From: Conrad_Geiger@next.com
Subject: NeXT Announces ObjectWare:  Component-Based Software
Followup-To: poster
Keywords: NeXT ObjectWare OMG NeXTstep Objects
Reply-To: Conrad_Geiger@next.com
Organization: Allison Thomas Associates
Date: Wed, 29 Jul 1992 07:45:36 GMT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:	Emily Brower
		Allison Thomas Associates
		(415) 777-0270

NeXT Announces ObjectWare:  Component-Based Software
Happening First On NeXTSTEP

SAN FRANCISCO, July 21, 1992 -  At the Object World '92 conference
here today, NeXT Computer, Inc. announced ObjectWare, component-based
software for application development.  NeXT also announced NeXT
OBJECTWARE, the industry's first object catalog, containing more than
100 commercially available objects from more than 50 NeXTSTEP
developers.

"While the rest of the industry is still dreaming about objects, NeXT
is delivering real objects now, and our customers are buying and
using them," said Steven P. Jobs, chairman and CEO of NeXT.  "This
ObjectWare catalog marks an historic event in the software industry."

NeXTSTEP's object-oriented architecture makes possible a new category
of software, which sits between traditional system software and
traditional application software.  Called ObjectWare, it consists of
objects that can be bought and licensed by developers to create
custom applications much faster.

Emergence of an Object Marketplace

"Nine months ago we predicted that an object marketplace would begin
to appear," said Doug McLeod, an analyst at International Data
Corporation (IDC).  "NeXT's ObjectWare catalog is tangible evidence
that this prediction is coming true with NeXTSTEP.  I was impressed
by the diversity of the objects in the catalog, with nearly every
major category represented.  Given that NeXTSTEP has been
object-oriented from the beginning, it's not surprising that the
trend toward component-based software is happening on NeXT first."

Object-oriented technology is increasing in popularity because it
addresses a growing demand for software that is faster and easier to
develop, plus simpler to maintain and revise.  Numerous studies show
that the single largest cost in a software application's life cycle
is in maintenance and upgrades.  With object-oriented technology,
customers can not only create custom applications more quickly, but
also significantly reduce the amount of time and effort needed to
maintain and enhance the software.

Nowhere is the trend toward object-oriented software more evident
than in vertical markets that have highly specific needs, such as
financial services, health care and legal.  Developers in these
markets can use objects such as those listed in the ObjectWare
catalog to build specialized applications for financial modeling,
simulation, database access and management, health care,
communications, document management, publishing and decision support.



ObjectWare:  Real Objects Right Now

Software objects provide real-world functionality that developers can
incorporate into any kind of application.

Objects in NeXT's ObjectWare catalog include the following:

 - objects for incorporating bar codes into any type of printed
     matter;
 - an object that converts English typed text into words "spoken" by
     a NeXTSTEP computer;
 - a "document engine" that can provide the basis for component-based
     publishing applications;
 - an object library for developing distributed networking
     applications;
 - objects for mathematical modeling and financial simulation;
 - objects for scanner and serial port device interfaces; and
 - graphing and 3D display objects.

In addition to its 100 commercially available objects, NeXT's
ObjectWare catalog features a selection of free, public domain
objects.

Some of the objects listed were derived from custom applications.
For example, financial trading objects provided by Anderson Financial
Systems (AFS) for the NeXT ObjectWare catalog were distilled from
earlier custom projects for its Wall Street clients.  AFS's TradeKit
objects provide pre-written code for standard trading functions, such
as ticket writing and position management.  Even developers with
minimal knowledge of the securities industry can use these AFS
objects to create custom trading applications in a fraction of the
time previously required.

In a separate press release, NeXT also announced today that all
NeXTSTEP objects (those provided by NeXT as well as all third-party
ObjectWare) are fully conformant with the Object Management Group
(OMG)'s object model.  The OMG, which NeXT announced it has joined as
a corporate member, is considered the leading consortium focused on
object-oriented technology.  [see earlier posting -todd]

NeXTSTEP:  An Architecture for ObjectWare Development

The third-party objects and object kits listed in NeXT's ObjectWare
catalog complement the mature library of foundation objects provided
in NeXTSTEP.  Since Release 1.0, NeXTSTEP has been based on rich
classes of extensible software objects.  Release 2.0 of NeXTSTEP
added features and functionality common to all applications, such as
integrated printing and faxing, color, interapplication
communications and sound.

The third generation of NeXTSTEP, due to ship in volume next month,
will include kits of more complex objects (including the Database
Kit, 3DKit, PhoneKit and Indexing Kit) as well as Distributed
Objects, which extends NeXTSTEP's object-oriented paradigm for single
applications to include messaging between different applications,
machines and networks.

Because all these objects run in NeXTSTEP, they can be subclassed and
customized; combined, they provide most of the code needed to build a
custom application.

"The NeXTSTEP Application Kit is the best collection of objects I've
ever seen," said Alex Cone, president of the software development
company Objective Technologies, Inc. (OTI).  "It allows us to create
industrial-strength objects that are well-tested, versatile,
generalized and well-documented.  With NeXTSTEP, object orientation
pervades the entire system.  NeXT is the only system in which you can
write purely object-oriented code."

"NeXTSTEP's object-oriented development environment is what most of
us had always wanted, but just didn't think was possible," said Vince
Jordan, director of software development for WilTel's Advanced
Technology Center, the nation's fourth largest fiber optic network
and a NeXT customer.  "Our current telecommunications network
management system would have taken six to eight years to develop if
we were working on our old platform."

Ordering NeXT's ObjectWare Catalog

NeXT's ObjectWare catalog is available now for $XX.XX and can be
ordered by calling 1-800-TRY-NeXT.  All objects in the catalog are
available through their respective third-party developers.
[this one was already x'ed out -todd]


About NeXT Computer

NeXT Computer, Inc. designs and markets the industry-acclaimed
NeXTSTEP object-oriented software environment, and designs,
manufactures and markets UNIX-based workstations that run NeXTSTEP.
NeXTSTEP and NeXT workstations are used by medium and large
organizations to develop and deploy mission-critical applications,
using both custom and shrink-wrapped software.  NeXT is headquartered
at 900 Chesapeake Drive, Redwood City, California, 94063.


-30-


NeXT, the NeXT logo, NeXTSTEP and ObjectWare are trademarks of NeXT
Computer, Inc.  All other trademarks mentioned belong to their
respective owners.


Newsgroups: comp.sys.next.announce