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Wizards manage the specifics of existing data sources, allowing you to specify which fields are included in the data view. You can also link to existing pages as well; for instance, you may create an e-commerce catalog and create a main page for a product category using data from a specific product page. When the application server generates the page and connects to the data source, it uses type-4 JDBC. This is a mixed bag: on the one hand, native driver performance is usually considered to be better than ODBC or JDBC performance, but when an application server is working with multiple database types, performance suffers when different drivers are loaded for each database.
Sun Microsystems seemingly acquires application servers the way that my son acquires Pokemon cards: as often as possible, with little regard as to how many Pokemon cards are already sitting in his acquisition pile. Call it the Pokemon Principle.
Enterprise JavaBean (EJB) support comes when you insert a Java object on a Web page. Studio then incorporates the attributes of the JavaBean.
The EJB support is noteworthy — many application-server vendors are scrambling to merely incorporate JavaBean support in their products for a future release — as is the overall Java support. The Java debugger is comprehensive, working with Java code in different situations (even as it is handled by the Java Virtual Machine).
NetDynamics 5.0 is a powerful application server, quite possibly the best application server on the market when the development capabilities are filtered in. But unless you’re running a high-traffic portal or don’t worry about the future of the product, it may be overkill in terms of complexity and pricing.
Pros:7 Studio IDE is adept at creating applications, 7 Support for COM, CORBA, and EJB, 7 Application server is perfectly positioned for portal-level computing, 7 Excellent administration tools, 7 Java debugger greatly enhanced Java development
Cons:7 Overkill for the vast majority of Web sites, 7 The future of the product is somewhat hazy
New in v5.0:Support for Enterprise JavaBeans and CORBA, improvements to application developer; Release Notes
Upgrade Meter: 5
| Version Reviewed: 5.0 Reviewed by: Kevin Reichard |
Last Updated: 7/13/99 Date of Original Review: 7/9/99 |
Operating Systems: Unix
