IBM Takes on Objects

John Montgomery

How much code do you write that you don't have to? For example, tax calculation is a well-known problem. So is currency conversion. And address manipulation. Why should you waste your time reinventing these wheels? Well, if IBM and more than 100 independent software vendors (ISVs) have their way, you won't have to. Called the San Francisco Project, this Java-based, cross-platform, multilayer framework allows you to string together components to handle the more mundane aspects of business applications, leaving you free to concentrate on writing code t hat must be unique.

San Francisco can be described by a three-tier model (see the figure "IBM's San Francisco Frameworks" ). At the bottom is the base technology infrastructure, which includes basic capabilities such as printing, conflict control, persistence, transactions, and object model classes. On top of that lie the common business objects (e.g., currency manipulation, tax calculation s, and address manipulation). Next up the ladder are the core business processes, such as general ledger, warehouse management, and order management. On top of all that lie commercial applications.

So what does it take to develop an application using San Francisco? It depends on which level you're developing for. You're going to need a modeling tool such as Rational Rose (IBM will have a Rose-to-Java generator this summer) as well as a Java development environment such as Symantec's Visual Café or IBM's VisualAge Java.

There are still some proble ms with writing business applications in Java. "Right now, they're pretty slow," admits Daniel Sabbah, vice president of applications development architecture for IBM's Software Solutions Division. "But that's going to change," he continues. IBM is working on the performance of the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) in its OSes, and is even working on a native compiler for server-based Java applications (which don't need to worry about transportability). Even with the performance considerations, Java holds some great advantages for IBM's multiplatform environments--so much so that by the end of this year and into early next year, you should expect to see VMs for Customer Information Control System (CICS) and DB2. According to Sabbah, IBM is even working on a universal VM with extended bytecodes that will be able to host Smalltalk and object-oriented BASIC in addition to Java.

Many companies are endorsing San Francisco (at least on paper), especially European companies such as Software AG and Siemens AG. You'll find some U.S. names in there, as well, including Borland and Dun and Bradstreet.

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IBM's San Francisco Frameworks

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San Francisco abstracts business processes and should enable developers to focus on building unique applications.