NeXT Nugget News Digest (vol. 4, issue 18, September 15, 1992) TABLE OF CONTENTS I. HOT SOFTWARE ANNOUNCES SERIAL PORT KIT II. NeXTSTEP Article in InfoWorld III. NeXTSTEP Review in DBMS Magazine IV. Announcing the release of Stuart2.4 V. Trirex has openings for 2 Senior Programmer/Analysts VI. Relief Consulting Announces 3D Modelling and Animation VII. NeXT Systems Engineer openings in Boston and Philadelphia VIII. Sybase NeXT Developers Wanted in New York City IX. NeXT Programmer Analyst Wanted in Chicago ____________________________________________________________________ This is vol. 4, issue 18 of the 1992 NeXT NUGGET NEWS DIGEST - a collection of items of interest for the NeXT User Group members. There are more than 379 NeXT User Groups in 38 countries on all continents around the world. To submit articles or announcements to appear in the Nugget Digest, please send your contributions to the following address: user_groups@next.com. Conrad Geiger Manager, International NeXT User Groups ____________________________________________________________________ I. HOT SOFTWARE ANNOUNCES SERIAL PORT KIT; Serial Port Control Objects Complement Hot Software's Bar Code Products July 21, 1992 SAN FRANCISCO - Hot Software today introduced a comprehensive object library for controlling serial devices in custom applications for NeXTSTEP computers. The SerialPortKit is designed to help organizations and developers control a variety of serial devices such as label printers, bar code readers, magnetic stripe card readers, modems and data acquisition devices. SerialPortKit allows both organizations and developers to quickly add support for controlling a serial device to a custom NeXTSTEP application. The kit contains a generic serial port object as well as objects for controlling specific serial port devices. SerialPortKit joins Hot Software's recently introduced BarCodeKit, a comprehensive object library for adding PostScript and TIFF bar codes to custom NeXTSTEP applications. BarCodeKit contains every major bar code type in use today, making it the most complete bar coding package available on any computer platform. Object Kits Work With Hot Software's Peripherals Objects in both the SerialPortKit and BarCodeKit communicate with Hot Software's BarCodeBox, a hardware interface that allows users to connect bar code wands, scanners and card readers to their NeXTSTEP computer for fast, accurate and secure data entry. The BarCodeBox interface comes bundled with Wand-a-Bar, an application to configure and drive bar code readers. Wand-a-Bar allows customers to enter bar coded data directly into a Lotus Improv spreadsheet or any NeXTSTEP application. BarCodeBox also comes with Bar-a-Coda, an easy-to-use application for creating bar codes for use in documents. Bar-a-Coda is ideal for adding ZIP codes on envelopes, UPC symbols on products, ISDN numbers on books and labeling any other printed materials. Another object in the SerialPortKit connects to Hot Software's AM-ID, which is an Automatic Magnetic Identification Device for reading magnetic stripe cards. AM-ID is an external insertion type card reader that is great for customer account identification, adding security to NeXTSTEP applications and for self-service credit card billing for desktop publishing service bureaus. Availability and Pricing The Hot Software SerialPortKit is scheduled for release in the fourth quarter of this year, and BarCodeKit is scheduled for release in the third quarter. Both object kits will be available directly from Hot Software. Beta versions of the object kits are available now to customers who purchase Hot Software's BarCodeBox or AM-ID magnetic stripe card reader. When SerialPortKit and BarCodeKit begin shipping in volume, Hot Software will offer free upgrades to customers who have purchased beta versions. Hot Software develops, markets and supports component software and hardware that allows customers to construct automated solutions for increased productivity. Hot Software is headquartered at 75 Cambridge Parkway, Suite E-504, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142-1238. Call Hot Software at + 1 617 252 0088 for further information or for a copy of the company's brochures. Hot Software, SerialPortKit, Wand-a-Bar, AM-ID and BarCodeBox are trademarks of Hot Software. NeXT and NeXTSTEP are trademarks of NeXT Computer, Inc. Improv is a registered trademark of Lotus Development Corporation. ____________________________________________________________________ II. NeXTSTEP Article in