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Into the Box 2024 - Conference Slides are out!

Maria Jose Herrera July 03, 2024

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Maria Jose Herrera

July 03, 2024

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Into the Box 2024 has marked the dawn of a new era for web developers! We proudly introduced our groundbreaking new product, BoxLang, alongside a suite of Ortus Tools designed to support and empower modern CFML developers in their projects. The event featured in-depth sessions on the latest features and advancements in ColdBox, CBWIRE, TestBox, and more.

Did you miss the live event? Get a glimpse of the fantastic content our speakers covered by reviewing their slides. Dive into topics like AWS, Cloud, Hosting, Migration, Security, CFML, Java, CommandBox, ContentBox, and more. Don't miss these valuable resources, and join us for upcoming events!


Conference Day 1 - Track 1


Principles and Techniques to Write More Durable Code

Jacob Beers | Senior Developer at Ortus Solutions



This workshop focused on simplifying programming decisions with fundamental coding principles. Participants learned to avoid clever code, apply inversion of control, prefer composition over inheritance, write self-documenting code, use encapsulation, reduce nesting, avoid reassignment, and implement guard statements with live refactoring of code examples.


BoxLang: Intro to the Platform

Brad Wood | Senior Developer at Ortus Solutions

Discover BoxLang in our introductory workshop. Participants explored its innovative platform and learned to harness its power for efficient web development. Whether new to BoxLang or deepening their skills, attendees gained practical insights and hands-on experience. The workshop showcased how BoxLang streamlines development workflows and unlocks new possibilities in web application creation.

No slides are available; on-site live coding is exclusive for attendees.


Taming the Data Sprawl: Strategies for Managing and Controlling Data Proliferation

Curt Gratz | System Architect/Owner of Computer Know How



Participants in a recent workshop tackled data sprawl, exploring its causes and consequences while learning practical strategies for governance, lifecycle management, and cloud data handling. Emphasizing automation and fostering a culture of ownership, the session provided actionable insights and real-world case studies for enhancing data quality and security.


BoxLang: Developing in the Platform

Brad Wood | Senior Developer at Ortus Solutions

Discover BoxLang's efficient and flexible development environment. Learn hands-on to leverage its powerful features for seamless application development, whether you're new to BoxLang or advancing your skills. Accelerate your development process and elevate your application experience with BoxLang.

No slides are available; on-site live coding is exclusive for attendees.


Intro to AWS and Gen AI

Sami Hoda | Senior Solutions Architect at AWS



Sami provided a beginner-friendly introduction to Amazon Web Services (AWS), covering essential terms, products, and services for cloud deployment. Participants explored AWS' latest Gen AI offerings, making them accessible for those starting their cloud journey or integrating AI into coding practices.


Building Scalable Serverless Event-Driven Computing with AWS Lambda powered by BoxLang

Gavin Pickin | Senior Developer at Ortus Solutions



Explore how to build scalable, serverless, event-driven applications using AWS Lambda powered by BoxLang. This session dives into leveraging Lambda's capabilities to handle event-driven computing efficiently. Whether new to serverless architecture or looking to enhance your skills, join us to learn practical insights and techniques for optimizing application performance and scalability.


Reactive CFML with CBWire v4

Grant Copley | Senior Developer at Ortus Solutions



In this session, developers explored CBWIRE, a ColdBox module that simplifies modern, reactive CFML app development without JavaScript frameworks like Vue or React. Attendees learned its usage, benefits, and the new features introduced in CBWIRE version 4, designed based on community feedback. The session catered to developers familiar with ColdBox and CFML, offering practical insights and guidance for leveraging CBWIRE effectively in their projects.


Conference Day 1 - Track 2

Build a Complex Web Form with RuleBox and TestBox

Annette Liskey | Web Developer at the University of Virginia



In this session, learn to manage your web form's question flow with RuleBox. Simplify complex conditional statements by structuring logic in a readable and testable Given-When-Then format. Discussion covers prototyping tips, writing test cases, integrating external data, and managing multiple form versions with a single set of rules. It is ideal for ColdFusion web developers exploring TestBox and RuleBox, with a demo featuring ColdBox and cborm, though not required.


Headless Content For the Win!

