ClientSoft Announces General Availability of ServiceBuilder.

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

MIAMI--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 24, 2003

Solution Enables Mainframe-Based Consumption of Web Services 

as Enterprises Integrate Legacy Platforms

Into Service-Oriented Architectures

ClientSoft(R), the leader in secure, high-performance legacy integration solutions for the Microsoft .NET Framework, Java, and Web services environments, today announced the general availability of ClientSoft ServiceBuilder(TM). Designed for rapid development and flexible deployment, ServiceBuilder allows enterprise developers to wrap existing legacy programs and transactions into ready-to-use .NET, Java, or COBOL components, as well as Web services. Additionally, ServiceBuilder is the only product on the market that possesses bi-directional Web services support, not only publishing legacy transactions as Web services, but also allowing legacy programs to actually consume Web services.

The introduction of ServiceBuilder represents a significant stepping-stone in the evolution of ClientSoft's product suite. Building upon previous ClientSoft product offerings, ServiceBuilder allows both legacy and distributed application programmers to easily navigate the host application requiring minimal knowledge of the legacy system and target service-oriented development environment. Furthermore, in the component or Web services development process, ServiceBuilder abstracts developers from the complexities associated with mainframe and iSeries integration.

ServiceBuilder includes the following development and deployment capabilities:

-- Direct Access to Host Logic - ServiceBuilder deploys natively on the mainframe and leverages a non-screen based approach, offering several high-performance methods for direct host access. The direct approach provides for a solution three to five times faster than screen-scraping alternatives.

-- SOAP Over MQ Series - ServiceBuilder allows developers to create CICS programs that read SOAP messages from queues, LINK, or 3270 to back-end applications and deliver SOAP replies over an MQ Series queue.

-- Advanced Security Features - ServiceBuilder seamlessly integrates into the mainframe's Enterprise Security Manager, providing a centralized approach to security often lacking in alternative middle-tier solutions. Also, ServiceBuilder supports a variety of other security devices including SSL, X.509 certificates, Pass Tickets, as well as additional algorithms.

-- Host-initiated Actions Within External Applications - ServiceBuilder possesses the ability to drive host-initiated actions on distributed platforms, including any Java or Windows application. Examples of these applications may be Microsoft Office programs such as Word and Excel, or more complex enterprise systems such as PeopleSoft, SAP, or Siebel.

-- Mainframe-based Consumption of Web services - Not only does ServiceBuilder allow developers to build and publish Web services from the mainframe applications, the tool also enables mainframe logic to consume Web services running systems external to the mainframe.

"Mainframe-based enterprises can increase their flexibility and reduce their risk by restructuring established systems around a service-oriented architecture (SOA)," states Gartner analyst Dale Vecchio. "Mainframes can provide a robust SOA platform that should be thought of as both a publisher and consumer of Web services. This approach provides the strongest leverage of an existing application portfolio as well as the strong quality of service of the platform."

The entire development and deployment process with ServiceBuilder is designed for ease of use and rapid, automatic generation. ServiceBuilder walks the developer through each step of the process. In fact, ServiceBuilder offers developers the choice of either using ClientSoft's simple, wizard-driven environment or leveraging Microsoft Visual Studio .NET. This feature allows the .NET programmer to leverage existing knowledge of the Visual Studio .NET environment to quickly re-purpose legacy transactions as ready-to-use components and Web services.

ServiceBuilder also allows developers to select the deployment platform best suited to their own IT architecture. The product works seamlessly within Microsoft's .NET Framework, or any J2EE compliant Application Server, including IBM WebSphere and BEA WebLogic.

"Evolving just as the market has done around it, ServiceBuilder substantially raises the bar in the legacy integration arena," states Robert Evelyn, Chief Operations Officer and Senior Vice President of Technology at ClientSoft. "To incorporate legacy into strategic Internet computing, enterprise organizations have worked in a screen-based world for sometime now. While that model has provided tremendous benefits, the direct access model is the next step. As enterprises continue to move towards a service-oriented architecture, bi-directional communications and advanced security features are essential ingredients for a solid architectural framework."

About ClientSoft

Founded in 1987, ClientSoft is the leader in providing secure, high-performance legacy integration solutions for the Microsoft .NET Framework, Java, and Web services environments. ClientSoft has over 400 customers, including ADP, BearingPoint, Blue Cross Blue Shield of South Carolina, Carrefour, Credit du Nord, Do it Best Corp., R.J. Reynolds, First Health, Lockheed Martin, Motorola, the Singapore Stock Exchange, and Trustmark Insurance. More information is available at www.clientsoft.com or 1-888-716-1007.