Additional information on the WebObjects is available at: http://www.info.apple.com/usen/webobjects/
Development platforms
WebObjects applications are designed to work with any Java 2 Platform, Standard Edition 1.3 runtime environment, using JDBC 2.0 for universal database connectivity. The following platforms are fully qualified and supported:
Object-relational mapping
- Eliminates the need to write JDBC or SQL code
- Manages one-to-one, one-to-many, many-to-many, and inter-database relationships
- Automatically handles object fetching, caching, and committing
- Provides automatic transaction management, including support for undo, redo, commit, and rollback
- Allows you to embed referential integrity constraints directly into the model rather than depending on programmer conformance
Database independence
- Enables developers to replace the underlying database by simply updating the model, without changing any code
- Lets you customize the object model for a particular application without having to modify the database
- Supports the seamless incorporation of multiple databases into a single object model
XML interchange
- Allows your applications to easily consume and generate XML data streams
- Interoperates with other XML-based applications
- Lets you manage XML just like any other data source
- Generates dynamic SMIL for use in multimedia applications
Streamlined web-page generation
WebObjects template engine
- Allows the creation of virtually any form of markup: HTML, XML, SMIL, and others
- Hides the actual object model from the web designer, preventing scripting errors from corrupting the database
- Works with the bundled WebObjects Builder (which understands the object model), or with standard HTML authoring tools
Reusable components
- Integrates templates, mappings, and related code into a single reusable package
- Supports the updating of mappings independently of the web-page design
- Includes dozens of ready-to-use system components
- Allows you to easily create and reuse your own components
Built-in session management
- Eliminates the need to write your own session management code
- Does not require cookies on the user's system
- Allows developers to manage sessions at the object level rather than the HTTP level
Integrated tool support
Project Builder
- Provides a broad array of prebuilt application templates for rapid startup
- Includes powerful assistants for creating Direct to Web and Direct to Java Client applications
- When run on Mac OS X, supports CVS and graphical debugging
Direct to Web/Direct to Java Client
- Enables quick creation of front ends for browsing, searching, and editing any database
- Derives relevant entities and fields heuristically, directly from the object model
- Scalable user interface dynamically adjusts to any number of entries
- Lets you use a Java applet to easily customize the layout and appearance
- Simplifies maintenance by making it possible to reuse framework code rather than generating application-specific code
Enterprise Object Modeler
- Allows you to extract and view a schema from any JDBC database, and to write new schemas
- Lets you graphically view and edit entity-relationship diagrams
- Cleanly integrates business logic with fine-grained data objects
WebObjects Builder
- Lets you freely view and edit HTML in either markup or preview mode
- Makes it easy to quickly assemble prebuilt or custom WebObjects components into a single dynamic page
- Enables you to graphically map components onto the underlying object model
Interface Builder
- Helps you rapidly generate and test user interfaces in Swing (Java, cross-platform) and Cocoa (Objective-C or Java, MacOS X
- Allows you to graphically create and edit connections between user interface widgets and the underlying database objects
- Ensures an Aqua-compliant look and feel on Mac OS X
WebObjects Monitor
- Makes it possible to remotely view and manage application server instances
- Generates statistics of server usage patterns
Record and Playback Manager
- Lets you record web sessions and store them for testing purposes
- Permits the scheduling of a single playback or groups of playbacks for testing across multiple clients
- Allows you to view graphical displays of results
- Supports access from any web browser
Comprehensive desktop application support
Abstract interface management layer
- Automatically handles caching and synchronization of the user interface with the underlying frameworks
- Avoids database roundtrips for many operations by providing a local object store
- Supports both Swing (for Java 2) and Cocoa (for Mac OS X)
- Supports rich media types, including QuickTime movies and RTSP streams
Three-tier Java client support
- Delivers all data over the HTTP server for maximum reach and scalability
- Handles all session management, transport, and data access transparently with the underlying frameworks
- Gives you the optimal tradeoff between performance and security by letting you freely move business logic between a client and the application server
- Works with either browser-based applets or stand-alone Java applications
Two-tier Cocoa clients on Mac OS X
- Provides a fully native UI that's tightly integrated with Mac OS X technologies
- Includes sophisticated multilingual string manipulation using the Cocoa text engine
- Ensures that stand-alone applications access the database directly, without requiring a web server
Straightforward pure-Java deployment
Java 2 compatibility
- Runs on any Java 2, Standard Edition v1.3 virtual machine*
- Supports full access to all Java 2 APIs, including RMI/IIOP and JNDI
- Provides easy interoperability with other Java applications
* Note: WebObjects 5 is officially qualified for use only on Mac OS X, Windows 2000 Pro, and Solaris 8 using Oracle 8i with JDBC 2 and the Java 2 Platform, Standard Edition 1.3.
Flexible, low-cost licensing
- Requires only one license per machine, regardless of platform, speed, or number of processors
- Includes no restrictions on the number of transactions, application instances, or threads
- Each license includes full database connectivity and integration support
Reliable, scalable deployment services
- Lets you easily add servers using a variety of prebuilt scheduling mechanisms
- Includes no restrictions on the number of transactions, application instances, or threads
- Allows you to run both WebObjects 4.5.1 and WebObjects 5 applications on the same system