Expeditor Reloaded
by Volker Weber
So we thought we finally figured out what Expeditor is. IBM sent a big bad VP to explain it. Then Charles cast some doubt on this explanation. Today I am getting this from an ISSL architect (ISSL = IBM Software Services for Lotus):
Welcome to Lotus Expeditor 6.1
IBM Lotus Expeditor 6.1 provides a runtime environment and integrated middleware components for extending many enterprise applications to server-managed laptop and desktop systems, and mobile devices running supported operating systems. The IBM Lotus Expeditor solution consists of the following components:
Lotus Expeditor Client for Desktops and Client for Devices
Lotus Expeditor Client for Desktops and Client for Devices are software programs that provides a runtime environment and integrated middleware components for extending many enterprise applications to server-managed laptop and desktop systems and mobile devices running supported operating systems. On Windows and Linux desktops it includes the Workbench client-side, services-oriented framework that can enable application to run locally while the system is disconnected from the network. For more information on this program, refer to the Assembling and Deploying Lotus Expeditor Applications section of this Information Center and Using Lotus Expeditor.
Lotus Expeditor Server
IBM Lotus Expeditor Server is a server-delivery platform that is used to manage IBM Lotus Expeditor Client for Desktops and Mobile Devices and WebSphere Portal-managed clients. By leveraging the WebSphere MQ Everyplace, Device Manager, and the DB2 Everyplace components, it provides connectors from client applications to enterprise data. An integrated installation and configuration is provided to deliver these services. To gain more insight about the Lotus Expeditor Server, refer to the Using Lotus Expeditor Server section of this Information Center.
For information on configuring Device Manager 2.1, refer to the Device Manager 2.1 section of this information center. The Websphere MQ Everyplace 2.0.2 section of this information center provides detailed information on how to plan for, install, and use this component of the Lotus Expeditor solution. For information about the DB2 Everyplace Sync Server, see the DB2 Everyplace for Expeditor Server section of this information center.
Lotus Expeditor Client Toolkit
The IBM Lotus Expeditor Toolkit is your tool for developing powerful smart client applications that run on desktops, laptops, tablets, and mobile devices. If you are experienced in developing J2EE applications, portlet applications, Web Services, or Eclipse applications, then you are ready to develop applications for Lotus Expeditor. The Developing Applications for Lotus Expeditor section provides detailed instructions.
Are you confused yet?
Comments
That’s been through the IBM Jargon Expeditor®. I am sticking with Kevin’s explanation ;o)
having been in this industry for > 20 years, I thought I know a bit about that stuff ... but it sounds like I ain't. :-( ... well, then ... hmmm ... I have more and more compassion for all those "normal users" that are getting nuts because they are supposed to pay a lot of money for things they don't understand.
I know it's not easy for an engineer to speak in a foreign language (i.e. plain normal english), but if I want to sell something to a Chinese, and this person does not speak my language, I better get someone to translate for me ... is this so hard to get?
The "problem" is that things are really easy, and only IBM's department for market encryption manages to produce enough fog to confuse everybody.
The Expeditor client is really just a platform on which applications can run and interact. It is based on the Eclipse client platform, has Cloudscape for local data storage, a security service, and can be managed centrally.
It is basically for plug-ins (~ applications) what the Notes client is for Notes applications. It is just more manageable, has more open components under the hood and can support such mighty apps as Sametime or Notes.
The Expeditor Client Toolkit would be like a very extensible Notes Designer.
The Expeditor Server can manage your clients, supply them with new plugins, and help exchange data.
That's about it technically. Is that enough to sell it to the Chinese, or do I have to go into "value propositions"? :-)
The big bad VP repeats:
Lotus Expeditor is a tool kit for building and supporting client runtimes
Expeditor runtimes are based on Eclipse
Expeditor built runtimes can add many additional services to Eclipse
Sametime 7.5 and Notes 8 utilize runtimes created by Expeditor
Applications built on Eclipse run in Expeditor runtimes
Applications built on Eclipse, Expeditor runtimes, and Sametime run in Notes 8
Nothing in the 'enhanced' explanation above contradicts those facts. It merely obscures them.
