IBM Announces Support for Enterprise JavaBeans in the Software That Makes e-Business Work
SAN FRANCISCO (March 24, 1998) – Today at the JavaOne** Worldwide Developer Conference, IBM announced support for the Enterprise JavaBeans** component model and detailed how it will be using this technology across its line of leading software middleware and application servers.
IBM’s support of Enterprise JavaBeans in its software will allow customers to more quickly develop server-side e-business applications that can be easily managed and deployed. Enterprise JavaBeans is a new specification that is being widely adopted in the industry because of the flexibility and productivity benefits it provides to customers building complex, bet-your-business Web applications. IBM was a major contributor to the development of the specification for Enterprise JavaBeans.
Using IBM software that is Enterprise JavaBeans-enabled will allow a corporation to extend and more easily integrate its mission-critical applications and back-end systems. With Enterprise JavaBeans, companies can move forward to the cross-platform benefits of network computing with Java** without needing to modify their existing systems.
IBM’s Enterprise JavaBeans-enabled software will also allow developers to visually build and deploy Web applications that are dependable and more easily updated and maintained. This lets business needs, rather than technical requirements, drive application development. The Enterprise JavaBeans component model facilitates code reuse and redeployment of applications that will scale on demand, helping customers quickly adapt to changing business needs.
Java and the Enterprise JavaBeans component model are key elements of the IBM Network Computing Framework for e-business. The framework serves as a comprehensive guide to help customers build, deploy and manage e-business applications that blend the best of traditional information systems technology with the Web.
Product Directions
By adopting Enterprise JavaBeans as a unifying component model across its software middleware and application servers, IBM is making it easier for customers to deploy the new generation of e-business applications on a platform that best meets their requirements. The IBM solutions range from a simple, lightweight offering on up to enterprise-strength servers that deliver high-transaction-rate performance. Below are details on products that are intended to offer Enterprise JavaBeans support this year.
Component Broker*
Component Broker Connector* (CBConnector) middleware and its supporting Component Broker Toolkit* (CBToolkit) provide a complete framework supporting the development, deployment and management of business components within an enterprise. CBConnector is architected to extend and enhance existing information assets, including the 70 percent of the world’s business logic that resides on IBM enterprise servers. By using Component Broker, businesses can bridge the gap between multiple sources of existing data, transaction, packaged applications and the new, highly fluid distributed component applications.
Enterprise JavaBeans within the Component Broker environment will receive the same quality of service as components written directly to the Component Broker programming interfaces. Since Enterprise JavaBeans are completely compatible with the CORBA standard, they will be able to interoperate with other components running in a Component Broker environment. IBM plans to enable initial Enterprise JavaBeans support in Component Broker by year-end.
TXSeries*
TXSeries, developed by Transarc, an IBM subsidiary, provides a flexible development and deployment environment for distributed transactional applications. TXSeries allows customers to easily build integrated, cross-enterprise e-business applications and delivers object-oriented programming support, strong security and interoperability with host-based systems and relational databases. Some 50 percent of all Web-based stock trades are handled through TXSeries.
Enterprise JavaBeans support will add server-side application code written in Java to the TXSeries environment. Transarc’s work with Enterprise JavaBeans will also be leveraged throughout IBM to provide this function into future Web application server offerings. A beta of the TXSeries Enterprise JavaBeans technology is planned for second half 1998.
ServletExpress
ServletExpress is a new software plug-in that extends existing Web servers to be Java application servers, which are an effective platform for deploying and managing Web applications across a network. ServletExpress works with a wide range of Web server products, including Lotus Domino Go* Webserver, Apache**, and offerings from Netscape Communications Corp.** and Microsoft**. This provides customers with tremendous flexibility in Java-enabling their Web applications.
Servlets, written in Java, are applications that execute inside a Web server. Compared to client-side Java applets, they offer greater security, higher performance and operating system independence. IBM views servlet technology as a key contributor to the maturation of enterprise Java and plans to enable Enterprise JavaBeans support in ServletExpress in the future. A beta version of ServletExpress is available now for download from the Web, at http://www.ibm.com/java/servexp.
IBM also announced that it intends to provide Enterprise JavaBeans support in other key middleware over time. This includes DB2* Universal Database, CICS/390* and IMS* host-based transaction software, MQSeries* messaging software and the Lotus Domino* Web application server platform.
IBM’s VisualAge* tools will embrace Enterprise JavaBeans as well to give developers a common programming model for building server applications. This combined with IBM’s support of Enterprise JavaBeans across its software middleware gives programmers and corporations a tremendous advantage. As a result, Enterprise JavaBeans components developed with VisualAge can be reused and leveraged throughout the enterprise, making developers more productive and simplifying enterprise computing. Enterprise JavaBeans support in VisualAge is expected by year-end.
Source: IBM