Make RichTextFX work on Java 9

[johnmiddlekauff]

Given that RichTextFX uses private APIs in JavaFX 8, will the current functionality provided by RichTextFX be possible under JavaFX 9?

http://blog.codefx.org/java/dev/javafx-project-jigsaw-jep-253/

tl; dr; Should be possible, but not without refactoring and releasing new major version of RichTextFX.

[JordanMartinez]

Should be possible, but not without refactoring and releasing new major version of RichTextFX.

Aye, and a new release for all of its dependencies: Flowless, ReactFX, UndoFX, WellBehavedFX.

[afester]

I have started a Java9 branch at https://github.com/afester/RichTextFX/tree/Java9. This branch contains the required changes to make the code compilable with Java 9-ea+155.

Due to the enhanced jigsaw authorization mechanisms at runtime, the following command line parameters are currently required to launch the demo applications (I only tried the JavaKeywords demo so far):

--add-exports javafx.graphics/com.sun.javafx.text=ALL-UNNAMED 
--add-exports javafx.graphics/com.sun.javafx.scene.text=ALL-UNNAMED 
--add-exports javafx.graphics/com.sun.javafx.geom=ALL-UNNAMED 
--add-opens javafx.graphics/javafx.scene.text=ALL-UNNAMED 
--add-opens javafx.graphics/com.sun.javafx.text=ALL-UNNAMED

Without these, the application will throw java.lang.IllegalAccessError and/or java.lang.reflect.InaccessibleObjectException exceptions when accessing protected methods through reflection.

The demo can then be launched, but there is still a rendering issue - the rich text is only partially rendered in the view. When clicking into a particular line, that line is then properly rendered. This might also be an issue of the FlowLess or other component - I have NOT recompiled any other dependency with Java 9 so far.

[JordanMartinez]

I'll probably be looking into this more as we get closer to Java 9's release.

[JordanMartinez]

Here's something to think about: how should this project be modulated? How many modules should there be and what components should be within each one? Which ones will be required and which are optional?

[JordanMartinez]

I'll be looking at this with the help of #593 once #596 gets merged.

[PavelTurk]

Could anyone say if richtextfx can be used on Java 9? I cloned master branch but can't build it as I get package com.sun.javafx.css.converters does not exist and other errors. Do I do something wrong?

[JordanMartinez]

RichTextFX does not work on Java 9 yet. We're 1 issue away from releasing the 0.7-M7 release, and I'll be focusing on this issue once that gets done. Feel free to look at #593 as a temporary workaround.

[PavelTurk]

@JordanMartinez Thank you very much for the information. Can you say when approximately RichTextFX will be ready for Java 9?

[JordanMartinez]

@PashaTurok I'd like to have it done within two weeks at the very latest, but it depends. I hope to follow the same approach I used in TestFX (see #593 where I mention it there), so that we can share the code base as much as possible between the two different versions of Java. I'm not sure how easy/hard that will be.

[JordanMartinez]

I've been thinking more about this. When I initially submitted my PR to TestFX to make it support Java 9, we didn't know that the Java release cycle would increased in speed to only 6 months ish. Now that we do know that, I wonder if Java 8 people will be forced to upgrade sooner (in a few months) rather than later (in a few years), making the dual support for both versions somewhat pointless after a while.

My idea is not to ignore Java 8 completely. Rather, I think we should duplicate our current project and then modify the duplicate to work on Java 9. I know it will take longer to submit PRs if we want to change a single thing in the project, but it does allow immediate trouble-free access to Java 9 support. My only question is how to distinguish the release versions from a Java 8 and 9 build. Thoughts?