Changelog

[0.9.13.0-beta] - 2026-09-28

📅 28th September, 2026

Changed & Improved

• Manage Novadesk UI & Widget List:
  • Double-clicking any widget in the Manage Novadesk widget list now toggles its loaded state (load/unload).
  • Maintained item selection and view scroll position across list refreshes when toggling or refreshing widgets.
  • Added LVS_SHOWSELALWAYS style so the selected widget remains highlighted when focus shifts to other controls.
  • Optimized list rebuilds with WM_SETREDRAW suppression to eliminate visual flicker during updates.
• Script Path Handling & Engine Stability:
  • Improved script path comparisons throughout JSEngine (destruction, timers, IPC listeners/handlers, trays, webFetch) using case-insensitive normalization to prevent duplicate script instances and stale listener leaks on Windows.
  • Switched script evaluation revision tracking to an atomic global revision counter for reliable module re-evaluation.

[0.9.12.0-beta] - 2026-09-27

📅 27th September, 2026

Added

• Added app.beginWindowBatch() and app.endWindowBatch() — batches window show and hide operations to eliminate visual flicker when toggling multiple windows simultaneously.
• Added widgetWindow constructor option backgroundImageFallbackAspectRatio (and alias backgroundImageFallbackSize) and method win.setBackgroundImageFallbackAspectRatio(mode).
• Added fallbackAspectRatio option to image elements (ui.addImage() and general image options) supporting "stretch", "preserve" / "fit" / "contain", and "crop" / "cover".
• Enhanced gradient parser:
  • Supported CSS-style aliases linear-gradient(...) and radial-gradient(...).
  • Supported direction keywords (to top, to bottom, to right, to left, to top right, to bottom right, to top left, to bottom left).
  • Supported angle unit specifiers (deg, rad, turn) and raw numbers.
  • Supported explicit stop positions (percentages or decimals) with automatic linear interpolation for omitted stops.
• Upgraded Native Addon Host API to Version 2 (NOVADESK_ADDON_API_VERSION 2):
  • Added novadesk::App helper class providing read-only access to host versions, paths, portable mode, and first-run state.
  • Added automatic NovadeskAddonApiVersion() DLL export in NOVADESK_ADDON_INIT for host compatibility verification.
• Added minimumNovadeskVersion metadata field support in meta.json for widget package installer compatibility checks.
• Added immediate saving of first-run widget position and state when created with an id.
• Added colored console logging output for errors, warnings, and info messages.

Changed & Improved

• Updated default installer setup name to {NAME}_Setup in template and widget packaging.
• Changed log level of background application and tray icon events from Info to Debug to reduce console noise.
• Switched InputBox text antialiasing to grayscale rendering for improved clarity on transparent layered window surfaces.
• Preserved authored element positions for text elements during animation queries rather than calculated layout bounds.

Fixed

• Fixed widget window position updates for m_Options.x and m_Options.y to eliminate position flickering.
• Fixed mouse message handling and click dispatch order to prioritize frontmost interactive controls over transparent display-only overlays.
• Fixed drag gesture initiation on draggable controls during left mouse button down.
• Fixed input box focus and caret positioning during programmatic and mouse click interactions.
• Fixed element destruction ordering to ensure child controls are cleanly detached without invalid container references.
• Fixed widget instance cleanup in event bindings ensuring proper deregistration from global tracking upon deletion.

