BOA - Build Online Applications

[skiman]

Hi All,

As promised I have prepared a demo of the system I’m working on. The goal is to provide a system to develop online applications with the tools you already know.
Creating a modern robust online application is rather hard for most of the developers because of the steep learning curve. This system, named BOA (Build Online Applications), should help you to create online applications for your customers.

You have to create an iAPI (Intelligent API) in the language of your choice, and the combination if the iAPI and BOA will result in your online application. You don’t need to learn html, css, javascript, no need to learn a platform as Angular or React, and you don’t need node.js and express.js.

This is still a work in progress, but you can already see the possibilities of the system. I created the iAPI for the demo application with Xbase++ and Xb2net. I also use the Chillkat active-X components which are making my life a lot easier.

In the application there is a login with Basic Authentication. From that moment on the security is with a JWT (Json Web Token). At this moment there is no HTTPS on the server, but this will be added in the next week.

In the attached zip there is a pdf with info about the link and login. I created the demo in 4 languages. There is also more info about the different menu options and some ‘keys’ to test with. There is a lot of data in the demo, 35.000 customers, 184.000 customer contacts. So you can test the speed as in real life applications.

As said, this is still a work in progress. BOA is not production ready, I expect we will have a first release by the end of january, see this as version 0.7.

Meanwhile you can send/post all the questions you have. It can be interesting to know what is needed by other developers. All comments are welcome, all feedback can be posted. Did you encounter any problems, you don’t like some behavior, … just post it.

Use the tools and technology you know the best. Create the iAPI and provide a new solution to your customers. Your current Windows application and BOA can work besides each other. There will also be a Windows version of BOA, so your customer can use a desktop app with the exact same code. You write your iAPI once, and you use it for a Desktop Application AND an online application. This way ‘Cloud first’ is available for everyone, and it will be available on short term.

I hope everyone like it.

[Victorio]

Hi Chris,
It is really interesting !. I am interesting about what will be need to implement this to my existing application.

I have some questions:
1. iAPI will use some of your special library , which must be include to xbase++ application and need rewrite browsers, forms etc ?
2. how webserve, BOA will be same as xb2net that no need apache etc. server , and same application will be webserver ?
3. very interesting will be licensing method and pricing

Now I am learning how to use xb2net, and everything whitch is related (html, javascript, jquery,css, php,...)
but now I am only at the beginning. When I understood how communicate server and client and launch first browser with select data, I stay on desing of HTML pages and forms . This look no easy , to have nice, secure and user friendly UI . I want create some of metro design UI, because this is better for lay users.
When they see many buttons, functions they have stress

Viktor

[skiman]

Hi Viktor,

Thanks for your interest in BOA.

First let me clear up some mistake.

It is not a conversion of your existing application. Alaska promised that 'with the click of a button' your application will become a solution in the cloud. Is they succeed, then there is no place for BOA. I'm sceptical about their promise, and since someone mentioned the release date of Q4 2027, it seems as I'm not the only one.

I promised that you can develop Online applications without any knowledge of the webtechnologies as you are currently learning. You can develop web applications in the language you want, just by creating the iAPI by yourself. The iAPI can be part of your application, but it can also be a separate Xbase executable.

1. iAPI will use some of your special library , which must be include to xbase++ application and need rewrite browsers, forms etc ?

No, it's up to you to develop the iAPI. This way you can define everything you want to see in the Online Application. You defines menu's, grid and forms, validation rules, buttons, ... in your iAPI. You need to write this according to the rules I will document with samples. The iAPI is also the layer between BOA and your data, it's up to you to define what needs to be done in your dabases. The iAPI is your server, build with xb2net or the httpserver of Xbase++. There will be an xb2net sample available to have a quick start.

2. how webserve, BOA will be same as xb2net that no need apache etc. server , and same application will be webserver ?

BOA is placed on a server and it needs IIS or apache server or any other server. You can put it on a website as I did with the demo on http://www.abowebhosting.be/boa. In BOA the IP address of the iAPI needs to be configured and up you go. You go to the page, and the login screen appears. From that moment on it will communicate with your own iAPI server you created.
It's the same for the Windows desktop version (also Mac version will be available). It communicates with your iAPI via the internet.

3. very interesting will be licensing method and pricing

This will be according to the interest there is. The system can be used by developers in each language. BOA doesn't care in which language the iAPI is developed: Xbase++ but also Clipper, Foxpro, Harbour or other languages from the dbase world, but also in Cobol, Freepascal, Visual Basic, c, ...

At this stage nothing is decided yet. I suppose there will be some developer licence needed to develop the iAPI, and a licence for BOA based on the number of installations. So if a developer has 10 customers where BOA is installed, there will be a licence for 10 companies. These are licences the developer can sell to the customer on a monthly/yearly base. This should provide a recurrent income for the developer and for us.

Now I am learning how to use xb2net, and everything whitch is related (html, javascript, jquery,css, php,...)

xb2net will be needed. You can forget about the others.

About the design, it can't be changed since it is build into BOA. You can't decide to create another design. There will be some different themes in the future, at this time we focus on the functionality.

If things aren't clear, don't hesitate to ask. My mother langue is Dutch, so maybe my explanations are not always so clear as I would like.

[Victorio]

Thank you for explanation.