Raymond Camden's ColdFusion Blog: ColdFusion Builder and Outline Mode

ColdFusion Builder and Outline Mode

I've been using ColdFusion Builder full time for probably close to six weeks now. In that time I've really come to depend on one feature in particular, the Outline Mode. I'm not sure why I ignored it at first. I guess I just kinda thought that an outline of my code wouldn't be really helpful. But then I started working on a project where the developers didn't follow the same CFC writing patterns as I did. (My 'pattern' is - init method first, then everything else in Alpha Order.) The Outline panel became a killer feature for me. Here is a quick video that hopefully demonstrates how useful this can be.

This entry was posted on Friday, July 17, 2009 at 12:52 PM. It was filed in the following categories: ColdFusion Builder, ColdFusion. It has been viewed 2,698 times and has 19 comments.

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Comment 1 written by Edward Smith on 17 July 2009, at 1:06 PM

I use it quite a bit in CFEclipse - it got to be a habit from doing Java development.
Comment 2 written by Raymond Camden on 17 July 2009, at 1:09 PM

I'm ashamed to say I never used it in CFEclipse! I would have if I had known it was this useful.
Comment 3 written by Brian Swartzfager on 17 July 2009, at 1:34 PM

I just checked the CFEclipse version, and Outline didn't have the ability to alphabetize the functions of the CFC or filter them (though it should be noted I don't have the latest/greatest version of CFEclipse on this machine).

However, when I first opened the Outline view, I happened to be looking at a .css file at the time, and I was surprised to see that Outline lets you view, filter, and alphabetize the various style declarations! Could be useful for large CSS files. I wonder if that's a feature the Aptana plugin added.
Comment 4 written by Mike Henke on 17 July 2009, at 2:23 PM

Nice but too bad, CFBuilder doesn't create a ColdFusion Explorer, which like the Flex 4 beta navigator or Ruby Explorer would show the outline view with all files instead of having to have the file open to see the Outline view.

Basically, files would have a plus sign and you could click and see the outline in the navigator. Ticket #74998 http://bit.ly/iyXFA
Comment 5 written by Steve Caldwell on 17 July 2009, at 2:44 PM

Nice! I'm trying to make myself transition from Dreamweaver CS4 over to CF Builder. This is a nice feature that gives me a little incentive.

Does anyone know if Adobe is going to stop supporting code hinting for future versions of CF in Dreamweaver?

Ray, you should do more videos. They really add a lot to the tutorial...
Comment 6 written by Raymond Camden on 17 July 2009, at 2:48 PM

Not sure about DW. Last time a CF8 DW Extension was released. I'd imagine a CF9 one would as well, but I've not heard any official word on that.
Comment 7 written by Shayne Sweeney on 17 July 2009, at 4:32 PM

You can also use "Quick outline" feature to quickly jump around a document.

On a Mac use Command-O or I believe, Ctrl-O on a PC.

Another tip... you can start a filter with an asterisk (*) followed by part of the method or symbol you're looking for.

In Ray's example filtering on "*entries" would show the methods containing the word "entries" anywhere in it's name.
Comment 8 written by Ben Nadel on 17 July 2009, at 5:21 PM

That is a really awesome feature. I'm looking to start playing around in Builder this weekend.
Comment 9 written by Henry Ho on 17 July 2009, at 5:23 PM

I actually prefer the Method view in CFEclipse.
Comment 10 written by Nando on 19 July 2009, at 2:58 PM

Hey Ray,

What are you using to edit your xml config files along side ColdFusion Builder. I've used XML Buddy with CFEclipse but it doesn't seem to be available anymore.
Comment 11 written by Raymond Camden on 19 July 2009, at 4:26 PM

I haven't installed an XML editor yet. Right now, my CFB is pure. I keep even Flex 4 separate. I'm not going to install anything else until CFB is final, mainly to minimize my work.
Comment 12 written by Nando on 20 July 2009, at 1:44 AM

I'm with you on the keeping it pure bit. FYI, I found XML Buddy on cnet.com and installed it. Once you unzip it, it's just one folder of files that you drop into the plugins directory, so it's not too bad.

http://download.cnet.com/XMLBuddy/3000-7241_4-1040...
Comment 13 written by Raymond Camden on 20 July 2009, at 5:41 AM

Do me a favor, when CFB goes Final, remind me to install this again. ;)
Comment 14 written by Julian Halliwell on 22 July 2009, at 1:02 PM

Massimo Foti wrote an Extension for DW that gives you an alphabetical menu of all functions in a component. I've found this similarly indispensable.

http://www.massimocorner.com/
Comment 15 written by Jonathan on 22 July 2009, at 3:51 PM

is there a way to configure it to start collapsed and go from there? that would be nice.

I used the method view in cfeclipse, but this outline view is indeed very nice
Comment 16 written by Raymond Camden on 22 July 2009, at 4:05 PM

I don't believe so.
Comment 17 written by Charlie Griefer on 23 July 2009, at 4:04 AM

@Nando & Ray: (re: XML)

Doesn't Aptana (which is part of the foundation of CF Builder) have an XML editor (as well as JavaScript and CSS)?

I'm looking at a base CF Builder standalone install and my XML config files are colored and have code completion, etc.

In Preferences > General > Editors > File Associations, .xml files are defaulted to "CF Builder XML Editor" (which I assume is really Aptana under the hood).

You guys aren't seeing this in a "pure" CFB install?
Comment 18 written by Raymond Camden on 23 July 2009, at 6:03 AM

Yep, it does. I guess I thought maybe Nanda was referring to something more involved. But I see code coloring working nicely for the XML.
Comment 19 written by Aaron West on 30 July 2009, at 3:52 PM

That's pretty cool. I /really/ need to start playing around with ColdFusion Builder, I just haven't had a good candidate project (new and relatively small) to push me over the edge.