InfoWorld Below are some excerpts from a very positive article on NeXTSTEP in the August 24th edition of InfoWorld, which profiles the work being done at WilTel and the L.A. County Sheriff's Department. InfoWorld, 8/24//92 -- Enterprise Computing Section "Corporate Developers Finding Simplicity in Objects" "Object-oriented systems hold the promise of streamlining development cycles while still allowing developers to create sophisticated applications...A recent IDC survey of 1,600 IS managers indicates that nearly half of them are moving to object-oriented systems...NeXT Computer is one of a handful of companies selling an object-oriented programming environment. Users range from investment banks and stock traders to telecommunications system designers and law enforcement agencies." "'Programmers felt NeXTSTEP was the only viable choice,' says Vince Jordan, WilTel's director of software development. 'What we're building here is a step above anything I've seen on the market.'...The benefits of object technology far outweighed procedural programming -- especially in the amount of time it takes to build and test the application, Jordan says. 'Others who have built similar systems told me I'm doing in two years what would otherwise take four to eight years,' he says. "NeXTSTEP takes some of the drudgery out of programming by providing tools that shield the designer from the complexities of the underlying system...'I can sit down with a user and in 30 seconds build a screen full of information based on data retrieved from an existing database on the network. Normally this would take two weeks of procedural programming,' Jordan says." "'Applications are not only getting done faster, but they're getting done better. Developers can move to a prototype quickly,' says Neal Hill, an analyst with Dataquest." "'When companies write new programs, they want them to work with the existing programs' says Phil Towne, of Boss Logic. "If they upgrade their machines, they want the software to be easy to upgrade. For an MIS department to do this is like walking in cement. You can't make changes without knowing if it will screw up the code. With objects, you can't screw up the code.'" ____________________________________________________________________ III. NeXTSTEP Review in DBMS Magazine DBMS magazine has an 8-page review of NeXTSTEP and DBKit in the September 1992 issue. The review was very positive, discussing each feature of NeXTSTEP, as well as taking a step-by-step look at how to build a client/server database application with DBKit. You may notice that the author is one of our object developers. Below are some excerpts from this review. DBMS, September 1992 "NeXT's Tools for Database Developers" By Gary Lang "The still-evolving NeXT software expected to hit the market this fall targets the "custom app" market for the newest object-oriented tools. Anticipated users are those who build in-house applications, typically on workstations such as Suns or Hewlett-Packard systems. NeXT shines in this area P neither Sun nor HP has object-oriented application development tools as integrated with the entire system as those introduced by NeXT." "The benefits of object-oriented programming are by now a familiar litany: encapsulation, reuse, architectural cleanliness, and so forth -- all motherhood-and -apple-pie concepts for most software managers and developers. They have been a cornerstone of NeXT from its debut -- that the company has integrated object-oriented concepts into the operating system itself shows that NeXT has taken them more seriously than many vendors." Comparing NeXTSTEP to Other Database Technology "...the NeXT environment has the integrating quality common to most graphical user interfaces, so the types of features found in the dBASE Command Center are provided by the file manager in NeXTSTEP and the multitasking nature of UNIX. For example, the dBASE screen builder is a simple editor that is used to build database forms on a character-based display. There isn't really any internal notion of screen 'objects', but users can lay down common screen elements such as text fields, boxes, and lines. NeXT's Interface Builder provides the tools to lay down not only standard AppKit objects such as panels (which are frequently used for forms in a database application) and text fields, but also buttons, scrolling text fields (with mixed typefaces and sizes), check boxes, and sliders. Also...you can add custom interface objects to the palette." "Part of dBASE IV's suite of