PWB526: Building Hand-Held Applications using Pocket PowerBuilder

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PWB526 Building Hand-Held Applications using
Pocket PowerBuilder
Dean Jones CEO, PowerObjects dean.jones_at_powerobjec
ts.com August 15-19, 2004
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Overview of PowerObjects?

• Multi-Million dollar company
• Custom Systems Developer
• Complete Solution Provider
• Distributed Development
• Sybase Partner
• iAnywhere Partner
• Symbol Partner
• On the Federal GSA Schedule
• Certified Developers
• Microsoft, Sybase and Java

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Where the industry is going

• Distributed processing
• Business logic is being moved to the middle tier
• Web applications
• Complex process automation
• Leveraging objects in middle tier
• Remote work force

Client
Application Server
Database Server
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on to Mobile Applications

• Why mobile applications
• Increased productivity and flexibility
• Improved customer service
• Experience provides competitive advantage

Handheld
Client
Application Server
Database Server
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Untapped Technology

• Business
• Sales force automation
• Dispatch, track trace
• Inspection, compliance
• Warehouse, pick and pack
• Retail, POS
• Hospitality
• Healthcare
• Defense

Working with Paper
Working with Technology
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Handheld Applications

• Corporations using handheld applications will
  advance past their competitors
• They will have information faster
• They will have cleaner data
• They will know their customer better
• You will not be able to compete with companies
  using handheld applications

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Handheld Applications

• Ill say it again
• Increased productivity and flexibility
• Improved customer service
• Experience provides competitive advantage

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Developing for a Remote Application

• How will application be used?
• Always or sometimes connected
• Need access to enterprise logic
• Ruggedized
• How will user input data?
• No keyboard
• Small screen
• How do you squeeze lots of information onto a
  small screen?
• Good user interface is very important

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Developing for a PocketPC

• Data access at all times
• Application is always available
• Enterprise Integration
• Access to various kinds of corporate data
• Increased productivity
• More efficient data entry
• Technology just works
• Transparent to user

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Developing for a PocketPC

• Store and Forward
• Local database that synchronizes with main
  database
• Remote Database Connection
• Wireless connection to enterprise database
• Remote Application Server
• Invoke components in application server

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Application Architecture
Remote Device
Application
PB Virtual Machine
Enterprise
ApplicationServer
MobiLink
OracleMS SQLDB/2ASE
TCP/IP HTTP HTTPS ActiveSync (wired or wireless)
MobiLink
Database Server
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Sybases Solution

• Develop application with Sybase Pocket
  PowerBuilder
• Use Adaptive Server Anywhere database with
  MobiLink for the PocketPC device
• Manage Anywhere Studio for remote device and
  application management

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Pocket PowerBuilder

• Productive 4GL IDE
• Rich component set
• Visual development
• DataWindow control
• Single component providing sophisticated data
  representation
• Built in SQL for selects, updates, inserts and
  deletes
• Tight integration with SQL Anywhere Studio
• Integration with MobiLink for data synchronization

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Pocket PowerBuilder

• You know PowerBuilder
• You can develop for PocketPC
• You dont know PowerBuilder
• You can develop for the PocketPC
• 4GL Development environment makes it easy to
  develop applications

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Pocket PowerBuilder
Toolbars and Painter
Painters and Properties
Object System Tree
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Pocket PowerBuilder

• Complements PowerBuilder for Windows CE
  deployments
• Based on core PowerBuilder 9 IDE
• Ability to export PB projects and import them
  into Pocket PowerBuilder
• Rich set of components
• List View, Tree View, Tabs, Progress Bar and
  many, many more!

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Pocket PowerBuilder

• DataWindow
• Advanced control for displaying and manipulating
  data
• Available in many presentation styles
• Freeform
• Graph
• Grid
• Group
• Tabular
• Reuse existing DataWindows with little effort

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Pocket PowerBuilder
Leverage the DataWindow
Design Graphical
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Known Solution iAnywhere

• Leading provider of software and services
  enabling anywhere, anytime access to enterprise
  information
• December 17, 2002 According to Gartner
  Dataquest iAnywhere has increased its market
  share from 68 in 2000 to 73 in 2001.
• Uniquely offers proven always available
  m-Business technology platform
• Subsidiary of Sybase, Inc.

