Java News Roundup: Project Leyden Early-Access Builds, LangChain4j, JReleaser, Groovy

OpenJDK and Project Leyden

• Project Leyden: The initial set of early-access builds aims to improve Java programs’ startup time, time to peak performance, and footprint. Key features include a unified Cache Data Store (CDS) archive, ahead-of-time compilation of Java methods, and a class loader lookup cache. This release is built on an incomplete version of JDK 24 and represents a significant step towards optimizing Java performance.Key Features:
  • Unified CDS Archive: Supports multiple types of optimization artifacts.
  • Ahead-of-Time Compilation: Enhances the performance by compiling Java methods ahead of time.
  • Class Loader Lookup Cache: Improves the efficiency of class loading processes.
  The goal of Project Leyden, proposed in April 2020, is to address these performance aspects comprehensively. More details on this release can be found in the release notes and on InfoQ.
• JDK 23 & 24: The latest builds for JDK 23 (Build 30) and JDK 24 (Build 5) include various updates and bug fixes. Developers are encouraged to report bugs via the Java Bug Database. More details can be found in their respective release notes and related InfoQ news stories.

Framework and Tool Updates

• LangChain4j 0.32.0: This release features new integrations with Jlama, Workers AI, and the Selenium Document Loader. It introduces support for custom POJOs as method parameters in the @Tool annotation, repurposes the @Description annotation to describe POJO fields, and implements embedding removal methods for various databases like Milvus and Elasticsearch.Key Enhancements:
  • New Integrations: Jlama, Workers AI, Selenium Document Loader.
  • Custom POJO Support: Enhances flexibility in method parameter handling.
  • Embedding Removal Methods: Improves data management and manipulation.
• JReleaser 1.13.0 & 1.13.1: These versions include bug fixes, documentation improvements, and new features such as platform-specific Java options in the Java Archive assembler, support for GitHub Artifact Attestations, and the ability to pass a profile ID for staging in Nexus2 deployment. Version 1.13.1 is a quick fix release for version 1.13.0.Key Updates:
  • Platform-Specific Java Options: Provides more control over Java archives.
  • GitHub Artifact Attestations: Enhances security and verification.
  • Nexus2 Deployment: Simplifies staging and deployment processes.
• Apache Groovy:
  • Groovy 5.0.0-alpha9: Delivers bug fixes, dependency upgrades, and improvements like support for type arguments and dynamic selector in the getText() method and support for lambda expressions as a named value.
  • Groovy 4.0.22: Includes bug fixes, dependency upgrades, and improvements such as warning issuance for static fields shadowed by get() methods and improved bytecode generation for identity comparisons.
  • Groovy 3.0.22: Features bug fixes, dependency upgrades, and an increased character limit for the getMessage() method in the MissingMethodException class.

Jakarta EE and MicroProfile

• Jakarta EE 11 & 12: Jakarta EE 11 is nearing completion, with all individual specifications done and finalizing platform specifications. Jakarta EE 12 discussions have started, aiming for a release in the first half of 2026 with a baseline of Java 21.Updates:
  • Jakarta EE 11: Finalizing platform, Web Profile, and Core Profile specifications.
  • Jakarta EE 12: Early discussions for a 2026 release with Java 21 baseline.
• MicroProfile 7.0 RC2: The second release candidate includes notable changes such as exposing OpenTelemetry APIs for improved user experience and updating the MicroProfile Metrics TCK to ensure metric presence.

Other Releases

• Quarkus 3.12.1: This first maintenance release delivers dependency upgrades and resolves notable issues like NullPointerException in the OpenTelemetry gRPC OTLP traces exporter and InvalidPathException with the Web Dependency Locator extension on Windows.Key Improvements:
  • Dependency Upgrades: Ensures compatibility and stability.
  • Bug Fixes: Addresses critical issues affecting functionality.
• Open Liberty 24.0.0.7-beta: Enhancements to Jakarta RESTful Web Services 4.0 specification, support for Jakarta Faces 4.1 specification, and a new audit feature that does not generate records for REST Handler applications.Enhancements:
  • Jakarta RESTful Web Services: New API methods and media type values.
  • Jakarta Faces: Support for the 4.1 specification.
  • Audit Feature: Improved record generation for REST Handler applications.
• Infinispan 15.1.0: Allows the use of the Remote Query API from server-side tasks and replaces the Query interface in the RemoteCache interface due to deprecated methods.Notable Changes:
  • Remote Query API: Enhances query capabilities.
  • Interface Replacement: Ensures up-to-date method usage.
• JobRunr 7.2.2: Resolves a NullPointerException issue if a job succeeds right when updateProcessing() is called.
• JDKUpdater 17.0.55+77: Provides the ability to keep track of updates related to OpenJDK and GraalVM builds.
• RefactorFirst 0.5.0: Delivers performance improvements, HTML report output enhancements, and the addition of a circular reference detector.Improvements:
  • Performance: Enhanced analysis and report generation.
  • Circular Reference Detector: Identifies and manages circular dependencies.
• Gradle 8.9 RC2: Continuous improvements include better error reporting for variant issues, exposing structural details of Java compilation errors, and displaying detailed information about JVMs used by Gradle.Updates:
  • Error Reporting: Improved clarity and resolution.
  • Java Compilation Errors: Easier analysis and issue resolution.
  • JVM Information: Enhanced details for better understanding.

This comprehensive roundup provides insights into the latest developments in the Java ecosystem, helping developers stay updated with new tools, frameworks, and enhancements to optimize their projects and workflows.