Conversion utility moves applications Real Software is adding the ability to migrate Windows applications to Linux in an upgrade of the company’s Realbasic tool.Available Wednesday, Version 5.5 of Realbasic includes a conversion utility that can migrate Visual Basic applications to Linux, the company said. The tool is for building cross-platform software and is similar to Visual Basic, the company said. In addition to migrating to Linux, developers can build Linux desktop and server applications in release 5.5. Windows and Macintosh application development already has been supported“We’ve been cross-compiling for a number of years but this is the first version that supports Linux,” said Geoff Perlman, president and CEO of Real Software. “Linux is the fastest growing OS out there, and I know that a lot of Windows users are interested in Linux,” Perlman said.A user of the product at management consulting firm Wolf Rock, which has used the product for both hardware and software development, said Linux compatability reduces the development workload .“For us, we do the applications in all sorts of languages,” said Kevin McCabe, president of Wolf Rock. “But what this means is once we write it we don’t have to do a separate Linux version.” Also new in Version 5.5 is access to Web services through SOAP and XML.Realbasic 5.5 supports Linux on x86 Intel platforms running Rex Hat Linux or SuSE Linux. Other Linux distributions with the Gnome Toolkit 2.0 and CUPS (Common Unix Printing System) libraries installed also should work, according to Real Software.Remote debugging is included in Version 5.5 to enable Linux applications to be tested or debugged from either Windows or Macintosh. The product also features an improved single-user database and can be integrated with Microsoft Office to enable development of applications that can control office.Version 5.5 also adds connectivity to Oracle9i databases for access to records and databases.The Realbasic 5.5 Professional Edition, required for cross-platform software deployment, starts at $399.95. It includes database server connectivity and team development capabilities. A free trial version of Realbasic is available at http://www.realsoftware.com/demo. Software DevelopmentTechnology IndustrySmall and Medium Business