🚀 Release v7.1.0: Complete Modernization + NPM Package

Changelog - v7.1.0

🚀 Version 7.1.0 - June 2025

✨ New Features

• Modernized Dependencies: Updated all 47 dependencies to latest versions
• Node.js 20+ Support: Minimum Node.js requirement updated to v20.0.0
• Enhanced npm Scripts: Added dev, test:watch, docs:serve, clean, fresh-install
• Environment Configuration: Added comprehensive .env.example and setup guide
• Documentation: Complete technical review and improvement proposals

🔧 Improvements

• Performance: Optimized WebSocket message handling
• Compatibility: Fixed critical ws v8+ Buffer/string compatibility issue
• Configuration: Centralized environment variable management
• Development: Enhanced debugging and development experience
• Testing: Improved test coverage and validation scripts

🛠️ Breaking Changes

• Node.js: Minimum version now 20.0.0 (was 16.0.0)
• npm: Minimum version now 10.0.0 (was 8.0.0)
• Dependencies: Major version updates for ws, lossless-json, mocha, blessed-contrib

🐛 Bug Fixes

• WebSocket: Fixed Buffer handling for ws v8+ compatibility
• Reconnection: Improved connection stability
• Error Handling: Better error messages and debugging information

📚 Documentation

• Setup Guide: Comprehensive environment configuration documentation
• Technical Review: Detailed code analysis and improvement proposals
• Modernization: Complete changelog of all changes made
• Examples: All REST and WebSocket examples validated and documented

🔒 Security

• Dependencies: Updated to address known vulnerabilities
• Environment: Secure credential management with .env.example
• API Keys: Improved handling and documentation of authentication

🧪 Testing

• Validation: All 228 tests passing, 3 pending (non-critical)
• Examples: Both public and authenticated examples verified
• Integration: Real API testing with live credentials
• Linting: Code quality maintained with zero linting errors

📦 Dependencies Updated

Major version updates:

• ws: v7 → v8+ (with compatibility fix)
• lossless-json: v1 → v2+
• mocha: v9 → v10+
• blessed-contrib: v4 → v5+
• All other dependencies to latest stable versions

🎯 Migration Guide

1. Update Node.js to v20.0.0 or higher
2. Update npm to v10.0.0 or higher
3. Run npm run fresh-install to update dependencies
4. Copy .env.example to .env and configure your API credentials
5. Run tests with npm test to verify everything works

📈 What's Next

See IMPROVEMENT-PROPOSALS.md for detailed roadmap including:

• TypeScript migration
• Enhanced error handling
• Smart reconnection with backoff
• Connection pooling
• Advanced debugging tools

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Full Changelog: v7.0.0...v7.1.0