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IBM Kicks Off New Round of WebSphere Upgrades

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Over the last month, IBM has taken significant steps to enhance several of its WebSphere middleware products and development tools. Those enhancements are just the opening shots in what promises to be a year full of changes for the WebSphere software portfolio and the many products with which it competes.

The enhancements began to roll out in late November when IBM announced WebSphere Application Server (WAS) 5.1. An iSeries version of WAS 5.1 started shipping last Friday. In mid-December, IBM unveiled WAS Express Edition 5.1, which includes many WAS 5.1 features and will ship on February 20, 2004. Also in mid-December, IBM announced that its Rational Software division is taking over the management of its WebSphere Studio family of development tools. Rational intends to not only enhance but also simplify the often-bewildering array of products in the family.

Faster...Better...But Not Cheaper

Both WAS 5.1 and WAS Express Edition 5.1 contain next-generation technologies that are meant to make Java development more productive and less complicated. One of these technologies is JavaServer Faces (JSF), a framework of JavaServer Pages (JSP) tags and Java classes that will simplify the user interface development process. With JSF, developers will gain libraries of consistent, reusable GUI components that they can drag and drop into applications and Web pages. JSF will reduce the time it takes to develop GUIs, make component libraries more manageable, and make it easier for developers to learn JSP. Moreover, since most Java vendors intend to support JSF, many application servers and development tools will include the component libraries.

While JSF has tremendous potential, developers should note that its specification is still under review by the Java Community Process. As such, the JSF implementations in both editions of WAS 5.1 are pre-release versions that should be used only for testing purposes. As soon as JSF is finalized, IBM intends to upgrade both WAS 5.1 editions with an official implementation.

Another key feature of both WAS 5.1 and WAS Express Edition 5.1 is support for the Java Technology Edition 1.4 Software Development Kit (SDK 1.4). Besides supporting new Web services technologies and standards, SDK 1.4 introduces a simple expression language for developing JSPs that is highly similar to scripting languages. The language, which is supported in both WAS 5.1 and WAS 5.1 Express Edition, helps to further reduce the learning curve for JSP neophytes.

Of course, adding support in WAS for JSF and SDK 1.4 will matter little if your development tools don't include the technologies. To address this need, IBM will add both technologies to its WebSphere Studio 5.1 family of products. The company will probably announce the additions tomorrow and should include WebSphere Development Studio for iSeries in the list of upgraded products. By the way, IBM more than doubled most license fees for WebSphere Development Studio Advanced Edition for iSeries earlier this month. If you're an Advanced Edition user, be sure to purchase any additional licenses you might need before March 31, 2004. Until this date, IBM is offering a 25% discount off the newly increased prices.

Speaking of the iSeries, IBM has added some features to the iSeries version of WAS Express Edition 5.1 that are not in the Windows and Linux versions. One of these is Web Services Object Runtime Framework, a facility that lets developers create Web services that access DB2, yet requires minimal knowledge of XML or SQL. IBM has also upgraded the Telephone Directory application to include integration with Lotus Sametime and Enterprise Identity Mapping domain servers. Finally, IBM has added a Welcome Page to WAS Express Edition that is more than just an opening Web browser screen. Welcome Page provides administrative interfaces that let users configure properties for the Telephone Directory and any other applications that IBM might add to WAS Express Edition in the future.

A Kinder, Gentler Java

To a great extent, the WAS 5.1 releases kick off an IBM effort to create a new generation of Java tools that are more developer-friendly. For years, IBM and other Java vendors have trailed Microsoft's Visual Studio tool suite in both ease of use and productivity. Now, with standards efforts such as JSF and SDK 1.4, the Java camp is working to close the gap. Those standards and a variety of vendor-proprietary enhancements are entering the market via a flurry of new products. These include BEA System's WebLogic Workshop, Sun Microsystems' Java Studio Creator (formerly known as Project Rave), and a simplified WebSphere tool portfolio that IBM is calling its Software Development Platform (SDP). IBM plans to roll out SDP over the course of 2004 and has put its Rational Software division in charge of the effort.

Of course, Microsoft won't stand still during 2004. By the middle of the year, it will likely release the first public beta of "Whidbey," its code name for Visual Studio.NET 2004. Whidbey will offer many productivity enhancements, including features that Microsoft claims could reduce coding for some common tasks by as much as 50-70%. If Whidbey delivers on its promises, it will raise the bar that IBM and other Microsoft competitors have to hurdle.

In short, while the WAS upgrades bring some welcome enhancements to iSeries users, they are only the beginning of what will be a busy year. With Microsoft and the Java vendors stepping up their efforts to win over programmers, the development tool market will prove to be a rapidly changing battlefield during 2004.

Lee Kroon is a Senior Industry Analyst for Andrews Consulting Group, a firm that helps mid-sized companies manage business transformation through technology. You can reach him at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

LEE KROON
Lee Kroon is a Senior Industry Analyst for Andrews Consulting Group, a firm that helps mid-sized companies manage business transformation through technology.
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