NetNews Usenet Archive 1992 #16/NN_1992_16.iso/spool/comp/object/3003

Internet Message Format | 1992-07-25 | 16.6 KB

Path: sparky!uunet!darwin.sura.net!wupost!psuvax1!psuvm!mkk2
Organization: Penn State University
Date: Sat, 25 Jul 1992 10:39:03 EDT
From: <[e-mail]>
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Newsgroups: comp.object
Subject: Some blurbs from NeXT
Lines: 374

These three announcements appeared over in the c.s.next groups.  They seemed to
me to be generally relevant to comp.object, so I took the liberty of
reposting them here.  No flames, please.
=========================================================================
From: [e-mail] (International NeXT User Groups)
Newsgroups:
Subject: NeXT Announces ObjectWare: Component-Based Software
Date: 24 Jul 92 19:44:56 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:        Emily Brower
                Allison Thomas Associates
                [phone]

NeXT Announces ObjectWare:  Component-Based Software
Happening First On NeXTSTEP

SAN FRANCISCO, July 21, 1992 -  At the Object World '92 conference
here today, NeXT Computer, Inc. announced ObjectWare, component-based
software for application development.  NeXT also announced NeXT
OBJECTWARE, the industry's first object catalog, containing more than
100 commercially available objects from more than 50 NeXTSTEP
developers.

"While the rest of the industry is still dreaming about objects, NeXT
is delivering real objects now, and our customers are buying and
using them," said Steven P. Jobs, chairman and CEO of NeXT.  "This
ObjectWare catalog marks an historic event in the software industry."

NeXTSTEP's object-oriented architecture makes possible a new category
of software, which sits between traditional system software and
traditional application software.  Called ObjectWare, it consists of
objects that can be bought and licensed by developers to create
custom applications much faster.

Emergence of an Object Marketplace

"Nine months ago we predicted that an object marketplace would begin
to appear," said Doug McLeod, an analyst at International Data
Corporation (IDC).  "NeXT's ObjectWare catalog is tangible evidence
that this prediction is coming true with NeXTSTEP.  I was impressed
by the diversity of the objects in the catalog, with nearly every
major category represented.  Given that NeXTSTEP has been
object-oriented from the beginning, it's not surprising that the
trend toward component-based software is happening on NeXT first."

Object-oriented technology is increasing in popularity because it
addresses a growing demand for software that is faster and easier to
develop, plus simpler to maintain and revise.  Numerous studies show
that the single largest cost in a software application's life cycle
is in maintenance and upgrades.  With object-oriented technology,
customers can not only create custom applications more quickly, but
also significantly reduce the amount of time and effort needed to
maintain and enhance the software.

Nowhere is the trend toward object-oriented software more evident
than in vertical markets that have highly specific needs, such as
financial services, health care and legal.  Developers in these
markets can use objects such as those listed in the ObjectWare
catalog to build specialized applications for financial modeling,
simulation, database access and management, health care,
communications, document management, publishing and decision support.



ObjectWare:  Real Objects Right Now

Software objects provide real-world functionality that developers can
incorporate into any kind of application.

Objects in NeXT's ObjectWare catalog include the following:

 - objects for incorporating bar codes into any type of printed
     matter;
 - an object that converts English typed text into words "spoken" by
     a NeXTSTEP computer;
 - a "document engine" that can provide the basis for component-based
     publishing applications;
 - an object library for developing distributed networking
     applications;
 - objects for mathematical modeling and financial simulation;
 - objects for scanner and serial port device interfaces; and
 - graphing and 3D display objects.

In addition to its 100 commercially available objects, NeXT's
ObjectWare catalog features a selection of free, public domain
objects.

Some of the objects listed were derived from custom applications.
For example, financial trading objects provided by Anderson Financial
Systems (AFS) for the NeXT ObjectWare catalog were distilled from
earlier custom projects for its Wall Street clients.  AFS's TradeKit
objects provide pre-written code for standard trading functions, such
as ticket writing and position management.  Even developers with
minimal knowledge of the securities industry can use these AFS
objects to create custom trading applications in a fraction of the
time previously required.

In a separate press release, NeXT also announced today that all
NeXTSTEP objects (those provided by NeXT as well as all third-party
ObjectWare) are fully conformant with the Object Management Group
(OMG)'s object model.  The OMG, which NeXT announced it has joined as
a corporate member, is considered the leading consortium focused on
object-oriented technology.

NeXTSTEP:  An Architecture for ObjectWare Development

The third-party objects and object kits listed in NeXT's ObjectWare
catalog complement the mature library of foundation objects provided
in NeXTSTEP.  Since Release 1.0, NeXTSTEP has been based on rich
classes of extensible software objects.  Release 2.0 of NeXTSTEP
added features and functionality common to all applications, such as
integrated printing and faxing, color, interapplication
communications and sound.

