Cleverlance Sm@rtClient
What Sm@rtClient is
Sm@rtClient Universal Front-End definition is relatively short but well fitting.
Sm@rtClient is a thin-client solution platform with support for
- modeling
- generating
- running of
front-end applications for enterprise server-centric branch systems.
The definition contains all important terms we want to stress on.
Smart
Sm@rtClient has been designed to be extremely adaptable to new and changing business needs on banking branch systems. It’s independent of type, technology and vendor of enterprise business services (back-end systems, business logic of banking applications).
It’s lightweight, with extremely low network traffic and great performing in common existing IT environments.
Sm@rtClient enables a business people to contribute on front-end definition and development being its crucial feature.
Platform
It’s important to stress that Sm@rtClient is not an application but complex and complete front-end approach with methodology and software framework for modeling, generating and runtime of desktop client applications.
Why another “Smart” client
People very often ask us: “Why another Smart client? Every vendor says that his Client solution is very Smart and the best”. We just can say we really don’t think so that there is “smart” client on the market.
Cleverlance has delivered tens of enterprise applications during his existence with various types of Front-ends. The mid-tier and the business logic part of a solution has a quite good support in modeling tools, MDA tools and generators and architecture is stabilized. But on field of Front-ends the situation is quite different.
Nowadays when comfort web browsers with rich DHTML are on the market there are serious restrictions. It was widely assumed that web applications will overcome standard thick desktop clients. There were significant advantages to use three tier web applications with web client but two of them. The thick client provides more comfortable user interface. Besides there are task eligible to run on the client side instead of on the server side.
Cleverlance has spent a lot of effort to provide technology to customers, which brings advantages of the three tier web application and thick client comfort in one place. This advantage was brought by the Sm@rtClient technology and its resources.
We assume the pure fat client is not suitable. Fat clients are bad because of the challenges with distributing code, the high cost, both to IT and the end-user, of management and maintenance, and their limitation to PCs.
We assume the traditional pure web client is also not suitable. Thin clients are bad not only because they do not provide the rich user experience that can be developed on a fat client. It’s also very difficult or almost impossible to integrate other desktop applications and hardware devices.
Current technologies have very poor (meta-) modeling and generation support. Classical development approaches lead to systems that are hard to develop and even harder to change and maintain. The progress of technology with regards to increasingly powerful SW platforms, better understanding of the pros and cons of modeling/generation, tools and standards for supporting model-driven/BPM-based development enable us to build a truly „smart” client that addresses this.
What Sm@rtClient is based on
Sm@rtClient combines the best characteristics of thin client namely
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Server-centric application
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Low-cost administration, upgrades, maintenance
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Low network traffic and the best characteristics of a fat client
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Rich GUI interface, enhanced validations
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Control over the application, caching, compression
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Enhanced Integration support of applications and HW
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Support for just-in-time downloaded libraries
+
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Support for modeling user interfaces and task flows
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Support for efficient generation of front-end applications
Sm@rtClient Philosophy
Sm@rtClient philosophy is based on requirements we identified in the beginning we have started to think about that. The requirements are based on real customer’s requirements and prerequisites for developing applications with completely new innovative approach.
· Separate domain know-how and technology
· Store know-how into a repository not into a hard-coded application
· Reuse know-how in repository for code generation and share the know-how widely
· Sm@rtClient Application = Framework + Formalized know-how
· The Framework is Know-how interpreter
· It is much cheaper to change/upgrade framework than redefine know-how
· Powered by Metadata Repository
· Stores complete application domain knowledge
· Complete means: Nothing else is needed to generate the application
· Loosely Coupled, Building Block-based Framework
· XML is the glue between building blocks
· It is easy to upgrade/change a block because is “independent”
· Model & Generate Approach
· Model and Generate whatever can be efficiently modeled and generated
· Methodology based
· „Zero” code approach (it means that more than 90% of presentation and interaction code is generated from the metadata repository)
· Based on industry standards (BPML, W3C XForms, J2EE, .NET…)
Sm@rtClient Key benefits
· Reduced Time to Market
· Know-how is stored in a reusable repository, not hard-coded applications
· Know-how is loosely coupled to infrastructure (SW, HW)
· Built-in native support for prototyping
· Business people are involved in definition of front-end applications
· Designed for highly complex but pattern based environment (a lot of business processes, forms, screens, enterprise services, changes)
· Universal front-end
· Can be connected to any present and future enterprise services
· Standards-based (BPML, W3C XForms, XSD, J2EE ...)
