SAN MATEO (09-09-95) - As part of a continuing effort to transform World Wide Web servers into platforms for interactive applications, Netscape Communications Corp. in two weeks will unveil its first management tool and a major multimedia upgrade to its Web browser.
Netscape LiveWorks, due in the fourth quarter, is a graphical tool for Windows 95, Windows NT, and Unix that simplifies managing Web document hyperlinks, one of the most tedious aspects of Web administration.
Using LiveWorks, a Web administrator will be able to move a Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) document to a new directory and have all hyper references to that document automatically updated. Previously, an IS manager would have had to manually relink those documents.
"If I had link management tomorrow, I'd be the happiest man alive," said Sean Kane, information systems developer at the U.S. Postal Service, in Washington. "If we have to reorganize [our Web site], we have to make sure all of our links are updated."
Other users concurred.
"I try to avoid making changes [to our Web site]. It's a hassle to reorganize," said Tim Zink, network architect at Boehringer Mannheim, in Indianapolis.
Netscape LiveWorks also verifies links to external Web sites, flagging links to inaccessible documents and servers so they can be deleted.
Also included with Netscape LiveWorks is a scripting language based on Java, a programming language developed by Sun Microsystems Inc. that is intended for creating interactive multimedia applications on-line.
Java, alpha versions of which have been available on Sun's Home page since last May, enables developers to create applets that add dynamic content to a Web site.
Netscape in two weeks will also announce the availability of a beta version of Netscape Navigator 2.0, which will include support for Java applets and offer an API for adding viewers for media types such as Macromedia Director presentations and Portable Document Format documents.
Java support in Netscape will open up new possibilities for Web-based groupware applications on corporate LANs, said Mike Prince, director of information systems at Burlington Coat Factory Inc., based in Burlington, N.J.
"I'm happy to see Netscape embrace Java," Prince said. "It allows you to disseminate programs the same way you disseminate documents."
Netscape's release of a Java browser is expected to speed Java's acceptance as a development tool, analysts said. But Java will face competition from other tools, such as Next Inc.'s WebObjects and Microsoft Corp.'s Blackbird.
Netscape will also announce the fourth-quarter availability of Netscape Navigator Gold, a US$79 Windows, Macintosh, and X Windows WYSIWYG HTML editor that will be integrated into Netscape Navigator 2.0, sources said.
Unlike most HTML editors, which require toggling back and forth between a browser and an editor, Netscape Navigator Gold will combine them into one package.
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