The third generation of NeXTSTEP, due to ship in volume next month,
will include kits of more complex objects (including the Database
Kit, 3DKit, PhoneKit and Indexing Kit) as well as Distributed
Objects, which extends NeXTSTEP's object-oriented paradigm for single
applications to include messaging between different applications,
machines and networks.

Because all these objects run in NeXTSTEP, they can be subclassed and
customized; combined, they provide most of the code needed to build a
custom application.

"The NeXTSTEP Application Kit is the best collection of objects I've
ever seen," said Alex Cone, president of the software development
company Objective Technologies, Inc. (OTI).  "It allows us to create
industrial-strength objects that are well-tested, versatile,
generalized and well-documented.  With NeXTSTEP, object orientation
pervades the entire system.  NeXT is the only system in which you can
write purely object-oriented code."

"NeXTSTEP's object-oriented development environment is what most of
us had always wanted, but just didn't think was possible," said Vince
Jordan, director of software development for WilTel's Advanced
Technology Center, the nation's fourth largest fiber optic network
and a NeXT customer.  "Our current telecommunications network
management system would have taken six to eight years to develop if
we were working on our old platform."

Ordering NeXT's ObjectWare Catalog

NeXT's ObjectWare catalog is available now for $XX.XX and can be
ordered by calling 1-800-TRY-NeXT.  All objects in the catalog are
available through their respective third-party developers.


About NeXT Computer

NeXT Computer, Inc. designs and markets the industry-acclaimed
NeXTSTEP object-oriented software environment, and designs,
manufactures and markets UNIX-based workstations that run NeXTSTEP.
NeXTSTEP and NeXT workstations are used by medium and large
organizations to develop and deploy mission-critical applications,
using both custom and shrink-wrapped software.  NeXT is headquartered
at 900 Chesapeake Drive, Redwood City, California, 94063.


-30-


NeXT, the NeXT logo, NeXTSTEP and ObjectWare are trademarks of NeXT
Computer, Inc.  All other trademarks mentioned belong to their
respective owners.

=========================================================================
From: [e-mail] (International NeXT User Groups)
Subject: NeXT Computer and Object Design Announce Joint Development Agreement
Date: 24 Jul 92 22:00:13 GMT

For Immediate Release:

Contacts:   Steve Parker              Emily Brower
            Object Design, Inc.       Allison Thomas Associates
            [phone]            [phone]

            Sue Parente
            The Weber Group
            [phone]


NeXT Computer and Object Design Announce Joint Development Agreement

Partnership Will Create Next-Generation Object-Oriented Storage
Technology

SAN FRANCISCO, July 21, 1992 - Object Design, Inc. and NeXT Computer,
Inc. today announced that they have signed an agreement to jointly
develop the next generation of object-oriented storage and database
technology.

Under this agreement, Object Design will port ObjectStore 2.0, the
most recent version of its object-oriented database product, to
NeXTSTEP Release 3.0.  This product will be available by the end of
1992, and will be marketed and distributed by Object Design.

In addition, NeXT and Object Design will jointly develop the next
generation of object storage and database technology, with the
intention of creating an industry standard.  NeXT will incorporate
these products into future versions of NeXTSTEP, its highly acclaimed
object-oriented operating environment.  Object Design will license
these open products to other vendors.

"Once again, NeXT is taking the lead in defining and developing
object-oriented technology standards," said Steven P. Jobs, chairman
and CEO of NeXT.  "We partnered with Object Design because they are
the leaders in object storage technology.  We jointly developed
Display PostScript with Adobe, and our goal is to jointly develop the
`PostScript' of object storage with Object Design."

"NeXT is a defining force for object-oriented software development,"
said Ken Marshall, president and CEO of Object Design.  "The results
of our collaboration will not only be available to NeXT and Object
Design, but also open to other companies.  This new standard,
co-developed by NeXT and ODI, will change the way developers create
end-user applications."


Object-Oriented System Software

NeXT's object-oriented system software, NeXTSTEP, is rapidly gaining
support with developers, who recognize that they can build NeXTSTEP
applications in a fraction of the time required by traditional,
procedural programming tools.  By encouraging the development of
reusable code that is easier to maintain and enhance, NeXTSTEP
object-oriented development tools reduce the cost and time needed to
create complex applications.  According to a recent study by
Booz Allen, NeXTSTEP reduces the amount of code needed to develop a
complex application by as much as 80 percent.


Object-Oriented Storage Systems Vital to Industry Future

Object-oriented storage and database technology is the next logical
area for further increasing object-oriented software development
productivity.  Object-oriented databases are important for two
reasons:  They reduce considerably the amount of time needed to
develop database applications, and they enable the shared management
of all data types, including audio, video and graphic data.

Object-oriented databases support and extend the object paradigm,
allowing developers to store the objects used to build
object-oriented applications.  Because they support general software
development, object-oriented databases improve the quality of
applications of many kinds, not just traditional database
applications.