Esme Acevedo | Senior Developer at Ortus Solutions



We delve into the power of headless CMS, a versatile solution that separates content creation from presentation. Explore its benefits: multi-channel delivery, accelerated time-to-market, content reusability, scalability, technology flexibility, and enhanced security. Discover how headless CMS transforms digital content management, empowering efficient and flexible content delivery across diverse platforms.


Demonstrating Monitoring Solutions for CF and Lucee

Charlie Arehart | Server Troubleshooting Consultant



Building on his 2021 ITB presentation, "Monitoring Solutions for CF and Lucee," Charlie now focuses on practical demonstrations of these tools. Discover key observations and metrics for troubleshooting, tuning, and receiving alerts. Gain insights into the evolution of these tools since the last talk, drawn from Charlie's extensive experience assisting users with server, container, and CommandBox environments.


cbq - Jobs and Tasks in the Background

Eric Peterson | Senior Developer at Ortus Solutions



Almost every application has tasks or jobs better suited to the background, making it easier and traceable to manage those jobs. Cbq can scale from simple background tasks to a database and message queue provider. Come learn how to get started with background tasks in your application.


What’s New in ContentBox 6

Jon Clausen | Senior Developer at Ortus Solutions



Content templates, CBFS, Redirects, and Coldbox 7, oh my! ContentBox 6 is the game-changing new release for the ContentBox CMS platform. In this session, we'll discuss all of the new goodness added in the release and show how your single or multi-site ContentBox instance just became more powerful and flexible.


How to Make a Living as a (ColdFusion) Freelancer?

Nolan Erck | Director/Owner at South of Shasta



Are you thinking about freelancing? It's not just about coding solo and avoiding coworkers. Join me as I share insights from my 15-year freelance journey, covering everything from managing invoices to client communication styles. This session blends ColdFusion-specific tips with general freelance and consulting advice, with time for audience Q&A.


ColdBox Debugger v4.2.0: Unveiling Advanced Debugging Techniques for ColdBox Applications

Scott Steinbeck | Lead Software Engineer at United Tracking Systems



Explore the latest ColdBox Debugger v4.2.0, featuring the Hyper Collector for HTTP/S request tracking, Lucee SQL Collector for query profiling, and Heap Dump Support for memory leak debugging. Enhancements like the revamped Request Dock and improved SQL/JSON formatting streamline debugging for optimal ColdBox application performance and stability. Ideal for developers familiar with ColdBox, this session focuses on leveraging advanced debugging tools to enhance development efficiency.


Conference Day 2 - Track 1

Design system: The basis for a consistent design

Jona Lainez | Senior Developer at Ortus Solutions



In this session, participants explored how visual and functional coherence strengthened brand identity and streamlined development. They also learned to maintain consistency across platforms and enhance user experiences using Design Systems. This session is ideal for brand designers, UI/UX designers, developers, and product managers who seek to optimize efficiency and ensure consistency across projects.


Schrodinger’s Backup: Is Your Backup Really a Backup?

Shawn Oden | Database Administrator at Jacobs



In this session, we discussed the critical need for comprehensive backups across all aspects of our industry—from code and databases to web servers, file servers, and network configurations. Emphasizing the importance of proactive measures, attendees were urged to ensure their backup systems were tested through restoration processes. The session underscored the risk of discovering backup issues only during crises, highlighting the necessity of verifying backup integrity through restoration tests.


Passkeys and cbSecurity

Eric Peterson | Senior Developer at Ortus Solutions



Discover Passkeys is the next evolution in secure login methods that eliminate traditional password vulnerabilities. Learn about the CBSecurity Passkeys module's installation, configuration, and integration into your application to enhance security.


How to Break Your App with Playwright Tests

Noah Assi | Web Developer at United Tracking Systems



In this session, we explored setting up Playwright, an end-to-end testing tool for simulating browser interactions and running TestBox tests. Participants learned to configure Playwright for applications, simulate user interactions to stress-test forms, and handle scenarios like taking screenshots, recording sessions, capturing Chrome dev tools traces, testing login failures, and managing broken JavaScript. The session also covered using Playwright with non-ColdBox sites, providing practical insights into enhancing testing capabilities.


