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 NEWSBig Blue's WebSphere shines By James R. Borck, For InfoWorld Test Center February 18, 2000 IMPLEMENTING and managing an effective e-business poses a daunting challenge, particularly when it involves integrating a variety of hardware and software across back-end and partnered business processes.
Although most of the suite is a repackaging of the earlier Net.Commerce release, improvements in the way of rules-based marketing, XML messaging, and a powerful new application development studio offer a seamless solution for leveraging existing data assets, integrating your supply chain, and implementing rules-based marketing and personalized content in your e-store. WebSphere will reduce time to market, increase sales, and improve efficiency within your e-commerce strategy. Despite coming up short in breadth of business-to-business offerings compared to solutions from Bluestone Software, I found WebSphere to surpass direct competitors such as Microsoft Site Server for ease of use and comprehensiveness, rendering it a score of Very Good. Steep climb WebSphere is far from an entry-level product. The set of technical skills required to leverage its tools effectively -- relational database and Web server administration, familiarity with SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) encryption and digital certificates -- will impose additional cost considerations. And if you're looking to integrate middleware or legacy resources, solid programming skills will be required as well. In addition to the DB2 Universal Database and IBM HTTP Server bundled with the suite, WebSphere can run with Oracle 8 databases and either Netscape Enterprise Server or Lotus Domino Web Server. Suite rewards The WebSphere Commerce Suite is based on the WebSphere Advanced Server 3. Using Java Server Pages, XML, and JDBC (Java Database Connectivity), WebSphere makes possible a highly interactive shopping experience. It handles everything from content management to payment processing, and it leverages XML and EDI (electronic data interchange) to integrate the supply chain. I found that WebSphere offers good scalability. In addition to support for multiple processors through distributed JavaBeans, concurrent tasks can be run in exclusive Java virtual machines to deliver a stable, compartmentalized, and highly distributed environment. Timesaving development I found the Studio Pro Developer environment truly impressive in reducing the time needed to launch a Web site. Its new Catalog Architect uses XML to make quick work of aggregating existing supply catalogs. The capability of batch importing existing catalog and pricing, and effortlessly repurposing it for the Web, is a real timesaver. WebSphere Studio also supplies a number of wizards that provide quick hooks to databases, SQL queries, and JavaBean development. However, the Store Development Wizard's limited customization options yielded a cookie-cutter site that would prove substandard for today's Web marketplace. Studio also combines the application development environment VisualAge for Java. Native support for Java Server Pages and Servlets, XML, and Enterprise JavaBeans, as well as built-in APIs to the WebSphere application server, ease programming efforts. Relationship management Another persuading improvement to the WebSphere Suite comes with the inclusion of the business rules server, providing dynamic rules-based content that can personalize a Web shopper's experience. Through structured but easily definable templates, I was able to build rules that could offer time-based specials, cross-sell to a customer's purchase, or up-sell to a better product, all on the fly. For example, rules can be fine-tuned to fit a shopper's buying habits or profile, factoring income or age into the equation. But WebSphere is missing a few important functions. For example, it currently lacks the capability of handling partial orders, back orders, and returns. The suite should also add a means of monitoring and tuning server performance. I have yet to find an e-commerce solution that can offer all things to all businesses, particularly in a single-vendor solution. But WebSphere comes close. For a comprehensive, scalable e-commerce solution with solid payment processing and eased integration capabilities for existing and partnered systems, as well as one of the best development studios I have seen, I recommend taking a look at the new WebSphere Commerce Suite Pro 4.1. James R. Borck (james.borck@industrialart.com) appears frequently in InfoWorld and is director of IS at Industrial Art & Science, in Connecticut.
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