iSeries Messages Plug-In

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Free WebSphere Studio Plug-in Provides Direct Access to iSeries Messages

Peterborough, N.H. — January 29, 2004 — SoftLanding Systems continues to fulfill the promise of the Eclipse open source platform in the iSeries market as it announces availability of a free WebSphere Studio plug-in to monitor iSeries message queues.

SoftLanding, a leading provider of Software Management solutions for iSeries and Eclipse-based development, believes that WebSphere Development Studio Client (WDSC) provides an excellent application modernization path for iSeries development. The company wants to help make the WebSphere Studio IDE as easy to use for iSeries development as it is for Java and Web development. "Our own developers use WDSC daily, and they grew tired of having to interrupt their work to bounce over to a 5250 session to check their iSeries messages," said Mark Phippard, SoftLanding's Director of Development. "We developed this plug-in knowing that any iSeries developer using WDSC was likely facing the same issue."

"Once again SoftLanding has demonstrated its leadership in the Eclipse-based arena by contributing another free iSeries utility to display messages for developers working in WDSC," said Bob Cancilla, Managing Director, IGNITe/400. "This is the third major free, public domain offering that SoftLanding has contributed to the greater iSeries user community at no charge. They most definitely demonstrate the very best of what the e-business community has to offer."

The new plug-in lets developers monitor and work with their iSeries message queue from within WDSC. It monitors the message queue associated with a developer's Remote Systems Explorer user profile. When a message arrives in the queue, users are notified by their choice of pop-up dialog box, email, or sound. They can set the plug-in to handle informational and inquiry messages differently to minimize interruptions.

In addition, the plug-in creates an iSeries Messages subsystem within Remote Systems Explorer, where users can view and work with specific messages from other message queues. Developers set message queue filters according to their preferences, and all messages that meet their criteria appear in the iSeries Messages subsystem. From there, they can answer, display, and/or delete messages.

"We see our free plug-ins as continued steps toward realizing the full potential of WebSphere Development Studio for iSeries," says Steve Gapp, President of SoftLanding. "We are pleased to contribute useful, complimentary plug-ins to the developer community, and enhance the extensibility of the WDSC development platform, in the true spirit of Eclipse."

In March 2003, SoftLanding introduced TurnOver for WebSphere Studio, the first set of software configuration management plug-ins to support development and deployment of both native iSeries and Web applications under a single process. The solution was validated "Ready for WebSphere Studio" by IBM in April 2003. SoftLanding also offers a free plug-in for WebSphere Studio that allows iSeries developers to work with and access spooled files.

Availability and More Information

The free iSeries Messages Plug-in and Spooled File Plug-in are available for download at: http://www.softlanding.com/websphere/index.htm.

For more information, call SoftLanding Systems at 800-545-9485 (+1-603-924-8818 outside the U.S.).

About SoftLanding Systems

SoftLanding Systems, a leading provider of Software Management solutions for iSeries and multi-platform development, specializes in solutions that streamline the entire software development process, resulting in enhanced productivity, higher quality software, and improved application availability. SoftLanding's strength is in creating the ideal Software Management solution for any software environment, regardless of complexity, by drawing on expertise and tools in the following areas: software change management, database change management, application testing, multiplatform deployment, rapid problem resolution, and security.