In contrast to existing relational database systems, which are ideal
for applications containing text and numerical data, object-oriented
databases can manage data of tremendous complexity, including
graphics, audio, video, text, voice and images.  They can also manage
the kinds of data associated with relational systems.

Based on object-oriented technology, future database applications
will include complex, collaborative systems, such as concurrent
engineering, multimedia information systems and media-rich workgroup
tools.  By managing the storage of complex information,
object-oriented storage systems will enable the rapid development of
these kinds of innovative applications.


About ODI

Object Design is the leading supplier of object-oriented database
management systems worldwide.  The company's principal product
ObjectStore executes in a client/server environment of computers
using the UNIX or Microsoft Windows operating system.  Object Design
is headquartered in Burlington, Mass. and has regional offices in
Chicago; Los Angeles; San Mateo, Calif.; and Tokyo, Japan.


About NeXT Computer

NeXT Computer, Inc. designs and markets the industry-acclaimed
NeXTSTEP object-oriented software environment, and designs,
manufactures and markets UNIX-based workstations that run NeXTSTEP.
NeXTSTEP and NeXT workstations are used by medium and large
organizations to develop and deploy mission-critical applications,
using both custom and shrink-wrapped software.  NeXT is headquartered
at 900 Chesapeake Drive, Redwood City, California, 94063.

-30-

=========================================================================
From: [e-mail] (International NeXT User Groups)
Subject: NeXT JOINS OMG, NeXTSTEP Objects Fully OMG Conformant
Date: 24 Jul 92 19:36:56 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:        Emily Brower
                Allison Thomas Associates
                [phone]


NeXT JOINS OMG
NeXTSTEP Objects Fully OMG Conformant

SAN FRANCISCO, July 21, 1992  -   NeXT Computer, Inc. today announced
that it has joined the Object Management Group (OMG) as a corporate
member and plans to participate in the OMG by submitting its
technology for consideration.

In addition, NeXT announced that its rich set of NeXTSTEP objects are
all fully OMG conformant.  As a result, NeXT becomes the first
computer company to ship an OMG-conformant suite of objects,
significantly ahead of its competitors.

The OMG-conformant objects include those provided in NeXTSTEP Release
3.0, NeXT's latest release of its highly acclaimed object-oriented
environment, as well as the third-party NeXTSTEP objects included in
the NeXT OBJECTWARE catalog, which was announced today.  NeXTSTEP 3.0
also includes Distributed Objects, placing NeXT significantly ahead
of its competitors in the race to offer distributed objects.

The announcements were made at ObjectWorld, a conference dedicated to
both the technology and business of object-oriented software, being
held here through July 23.

"We are certainly pleased to see NeXT, a leading provider of
object-oriented technology, join the OMG," said Chris Stone,
president of the OMG.  "We welcome NeXT's full participation in our
work to establish widely used standards for object technology."

"NeXT is the only platform with real OMG objects available now, way
ahead of our arch rival Sun," said Steven P. Jobs, chairman and CEO
of NeXT.  "NeXT is pleased to participate and offer its expertise in
the OMG, the industry's leading consortium focused on object-oriented
technology.  In joining, we also bring the experience and knowledge
of the entire NeXTSTEP community numbering in the tens of thousands
to the OMG, with the result being better object-oriented technology
for the entire industry."

"This is one more demonstration that NeXT is leading the way in
object-oriented systems," said Tom Campbell, senior vice president at
the First National Bank of Chicago, a NeXT customer.


About the OMG
Headquartered in Framingham, Mass., with marketing operations in
Boulder, Colo., the OMG is an international organization of systems
vendors, software developers and users founded to promote the theory
and practice of object management technology in the development of
software.  Its goal is to develop a common framework for
object-oriented applications based on industry guidelines.  The
adoption of this framework will make it possible to develop a
heterogeneous applications environment across all major hardware and
operating systems.

OMG membership spans five categories:  corporate, end user,
associate, university and subscribing memberships.  Corporate members
are entitled to full participation in all OMG activities, including
voting on the acceptance of technology for OMG standards, serving on
OMG's Technical Committee and submitting technology for adoption.

About NeXT
NeXT Computer, Inc. designs and markets the industry-acclaimed
NeXTSTEP object-oriented software environment, and designs,
manufactures and markets UNIX-based workstations that run NeXTSTEP.
NeXTSTEP and NeXT workstations are used by medium and large
organizations to develop and deploy mission-critical applications,
using both custom and shrink-wrapped software.  NeXT is headquartered
at 900 Chesapeake Drive, Redwood City, California, 94063.

-30-

NeXT, the NeXT logo, NeXTSTEP and ObjectWare are trademarks of NeXT
Computer, Inc.  All other trademarks mentioned belong to their
respective owners.