[0.9.11.0-beta] - 2026-09-09

📅 09th September, 2026

Added

• Added ipcMain.removeListener(channel, listener) — removes a specific previously-registered ipcMain.on() listener. ipcMain.off() is an alias.
• Added ipcMain.removeAllListeners([channel]) — removes all ipcMain.on() listeners, optionally scoped to a channel.
• Added ipcMain.removeHandler(channel) — unregisters the handler set by ipcMain.handle() for a specific channel.
• Added ipcRenderer.removeListener(channel, listener) — removes a specific previously-registered ipcRenderer.on() listener. ipcRenderer.off() is an alias.
• Added ipcRenderer.removeAllListeners([channel]) — removes all ipcRenderer.on() listeners, optionally scoped to a channel.
• Added widgetWindow.minimize() — minimizes the widget window. Fires the minimize event.
• Added widgetWindow.unMinimize() — restores a minimized widget window. Fires the unMinimize event.
• Added widgetWindow.isMinimized() — returns true if the window is currently minimized.
• Added widgetWindow.maximize() — maximizes the widget window to fill the work area.
• Added widgetWindow.restore() — restores a maximized window to its previous size and position.
• Added widgetWindow.toggleMaximize() — toggles between maximized and normal state.
• Added widgetWindow.isMaximized() — returns true if the window is currently maximized.
• Added widgetWindow.setMinWidth(width), widgetWindow.getMinWidth() — set/get minimum resize width.
• Added widgetWindow.setMinHeight(height), widgetWindow.getMinHeight() — set/get minimum resize height.
• Added widgetWindow.setMinSize(width, height), widgetWindow.getMinSize() — set/get both minimum dimensions at once.
• Added widgetWindow.isResizing() — returns true while the user is dragging a window edge.
• Added widgetWindow.getHandle() — returns the native Win32 HWND as a number.
• Added widgetWindow.getInternalPointer() — returns the raw internal Widget pointer as a number.
• Added widgetWindow.getTitle() — returns the current window title string.
• Added widgetWindow.stopAnimation() — stops all running window animations at the current frame.
• Added widgetWindow.isDestroyed() — returns true if the window has been destroyed; safe to call after close().
• Added resizeStart / resize-start event — fires when the user begins dragging a window edge.
• Added resizeEnd / resize-end event — fires when the user releases the window edge after resizing.
• Added dialog.showOpenDialog(options) — native Windows file open dialog; supports filters and multi-select.
• Added dialog.showSaveDialog(options) — native Windows file save dialog; supports filters and defaultExtension.
• Added dialog.openDirectory(options) — native Windows folder picker dialog.
• Added dialog.showFileExplorerDialog(options) / dialog.showFileExplorer(options) — unified file explorer dialog supporting "open", "save", "directory", and "folder" modes.
• Added dialog.openFile(options) — shorthand for showOpenDialog.
• Added dialog.saveFile(options) — shorthand for showSaveDialog.
• Added app.argv — array of filtered command-line arguments (internal Novadesk flags removed). Contains executable path, entry script, and user arguments.
• Added app.rawArgv — array of all raw command-line arguments including internal flags.
• Added system.colors module for reading Windows system and accent colors:
  • colors.get() — returns a full object of all system theme colors.
  • colors.isDarkMode() — returns true when Windows is using a dark color scheme.
  • colors.getAccent() — returns the current Windows accent color object.
  • colors.getColor(name) — returns a specific named system color.

[0.9.10.0-beta] - 2026-08-13

📅 13th August, 2026

Added

• Added dialog.show(options) API for displaying native Windows modal dialogs from JavaScript scripts.
  • Supports title, message, type, and buttons options.
  • type accepts "info" / "information", "warning" / "warn", "error", and "question".
  • buttons accepts "ok", "ok-cancel", "yes-no", "yes-no-cancel", "retry-cancel", and "abort-retry-ignore". Hyphenated and non-hyphenated forms are both supported (e.g. "ok-cancel" and "okcancel").
  • Returns the clicked button as a lowercase string: "ok", "cancel", "yes", "no", "retry", "abort", or "ignore".
  • Defaults to type: "info" and buttons: "ok" when not specified. Empty strings also fall back to defaults.
  • Both type and buttons are case-insensitive.
• Added toast API for sending Windows toast notifications from JavaScript scripts.
  • toast.show(options) — displays a notification and returns a numeric toast ID, or null on failure.
  • toast.hide(id) — programmatically dismisses a notification by ID.
  • toast.clear() — dismisses all active notifications from the current widget session.
  • toast.initialize([options]) — explicitly initializes the notification system with custom app identity (appName, companyName, productName, aumi). Called automatically by toast.show() if not already initialized.
  • toast.isCompatible() — checks whether Windows toast notifications are supported on the current system.
  • toast.isInitialized() — returns whether the notification system is ready.
  • toast.getLastError() — returns the error message from the last failed toast.show() call.
  • toast.show() supports: title, message / body, thirdLine, attribution, image / imagePath, heroImage / heroImagePath, inlineHeroImage, crop, actions, input, duration, scenario, audio, audioPath, silent, loop, and expiration.
  • Callback support: onActivated / onActivate / onClick, onAction, onInput, onDismissed / onDismiss, onFailed / onFail.
  • duration accepts "short", "long", and "system".
  • scenario accepts "default", "alarm", "incomingCall" / "incoming-call", and "reminder".
  • audio accepts "default", "im", "mail", "reminder", "sms", "alarm", and "call".
  • crop accepts "square" (default) and "circle".
  • Relative paths for image, heroImage, and audioPath resolve from the current script directory.
• Added online font support for Text and InputBox elements.
  • Font URLs can be passed to fontPath to download and use remote fonts.
  • Fonts are loaded asynchronously so the UI does not block while a font downloads.
  • Downloaded fonts are cached in memory to avoid repeated network requests.
  • Added WOFF2 / Brotli decompression support for downloaded fonts.
• Added URL support for widget UI scripts — UI scripts can now be loaded from remote locations in addition to local file paths.
• Added URL support for image element sources — image, Bitmap, Button, and Rotator elements can now load images directly from HTTP/HTTPS URLs.
  • A built-in fallback image is displayed while a remote image is loading or if it fails.
  • Custom fallback paths can be set via SetFallbackPath().

