Chicago, IL. CNX announced today the general availability of version 1.2 of the Valence Web Application Framework for System i. This release adds new functionality and programming APIs to the Valence package, further empowering System i programmers to create true “Web 2.0” browser applications using RPG. Designed from the ground-up explicitly for ILE RPG programmers, Valence uses ExtJS JavaScript components on the front-end and communicates directly with System i RPG business logic on the back-end.
CNX has developed numerous training videos and sample programs (available for free download) to assist RPG programmers with understanding JavaScript syntax and related Web 2.0 concepts. The Valence framework includes a user-friendly web portal to control System i library lists and security for all programs, as well as an intuitive navigation tree from which users can launch authorized applications. Existing green screen programs can be re-engineered with Valence one program at a time to work within this framework. Each application can then be added to the appropriate user navigation tree(s) when ready. This offers System i programmers a path for gradually moving their critical business applications into the Web 2.0 world, providing a vastly more satisfying browser interface for end users when compared to 5250 “screen-scraping” alternatives.
This latest version of Valence, the third significant release since the package was launched in May 2008, includes the following new features and enhancements:
- Option for users to log in to the Valence Portal using the same System i user ID and password used to log into their green screen sessions
- Enhanced Valence administration programs, including new advanced search and grouping options
- New back-end RPG functions, including additional data formatting APIs, expanded tree support and the ability to receive data from the browser front-end directly into an RPG array
- Significant speed and memory management improvements — round-trip response times are now as low as 8 milliseconds!
- Updated front-end ExtJS framework (upgraded from v2.0.1 to v2.2.1), adding numerous front-end component features to the Valence package
For additional Valence release 1.2 details, and to view on-line demonstration videos (including videos of actual deployed applications), please visit www.cnxcorp.com/valence. Valence is available for a free 90-day trial download.
To see demonstration videos and download a free trial of Valence, visit www.cnxcorp.com/valence.