InformationWeek

December 8, 1997

Apple Upgrades WebObjects

Vendor hopes support for Java will give development language a boost

pple Computer, despite its continuing decline as a PC manufacturer, is trying to stay afloat as a vendor of enterprise development tools. Apple recently debuted a new version of WebObjects, a development tool for enterprises looking to create interactive Internet and intranet applications.

As the latest addition to Apple's Web application development platform, WebObjects 3.5 promises improved user functionality and greater support for Sun Microsystems' Java programming language.

WebObjects is an outgrowth of the object programming work done by Next Computer Inc., which was founded in 1986 after Steve Jobs left Apple. The PC vendor bought Next in December 1996.

"In the past, WebObjects was considered a powerful development tool, but not regarded as an easy-to-approach tool due to having its own language," admi ts David Kay, senior product manager of WebObjects. "We wanted to make this version accessible to more people and to better leverage a developer's time while using it."

Enhanced Java support in WebObjects 3.5 means that all objects and components can be worked on as a set of Java APIs based on a complete implementation of the Java Developers' Kit 1.1.3. The previous version, WebObjects 3.1, supported only a subset of the Java APIs. Also, the new version of WebObjects supports Sun's Solaris operating system as well as Microsoft's Windows NT; version 3.1 offered support for Windows NT only.

Because of WebObjects' history with Next, previous WebObjects versions used the Object C language. "While [Object C] is a good language, it's not a mainstream language like Java is becoming now," says Nina Lytton, editor of Crossroads A-List, a newsletter published by Open Systems Advisors in Boston. "[Apple] needed to open up WebObjects' development environment to enable those interested in working with Java."

The new version also contains a feature called Direct-to-Web that facilitates building of database Web applications. It allows vertical applications to be built in a point-and-click manner and includes a guide for developers to create interactive applications running against real-time data sources. Direct-to-Web also contains a framework of APIs to build templates for access to third-party applications.

Developer seats for WebObjects 3.5 start at $1,500 and deployment pricing is server-based, starting at $7,500.

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