used!

Major new features

DataTables 1.10 is all about making it easier, for yourselves, the developers using DataTables, to produce high quality interactive tables for your end users. A detailed list of the new features is available including:

New site

Outside of the core DataTables software, you'll also have noticed a number of changes in this site. The forums have been refreshed and upgraded, there are new support options and the site as a whole has a fresh new style.

Documentation is a key aspect to any software library and I fully recognise how important it is to anyone using DataTables, and how frustrating it can be if the documentation you want is not available. The DataTables documentation has always been good, but never brilliant. The goal of this site revamp is to bring it towards that latter goal.

The documentation for DataTables is now split into two sections:

  • A manual which covers an overview of how to use the various aspects of DataTables
  • A reference section which details each API method, option and event that DataTables operates with.

Many of the the documentation pages also feature the ability to add comments to them, so you can share useful advice and tips with other developers; a particular way of using a given API method might be something that you found useful and would like to share with others for example. These comments are moderated, and I will be very strict about accepting them for publication to ensure that they are relevant - questions, for example (which should be asked in the forums) will be deleted without notification.

CDN

Alongside the new DataTables site, there is now a DataTables specific CDN. The DataTables CDN includes an archive of all DataTables and extension releases for you to be able to use without needing to install any software on your own servers. A Content Distribution Network (CDN) is a store of files which do not change, makes heavy use of browser caching and employs network edge servers to keep the download time for the files to a minimum.

The DataTables CDN is powered by CloudFlare to ensure that it is always available when you need it, and that the files are served to your end users as quickly as possible.

Future

It has been a whirlwind getting the new site up and running, DataTables ready, and Editor 1.3 released, and it will take a little while for the dust to settle. If you do happen to run across any issues in the new release, please post a question in the DataTables forums with a link to a test case showing the issue.

However, development of DataTables with this release isn't going to slow down at all, creating DataTables is my passion and I love that it is being put to such great use by you all! I am building my business (SpryMedia Ltd) around DataTables to ensure it can continue its development. Please help to make this happen, if you are enjoying using DataTables, and your company benefits from it, please consider purchasing one of the new support packages.

There are a lot of ideas for DataTables still to be developed including a more modular core library, enhancements to the existing extensions with better documentation and new extensions. As a little teaser for the next task I'm going to tackle: "responsive".

Hope you enjoy using DataTables 1.10!