Pete Lyons: Implementing a native Java IDE (sidebar)

Pete, what is your special area for the 5.0 work?
My work focuses on the development environment in 5.0. This includes new work for supporting Java and JavaScript as well as extending and enhancing the LotusScript and Notes formulas environments. You'll be able to develop agents in Java and control your forms and views with JavaScript all within Notes. The goals for the Notes IDE generally are to evolve it to more closely match people's expectations for an IDE while at the same time adding support for the cool new Web languages. Some of the general improvements will include improved editing and improved code visibility.

Visibility here means the ability to see all the code that composes an object on one screen. You'll be able to get a complete, scrollable overview of all your code without having to go through each individual event.

The code will be broken up into collapsible sections so if you don't want to see a certain section, you can collapse it down. The effect will be similar to twisties, though the cosmetics may not look exactly the same. We are putting lots of thought into the visual design, so details may change somewhat over the next few months.

Improved editing will include things like tabs in code, so you can use the tab key to indent your code. We will also be supporting block indents and outdents as well as multiple undo and redo levels.

Of course, the core support will ensure that all the languages -- Java, JavaScript and for that matter, LotusScript -- can be entered intelligently. There will be a improved debugger, so you'll be able to debug Java right alongside LotusScript. It will be a big improvement.

How will the JavaScript capabilities interact with Java and LotusScript?
We are still fleshing out the JavaScript stuff. But the general idea is that the Notes UI classes and events will be extended to mimic the standard Web document object model.

Right now, the Notes UI doesn't support a whole lot of client-side events. What's there is either proprietary to the Notes client or only runs on the server. JavaScript has to handle client-side things like mouse and cursor events, and it has to work whether you're serving a document to the Web or to the Notes client.

I know it seems like the spotlight is off LotusScript, but it doesn't go away at all under this scenario. LotusScript runs on the server, while JavaScript focuses on the behavior of the client. In fact, LotusScript, in my opinion, delivers on the promise of "write-once, run-anywhere" better than Java. Use LotusScript if you really want your applications to run on any platform, and you want to use Notes on any platform.

Considering your comment about the "write-once, run anywhere" promise, is Java great or is it over-hyped? Should Notes developers learn it?
I love Java. I think it's both a great language and a great platform. It's a perfect vehicle for carrying the whole industry into the next century. It does a better job supporting the object world than any other mainstream technology. I'm honestly not sure how much you need to know Java in order to be a productive Notes developer, but if something you need is not available in Notes, use Java to write a Bean and Notes will deliver it.

With all the new Java classes that will be coming out for Notes, you can now write a standalone Java application that communicates across the Internet to a Notes database on a server. Your own Java application controls the presentation of the client. At that point, the Java piece is talking directly to the Notes back-end. You can get much better transaction support. Java back-end classes will be able to sit on top of and utilize that environment. This will make Domino and Notes qualitatively more powerful for large-scale development projects.

BIOGRAPHY
Pete Lyons has been with Iris for just over one year, where he has been working exclusively on the Notes development environment. Prior to Iris, he spent 13 years as the UI and programmability architect for Alpha Software's family of database products.

Copyright 1998 Iris Associates, Inc. All rights reserved.