What’s new in Delphi XE

The 2011 release of Delphi is here and it is called Delphi XE. With hundreds of new features and enhancements, Delphi XE will help you build ultra-rich applications ultra-fast. With Delphi XE you’ll find new ways to get your work done faster, build higher quality apps, and take advantage of multi-tier and cloud. Take a look at the key new features of Delphi XE below. Then learn more by checking out the full feature matrix and Delphi documentation wiki. If you’re using Delphi 2009 or earlier, be sure to see new features introduced in Delphi 2007-2010 that you also get as part of Delphi XE.

Expanded Multi-Tier Development with DataSnap

DataSnap has been updated with:

• New wizards for creating server applications and client modules
• Support for JavaScript, REST and HTTP and HTTPS transport protocols
• Process communication streams with encryption and compression filters
• User roles for authentication

Powerful Integrated Tool Chest

Streamline your process so you spend less time managing and more time coding

• AQTime Standard profiling tools to identify issues so you can deliver ultra-high performance apps
• CodeSite Express logging tools and enhanced debugging for building quality applications
• Software IP*Works component suite for Internet app development with advanced IP communications protocols
• Advanced difference engine with the Beyond Compare Text Compare

Cloud Computing

Delphi XE makes it easy to work with cloud services and to deploy applications to the cloud.

• Components for working with Windows Azure simple data storage including blobs, queues and tables
• Easy deployment to Amazon EC2 cloud servers to gain the benefits of cloud availability and scalability

Subversion integration in the IDE

With Delphi XE you can easily use the popular Subversion version control system to manage source code revisions for your own code or among your team. Features include:

• Integration into the project manager and history manager
• Support for common version control tasks like import, update, commit and show log.
• Difference and merge viewer
• Source code for the integration using the Open Tools API available as an open source project

Higher Productivity and code intelligence

Speed your day to day development tasks and get even more done in even less time with enhancements throughout the Delphi IDE

• Enhanced code generation from the modeler gives you higher quality code
• Generate Sequence diagrams from methods in your Delphi applications
• Additional code formatting options
• Improved search capabilities and IDE Insight
• New editor shortcuts for navigating between changed lines of code.

New tools to automate and augment your build process

Delphi XE gives you new tools to automate, manage and add additional functionality to your build process.

• FinalBuilder automated build and release management toolset to define and manage repeatable build processes
• Formatter.exe for code formatting
• AuditsCLI.exe to run code audits and metrics
• GenDocCLI to automatically generate documentation

Language, Compiler and Library Enhancements 

Continued improvements and enhancements to your application foundation.

• Updates to the VCL, RTL, and STL
• Regular expressions for Delphi RTL
• Enhanced TStrings and Date/Time functionality
• Added support for the OpenTools API for internal tabs
• Improved compiler performance

ToolCloud-enabled and earlier version access

Get the power of XE with ToolCloud licensing options and access to earlier versions of software.

• ToolCloud license provisioning and ToolBox user interface included with the purchase of ToolCloud network licenses
• Delphi XE includes access to licenses for older versions – Delphi 2010, 2009, 2007 and Delphi 7

Upgrading from version 2009 or earlier?

If you’re upgrading from Delphi version 2009 or earlier, you’ll find that Delphi XE gives you a lot more than just the new features in Delphi XE. Delphi XE builds on a solid foundation and a history of 15 years of innovation focused on helping you rapidly build high performance applications.
Here are just a few of the features introduced in recent versions of Delphi that you also get when you upgrade Delphi XE.

Major features introduced in earlier versions	2010	2009	2007 and 2007 R2
Build touch and gesture enabled apps	X
Windows 7 support	X
IDE Insight	X
dbExpress connectivity to Firebird	X
Unicode		X
Ribbon controls		X
Robust project management		X
Major DataSnap upgrade		X
Generics and anonymous methods		X
dbExpress 4			X
Fast and reliable MSBuild build system			X
Modern Windows Vista UI components			X
VCL for the Web with AJAX			X

Additional information on what was new and improved in version 2010

New and enhanced IDE features to radically reduce development time
Tools designed to help you get your job done fast and right the first time:

• IDE Insight for instant access to all IDE features, settings and components “at your fingertips” without searching through menus and dialogs
• Integrated Code Formatter automates consistent coding styles with less work
• Debug Data Visualizers make sense from cryptic debug data by displaying in easy to read formats such as strings, date and time values
• Debug Thread Control for freezing, thawing and isolating threads; and setting breakpoints for selected threads so you can track down problems faster

Delphi Language and Compiler Enhancements
Delphi 2010 added new RTTI support and new compiler and language enhancements

• RTTI support for exposure of Methods, Fields, and Properties to support dynamic invocations and increase reflection capabilities
• Enhanced Object-oriented file and directory IO classes for simplified file processing
• Custom attribute support for most code elements - types, fields, properties, methods and parameters
• Enhanced TStringBuilder for easier and faster string concatenation and manipulation
• Enhanced generics with full RTL list and collection support
• Background compilation so you can continue working while you compile

Enhanced database connectivity with Firebird, DataSnap and more.
Make the connection with more data and more application architectures

• Firebird database connectivity
• Updated drivers for Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle and MySQL
• DataSnap callbacks, filtering, HTTP, REST and JSON support

Build touch and gesture enabled applications
Rapidly build touch based GUI, tablet, touchpad, and kiosk applications or easily upgrade existing applications UIs with little or no additional coding.

• Integrated gesturing framework with multi-OS support for Windows 7, Vista, XP, and 2000
• Gesture Designer enables full control of all gesture design and interaction
• Interactive multi-touch gestures for panning, zooming and rotating (requires multi-touch enabled OS)
• TTouchKeyboard a virtual keyboard
• 30+ standard gestures for panning, zooming, rotating and create your own

Reach more user desktops with support for Windows 7 and Unicode
Support more Windows desktops without worrying about the specific Windows API details of each version and support users worldwide with Unicode throughout the development environment and improved language support.

• Theme Aware - VCL controls are optimized to take advantage of the theming capabilities of XP, Vista and Windows 7
• Fully Unicode enabled throughout to seamlessly handle worldwide data, databases, and user interfaces
• Access Windows 7 APIs, including Direct2D that allows easier rendering, better performance, and excellent quality output
• Easily switch between English, German, French and Japanese translations for IDE menus and dialogs, compiled units, resources, and source code