Wizard API updated!
Tim Boudreau has released a new version of the Swing Wizard library (version 0.997) that fixes the WizardException bug reported in JavaWorld's recent Open Source Java Project profile. The article's examples have been reworked to test out the new, improved WizardException. Thanks, Tim, for this helpful fix!
Open Source Java Projects: The Wizard API

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Enterprise mashups

Mashups' easy integration of data and services should enable a whole new class of enterprise apps

By Galen Gruman, InfoWorld, 08/07/06

They're all the rage in the Web 2.0 crowd: mashup services that typically combine maps with all sorts of data from a variety of Web sources. In the past year, we've seen a host of much-discussed sites pop up, from Zillow.com for real-estate value estimation, to AuctionMapper, which presents eBay search results on maps to help locate the nearest sellers.

But mashups are more than just annotated maps for consumer Websites. The technology holds real promise for the enterprise, both within companies and among customers and partners. Because mashups use technology that you already have—JavaScript, XML, and DHTML, plus fast Internet connections to support graphical and functional richness—there's no huge investment required. IT is starting to take mashups seriously as quick, easy solutions to integration problems that previously seemed like a daunting amount of work.

This sort of lightweight integration has plenty of precedent, from the time-honored stock ticker, to e-commerce sites that combine UPS or FedEx tracking data with an order history to present a single view of order status. Inside the enterprise, portal server vendors, including IBM and Plumtree, have long offered users graphical tools to integrate datasources "at the glass," resulting in simple, personalized Web apps.

"What's different now is the availability and the ease-of-use," says Giovanni Gallucci, president and COO of Kinetic Results, which specializes in search engine optimization and Web analytics. "That's because a lot of the APIs are built on common standards."

Kinetic Results has created mashups using Web traffic and other analytics data to create visual reports for customers. Other adopters include aircraft engine maker Pratt & Whitney, which uses mashups to give employees access to the repair, order, and service history for any part, integrating a half-dozen datasources. And real-estate brokerage Zip Realty uses mashups to integrate client data from the CRM system within agents' email, allowing them to view reports of current property matches from email alerts.

Everything old is new again

For years, Web apps have dominated in-house enterprise development efforts, so integrating multiple datasources into interactive Webpages behind the firewall is nothing new. But runaway adoption of AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML) is changing the game. "What sets off the lightbulb [in developer's minds] is that you have this ubiquitous platform where you can integrate components without custom applications," says Ross Dargahi, co-founder and vice president of engineering at Zimbra, a developer of AJAX-based email and collaboration tools.

Moreover, as more enterprise and service providers adopt Web technologies, a broader swath of data is available in XML form. "In the past, half the work was how to make these things work together. With XML and so on, that's old hat," Gallucci says.

The tipping point was clearly when Google published its Google Maps API, says Aaron Tavistock, chief architect at Zip Realty. "Google has put a lot out to seed the mashup concept, telling developers, 'Here, use this.' Before that, the openness hadn't been there."

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For more enterprise computing news, visit InfoWorld. Story copyright InfoWorld Media Group, Inc.

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