DP is not new.  It was new in P7, only the built-in tool is new in P8.

I've been using it in figures for a couple of years, and find it tremendously
useful for all sorts of complex motions: windshield wipers, foldout furniture,
lights, gearshifts, record-changing turntables .... anything that requires either
a curve or a series of motions.  Some of those things could be done with old
ERC, but they were far more complex and hard to write, debug and read.

In P7 you can use my script

http://ockhamsbungalow.com/Python/ERCbuilder8.zip

or Ajax has a DP feature in his EasyPose program.

Or you can write DP keys manually just as easily as old ERC, once you
grok the syntax.

Just as with old ERC, it only works on things you can adjust in the middle of
an animation.  Crease angle and joint parms are out because they're static.
Material parms (set to Animated) are definitely in.

My python page
My ShareCG freebies