Simplify using shape morphing in Razor pages, Jean-Thierry Kéchichian Community Award 2025 - This week in Orchard (31/10/2025)
Cast your vote for the Jean-Thierry Kéchichian Community Award! This week's topics include simplifying using StringValues in Liquid templates and shape morphing in Razor pages! Oh, and do you know about the Orchard Harvest's sponsorship opportunity?
Orchard Core updates
Simplify using StringValues in Liquid templates
The idea is to provide a custom Fluid value type called StringValuesValue. If you get an HTTP request, you get some query string elements, headers, or form values as string values, and it probably does not work with the current conversion because it was always converted to an array. We had to allocate an array every time, and this PR also simplifies accessing it when you only have a single value. So, you don't need an indexer to get the first value. Now (because it's a FluidValue), there's an implicit conversion in the ToStringValue() method. In this case, when you ask for the property itself and you don't say [0] to get the first value, you will get the first value. And it supports the same properties as an array: size, first, and last.
Simplify using shape morphing in Razor pages
Now you can find a new helper called DisplayAsAsync to simplify and standardize the rendering of shapes with a different type in Razor views. Before, when you wanted to do shape morphing, you had to set the type, clear the alternates, and clear the ChildContent. Now you can use the new DisplayAsAsync method, which clears the alternates and the ChildContent and sets the type automatically for you, which is nicer.
We are using shape morphing in MenuItem.cshml, UserDisplayName.cshtml, and UserDisplayName.SummaryAdmin.cshtml. So, these files are updated to use DisplayAsAsync instead of manually modifying the shape's metadata and calling DisplayAsync, significantly reducing boilerplate code.
News from the community
Orchard Harvest 2025 Sponsorship Opportunity
The Orchard Harvest 2025 conference will be held in Prague, and we look forward to seeing you all this autumn in the Czech Republic, in the heart of Europe. Our confirmed dates for this year are November 11th and 12th. Secure your tickets to the conference, taking place November 11-12, 2025, at the Botanique Hotel Prague, a modern hotel inspired by nature with a green approach, located in the city center.
Don't miss your chance to shape the conversation at the conference! Whether you're attending in person or not, you can still submit questions and topics for our upcoming panel discussion. Influence what our experts will discuss by getting involved here: https://forms.office.com/e/8BQ5WipCAJ. In this section, we would like to discuss the most important and interesting topics that we don't have time for in busy business hours. Please submit your questions in advance or bring surprise questions and engage with our expert panel.
And you can also join our two main sponsors! The key sponsors of this year's Orchard Harvest Conference are Lombiq Technologies Ltd. and BiQ Pux a.s.
Support the community and share your brand. Orchard Harvest aims to unite the community and foster knowledge exchange and planning. Your support enables us to organize an even higher-quality event.
In return, we feature your organization on our website and in social media posts. We will also highlight you at the event, including the option to place a roll-up banner on the stage.
If you are interested in sponsoring the event, please contact us at [email protected]!
Be sure to check out the updated official website of the conference for more information! As we move forward, we will keep community members informed of the details, and you will find every detail in this newsletter, too!
Don't miss the biggest Orchard Core event of the year!
Jean-Thierry Kéchichian Community Award 2025 - cast your vote
At the end of 2023, our good friend, Jean-Thierry Kéchichian, a truly extraordinary member of our community, unexpectedly passed away. To honor him, keep his memory alive, and foremost, inspire people to do good work for the community, we launched an award named after him for exceptional community members. Every year, the community votes on who has done the most for Orchard Core. This can entail activities such as code contributions (including documentation), helping with issues and discussions, evangelization outreach, community management, or anything else. However, it needs to be public and tangible. After the nominations, it's now time to vote!
Cast your vote here! Voting ends at 10:00 PM UTC on the 10th of November, and we'll announce the winner at Harvest!
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