As the German architect Mies Van der Rohe said ' Less is more'.
Less is more
I couldn't agree more. Errr, less. :-)
I know what it is...
The people who write the Infocenter (this comes from there, you can divine that from the text) get paid by the word.
It's what makes them
*special
I said:
I think I'm going to stop reading until IBM comes out with more information. This is just insane.
If I may, I would like to amend that statement to:
I think I'm going to stop reading until IBM comes out with more better information. This is just still insane.
I was okay after reading Hartmut's comments, but Kevin's comments confuse me and seem to contradict Hartmut.
Kevin, could you (or anyone else, for that matter) clarify a few things. What do you mean by "client runtimes" and "Expeditor runtimes"? Isn't Expeditor the client? I'm only familiar with the term runtime from when I programmed VB 4/5/6 and had to distribute those runtime packages. Is this something similar? Also, in the context of Expeditor, what's a runtime and what's an application? The way some of Kevin's statements are worded they almost sound interchangeable.
I must get back to reading Eclipse for Dummies, I think I have a lot to learn before this is going to make any sense at all.
I acn't wait for Lotusphere, to see Volker trying to get some sensible information out of the IBM executives. :-)
This year will be fun!
Karl-Henry, this does not sound right. IBM has good executives, and I am not in the position "to get some sensible information". I listen to what I'm being told. If I don't understand, I ask. And last week's discussion has shown quite well where there's room for improvement. Plenty of time until Lotusphere to improve those messages.
http://www.aramar.de/images/misc/Expeditor-for-Dummies.png
Ewww. :-)
hilarious - anybody still surprised, why people like Apple so much?
Just as an example (no, I'm not an Apple programmer) http://developer.apple.com/referencelibrary/ ... the entire Apple Ref lib explained on one page ... this is maybe what Mies van der Rohe meant ;-)
BTW ... @IBM (whoever) ... I do not mean this as IBM bashing ... I just wonder why you make it so hard for yourself.
It's VB for Java developers in the sense that it has a run time engine that developers can distribute, it has plugins (think activex components)
It's really pretty simple. It's a development runtime, end users won't care about it, but developers will build with it to be able to distribute standalone applications.
I understood Kevin (hi Kevin), sort of. This posting is just plain confusing, though not inconsistent (as Kevin states) with Kevin's. So let me try and merge them, using Kevin's bullets as headings, and with questions
+ Lotus Expeditor is a tool kit for building and supporting client runtimes
- Are Expeditor applications packaged separately from Expeditor runtimes,
or does an Expeditor runtime include Expeditor applications?
- If the former, how does one build and then distribute collections of Expeditor applications?
- There will be two flavors of Expeditor runtime (will they support the same services?)
one for computers (desktops and laptops) and
one for more limited devices (smart phones, etc.)
- These two Expeditor runtimes will be supported on a range of platforms
(intel/windows, intel/linux, etc.)
- Does the Lotus Application Server deploy Expeditor applications?
+ Expeditor runtimes are based on Eclipse
- This means that you can package Eclipse (require only Eclipse services), and/or
Expeditor applications (require additional Expeditor services) together.
+ Expeditor built runtimes can add many additional services to Eclipse
- I presume this is addition to those added by IBM.
+ Sametime 7.5 and Notes 8 utilize runtimes created by Expeditor
- OK
+ Applications built on Eclipse run in Expeditor runtimes
- these seems to be a corollary of Kevin's 2nd bullet
+ Applications built on Eclipse, Expeditor runtimes, and Sametime run in Notes 8
- So what is Notes 8?
- How is it packaged?
- How is it served?
Marketing should just explain the functionality, using simple language, and leave the technical stuff to the technical people.
The Notes thick client is very unfashionable at the moment, and it does not fit into any high level IT strategy. Building the next version on top of Eclipse is probably the smartest move IBM has made in regards to Notes.
Perhaps I can now go back, and re-write all my old Notes applications in the way I wanted to, in the first place (with a "real" UI, and direct access to legacy data).