application-building tools is the application generator, which lets you create application objects and link them with menus, windows, and other functions...A key difference between this older product and the newer technology embodied in NeXTSTEP is that in NeXTSTEP you create real, live objects that already know how to allocate, position, draw and interconnect themselves. No code is generated except that needed to define the object's classes in the application. The benefit is that you only need to manage the code you write to enhance the behavior of the objects; the rest is provided by NeXTSTEP. Because these objects are shared by the entire system, you and your users benefit from an enormous amount of integration between your custom application and a shrink-wrapped product." "NeXT acknowledges from the start that its system was not for everybody. NeXTSTEP and DBKit's strength is not heavy duty, downsized product operations such as payroll check production, where performance is paramount. Rather, their advantages are in user- interactive applications and in building applications that may change frequently. NeXT's new capabilities for database connectivity, coupled with the robust functions of true object-oriented applications development, will be valuable assets for database application developers." ____________________________________________________________________ IV. Announcing the release of Stuart2.4 Stuart is the mildly popular shareware NeXTSTEP DEC VT100 terminal emulator. Stuart has just been released to the ftp archive site sonata.cc.purdue.edu, and currently resides in the directory pub/next/2.0-release/demos. Don't let the "demos" part fool you, though - it's a fully enabled version (it's in demos because that's where commercial software goes). Stuart2.4 has a large number of improvements over Stuart2.3 and Terminal[23], too many to list here - see the Features section of the online manual for a list of them. A short list is in order, though: o Online manual with easy navigation and searching. o Custom window titlebars can be dynamically set from the shell using xterm-style OSC sequences, or from the user interface. o Improved file drag&drop support. o Per-window shelves for easy access to files and directories. o Revised Preferences and New/Preferences panels, along with a Runtime inspector panel. o Meta-key support for non-QWERTY keymaps. o Quite a number of bug fixes (see the Fixes.rtf file in the distribution). And the list could continue. Rather than accost you with pages of advertising hype, I'll let you download it and decide for yourself. If you spend more than a couple minutes a day at a shell prompt, it should be well worth your time. If you are unable to ftp, please drop me a note and I will attempt to get the distribution to you via email. Either NeXTMail or uuencoded tar.Z is fine by me - whatever is best for you. Note that the distribution is around 300k, in case that'll make a difference with your email paths. Scott Hess 12901 Upton Avenue South, #326 Burnsville, MN 55337 (612) 895-1208 scott@gac.edu or shess@ssesco.com ____________________________________________________________________ V. Trirex has openings for 2 Senior Programmer/Analysts Trirex Systems, Inc., a leading consulting and software development company has an immediate opening for 2 Senior Programmer/Analysts on the NeXT platform to work on the development of Executive Information Systems. Experience with developing applications using NeXTSTEP and Sybase is a must. Any exposure to DBKit is a plus. Both contract and full time applicants will be considered. Positions are located in Seattle, WA and Westport,CT. If you are interested please contact: Sonjoy Jethmalani or Kimberly Morris 203 221 4605 212 856 9843 Fax: 203 221 4602 Email: sonjoy@trirex.com Trirex Systems Inc. 315 Post Road West Westport, CT 06880 ____________________________________________________________________ VI. Relief Consulting Announces 3D Modelling and Animation for NeXT VERSATILE DEVELOPMENT 10121 Portland Avenue East Tacoma, Wa 98445-3953 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Monte Grubb (208) 882-7146 or via NeXTmail at grubb@show10.csc.wsu.edu RELIEF CONSULTING AND DEVELOPMENT ANNOUNCES THREE DIMENSIONAL MODELING AND ANIMATION SOFTWARE FOR NeXT COMPUTERS SEATTLE, Wa., September 1, 1992 - Relief Consulting and Development today introduced Tesseract, a three dimensional modeling package for NeXT computers. Tesseract takes full advantage of the newly incorporated RenderMan objects to provide