bdw429s

According to a recent survey by Adobe, 75% of fortune 100's are using CFML and 70% of their CF base are building new applications in it. They have a steady stream of new licenses being purchased, and according to the latest W3Techs data, CF usage in the wild is actually climbing. (Whereas Java, .NET, and Ruby usage is dropping) https://w3techs.com/technologies/details/pl-coldfusion/all/a...

I use CF daily as my primary programming language, and I can assure you it's still a great option in terms of productivity and scalability in 2017.

Yes it is. Very much so actually. CFML has been a dynamic and loosely typed JVM language since before that was cool (~2002). It is reported by W3Techs as the 4th most popular web language on the internet today (behind PHP, .NET, and Java). Wow, amazing that Ruby, Node, and Clojure all aren't as popular as CFML for server side code still!

CFML has open source engines like Lucee Server, and a modern arsenal of tooling including CLI, REPL, package management, MVC, IDE plugins, conferences around the world, and active support forums like our Slack team with 2.2K people in it. CF's modern scripting syntax reads like JavaScript and includes function programming, closures, and classical OO constructs. It sounds like you need to check it out again. Everything I listed above has been around for years in the CF space.

Um, you have it backwards. CF server is not free (ignoring the open engines like Lucee Server) and CF Builder is nagware. I use the free version all the time. It just has a little pop-up when you start it and locks down a few of the features.

CommandBox is a tool for Java or CFML (a JVM scripting language) devs that provides npm-style package management, command-based CLI, REPL, and the ability to start any CF engine or Java WAR file with zero installation. CommandBox can publish packages to ForgeBox, run unit tests, scaffold sites, and is extensible via CFML modules. In addition to the standard CLI interface it has it's own interactive shell that features better tab completion, basic bash emulation for Windows users, and allows mashups by allowing the user to create scripts that run CommandBox commands, native OS shell commmands/binaries and CFML functions all at the same time.

Thanks for the feedback, but can you clarify your claims with a ticket number or a forum reference. I use Lucee on a daily basis and have seen it implemented under very heavy load with no issues. For example, the NASA Mars Rover sites run Lucee Server. Is it possible that your code base had concurrency issues of its own?

This is not ColdFusion (a product owned by Adobe). This is a FOSS engine that implements a modern spin on one of the the web's most mature JVM languages. Lucee Server contains many additional features configuration options, and focuses on the ECMA-like scripting language that is nothing like the old templating syntax.

Lucee Server has not been around since 1995. It is a newer open source engine that implements a backwards compatible version of CFML but with many improvements and modern flourishes. Our lack of CFML mention is on purpose due to the negative stigma of legacy apps. It's fair to say that the majority of people are not familiar with the modern iterations of CFML. It's changed so much since the old days, it might as well be a new language!

Thank you for the feedback on our web site. This post is sort of bad timing since we're actually on the brink of rolling out a new site with much better content (and code samples on the home page). Click here to see what Lucee Server's scripting syntax looks like (very similar to JS or C) https://goo.gl/D3j4UZ

Thank you for the feedback on our web site. This post is sort of bad timing since we're actually on the brink of rolling out a new site with much better content (and code samples on the home page). Click here to see what Lucee Server's scripting syntax looks like (very similar to JS or C) https://goo.gl/D3j4UZ Also, the lack of mention regarding CFML is on purpose. Lucee is a modernized platform that wishes not to be associated with the negative stigma of legacy CFML apps. We implement the language, but with improved performance, features, and as FOSS.

Can you be more specific about the segments where CF has been "blown away"? I think it's more modern than most people realize, but it's hard to respond to a criticism that vague :)

I actually happen to think the tooling around CFML isn't all that bad. (The link in one of my other comments elaborates more) Can you give me some examples of tooling that CF doesn't have? I've found a lot of people just aren't familiar with what's out there.

That's not uncommon. I actually like to tell people I program in CFML just to start conversations :) For some CF apologetics, see my recent response to a PHP programmer:

http://www.codersrevolution.com/blog/cfml-good-discussions-a...

But to your larger point, non-CF devs don't talk about CF because 1) They aren't familiar with it's recent state 2) The CF world isn't doing cool stuff that catches their attention.

It's my belief that the more CF devs do cool (and modern) stuff with CF and then talk about it outside of their little microcosm, the more visibility it will get again and start to shake it's "legacy" label.

I'm @bdw429s on the tweety pages and my blog is codersrevolution.com It's just as important that we're vocal outside of the little ColdFusion circles though. For instance, attend a non-CF conference and talk to people about CFML. I do :)

Even if it's just for personal play, you should look at CF again. A lot has happened in 10 years :) I'm biased since I'm involved in these projects, but I think ColdBox MVC, ContentBox CMS, and CommandBox CLI & package manager are great examples of of how CF can be modern and productive today.

I talk about CFML all the time on my blog and Twitter. If you want to hear more chatter about CF, I suggest you start talking about it more too :)