Disk to Cloud: Abstract your File Operations with CBFS

Jon Clausen | Senior Developer at Ortus Solutions



This session explored how the cbfs module empowers developers to abstract and manage file systems seamlessly across their lifecycle. From local development to S3 deployment and customized media providers requiring authentication, cbfs offers flexible solutions. We discussed how cbfs simplifies file handling with enhanced workflow efficiency compared to native methods and provided practical tips to accelerate complex file operations in your projects.


Revolutionizing Tasks Scheduling in ColdBox

Giancarlo Gomez | Owner/Developer at Fuse Developments, Inc.



Join me for an insightful journey into task scheduling within the ColdBox framework. This session explored how to effortlessly create and manage scheduled tasks directly in your code, enhancing control and efficiency in applications and modules. Attendees experienced a user-friendly dashboard for seamless task management and monitoring. Whether experienced with ColdBox or new to it, this session provided practical knowledge and tips to streamline your development workflow.


Conference Day 2 - Track 2

Web Hosting with CommandBox/Pro

Daniel Garcia | Senior Developer at Ortus Solutions



CommandBox was highlighted as a powerful web hosting solution, perfect for developers and businesses alike. Featuring a built-in server and command-line interface, CommandBox simplified web application management. Developers could deploy multiple application instances simultaneously, optimizing development workflows. CommandBox's efficient deployment processes ensured reliable web hosting, seamlessly integrating into existing workflows for scalability and feature enhancements.


How to debug ColdFusion Applications using “ColdFusion Builder extension for VS Code/CF Builder.”

Vinay Jindal | Senior Software Engineer at Ezcater



Unlock the secrets of seamless ColdFusion error troubleshooting! Join us in exploring the potent capabilities of Visual Studio Code (VS Code) and ColdFusion Builder (CF Builder) in debugging. This hands-on session guides you through practical techniques tailored for local setups, ensuring a smooth and efficient development experience.


BoxLang Developer Tooling: VSCode Extension and Debugger

Jacob Beers | Senior Developer at Ortus Solutions



Discover BoxLang, the innovative JVM programming language developed by Ortus Solutions. Designed to harness the power of the Java Virtual Machine, BoxLang offers a modern approach to application development with robust performance and scalability. Join us as we explore BoxLang's capabilities, syntax, and how it enhances productivity in software development.


Migrate your Infrastructure to the AWS Cloud

George Murphy | Senior WebApp Developer Design by George



Are you wondering how to migrate to the Cloud? At the ITB session, we addressed the challenge of managing multiple ColdFusion licenses and AWS EC2 instances. Discover how you can consolidate with just one EC2 instance capable of running over 50 apps using CommandBox ColdFusion. This solution supports ColdFusion flavors and includes cb-websites, a GoLang binary for managing CommandBox websites.


How we built TryBoxLang in under 48 hours

Gavin Pickin | Senior Developer at Ortus Solutions



Explore the rapid development journey of TryBoxLang, completed in just 48 hours. This session delves into the innovative process behind creating TryBoxLang, a platform designed by Ortus Solutions to showcase BoxLang's capabilities. Discover this accelerated development effort's challenges, strategies, and outcomes, highlighting how TryBoxLang provides a practical introduction to BoxLang's features and benefits.


Into the Box 2025

Don't miss the next Into the Box Edition! We ensure up-to-date content, tools, and speakers, packed with tips and tricks from their expertise. This year, we embrace a new era of modernization to shape the future of modern web development.Our next edition is already open for registration with early bird pricing—the best deal available; Save your Spot now!

The Future is Dynamic!

April 30th - May 2nd, 2025 - Washington, DC

Get ready to experience the next evolution in programming at Into the Box 2025! Join us to usher in a dynamic future for modern technologies alongside web development experts and leading innovation companies. This event is set to revolutionize software development, introducing our brand new product release, BoxLang, with even more features and capabilities for CFML and Java developers everywhere!

Register Now


We invite you to subscribe to our Patreon site and support events like Into the Box and the development of Ortus products and BoxLang features and tools. We must acknowledge our invaluable Ortus supporters who bring these open-source updates and improvements to life for the community. If you're eager to join our community of rockstars and contribute to supporting our modern tools, click the link below to get all the details.

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