InformationWeek

May 31, 1999

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Lotus' Platform Play

continued...page 3 of 4

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Lotus is also incorporating XML support into its eSuite Java application components and its SmartSuite desktop productivity suite. Both eSuite and SmartSuite use XML file formats; improved use of XML by these apps is due later this year.

Then there's Java technology. Lotus has taken several approaches to support Java, both as a front end and a back end.

On the front end, Lotus' eSuite Java components have become a set of developer components for building Web applications with basic productivity suite functionality. These components are now supported by Domino, and developers can use them within Domino's Designer integrated development environment.

The Designer IDE also now lets developers put straight Java code--as well as JavaScript and HTML--into Domino documents. Designer isn't exactly a high-powered Java rapid application development tool; thankfully, Domino supports integration with other Java tools, including those from Symantec Corp. and Inprise Corp.

Strong Back End
But the real enterprise Java story is on the back end. Java is now supported as a language for building applets, servlets, and agents within Domino. Through Corba, Domino now supports remote standalone Java apps calling Domino functionality and accessing Domino applications. There's also Java Database Connectivity API support within release 5, as well as support for Java within Lotus Enterprise Interconnect. Also in Domino release 5, Lotus integrated IBM's WebSphere Java application server into the package (InformationWeek, April 12, 1999).

The next step is to expose the functionality of Domino and its enterprise connectivity products as Enterprise JavaBeans. According to Lotus, one of the first Domino features to be tackled will be the NotesPump database access technology; NotesPump's services, including its data links and metadata links, will be exposed as Beans. Further Beans implementation will likely be driven by tighter integration with WebSphere.

While Lotus worked to bring Domino/Notes release 5 to market, the company took several parallel steps to extend the Domino platform. Acquisition of Databeam and Ubique brought together a suite of synchronous collaboration technologies that combine awareness, conversation, and shared objects to enable instant messaging and application sharing across the Internet. Integrating these tools with Domino's asynchronous strengths--messaging, workflow, and replication--the result is the Sametime Server, the Sametime Connect client, an API, and Java and ActiveX components to add these services to browser and native Notes applications.

Meanwhile, a small group of Iris developers worked to implement QuickPlace, a teamware application that sits atop the Domino release 5 server. QuickPlace leverages release 5's core improvements to construct an application development environment that doesn't require an in-depth knowledge of Domino- and Notes-specific tools. You don't need any knowledge of HTML or Notes programming constructs to create, administer, and maintain QuickPlace apps.

Instead, users can create or import pages, drag and drop documents and files from the desktop, and trigger E-mail notification of additions or changes to the project. The QuickPlace creator can also assign authenticated access to readers and authors, delegate administrative responsibilities, and create interior rooms for more fine-grained security.