Zeosoft Builds Enterprise Cellular Apps In A Flash

Vendors such as Zeosoft Technology Group are working to increase the availability of applications to run on these Java-enabled phones. Mass adoption is expected within five years, according to Zeosoft. The company offers the ZeoSphere XR Server, a software-based application server for mobile devices, and the ZeoSphere XR Suite, an application development, management and deployment tool to push apps to users' mobile devices. The ZeoSphere XR products are compatible with PDAs running Microsoft Pocket PC 2002 and 2003 and Ericsson and Nokia smartphones running Symbian 7 and above. Zeosoft's products work on server-to-server, Java-based peer-to-peer (P2P) networks that operate on IP-driven PDAs, high-end cell phones and/or laptop PCs. The nature of these networks allow solution providers to set up customized application services without using cellular networks. Like wired P2P applications, Java applications running on ZeoSphere servers can communicate via IP over a decentralized distributed network. Because these mobile applications run on P2P connections, they bypass cellular carriers' servers. Solution providers can charge customers directly for billable transactions generated by customized systems.

Zeosoft's ZeoSphere architecture aims to turn all Java-enabled mobile devices into transparent nodes on cellular and wired networks, regardless of cellular carrier. ZeoSphere servers provide a multithreaded environment that allows multithreaded Java applications to run concurrently. This architecture allows Java applications to execute multiple Java Virtual Machines (JVMs) on one mobile device. No competing products have this capability. In ZeoSphere's environment, every application runs on a single server, so JVM instances will pop up every time users start new applications. On smartphones and PDAs, ZeoSphere servers are managed by server consoles that run in the background. A console can run multiple applications concurrently and allow users to switch between them.

ZeoSphere XR Suite includes AppBuilder, a tool that helps create mobile applications. AppBuilder provides the ZeoSphere server with client and server files from a database. Once an application is created, developers can distribute sets of client files to multiple devices and keep server files on a centralized server.

AppBuilder runs on Java 2 Micro Edition, as long as Java's Personal Profile API, which provides GUI-based services, is running in that environment. Developers can use this service to create menu bars, scroll bars and progress bars for Java applications. Java 2 Standard Edition also supports the Personal Profile API, so AppBuilder applications will work on laptops and desktops.

Unlike development suites from IBM, Sybase and Borland, which require highly skilled Java or C++ engineers, AppBuilder users do not write a single line of code. It took CRN Test Center engineers about 15 minutes to develop a wireless application that retrieved data from a remote Microsoft Access database.

AppBuilder also includes ODBC hooks for Microsoft SQL Server and Oracle databases. When connected to a database, AppBuilder provides table views with read and write capability. Developers can choose access levels on a field-by-field basis and create searchable fields. AppBuilder also can access images from databases and file systems. Once an application is running on a remote device, metadata is read through a ZeoSphere server and is filtered. Unwanted fields or data are handled locally through the application. Zeosoft's partner program offers hosted presentations, sales leads and sales training. Technical support is provided via phone during normal business hours. Product discounts range between 15 percent and 40 percent. Mobile AppBuilder Professional is priced at $2,499. The company declined to disclose average solution provider margins.

Because ZeoSoft's architecture makes PDAs as versatile as laptops, CRN Test Center engineers believe it will change the way cellular carriers compete, the way solution providers deploy customized wireless applications and the way users interact with their smartphones.