Martin Heller
Contributing Writer

Backbase meets AIR

analysis
May 6, 20083 mins

Backbase, "The Ajax Company," announced today that it officially supports Adobe AIR in its development environment. This was implicit in last month's announcement of Version 4.2, but now it's explicit. Here's the full release: Backbase Enterprise Ajax Now Supports Adobe AIR Allows deployment of Ajax based Web applications on the desktop SAN MATEO, Calif., May 6th, 2008. Today, Backbase, The Ajax Compan

Backbase, “The Ajax Company,” announced today that it officially supports Adobe AIR in its development environment. This was implicit in last month’s announcement of Version 4.2, but now it’s explicit.

Here’s the full release:

Backbase Enterprise Ajax Now Supports Adobe AIR

Allows deployment of Ajax based Web applications on the desktop

SAN MATEO, Calif., May 6th, 2008. Today, Backbase, The Ajax Company™, adds official support for Adobe® AIR™, a new runtime environment from Adobe Systems for deploying rich Internet applications (RIAs). This integration lets applications built on Backbase Enterprise Ajax run as applications on the desktop across various operating systems.

Applications created with Backbase Enterprise Ajax and deployed on Adobe AIR can access desktop file systems, clipboards, drag and drop events, and system tray/notifications. They can store information locally and operate offline. The combination of Backbase Enterprise Ajax and Adobe AIR opens up new opportunities for web application developers to extend their Ajax solutions to the desktop.

Developers will also benefit from the new integration because they can now use a single platform — Backbase Enterprise Ajax — to build both online and desktop applications. “Now developers can use both their Ajax skills and Web technologies like HTML and Ajax to develop desktop applications,” says Michel Gerin, Backbase VP of Marketing.

Backbase Enterprise Ajax delivers an end-to-end solution for designing, developing and deploying business critical Ajax based RIAs. With an intuitive interface, easy-to-use Ajax tags, and an extensive library of widgets, Backbase increases developer productivity, reduces lead-time for Ajax projects, and leverages existing IT investments.

Applications built and deployed with Backbase Enterprise Ajax and Adobe AIR deliver the best of both worlds. Backbase Enterprise Ajax delivers the features of browser-based RIAs plus speed of development and ease of use. Adobe AIR adds desktop functionality like reading and writing local files, integrating with other applications on an end-user’s computer, and maintaining local data storage on the desktop.

“Applications on Adobe AIR combine the power of local resources with the reach of the Web,” said Robert Christensen, Adobe AIR senior product manager at Adobe. “The union of Backbase Enterprise Ajax with Adobe AIR empowers Ajax developers to use their existing skills and code to build responsive, highly engaging applications on the desktop.”

“The benefits are great” says Gerin. “Enterprise developers and ISVs can boost productivity, extend their market reach, enhance customer satisfaction, improve customer retention, lower costs, and increase profits.”

Best practices and a sample application using Enterprise Ajax with Adobe Air are available on the Backbase Developer Network at: https://www.backbase.com/adobe-air

About Backbase

Backbase, Inc, The Ajax CompanyTM, is the leading provider of enterprise software for creating Ajax-based Rich Internet Applications (RIAs). Medium to large enterprises and independent software vendors use Backbase to enhance the usability of their Web applications, migrate fat client applications to the Web, deliver next-generation online self-service applications, and create enterprise mashups. Founded in 2003, Backbase is headquartered in San Mateo, California, USA. Additional information is available at www.backbase.com .

Martin Heller

Martin Heller is a contributing writer at InfoWorld. Formerly a web and Windows programming consultant, he developed databases, software, and websites from his office in Andover, Massachusetts, from 1986 to 2010. From 2010 to August of 2012, Martin was vice president of technology and education at Alpha Software. From March 2013 to January 2014, he was chairman of Tubifi, maker of a cloud-based video editor, having previously served as CEO.

Martin is the author or co-author of nearly a dozen PC software packages and half a dozen Web applications. He is also the author of several books on Windows programming. As a consultant, Martin has worked with companies of all sizes to design, develop, improve, and/or debug Windows, web, and database applications, and has performed strategic business consulting for high-tech corporations ranging from tiny to Fortune 100 and from local to multinational.

Martin’s specialties include programming languages C++, Python, C#, JavaScript, and SQL, and databases PostgreSQL, MySQL, Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle Database, Google Cloud Spanner, CockroachDB, MongoDB, Cassandra, and Couchbase. He writes about software development, data management, analytics, AI, and machine learning, contributing technology analyses, explainers, how-to articles, and hands-on reviews of software development tools, data platforms, AI models, machine learning libraries, and much more.

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