Sterling Commerce, Inc. announced its new E-business process integration software and consulting services solution through its participation in RosettaNet. “RosettaNet Server” is designed to improve E-business supply chain management through the implementation of open and common processes by leveraging enabling technologies such as XML. This solution helps companies implement RosettaNet’s methodology for enabling small and large buyers and sellers to do business more efficiently over the Internet. The RosettaNet Server leverages Sterling Commerce’s existing GENTRAN BPI offering providing native XML integration capabilities for business document exchange and acknowledgement, partner authentication, and seamless back-end connectivity into both packaged and legacy application systems. Availability of this solution is scheduled for February 2, 2000, in conjunction with the RosettaNet pilot implementation initiative. www.sterlingcommerce.com
Day: January 18, 2000
Infoteria Inc. announced the availability of the iConnector / SQL Server version 1.0. iConnector / SQL Server allows users to both store XML data into Microsoft SQL Server, and query existing information stored in that server as XML data. iConnector / SQL Server is the latest addition to the iConnector family of products, which embraces a wide variety of industry platforms, including Oracle, Lotus Notes/ Domino and Microsoft Access. The series contains Rule Generator, a user friendly GUI based tool, which allows users to easily map XML data structures to database schemes, and visa versa. iConnector also allows for cross database relational joins where incoming XML data can be stored using another database as a reference. The Japanese version of iConnector / SQL Server will be available on February 14th, 2000 for Microsoft Windows NT4.0. The English version will be available April 1st. iConnector / SQL Server pricing starts at $8,000. In addition, an OEM version will be available. www.infoteria.com
Extensibility, Inc. and Bristol Technology Inc. announced a cooperative agreement to market Extensibility’s XML Authority schema design and conversion solution and Bristol Technology’s eXactML, which simplifies the task of adding XML capabilities to applications. XML Authority is a compliment to eXactML as companies use XML to drive e-business applications using Internet technologies. XML Authority converts existing application and document structures into schemas while eXactML generates object-oriented interfaces for reading, writing and manipulating XML content. www.extensibility.com, www.xmlschema.com, www.bristol.com
Just in Time Solutions announced it has delivered the DTD for the XML presentation contained in the Interactive Financial Exchange (IFX) 1.01 specification. The IFX 1.01 specification, which was recently released by the IFX Forum for public comment, is an open standard that provides a framework for the exchange of financial data between financial institutions, service providers and customers. With input from other members of the IFX Forum’s XML Working Group, Just in Time took the lead in creating the DTD for the XML representation contained in the IFX 1.01 specification. The incorporation of a DTD in IFX 1.01 enables financial institutions, service providers and technology vendors to begin developing applications using IFX. In addition, Just in Time helped establish the rules and guidelines for sending and receiving IFX messages in XML. The standard can be found at www.ifxforum.org, www.justintime.com
JafSoft Limited has released AscToHTM 3.2 for Windows 95/98/NT, a program that converts plain text files (.txt) into good looking HTML web pages in seconds. AscToHTM converts text files using text-recognition algorithms that detect the document’s structure. These can recognize headings, bullets, lists, indentation, URLs, tables, ASCII art and much more. The resulting HTML faithfully reflects the structure of the original document. This program adds value to the HTML e.g. by turning URLs into hyperlinks and adding color to your pages. It also creates a hyperlinked contents list from your headings. These extra features make the software suitable for use as an authoring tool as well as a conversion tool. At its simplest you just choose the files to be converted, press a single button and the results are displayed in your browser. For the advanced user a large number of options allow you to add a title, colors, tags and many other features. Selected options may be saved in “policy files” for reuse next time you run the program. AscToHTM is a tool for web developers, anyone who wants to generate web pages quickly and companies that want to migrate large structured or legacy text files to their Intranet or Internet sites. Recent changes include drag and drop support, recognition of mail and Usenet headers and a tagging system that allows you to add hyperlinks and conversion timestamps to your document. The interface can be switched to German, Spanish or Portuguese, although the documentation is still in English. AscToHTM 3.2 costs $40 for a single user license. Site licenses are available, and the software is made available free to FAQ maintainers. A 30-day trial can be downloaded from www.jafsoft.com/download/windows/aschtm32.zip
Unisys Corporation announced an agreement with Rational Software that will enable Rational to provide the Unisys implementation of the XMI (XML Metadata Interchange) specification for its customers’ use in exchanging information between the new Rational Rose 2000 visual modeling environment and other UML (Unified Modeling Language)-based tools and environments. The Unisys XMI software is available immediately for customer download from the Rational Web site. Through Unisys XMI software, Rational Rose 2000 users will be able to interchange information with other development and planning tools at a much finer level of detail than ever before. This capability will enable enterprise customers to build an application infrastructure that improves their capability to conduct high-volume electronic business in heterogeneous, multi-vendor environments. Rational Rose users download the XMI software at no charge from the Rational Web site at www.rational.com/products/rose/support/patches/2kdownloads.
AlbertIQ announced the beta version of WebWOWser, which enables users to create multi-page Web sites in a matter of minutes. Users quickly and easily create and customize Web sites with their own content — text, graphics, photos, sounds, and favorite links. Users can drag and drop content from their hard drive, from their desktop, even from other Web sites directly onto their Web site pages and publish their sites to the Web with the press of the Save button. WebWOWser eliminates the frustrating cycle of create, edit, save, ftp, check, edit, save ftp, check. The key to WebWOWser’s power, speed, and ease of use is its patent-pending CSD technology, which provides tight integration of the browser and the server. Users are essentially unaware of the server, which is operating quietly and invisibly in the background. Desktop services are provided from inside the browser — there is no special program or applet to install in order to create, edit, or manage sites. The WebWOWser Editor relies on ActiveX and COM technologies to operate and communicate with Windows resources. COM allows a user to drag, drop, copy, and paste local resources to the Editor. Dynamic HTML reflects site edits as users work in the Editor without creating HTML files or making requests to the server. Users actually view their site pages in the browser itself (as opposed to viewing them in a Java applet or test editor) and receive immediate feedback as they are working. WebWOWser does not generate HTML pages on the desktop. Instead, information is saved on the server and only fused when a visitor requests a user’s site. Using this method, sites can be saved quickly because the program uploads only the necessary information each time. The process of fusing page elements to produce a complete HTML page employs Active Server Page and COM technology, rendering dynamic pages that reflect the latest changes made by the user immediately. Communication between the desktop and the server is accomplished through XML. The Beta version of WebWOWser is available to users at no charge and without space limitations. WebWOWser-built Web sites are also free of placement and pop-up advertising. The current version supports Windows 95, 98, NT, and 2000 and Internet Explorer 5.0. WebWOWser will also support Netscape’s new browser when it’s released later this year. www.WebWOWser.com