Improved

• Improved AreaGraphElement dimension calculations. Rendering dimensions now consistently use the element's calculated width and height, with padding properly taken into account for the drawable area.
• Improved asynchronous font downloading — the widget window handle is now guaranteed to be available before any async font operation begins.
• Improved in-memory font loading and caching through FontManager. Fonts no longer rely on persistent temporary files, improving font lifetime and reuse.
• Reduced unnecessary log output from ButtonElement by disabling the informational render log generated after each successful render pass.

Fixed

• Fixed TIMER_ANIMATION and kTimerId to use timer ID 6, keeping timer identifiers consistent between animation and widget code.

[0.9.9.0-beta] - 2026-07-04

📅 04th July, 2026

Added

• Added text selection support for Text elements with textSelection, selectionBackgroundColor, and selectionTextColor.
• Added the Direct2D-rendered InputBox UI element via ui.addInputBox.
• Added hidden and dashed support to LayoutBox borderStyle.

[0.9.8.0-beta] - 2026-06-17

📅 17th June, 2026

Added

• Added support for "double" border style to LayoutBox border system.
• Added flexDirection property ("row", "rowreverse", "column", "columnreverse") to LayoutBox to configure modern flexbox flow layouts.
• Added display property ("flex", "none", "list-item") to LayoutBox to manage layout and visibility.
• Added support for hyphenated CSS-like formats (e.g. "left-top", "center-center") and "middle" aliases for textAlign property on Text elements.

Removed

• Removed minWidth and minHeight properties from LayoutBox elements.

[0.9.7.0-beta] - 2026-06-02

📅 2nd June, 2026

Added

• Added new app.storage persistent JSON storage API:
  • app.storage.get(key[, defaultValue]) - retrieves stored values or returns default fallback
  • app.storage.set(key, value) - stores key-value pairs persistently in storage.json
  • app.storage.remove(key) - deletes key-value pairs from persistent storage
• Added LayoutBox container element (ui.addLayoutBox and ui.layoutBox) supporting layout direction (row/column), alignment, padding, gaps, and nested composition of children.
• Enhanced LayoutBox border system with support for CSS-like borderStyle properties, allowing "solid", "none", "inset", "outset", "groove", "ridge", and "dotted" borders, customized globally or per-side.
• Introduced ui.animate(options) API for animating UI element properties:
  • Keyframe timeline animations via keyframes property (supports array syntax and percentage-key object syntax).
  • Tween animations supporting starting states via from property.
  • Loop control using iterationCount (can be a number or "infinite").
  • Typography property animation (fontSize, fontWeight, letterSpacing, fontColor) on Text elements inside keyframe timelines.

[0.9.6.0-beta] - 2026-05-21

21st May, 2026

Added

• Added system.cpu.getUpTime(...) to the system module CPU API.

Improved

• Improved isTrackedElement with recursive search to support safer validation for nested child elements.
• Updated InputBox addon to support small width and height values.

