GraphCompose v1.6.1 — Java 17 baseline + dependency refresh

[DemchaAV]

GraphCompose v1.6.1 — Java 17 baseline + dependency refresh

A maintenance + compatibility patch is out: v1.6.1 drops the Java 21 source/target baseline to Java 17+, refreshes the test/build dependency tree (incl. CVE pass), and adds explicit ByteBuddy + Mockito bumps so Mockito works on JDK 25.

No public API change — engine, DSL, themes, templates, and backend records all stay source-compatible with v1.6.0; existing callers compile and behave unchanged. CI now verifies against Temurin JDK 17 / 21 / 25 in parallel matrix on every push and PR.

Co-developed with external contributor @jottinger — thanks for the engine source migration and the Java 25 compat work.

Toolchain

• Java 17 baseline across pom.xml, examples/pom.xml, benchmarks/pom.xml.
• Engine source loses Java 21–only constructs (switch-with-type-patterns, List.getFirst(), Thread.threadId()) for Java 17–compatible forms.
• Dependency refresh: Jackson, Logback, Lombok, POI, SnakeYAML, AssertJ, JUnit, Mockito; explicit ByteBuddy 1.18.7 for JDK 25.

Verified

• 819 / 0 / 0 / 0 canonical test suite green on JDK 17, 21, and 25.
• 26 runnable examples regenerate cleanly.
• JitPack v1.6.1 BUILD SUCCESS.

Looking ahead

Maven Central distribution remains queued for v1.7.0 alongside the JMH benchmark migration (#7).

• Release notes — https://github.com/DemchaAV/GraphCompose/releases/tag/v1.6.1
• Templates v2 landing — https://github.com/DemchaAV/GraphCompose/blob/v1.6.1/docs/templates-v2.md
• Live showcase — https://demchaav.github.io/GraphCompose/

As always — author intent, not coordinates.