Oracle Bulks Up Application Server for Middle Tier
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PC Week has reported that Oracle Corp. has new features in store for the forthcoming Application Server Version 4.0 that will enable corporate users to more efficiently fill the middle tier between legacy systems and thin clients. Oracle is beta testing the upgrade to Application Server, formerly named Web Application Server, that offers new data access cartridges, load balancing enhancements and new HTML wizards to simplify server integration and configuration.

Application Server 4.0, due to be announced this month and to ship early this year, includes an OCI (Oracle Call Interface) cartridge that speeds up Oracle database access, a Fujitsu Software Corp. COBOL cartridge that enables migration or extension of mainframe COBOL applications, and an Rdb cartridge for access to Oracle Rdb databases.

The OCI and the Fujitsu cartridges will be available only in the Application Server 4.0 Enterprise Edition. The OCI was previously available separately. The Enterprise Edition will also enable users to manage transactions to a stateless client, officials of the Redwood Shores, Calif., company said.

Trial downloads will be available this month from http://www.oracle.com Pricing is not available. In addition, Borland International Inc.'s JBuilder Client/Server application development tool will be closely integrated in Version 4.0, officials said. It will enable users to program and deploy Java applications or components as Common Object Request Broker Architecture objects. Application Server already supports a variety of development tools, according to company officials.

American Red Cross Project Manager Steve Karroum said his Falls Church, Va., organization, which now uses Version 3.0, eventually plans to upgrade to 4.0.

He said the 3.0 server has all the features the Red Cross needs, such as enabling the organization to build new cartridges and create Web forms, but he said that a new OCI cartridge would appeal to his organization. "We are in the process of building a data warehouse," Karroum said. "Anything that improves data access and improves performance will help us. "

Analysts say that the upgrade is significant for Oracle. Ted Schadler, an analyst with Forrester Research Inc., in Cambridge, Mass., said the 4.0 release demonstrates a commitment to move away from serving only Oracle databases toward becoming a more open platform for Web-based applications. "Oracle is saying, 'We're going to be in this middle tier space,'" Schadler said.

The Enterprise version also includes an Open Database Connectivity cartridge. Other features in the standard-edition upgrade include a VRML (Virtual Reality Modeling Language) cartridge and VRML data repository that manages three- dimensional worlds. Oracle Application Server 4.0 runs on most Unix platforms and on Windows NT.