Announcing Processing 4.3.1 (release candidate)
Today, we’re excited to announce the release candidate for Processing 4.3.1! We’re sharing this preview to invite feedback from our community, address any potential bugs, and welcome new contributors to join our project.
Processing has come a long way thanks to an incredible community. Just in the last year, it’s seen almost a million downloads! To support this extensive worldwide community, the Processing Foundation is working with a dedicated group of contributors, but we need your help!
We have tested this release on Windows, macOS, Linux, and Raspberry Pi, but there may still be bugs we didn’t catch. To address any remaining issues, we need you to test this release before it goes live!
👉 Download Processing 4.3.1 here!
You will notice a new toggle on the Processing Download page. With this toggle, you can choose whether you want to download the stable release or the latest beta. Select “Beta (4.3.1)” then click the download button. If you need help installing Processing on your machine, follow these instructions.
Here are a few things you can do to test: run your existing sketches, run some of the included examples, and explore existing tools, libraries, and modes. If you encounter any issues or have feedback, please report them as issues on the new Processing4 repository.
Though you might not notice big visible changes yet, this version makes Processing easier to maintain and release. Here are some of the key improvements happening with this release that will create a better experience for contributors and make updates smoother.
Our new issue templates offer a more consistent way for users to share feedback and report bugs. This will make it easier for maintainers to review bug reports and address issues.
Processing now builds and signs code automatically using GitHub Actions. This will make future updates simpler and more reliable, by reducing the chances of human error and speeding up the build process. Curious developers can find the release script on GitHub.
Processing’s core libraries are now available through Maven! Maven is a popular tool for Java projects. This will make it easier for developers to integrate Processing into their own Java-based projects. See Processing core on Maven Central.
We’ve made it easier to set up a local development environment, including configuration files for IntelliJ and updated documentation. Learn more here.
Processing is adopting the all-contributors specification, recognizing all forms of contributions, not just code! This includes teaching, writing tutorials/curriculums, creating examples, offering community support, and many other ways. Check the contributors list on the Readme, and if you don’t see your name, please add yourself by commenting on this GitHub issue.
Beyond the tech and the code, we believe it matters who builds the tools we use, who gets to contribute, and how we define what constitutes a “contribution”. This is why we’re committed to inviting contributions from a diverse group of people, each bringing their unique skills and perspectives. Here are some of the most recent changes and initiatives aimed at supporting and welcoming contributors:
We are working on our contributor documentation to make it easier for first time contributors to get started. We are starting with a more inviting README, a new Code of Conduct, and improved Contribution Guidelines.
Many Processing contributors got their start by building libraries. To make this process simpler, Claudine Chen developed an improved system for building and submitting libraries. Visit the Processing Library Template repository to learn more and maybe start making your own Processing library!
This year, as part of our commitment to supporting the development of our software projects, the Processing Foundation launched a new grant-supported mentorship and contribution program. Five emerging developers received a $10,000 grant to explore new tools and directions for Processing and p5.js. For more details, Meet our 2024 pr05 Grantees! or visit the pr05 program repository.
We have created a new space for conversations about the future of Processing. If you’re interested in getting involved, consider joining the Processing Contributors Community Discord: https://discord.gg/8pFwMVATh8
As Casey Reas and Ben Fry put it, "Most essentially, Processing is about people. It’s about individuals and collective learning and exploration; it’s about sharing ideas and giving what you can." We hope you’ll join us in this exciting new chapter for the project.
Developers, stay tuned for our upcoming technical roadmap, which will outline our future goals and plans for Processing from a more technical standpoint, including more details about the CI/CD, migration to Gradle, Language Server Protocol, Command Line Interface, and possible ways forward for the PDE.
Processing was initiated in 2001 by Ben Fry and Casey Reas, who lead the development and maintenance of the project until 2023. We are grateful for their vision and dedication to the project. Processing is also indebted to over two decades of contributions from the broader Processing community.
This 4.3.1 release would not be possible without the support and collective wisdom of the Processing Community. A heartfelt thanks to Sam Pottinger, Stef Tervelde, Kate Hollenbach, Andres Colubri, Xin Xin, Roxana Hadad, Kevin Stadler, Roopa Vasudevan, Rune Madsen, Claudine Chen, Diya Solanki, Dora Do, Sinan Ascioglu, Sam Lavigne, Ted Davis, Justin ‘Cacheflowe’ Gitlin, Kazik Pogoda, Abe Pazos, Amy Traylor, Jim Schmitz, Chris Coleman, Dave Pagurek, Edwin Jakobs, Jakub Valtar, Phoenix Perry, Qianqian Ye, Rachel Lim, Nick Fox-Gieg, Tim Rodenbröker, Stig Møller Hansen, Alexandre B A Villares, Nick McIntyre, Alex (SPACEFILLER), Tetsu Kondo, Katsuya Endoh and many more.
Special thanks to Jérémy Laviole for his help with the org.processing namespace on Maven Central, and to the Sonatype support team for their assistance.
Additional thanks to my amazing Processing Foundation colleagues for their support, to the OSACC crowd for their ideas and enthusiasm, and to the Creative Code Berlin community for being a constant source of inspiration. My personal gratitude to Casey for his patient mentorship over the last two years, and to Dan for his kindness, encouragement, and for, you know, just being the best.
Raphaël de Courville
Processing Community Lead