Fixed

• Fixed a critical engine crash in HandleMouseMessage caused by dangling element pointers when elements were deleted during JS event callbacks.
• Fixed Manage Novadesk window lifecycle so it exits automatically when Novadesk closes.
• Fixed QuickJS UI IPC listener ownership by binding ipcRenderer.on callbacks to the active __filename script path, ensuring stale widget listeners are cleared on refresh and preventing duplicate update flicker.

[0.9.5.0-beta] - 2026-05-15

📅 15th May, 2026

Improved

• Optimized widget engine script loading (AddScript) to be non-destructive. Adding new scripts no longer triggers a global runtime reset, ensuring existing active widgets remain stable.
• Optimized disk module performance by initializing PDH disk IO counters asynchronously.
• Miscellaneous tweaks and stabilization for the widget Context Menu API.

Fixed

• Fixed UI flickering during Widget::Refresh() by implementing nested batch updates (BeginUpdate / EndUpdate). UI redraws are now deferred until all nested element modifications are complete.
• Fixed TextElement font face resetting during partial updates.
• Fixed fontShadow property not applying correctly to UI elements.
• Protected critical UI properties (containers, alignment, tooltips) from being overwritten during partial state updates.

[0.9.4.0-beta] - 2026-05-08

📅 8th May, 2026

Added

• Added system.time API module.
• Added ui.removeElementById(id) binding.
• Added new CLI command for Manage window close request:
  • manage_novadesk.exe --request-close

Fixed

• Fixed widget refresh lifecycle so stale ipcRenderer UI listeners are cleared before reloading .ui.js.
• Improved .ndpkg installer admin-close behavior by adding elevated fallback.

[0.9.3.0-beta] - 2026-05-01

📅 1st May, 2026

Added

• Added InputBox addon to the default plugin list in NWM (no longer requires separate packaging).
• Added new JS bindings for widget window control and properties:
  • win.show() / win.hide()
  • win.setBounds() / win.getBounds()
  • win.setSize() / win.getSize()
  • win.setOpacity() / win.setBackgroundColor() / win.getBackgroundColor()
  • win.isFocused() / win.isVisible() / win.isDestroyed()
  • win.destroy() (destroys without firing close event)
• Added new UI element methods:
  • ui.setElementProperty(id, key, value) - update a single property
  • ui.isElementExist(id) - check if an element exists
• Added disk I/O metrics with PDH to the disk module:
  • disk.readSpeed() - returns read speed in bytes/sec
  • disk.writeSpeed() - returns write speed in bytes/sec
• Added drag events for UI elements:
  • onDragStart - fired when drag begins
  • onDrag - fired continuously during drag
  • onDragEnd - fired when drag ends

Fixed

• Fixed RoundLine element to use effective dimensions for positioning and drawing calculations.

[0.9.2.0-beta] - 2026-04-24

📅 24th April, 2026

Added

• Added excludeItems support for widget packaging (nwm build).
• Added additional widget events:
  • click
  • right-click
  • double-click
  • scroll-up
  • scroll-down
• Added Ctrl-based runtime overrides for widgets.
• Added system.recycleBin API:
  • openBin()
  • emptyBin()
  • emptyBinSilent()
  • getStats()
• Added async Promise-based webFetch(...).
• Added pixelHitTest property for UI elements.

Fixed

• Fixed hit testing behavior for:
  • Rotator element
  • Histogram element
  • Area Graph element
• Fixed UI font property handling.

Removed

• Removed InputBox addon options:
  • message
  • placeholder

[0.9.1.0-beta] - 2026-04-21

📅 21st April, 2026

Added

• Added Manage submenu and widget settings entries.
• Added tray events:
  • double-click
  • scroll-up
  • scroll-down
• Added widget toolbar options:
  • showInToolbar
  • toolbarIcon
  • toolbarTitle
• Added widgetWindow methods:
  • win.minimize()
  • win.unMinimize()
• Added widget .on(...) events:
  • minimize
  • unMinimize
• Added global variable: __mainScriptDirPath.

Changed

• Simplified TextElement hit testing.
• Refactored tooltip handling to manual tracking for more stable hover/tooltip behavior.

