Areas for extension

The 1.2 release of JiBX is expected to be the last major release in the 1.X series, though there will still be point releases of 1.2 for bug fixes. JiBX 2.0, featuring a rewritten code generator and improvements to the runtime design, is in development but may not be available in usable form for some time. The 2.0 work requires in-depth knowledge of the code and is not something where new developers are likely to be able to become directly involved.

Even so, there are several areas where interested developers can make important contributions to the JiBX project:

  • Clean up the Ant task code. This currently uses some deprecated Ant methods, and doesn't support all the options you'd expect in terms of structuring the file sets.
  • Build GUI Wizard front-ends for the various tools, including BindGen, Jibx2Wsdl, and CodeGen. These tools all allow for extensive customizations in the form of XML files. A Wizard could initialize settings from an existing configuration file, then save the file and pass it to the actual tool for processing when the user is done making their choices.
  • Work on better integration for JiBX in Spring environments.
  • Add support for transforming JAXB 2.0 annotations into BindGen customizations, so that developers using JAXB 2.0 can easily switch to JiBX.

If you're interested in working in any of these areas (or have your own ideas for extending JiBX) check first on the jibx-dev email list to see if anyone else is already working in the same area.

Contributor license agreement

If you're interested in becoming an active part of the JiBX team you'll need to fill out and return the Contributor License Agreement, below. It's not necessary for developers who are only contributing patches or bug fixes to fill out this agreement, but you'll be asked to state your acceptance of the agreement with respect to any code you submit.

JiBX committers, please complete this Agreement and mail it to The JiBX Project, 6 Ocean Road, Paraparaumu Beach 5032, Wellington,