· Minimal “Monday morning effect”
· Minimal network traffic
· High performance in existing IT infrastructure
· Built-in localization support
For whom the Sm@rtClient is good for
Sm@rtClient is primarily dedicated for customers and environments that have specific characteristics
· Complex and heterogeneous environment
· Numerous backend or mid-tier systems
· Hundreds of users
· Hundreds of screens, forms, business logic functions
Sm@rtClient is best performing in complex and heterogeneous environment where Front-end application needs to integrate and service various business domains. The golden rule is that “The more forms, business logic and users the more Sm@rtClient is efficient”.
The typical environment is in most of financial or banking institutions, government sector and other large companies with complex business processes.
How it works in general
Each a little big company during years collected various and unfortunately incompatible and heterogeneous systems. It’s quite normal and mostly caused when different companies with different architecture merged together. It’s very difficult to change or replace the systems to avoid business discontinuity. It’s quite normal that each that system has own front-end application. No problem if there are two or three applications but how about five or ten front-end applications to be installed, to be used and maintained?
The possible solution is to have universal front-end application that is able to cover all backend (mid-tier) business logic in one uniform front-end. And that’s way how Sm@rtClient Platform can help you.
Sm@rtClient application covers existing business logic in backend systems (components or services) and encapsulates it in uniform business logic layer. That layer is completely defined and modeled in the model repository. The modeled business logic could be very easily used for modeling interactions with front-end screens. The modeling is done in visual modeling tools that are designed to be used very easily and efficiently.
The whole modeling process of the new front-end application starts with business model. Business model contains mostly high level business process description. Based on high level business process model the front-end model (user interaction model) is visually modeled in TaskFlow modeler. In first iteration business people are able to model front-end processes. Front-end process – TaskFlow consist of activities. An activity represents user screen processing or business logic call. Activities are interconnected to define flow of activities. Flow is not just sequence of activities but various flow controls can be included to allow branching, conditional processing and assignments and so on.
After the TaskFlow is defined particular screens are designed. Screen Modeler is easy to use and intuitive tool for visual modeling of forms and interconnecting them with data models and validation rules.
Iterative development and prototyping is available during the modeling process. It’s very easy to start generators, generate version for testing, deploy it on a testing server and prove the actual model. Simultaneous development of many users and versioning is supported during development process as well.
When the model is finished, proven and tested it will be deployed on the production server. Sm@rtClient Application Clients on end-user workstations automatically download new versions of forms, validations rules and downloadable libraries and are able to process new front-end application.
New Front-end approach
Sm@rtClient comes with innovative approach for Front-end application. From Sm@rtClient point of view the Front-End application is:
· Completely modeled and defined in model repository
· Independent on business logic (back-ends, mid-tier)
· Result of work of business people not just of IT staff
· Declaratively customized
Completely modeled and defined in model repository
Sm@rtClient Front-end application is based on model. The model is stored in model repository and is created in specialized modeling tool. The modeling tool can be easily used by business people as well. For more information see chapter “Front-end model”.
Independence on business logic
One of the most important characteristics of Sm@rtClient is independence on business logic and ability to integrate various backend systems (mid tier) into one compact and complex application so that end user is not able to distinguish from which back-end system the data/functionality is used. Sm@rtClient application is separated from implementation details of particular backend by universal layer – we call it Service provider. Service provider is responsible for transformation of Sm@rtClient universal business logic call to particular call of backend/mid-tier (EJB, JMS ...).
Declarative customization
Sm@rtClient Front-end application isn’t developed using traditional programming methods. Declarative customization is used form application definitions. It means that most of Front-end application is done visually in modeling tools.
Let’s see for example differences between traditional programming and declarative customization. The example shows how to change validation rule on particular text field in particular form of Front-end application.
Declarative customization
· Open and design/change screen visually in modeler
· Test screen
· Traditional approach (Thick/Fat client, Web Application ...)
· Find the source code via documentation (documentation should be out of sync)
· Get source code from versioning system
· Make changes in multiple source code artifacts
· Compile/Build/Deploy for test/Debug, Compile/Build/Deploy for test/Debug
· Update documentation
· Update source code in versioning system
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