[0.9.0.0-beta] - 2026-04-16

📅 16th April, 2026

Added

• New InputBox add-on

• Support for named CSS colors

• New Image properties:

  • imageFlip
  • imageCrop
  • useExifOrientation

• New Image element property:

  • scaleMargins

• New elements:

  • Line
  • Button
  • Bitmap
  • Histogram
  • Rotator

Improved

• Enhanced getAddonsPath function

[0.8.0.0-beta] - 2026-04-07

📅 7th April, 2026

Added

• Introduced manage_novadesk GUI for managing widgets.
• Added restart_novadesk.exe to restart the Novadesk application.
• Added support for .ndpkg files for widget distribution.
• Introduced a .ndpkg installer for widgets.
• Added a new global variable: __addonsPath.
• novadesk.exe now supports executing multiple scripts.
• novadesk.exe now supports several CLI arguments.

Changed

• Updated nwm for improved compatibility with .ndpkg files.
• Modified the output structure of distributions generated by nwm.
• nwm now generates .zip archives for widget distribution instead of raw files.

[0.7.0.0-beta] - 2026-03-24

📅 24th March, 2026

Added

• Added support for meta.json.main in nwm run, allowing widgets to define a custom entry script path instead of always using index.js.

Changed

• Updated engine IPC: main-to-UI messages now use Electron-style ipcRenderer.on(channel, (event, payload) => ...) instead of the old payload-first callback order.
• Renamed clipString alias to textClip.

Fixed

• Fixed TextElement hit testing to use the actual rendered text ink alpha instead of the layout box, preventing false hover detection above/below glyphs.
• Fixed unstable button hover handling by preserving the currently hovered element, preventing repeated onMouseOver / onMouseLeave triggers.
• Fixed an issue where setting a property on a text element would clear the text.

Removed

• Removed appVolume, audioLevel, brightness, hotkey, and nowPlaying system objects (can now be replaced by external official addons).
• Removed deprecated app.tray* methods, replaced with the new tray object from Novadesk.

[0.6.0.0-beta] - 2026-03-06

📅 6th March, 2026

Added

• Integrated QuickJS for ECMAScript 2020 (ES11) support.
• Added new modules: novadesk, system, and fs.

Changed

• UI scripts now require the .ui.js suffix at the end of the script filename.
• Renamed the win object to the ui object (alias updated accordingly).
• Replaced the IPC method with a new implementation.

Removed

• Removed include() and require() methods.
• Removed all previous system and app objects.

[0.5.0.0-beta] - 2026-02-19

📅 19th February, 2026

Added

JSON API

• Added fixture for comment preservation.
• Booleans now persist as true/false instead of 1/0.
• Suppresses merge-failure warnings for empty or whitespace-only files while keeping warnings for real merge failures.

App Object API

• Added app.isPortable().
• Added app.isFirstRun().

Engine & Module System

• Implemented module-aware path resolution by propagating module directory context into exported function calls.

Element & Widget System

• Added element grouping with dedicated group property.
• Added win.removeElementsByGroup().
• Added win.setElementPropertyByGroup().

Cursor System

• Added CursorManager for element mouse cursors.
• Added mouseEventCursor, mouseEventCursorName, and cursorsDir options.
• Added support for built-in and custom .cur and .ani cursors.

System APIs

• Added setWallpaper API to change desktop wallpaper.
• Added brightness control API for Windows.
• Added application volume control and mute APIs.

File & Icon APIs

• Added file icon extraction.
• Added ICO export functionality.

Global Variables

• Added __widgetsDir
• Added __offsetX
• Added __offsetY
• Added __offsetXPercent
• Added __offsetYPercent
• Added __clientX
• Added __clientY
• Added __screenX
• Added __screenY

Widget Events

• Added widget mouse events:
  • mouseDown
  • mouseUp
  • mouseMove
  • mouseOver
  • mouseLeave

Installer

• Installer now includes Standard/Portable mode page, blocks Portable installs in system-protected paths, and skips uninstaller/registry/PATH changes when Portable is selected.

Fixed

Module System

• Fixed js_require cache writeback so modules that replace module.exports are cached correctly.

Text Rendering

• Fixed TextElement partial update state loss.
• Preserved fontGradient and related text style fields in PreFillTextOptions.
• Prevented gradient text from resetting to black on setElementProperties.