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iAnywhere - Target Market Segments

• Mobile, Embedded and Workgroup Database
• Extending enterprise data beyond traditional
  environments to mobile, remote and workgroup
  users
• Powering third-party applications with leading
  embedded data management
• Mobile Middleware
• Providing enterprise synchronization services to
  enable always available mobile and wireless
  solutions
• Wireless Internet, messaging and alert services
• m-Business Solutions
• Out-of-the-box applications addressing targeted
  customer needs, e.g., mobile e-mail,
  device/application management

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iAnywhere - Leadership

• Financial Strength
• 89 million USD revenue in 2001
• 30 operating margin
• Market Leader
• Mobile database market leader
• Fastest growing embedded database vendor
• Mobile middleware market leader
• 7 million deployed technology licenses, 10,000
  corporate customers
• Awards and Accolades

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Mobile DBMS Vendor Market Share
Published November 2002 In Investors Business
Daily
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Partners and Alliances

• Worldwide m-Business partner program
• VARs, SIs, OEMs, technology partners
• More than 1000 partners, with 700 OEMs
• 90 partner retention rate in 200

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Leadership Across Markets
Health Care
Retail and Hospitality
Financial Services
Government
Sales/Field Force Automation
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iAnywhere - Product Portfolio

• Development and Deployment Software
• SQL Anywhere Studio Leading mobile, workgroup
  and embedded database enterprise synchronization
• iAnywhere m-Business Studio Comprehensive
  platform for always available mobile computing
• m-Business Solutions
• Mail Anywhere Studio Mobile e-mail PIM
  synchronization
• Manage Anywhere Studio Mobile and remote device
  and application management

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SQL Anywhere Integration

• Adaptive Server Anywhere mobile database
• Uses full data storage capabilities of Adaptive
  Server Anywhere on Windows CE client
• Database access via ODBC
• MobiLink data synchronization
• MobiLink bi-directional data synchronization
• Integrate with other enterprise databases
• New component to manage synchronization properties

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MobiLink Server

• MobiLink Server is a synchronization technology
  that allow you to share data between 2 or more
  databases
• Update in consolidated database or remote
  database
• Provides subsets of data defined by client or
  server
• Services concurrent requests from 2 or more
  remote databases

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MobiLink Server

• MobiLink works with many backend databases
• iAnywhere Adaptive Server Anywhere
• Sybase Adaptive Server Enterprise
• MS SQL Server
• Oracle
• IBM DB/2

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MobiLink

• A two-way synchronization technology for large
  scale mobile database deployment
• Remote database (mobile, embedded, or workgroup
  database server)
• Consolidated database (enterprise, workgroup, or
  desktop database)
• Synchronization Streams
• Pocket PC TCP/IP, HTTP, ActiveSync
• 128-bit strong encryption of synchronization
  stream

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MobiLink

• Heterogeneous consolidated database
• Scalable and robust (tens of thousands)
• Manageable in large deployments
• Support handheld and wireless devices
• Flexible

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Getting Started

• Load Pocket PowerBuilder
• Desktop
• Device
• Load Adaptive Server Anywhere
• Desktop
• Device
• Load Emulator

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Getting Started

• Load CAB files using ActiveSync Explorer
• Copy the correct CAB files to the devices Windows
  directory
• From the device click/tap the file from Explorer
  program

PowerBuilder and Adaptive Server Anywhere
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Getting Started

• Three ways to test application
• On the Desktop
• Does not use the same VM, therefore not accurate
  representation of device
• Good for quick testing early on
• On a device Emulator
• Uses Windows CE VM, but not for the same chipset
  as physical device
• Pocket PC 2002 Emulator is decent
• On the device itself
• Best way to determine if application will work
  correctly at deployment
• Can also test network connectivity at this point

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Getting Started

• Pocket PC 2000 Emulator
• Easy to set up
• Does not give accurate representation of device
• Many bugs
• Pocket PC 2002 Emulator
• Setup is more complex
• More accurate in terms of device emulation

Emulator
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Getting Started
Remote Display

• Remote Display Control
• Allows you to display your device screen on your
  desktop
• Actions on desktop are sent to device
• Actions on device are displayed on desktop

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Getting Started

• Pocket PC applications are often distributed as
  CAB files
• Pocket PC SDK comes with cabwiz which is a
  utility to package applications into self
  installing CAB files
• Deployment techniques are being researched by
  Pocket PowerBuilder team
• Deployment to multiple devices in remote
  locations can be facilitated by Manage Anywhere
  Studio software

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Getting Started

• Start with a light framework
• Determine device
• Do you need a rugged device?
• Scanner?
• Wireless?
• Contact PowerObjects
• We offer a complete solution
• Software (Pocket PowerBuilder and Adaptive Server
  Anywhere)
• Mentoring, design and coding
• Hardware devices

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Summary

• on to mobile applications
• Business are going mobile
• Developing for a PocketPC
• Always connected, store and forward, remote
  database, remote application server
• Rugged device, scanner, wireless

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Summary

• Pocket PowerBuilder
• 4GL allows for fast development
• Leverage the DataWindow
• MobiLink
• Secure synchronization
• Getting started
• Load software, grab utilities
• Contact PowerObjects

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Questions
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Contact PowerObjects

• Send E-mail and Questions
• sales_at_powerobjects.com
• Visit our Web-site
• www.powerobjects.com
• Call Us
• Office [phone]