REDMOND, Wash., March 10, 1997 — Microsoft Corp. today announced two new Software Development Kits (SDKs) that can enhance the functionality of the Microsoft®
Visual InterDev
™
Web application development system version 1.0 and make it even easier to create Web applications for the Active Platform. These SDKs include the Design-Time ActiveX
™
Control SDK, now available for free download from the Microsoft Web site (connect-time charges may apply), and the Web Wizard SDK, which is scheduled to be available for free download in early spring.
“We developed Visual InterDev 1.0 as a complete solution for building database-driven Web applications, which will allow enterprises to more easily take advantage of the benefits offered by intranets and the World Wide Web,” said Paul Gross, vice president, developer tools division at Microsoft. “We’re extremely excited by the praise Visual InterDev is already winning within the industry and the interest it is generating among developers.”
Design-Time Control SDK
The Design-Time ActiveX Control SDK allows developers to easily create Web authoring components that are seamlessly hosted inside Visual InterDev 1.0. Design-time controls can automatically generate HTML and Active Server Page scripting (such as that in the Microsoft Visual Basic® programming system, Scripting Edition, or JScript
™
development software), dramatically reducing the amount of time required to develop dynamic Web applications. Because Design-Time Controls can produce standard HTML and server-side scripting, their output can be platform- and browser-independent.
For example, the HTML table control that is included as a sample with the Design-Time Control SDK enables a developer using Visual InterDev 1.0 to create customized tables, dynamically populated with records from a relational database, in a matter of minutes. Design-Time Controls can be created with any tool that can create standard ActiveX Controls, including Microsoft Visual Basic 5.0 (Control Creation, Professional and Enterprise editions), the Microsoft Visual C++® development system, and a wide range of third-party development tools.
The samples also include a dynamic advertisement control that provides visual authoring for a Java
™
Applet. The Design-Time Control, written in Visual Basic, enables a Web author to visually customize a Java Applet for displaying a rotating billboard in a Web page. The output is a customized, “pure” Java Applet that is viewable across different platforms and browsers.
Although Visual InterDev is the first tool to support Design-Time Controls, Microsoft plans to support it in other Web tools, including a future version of the Microsoft FrontPage
™
Web authoring and management tool. In addition, the SDK includes the interfaces and documentation that enable third-party tool vendors to support Design-Time Controls in their tools. To download the Microsoft Design-Time Control SDK 1.0, please visit http://msdn.microsoft.com/workshop/prog/sdk/dtctrl/ .
Web Wizard SDK
The Web Wizard SDK enables developers to create new wizards for Visual InterDev 1.0. Web Wizards can generate entire Web sites in a matter of minutes by asking the developer a series of questions, then generating the customized HTML and Active Server Pages required for the application.
“We’re excited about the ability to build dynamic Web applications for vertical markets using the Web Wizard SDK with no need for manual coding,” said Zor Gorelov, president of IntraActive Software. “Our wizards will guide people through a series of steps to build their Web sites and then customize them with Web Design-Time Controls that take advantage of built-in services provided by Visual InterDev.”
Web Wizards can be created in Visual Basic 5.0 (Professional Edition or Enterprise Edition) and Visual C++, as well as a variety of third-party tools. For more information on the Web Wizard SDK, please visit http://www.microsoft.com/workshop/prog/sdk/webwiz/ .
Visual InterDev 1.0 Released to Manufacturing
The Visual InterDev 1.0 Web Application Development System, the newest member of Microsoft’s visual tools family, has been released to manufacturing. Visual InterDev 1.0 allows developers to build database-driven, HTML-based Web applications that are browser- and platform-independent, and it provides a rapid visual development environment for building Active Server Pages, a new Web development feature of Microsoft Internet Information Server 3.0. Visual InterDev 1.0 includes an integrated development environment, database-development tools, and site management and content-editing tools that boost the productivity of developers building sophisticated Web applications.
“Until recently, we were a UNIX-based shop, but now we’re about 95 percent
Windows NT® -based because of the richness of the tools available for the Windows NT platform,” said Adam Heneghan, co-founder of Giant Step. “We found Visual InterDev to be the best Web application development tool available, allowing all the disciplines within Giant Step to work together to produce great Web sites. We’ve developed entirely dynamic Web sites with SQL Server as the back end for RCA Electronics, Hallmark and Jenn-Air; our clients are happier because we are now able to develop and maintain their sites faster and cheaper.”
In addition to being available as a standalone product, Visual InterDev 1.0 will be included in both the Professional and Enterprise editions of the Visual Studio
™
97 development system. Visual Studio 97 will include Visual Basic 5.0, Visual C++ 5.0, Visual J++
™
1.1 development software, and the Visual FoxPro
™
5.0 database management system.
Visual InterDev Seminars to Be Offered
In response to the extensive interest in Visual InterDev 1.0, Microsoft is co-sponsoring a second series of seminars on Visual InterDev produced by 32X, a Microsoft Solution Provider. Earlier this year, 32X offered seminars in 12 cities nationwide that quickly sold out. The second series of two-day seminars is set to run from April through May in 32 cities in North America. For more information on a seminar in a specific area, please visit (http://www.32x.com/) or call toll-free (888) 329-4338.
Pricing and Availability
Pricing for Visual InterDev 1.0 will be announced March 19, 1997, at Microsoft Developer Days. The commercial release of Visual InterDev is expected to be widely
available through Microsoft resellers and retailers at the end of the first quarter of 1997. For more information on the product, please visit http://www.microsoft.com/vinterdev/ /.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (NASDAQ
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software for personal computers. The company offers a wide range of products and services for business and personal use, each designed with the mission of making it easier and more enjoyable for people to take advantage of the full power of personal computing every day.
Microsoft, Visual InterDev, ActiveX, Visual Basic, JScript, Visual C++, FrontPage, Windows NT, Visual Studio, Visual J++ and Visual FoxPro are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
Java is a trademark of Sun Microsystems Inc.
Other product and company names herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.
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