Widget Lifecycle

• Fixed widget recreation crash.
• Removed old widget from global widget list before deletion.
• Prevented double-erase invalid iterator during WM_DESTROY.

Input & Interaction

• Fixed mouse routing for non-interactive overlays.
• Text or overlays no longer steal hover, click, cursor, wheel, or tooltip events from underlying interactive elements.

Engine & JS API

• Fixed engine event callback context restoration to prevent win/Duktape stack corruption.

Installer Stub

• Fixed installer stub uninstall cleanup now removes all child folders/files in install directory (including unknown generated system API caches) before final root deletion, with existing cmd fallback retained.

[0.4.0.0-beta] - 2026-02-11

📅 11th February, 2026

Added

Window & Lifecycle

• Added new .on callbacks for widgetWindow focus and unfocus events.
• Added new widgetWindow methods: setFocus() and unFocus().
• Added new widgetWindow methods: getHandle(), getInternalPointer(), and getTitle().
• Added support for gradient backgrounds in widgetWindow.

Elements

• Added new element type roundLine.
• Added new element type shapes with multiple shape variants.
• Added gradient color support for elements.
• Added automatic width and height calculation for bar element.
• Added new element property show to control element visibility.

System & Runtime

• Added new system monitor for audioLevel.
• Added system to detect and verify portable environment support.
• Added require method for loading modules.

Performance & Updates

• Added win.startUpdate() and win.endUpdate() methods for batch updating element properties.

Installation

• Added self-installation support for widgets using the new tool installer_stub.

Fixed

• Fixed issue where images were not displayed when width or height was not explicitly set.

Removed

• Removed deprecated element properties like solidColor2 and gradientAngle, replaced by the new gradient support system.

[0.3.0.0-beta] - 2026-02-05

📅 5th February, 2026

Added

• Extended fontWeight support with string and numeric values.

  • String values: thin, extralight or ultralight, light, regular, medium, semibold or semi-bold, bold, extrabold or ultrabold, black
  • Numeric values: 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700, 800, 900

• Added fontPath property for loading custom fonts in the text element

• Added inline style tag support for the text element

• Added fontColor support for gradient colors

• Added fontShadow support for text

• Added letterSpacing property for the text element

• Added case property for the text element

• Added underline property for the text element

• Added strikethrough property for the text element

Supported Inline Tags

• <b> : Bold text
• <i> : Italic text
• <u> : Underlined text
• <s> : Strikethrough text
• <color=value> : Changes text color or applies a gradient
  Example: <color=#f00>Red Text</color>
  Example: <color=linearGradient(0,#f00,#0f0)>Gradient Text</color>
• <size=value> : Changes font size in pixels
  Example: <size=24>Large Text</size>
• <font=name> : Changes font face
  Example: <font=Consolas>Monospaced Text</font>
• <case=value> : Changes text case
  Valid values:
  • normal : Maintains original casing
  • upper : Converts all text to uppercase
  • lower : Converts all text to lowercase
  • capitalize : Capitalizes the first letter of each word
  • sentence : Capitalizes the first letter of the first word
    Example: <case=upper>this will be uppercase</case>

[0.2.0.0-beta] - 2026-01-30

📅 30th January, 2026

Added

• New JavaScript APIs on the app object: getAppDataPath(), getSettingsFilePath(), and getLogPath().
• Dynamic product name retrieval from executable resources for consistent directory naming.

Fixed

• Single Instance Enforcement: Resolved an issue where multiple instances could run if one was started as Administrator (by the installer) and another as a Standard User.
• Changelog Sorting: Standardized versioning to 3-part Semver to ensure "Latest" version labeling works correctly.

Changed

• Branding Consistency: Refactored GetAppTitle() to use PathUtils::GetProductName(), ensuring the product name is consistently pulled from executable resources across the entire application (including the tray menu).
• Redirected settings.json, config.json, and logs.log to the user's %APPDATA% directory.
• Updated the installer and uninstaller to handle user data cleanup in AppData.
• Consolidated resource extraction logic across the codebase for improved performance (caching).

[0.1.0.0-beta] - 2026-01-30

📅 30th January, 2026

Added

• Initial beta release...