There is an upcoming breaking change in the dart sdk which removes support for the .packages file and will replace it with .dart_tool/package_config.json.

This Monarch release supports this change.

This is the second edition of our newsletter Monarch Minutes. We continue to improve the Monarch developer experience. We also improved the docs, samples and website.

New Features in Monarch 1.7​

1. Faster reloads 💨 🚀​

Version 1.7 improves the reloading experience in Monarch. In previous versions, every change in your project would trigger a hot restart. Now, with the new version, every change will trigger a hot reload by default. Hot reloading will make code changes render much faster on the Monarch UI.

You can still force a hot restart via the new key commands.

Also, if you want to control how Monarch reloads, you can use the new --reload flag. See the CLI Usage docs.

2. Bug fixes and support for macOS Monterrey 🐛​

This new release fixes several issues:

• Dragging on the Monarch story window with your mouse now behaves like touch drag on a mobile device. You can now test mobile drag interactions like scrolling and pull-down to refresh.
• Fixed an issue during termination of the Monarch CLI.
• Fixed an issue on macOS to better support multiple monitors with different screen resolutions.

We also added macOS Monterrey support in Monarch 1.7.

Monarch samples and docs 🤓 📚​

We updated and augmented the Monarch Samples repo. The samples repo now includes several projects which showcase Monarch working with various packages, patterns and tools, such as:

• intl tools and package
• a pretty booking theme
• riverpod
• several other patterns like bloc, cubit, lists, provider, dialogs, animations, navigation, etc.

We also updated our docs to reflect the latest changes in Flutter and Monarch.

New Monarch videos 🤩​

We updated the videos on the Monarch landing page. The new videos show Monarch in action with a beautiful UI. If you want to see the stories and code for the videos, you can get them from the booking sample project.

Meme of the Month​

This release brings faster reload, bug fixes, support for macOS Monterrey, updated samples and docs, and new Monarch videos.

You can read the details of this release in our second newsletter.

Hello from Monarch! This is issue 1 of our newsletter, Monarch Minutes. We hope you enjoy the updates.

New Features in Monarch 1.6​

Our latest release (version 1.6) brings debugging to Monarch! Working with Monarch keeps getting easier. 🙌

1. Visual debugging 🤓 🐛​

You can now enable several options to visually debug your stories. And you can launch DevTools! 🚀

Check out our docs on debugging your story.

2. Debug your widgets in isolation 🦾 🤯​

With Monarch and DevTools you can now debug your widgets source code in isolation, without running the full app.

Find more info in our docs.

3. New devices 📱​

We have updated the devices list in Monarch. These are the new devices we have added:

• iPhone 13 (and all its variants)
• iPad 9th Gen
• iPad Pro 5th Gen
• Pixel 5a
• OnePlus 9
• Samsung Galaxy S21
• Moto G Power (2021)

4. Error capture​

Monarch improves Flutter error messages by providing more context when a story generates an error. And now, Monarch captures even more errors than before.

5. Support for all Flutter versions​

The Flutter team does an amazing job at providing regular releases of new Flutter versions in the dev, beta and stable channels. When a new Flutter version is released on any channel, the Monarch build automation starts a new Monarch build to support the new version. You can rest assured that Monarch will support every version of Flutter as soon as they come out. So, when you upgrade to the new Flutter version, Monarch will already support it.

We introduced support for all Flutter versions back in May and we are glad to see usage of Monarch across many Flutter versions and channels.

Upcoming Major Features​

• We are starting work on Monarch for Linux. ❤️
• We are also starting work on another major feature which we are keeping under wraps. Stay tuned!

Meme of the Month​

This is a major release of Monarch, which we are very excited about. You can now debug your widgets in isolation. The details of this release are in our first newsletter: Monarch Minutes Newsletter 1.

This release is compatible with package:monarch version 1.0.1 which fixes and improves how stories interact with modals, alerts and routing.

We will also start publishing a newsletter, which will include the latest Monarch updates, features and news. Sign up here.

This new version of the Monarch CLI will also let you sign up to the newsletter straight from the command line.

This is a release for Windows users of Monarch. This release fully automates the monarch upgrade process on Windows. In previous versions, a couple of steps of the upgrade process had to be done manually. Now, the full upgrade process is automated. 🦾

This version adds the Dock feature.

Monarch uses two windows, one for your story settings and another one to render your story. This experience guarantees the visual isolation of the selected story. However, managing both windows was cumbersome.

With the new Dock feature you can manage both windows together. Working with Monarch has gotten even easier. 🤩

When the windows are docked you can move or resize one window and the other one will follow suit. You will see three dock options via the "Dock side" dropdown:

1. Dock to right
2. Dock to left
3. Undock

To get the new version just do monarch upgrade.

We just released the Scale feature.

Now you can scale your stories, i.e. zoom in or out your stories. Previously, it was difficult to test stories on a large device, like the iPad Pro, if you were using a small screen, like a laptop. Now, even if you are working on your laptop, you can select iPad Pro and scale your story down so it fits on your screen.

Also, if you have a large DPI monitor, you can scale up your story so you can see it better.

We also fixed a few things on the Monarch Windows app. On Windows, the story window will be sized correctly and it will reliably open next to the story list window.

Monarch now supports projects that have disabled sound null safety.

If you run your project using flutter run --no-sound-null-safety, now you can use the same flag when running Monarch.

monarch run --no-sound-null-safety

You stories can then use your unsound null safe code.