Charlie Arehart

Have you ever wished CFINPUT provided a way to validate an e-mail address? Or were you frustrated that its telephone validation didn't allow parentheses around an area code among other such limitations? Well, your wish has been granted in a new, little-known feature of CF5. While many will know of the top 10 or so new features in CF5, few will know about the dozens (yes, dozens) of less-promoted enhancements. One of these is the ability to validate user input by way of regular expressions. (If you're new to regular expressions, we'll show you some examples and point you to the CF docs where you can learn more.) The new feature isn't something that you couldn't do previously, if you knew how to code input validation tests in JavaScript. But, like so many features in CF, t... (more)

New Possibilities for Session/Client Variable Handling in CFMX

Tucked away among the press and praise about ColdFusion MX are some new options that could benefit every CF developer. If you've seen them mentioned, they may not have seemed important at first glance, but I hope you'll give them consideration. In this article I'll uncover some possibilities for session and client variable handling in CFMX - actually three new features you can choose to ... (more)

Easier Insertion of Dates with CFINSERT/CFUPDATE

When you're inserting date/time values into a database, you want to be careful about deciding whether the date should be hardcoded into the form (perhaps as a hidden field) or whether it should be computed at the time of the data entry. These could each present very different date/time values. One challenge when using CFINSERT is that you typically rely on the form to present all data for... (more)

Getting Focus()ed and a Quick JavaScript Lesson

Many new J2EE developers get caught up in focusing on the details and nuances of servlets and JSPs and, as a result, may not learn how to leverage JavaScript. Some may even dismiss it as too much hassle, given cross-browser compatibility issues. For both audiences there's still value in learning at least a minimal amount about client-side scripting. Even learning about just one feature - ... (more)

ColdFusion 4.0 Developer Enhancements

In the premier issue of CFDJ, Richard Schulze wrote a fine article on several new features of ColdFusion 4.0, part of Allaire's recent upgrade to their entire product line. In this article I'll highlight some additional features of the new release. I'll also expand on his coverage of language features and Studio enhancements. And for those of you who missed Richard's article, I've includ... (more)