PlanetJ Releases WOW 6.5, Begins Beta for WOWFusion

Published: December 12, 2006

by Alex Woodie

PlanetJ this month unveiled Web Object Wizard (WOW) version 6.5, a new release of its Java-based development environment for creating Web applications that run on the System i and other servers. The company also announced the start of a beta test for WOWFusion 1.0, a new reporting add-on to WOW.

PlanetJ bills WOW as a flexible framework for quickly creating Web applications that can run on practically any environment, although PlanetJ has a definite bias toward the i5/OS world. The company, which was formed by ex-IBMers in Rochester, Minnesota, in 1998 (it's now based in San Diego, California), has built special capabilities for incorporating existing RPG, COBOL, and CL code into WOW applications.

WOW Builder runs within Java Web application server environments like WebSphere or Tomcat, and doesn't require any programming, unless you're a seasoned pro and you want to write your own SQL. Otherwise, novices are directed to the SQL inquiry builder for automatic SQL generation. The output from the WOW templates is standard HTML and CSS, which allows users to customize their WOW applications with traditional Web skills (not proprietary languages or 4GLs, PlanetJ notes).

WOW 6.5 brings a number of fixes, changes, and enhancements to the development environment, including security and database enhancements. For a full list of the enhancements, see the release notes.

One company already using WOW 6.5 is Chops Percussion, an Indiana company that sells drums to schools. The company, which is a division of Paige's Music, needed a way to spruce up its online presence with a dynamic e-commerce Web site that accesses its back-end DB2/400 database. Chops selected WOW, the same product used to design Paige's Music Web site.

The WOW tool impressed Tim Gee, the marketing manager for Paige's Music. "I'm not in the Web site building business, but I'm pretty sure that six weeks is pretty stinkin' fast," he says, according to the PlanetJ case study. "We saved a lot of money on Chops." Other companies that have used WOW include Wells Fargo Bank, Bank of America, Wabash National, Schneider Trucking, and Flowserve Corp.

The company also announced that it's looking for beta testers for WOW Fusion, a new reporting option for WOW users. "If you are in need of an executive dashboard or some sweet graphing functionality, help us take Fusion for a test run!" the company said in its December newsletter.

For more information, see www.planetjavainc.com.