Apple Announces WebObjects 3.5
Premier Internet Development Environment Enhances Ease-of-Use, Java
Support, Leverages Customer Experience to Better Develop and Deploy
Mission-Critical Applications over the Web
CUPERTINO, California–Dec. 1, 1997–Apple Computer, Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)
today announced WebObjects 3.5, the latest enhancement to Apple’s
market-leading web application development platform. The newest version of
WebObjects dramatically enhances ease-of-use with its Direct-to-Web
technology, and improves Java support. WebObjects has transformed the way
many companies approach web commerce and development. Many of the new
features found in WebObjects 3.5 are the direct result of input from these
companies.
WebObjects combines Apple’s strength in web content creation with
industrial-strength performance, scalability and connectivity capabilities
to deliver an ideal platform for developing transactional content. The
platform enables the seamless collaboration of application developers and
web designers to create dynamic, content-rich end-user experiences for the
web.
“WebObjects is the leading product for putting serious large-scale web
applications on the Internet,”said Jim Gable, vice president of Software
Product Marketing, Apple Computer Inc. “Increasingly, companies are turning
to the web to provide their customers, partners and employees with
customized and top-quality interactive services. WebObjects Version 3.5
goes the distance by delivering more flexibility and ease-of-use to the
site creator.”
“In enhancing its Java support, Apple demonstrates an investment in true
application portability and extendibility”, said Steve Garone, research
manager, International Data Corporation. “In making WebObjects easier for
developers to use, Apple is broadening its appeal and speeding the
platform’s adoption cycle.”
Ease-of-Use
With the addition of Direct-to-Web, Apple WebObjects makes it easier to
build database web applications. Further, Apple has improved the WebObjects
Builder, which allows website developers to work with a real-time WYSIWYG
view of the applications they are building.
Direct-to-Web: provides a turnkey template application for developers
incorporating sophisticated database functionality; includes the Live
Assistant, an interactive guide for developers which allows them to create
and modify applications running against real data sources and systems;
includes a framework of open APIs for the creation of customized
third-party templates and interactive guides.
Enhanced Java Support
Increased Java functionality means better performance and tighter
development tool integration for the developer. Improvements in version 3.5
include: Robust objects and components are exposed as a set of Java
frameworks; All developer tools and utilities bundled within WebObjects,
such as ProjectBuilder, the WebObjects Builder, and the Enterprise Objects
Modeler (EOM), provide powerful Java development capabilities; Allows
developers to choose the language or hybrid of languages best suited to the
performance needs of their application, be it 100 percent pure Java, or
Java with a compiled language; Supports Sun’s Java Developer Kit 1.1.3.
Leveraging Existing Customer Success
The development of Version 3.5 was a collaborative effort between the Apple
WebObjects team and its customers. The product enhancements were the result
of over ten years of developing proven solutions for the enterprise.
“We needed to standardize on a development platform that could connect to a
variety of data sources fueling a host of internal and external
applications across our organization,”said Vito Laudicina, vice president
of Information Services, Adobe Corporation. “We chose Apple’s WebObjects
because of its rapid deployment time and flexible architecture. WebObjects
allowed us to leverage both our extensive existing IT infrastructure and
the power and universality of the web. We have adopted WebObjects from
Apple as our standard for developing dynamic applications for the web.”
Own Best Customer
WebObjects 3.5 provides proven scalability and reliable performance for
some of the most demanding Internet applications on the planet. For
example, when Apple launched its online store (http://www.apple.com/store)
using WebObjects, WebObjects handled the load with no problems, even though
the site sustained 4.4 million hits within the store’s first twelve hours
of operation.
System Requirements
WebObjects 3.5 applications can be deployed on Windows NT, Solaris, HP-UX,
and OpenStep for Mach, the basis of Apple’s new operating system code-named
Rhapsody. The WebObjects Development Tools run on Windows NT and OpenStep
for Mach. Database support is provided for Oracle, Sybase, Informix via
high-performance client libraries, in addition to ODBC connectivity to
other databases. WebObjects supports high-performance web server APIs from
Microsoft (ISAPI) and Netscape (NSAPI), as well as any CGI 1.1-compliant
web server.
Pricing and Availability
WebObjects 3.5 is currently shipping from Apple. Developer seats are U.S.
$1,500; deployment licenses start at U.S. $7,500. Please contact Apple for
more information.
About WebObjects
WebObjects is the market-leading platform for developing and deploying
Internet or intranet applications. It includes an application server,
pre-built application components, and rapid application development tools.
Its strengths include flexible integration to enterprise information
systems, and it has been the basis of a number of deployed customer care
applications.
Apple Computer, Inc. ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s
with the Apple II, and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with
the Macintosh. Apple is now recommitted to its original mission – to bring
the best personal computing products and support to students, educators,
designers, scientists, engineers, businesspersons and consumers in over 140
countries around the world.
Russell Brady
Apple Computer, Inc.
(408) 974-6877
email: brady2@apple.com
Cate Schley
NRG for Apple Computer, Inc.
(415) 827-7084
email: cate@nrgpr.com