an interactive three dimensional modeling and animation environment. A full set of drag and drop quadratic shapes, light sources and euclidean solids are implemented with possibilities of an "expandable object palette(s)". In addition, complex spline outlines can be extruded or rotated into shapes that can be used in conjunction with any shader. This software package also incorporates constructive solid geometry and parametrized shapes which allow partial or truncated sections of shapes to be grouped to form unique shapes and objects. These new objects can then be saved and added to the users "expandable object palette". Full cut, copy and paste features are also supported between multiple scenes. The development of custom surface, light and displacement shaders are in progress but will not be announced at this time. "We expect to be one of the leaders in three dimensional modeling and animation software on the NeXT" said John Feiler, president of Relief Consulting and Development. John was the sole author of the NeXT front-end to the highly acclaimed mathematical program, Maple V. Relief Consulting is located in Seattle, Washington. Price and Availability Tesseract (v0.9) is expected to ship October 1,1992. A one-time introductory price will be offered at $XXX, which includes a free upgrade to Tesseract(v1.0) due out in late December. List price is expected to be around $XXX with site licenses available. An educational price of $XX is offered, but only by electronic distribution. Note: A slightly disabled demo version will be available from the archives. Demo mode will allow a one time photorealistic rendering of a scene with a maximum of 15 shapes. Simple animation will not be disabled. If you have any questions about anything listed in this message, please contact me at (208) 882-7146. Sincerely, Monte W. Grubb Versatile Development Trademark Information NeXT, the NeXT logo, NeXTSTEP, NeXT Computers, NeXTstation, NeXTcube, NeXTdimension, NeXTmail, Interface Builder, and Workspace Manager are trademarks of NeXT Computer, Inc. ____________________________________________________________________ VII. NeXT Systems Engineer openings in Boston and Philadelphia JOB SUMMARY: Provide Pre-sales technical support to the NeXT Sales Organization. PRINCIPAL REQUIREMENTS: Support Sales Representatives on sales calls. Prepare and give presentations that show NeXT features and benefits. Team with the Sales Representative to qualify opportunities and establish account plans and strategies. Resolve pre-sales technical questions by understanding, analyzing and researching problems. Analyze customer requirements and propose best possible NeXT solution. Deliver custom software development demonstrations. Develop prototype systems and benchmarks. Administrate UNIX evaluation systems in a heterogeneous environment and deliver informal training to technical evaluators. EDUCATION / EXPERIENCE: B.S. Computer Science or Electrical Engineering. M.S. preferred. Five or more years experience in system development. Experience in a sales environment highly desirable. Intimate knowledge of the Unix Operating system from a development, administrative and systems programming perspective is mandatory. Prior NeXT experience desirable but NOT necessary. Please send your resume to... Mike Owens NeXT Computer, Inc. 150 Clove Road Little Falls, NJ 07424 Fax: (201)812-4222 Email address: mowens@next.com ____________________________________________________________________ VIII. Sybase NeXT Developers Wanted in New York City Immediate Contracts: NeXT Developers - 1 yr. work experience - 3 month to 1 yr. assignments - NY Metro Area Background needed: - S/P/A, NeXT, Business Application exp a+ - S/P/A, NeXT, Transaction Processing exp - Sybase is a plus, 70% Prog 30% Analysis Contact Debbie Ostrow at 908-321-8600 or 908-494-3331 -or- FAX resumes to 908-321-8600 Email: bkeller@pierce.com ____________________________________________________________________ IX. NeXT Programmer Analyst Wanted in Chicago Title: Programmer/Analyst Area: Chicago Company: Consulting Requirements: NeXT Computer, Strong C Education: Degree strongly preferred Experience: 1 yr Commercial on NEXT 3 yrs total preferred Salary: 40K-50K ********************************************************************* To Apply: FAX resume to Tom Gugger - (419) 882-7339 or MAIL resume to Tom Gugger Eagle Group P.O. Box 8167 Sylvania, OH 43560 or CALL Tom Gugger - (419) 882-8006 ____________________________________________________________________ end