Newest Member of Ivory Suite Provides an
Advanced Graphical Integrated Development Environment
ATLANTA, June 26, 2009 – GT Software (
www.gtsoftware.com), a leading global provider of rapid SOA development solutions that leverage mainframe resources, today announced Ivory BMS Studio, an advanced integrated development environment (IDE) for CICS Basic Mapping Services (BMS). Ivory BMS Studio provides a graphical interface for the design, creation and maintenance of artifacts located in the BMS/TS MAPSET repository, expanding beyond older 3270 interfaces that lack the robust functionality and ease of use required in today’s enterprise.
Ivory BMS Studio allows customers to build and maintain CICS BMS Maps in a simple, intuitive, Windows GUI environment. Ivory BMS Studio takes advantage of the strengths of both centralized and distributed architectures, even to the point of allowing users to develop and maintain maps while disconnected from the mainframe. The central MAPSET repository enables efficient, accurate and more intuitive development through the use of Windows graphical tooling and dialogs, while the ability to connect to multiple distributed MAPSETs allows the developer to move artifacts easily between systems.
Ivory BMS Studio is integrated into Ivory Service Architect and shares Ivory’s proven, intuitive user interface. Ivory Service Architect is GT Software’s integrated toolset that uniquely enables corporations to rapidly assemble Web services from mainframe assets, as well as enabling mainframe applications to easily consume externally defined Web services. Ivory Service Architect consists of Ivory Studio, the graphical modeling environment; Ivory Server, a high performance SOAP processor with runtime service orchestration; and Ivory Server for Batch, which enables batch systems to leverage CICS, IMS, and Web services.
Either standalone or in conjunction with Ivory Service Architect, Ivory BMS Studio can build and maintain maps that can then be used in enterprises’ service-enablement efforts, thereby getting even more value from the mainframe. As part of the Ivory solution, the products share the same repository and are based on the same toolset, thus providing a powerful bridge to modernization.
Projects developed using Ivory BMS Studio require no user training, and are easier to design and maintain than with traditional mainframe tools, many of which still require hand-coding. All the map and interface design can take place on the same Studio platform, eliminating any need to switch between the mainframe and a desktop.
“The challenges of today’s economy demand that IT shops make the most of precious resources, and that means both people and systems. The pool of mainframe programmers continues to diminish, yet the demand for legacy modernization goes on” said Rob Morris, Chief Strategy Officer, GT Software. “Developing and maintaining BMS maps in this environment requires less knowledge of mainframes, thereby allowing customers to leverage non-mainframe resources while achieving their modernization objectives. Ivory BMS Studio is another example of GT Software’s unflagging commitment to increasing value for our customers.”
With GT Software’s flagship BMS/TS (transaction server), the IDE is a 3270-based WYSIWYG environment with an advanced interface for 3270 screen processing hardware. With Ivory BMS Studio, the design still provides the 3270 look for the MAPSET design, and adds the dialog processing provided by the Window OS environment.
Hundreds of customers have used BMS/TS and have established a track record of 80-90% savings in their efforts to build and maintain BMS maps. Ivory BMS builds on this tradition with a graphical IDE that makes the development and maintenance even easier. In addition to artifacts located in the BMS/TS MAPSET repository, clients may choose to extend their existing BMS/TS to include all the functions provided by the Ivory SOA Studio and Server. This breadth provides unprecedented choice, and allows customers to optimize their development and runtime experiences.
Existing BMS/GT and BMS/TS customers are offered free programs to help get them going in terms of installation and best-practices mentoring. New customers can trial the product for 30 days for free.
