Cape Clear is revving up to roll out Cape Clear Studio 7, the latest incarnation of the company's development platform for building Web services atop its ESB. I've been playing with the beta, and it strikes me that all of the enhancements are aimed at improving usability and enhancing development in larger IT camps. For instance, although Studio remains a Windows-only application, it has been ported to Eclipse 3 Cape Clear is revving up to roll out Cape Clear Studio 7, the latest incarnation of the company’s development platform for building Web services atop its ESB. I’ve been playing with the beta, and it strikes me that all of the enhancements are aimed at improving usability and enhancing development in larger IT camps. For instance, although Studio remains a Windows-only application, it has been ported to Eclipse 3.2 (Calisto) and now installs off a single, wizard-driven executable that simplifies deployment. The new edition also takes good advantage of concepts like project builders and pluggable project facets — encapsulated functionality specs that simplify project development and management. BPEL composition benefits from easier viewing facilities, like zoom (a glaring absence in earlier runs), and enhanced wizardry for abstracting development. I also liked the improved partner link support, now more fully integrating third party services without requiring workarounds. Further, WSDL files are treated more dynamically, with external references replacing files previously hard-stored within projects. It all adds up to improved development flexibility. Cape Clear has a strong commitment to educating customers on best practices for SOA migration — through strong tutorials and integrated help samples, for example — that consequently makes them a good starting point for smaller shops. The familiar Eclipse cheat sheets have even been filled out to offer developers step-by-step, point-and-click roadmaps for constructing and deploying Java-based Web services.Other enhancements to the studio include simplified conversion of existing Java projects and stricter WS-I validation in the Web services test facility. Cape Clear is keeping mum on many additional goodies slated for the Cape Clear 7 platform release later this month. And, to be sure, there are still a number of important bugs to be worked out. I’m looking forward to the GA release. Keep an eye on the InfoWorld Test Center pages for our exclusive on Cape Clear 7 in coming weeks.Cape Clear Studio 7.0 Beta Availaility: GA due March 2007 Pricing: To be determined Verdict: Strong team-based enhancements and enterprise-grade components like clustering, orchestration, and BAM promise to make Cape Clear a stronger consideration for larger SOA rollouts. Improved usability and development wizardry in Cape Clear Studio show the company is making good strides. Our final verdict must be reserved until the GA release in March. Technology Industry