InformationWeek

IBM Goes Java

VisualAge for Java will feature 'live' virtual machine

By Rich Levin
Issue date: March 24, 1997

The prerelease version of IBM's VisualAge for Java development tool is on the way. A "lite" version of VisualAge will hit IBM's Web site on April 28, sources say, with a more powerful enterprise version to follow.

The cornerstone of the new tool is a "live" Java virtual machine and incremental compiler, which lets developers build applications as the programs are running. "You're working with a 'hot' environme nt," says a developer who has tested the product. "Components that you drag onto the canvas [form] aren't just bit-mapped images, they're live controls with live data."

As with similar tools, developers construct applications by using prebuilt, reusable components. Some "live design" Java environments have been criticized for slowing down when building complex forms that have multiple controls. But early users say VisualAge for Java doesn't run out of gas. "I built some really complex forms, and didn't see much degradation," says one tester.

For large IT shops, VisualAge for Java's most compelling feature could be IBM's plans for legacy system support. "They're talking about [making this] an industrial-strength enterprise tool that provides easy Java wrappers for existing Cobol or C++ code, seamlessly," one source says. This could resonate with large organizations that need to integrate Java applications with legacy information systems. "Larger companies-those with a heterogeneous computing environme nt-are adopting Java faster," says Evan Quinn, an analyst at International Data Corp., a market-research firm in Framingham, Mass.

In addition to support for Java Database Connectivity, the enterprise version will deliver native drivers for DB2, Oracle, and other databases. Object management, team programming, and transaction support through MQSeries and CICS middleware are also included, sources say. The initial release of VisualAge will run on Microsoft Windows 95 and Windows NT.

Comments?

http://www.informationweek.com