Article
Zephyr is pleased to announce the PASSPORT Object Toolkit, a time-saving development tool designed to help application and web programmers transition applications written for Attachmate® EXTRA!® Personal Client to either the PASSPORT PC TO HOST or PASSPORT WEB TO HOST terminal emulation software. The toolkit can also be used for new client-based host integration with the 3270, 5250 or VT220 session.
The PASSPORT object interface provides compatibility with the Attachmate EXTRA! OLE automation support. This interface exposes terminal emulation objects such as the entire group of sessions, a single session, screen, area, OIA, keypad, etc. Applications that require host access and need to control multiple host sessions can use the object toolkit. C++, Visual Basic, VBScript, JavaScript or any language that can use the Microsoft COM object interface is supported.
PASSPORT provides TN3270E, TN5250E and VT100/VT220 host access to IBM zSeries (S/390), IBM iSeries (AS/400) and Unix host systems, as well as FTP file transfer, for Windows desktops, including Windows 2000 and XP.
Benefits
There are many benefits of using the PASSPORT Object Toolkit, including the migration of existing Attachmate EXTRA! applications to PASSPORT without any modification. You can also:
· Save Money on Terminal Emulation - With the PASSPORT annual subscription license program (SLP), your company can significantly reduce the amount of money spent to upgrade and maintain Attachmate EXTRA!. For some, the price of EXTRA! is 10 times the cost of a yearly PASSPORT subscription.
· Seamlessly Replace Attachmate EXTRA! - Existing applications written specifically for Attachmate EXTRA! can be easily re-linked and re-used with PASSPORT. This is important to note since many Attachmate EXTRA! Personal Client customers will likely need to upgrade to MyEXTRA! when moving to Windows XP or Windows 2000. When this occurs, you're presented with an ideal time to switch to PASSPORT and realize significant savings.
· Get the Toolkit Free - The PASSPORT Object Toolkit is free to all PASSPORT customers under a Priority Maintenance Plan for support or an annual subscription license. Questions from developers are answered as part of the support services offered under the Zephyr support and license programs.
The PASSPORT Object Toolkit
A sample web application is provided in the PASSPORT Object Toolkit. This web application contains hyperlinks on a web page. Each hyperlink corresponds to an object method or property that executes a VBScript demonstrating its use. This sample application can be used as a starting point for your own web application.
The PASSPORT object interface includes a system manager object, a collection of sessions, a session object, screen object, area object and OIA object. Also included are keypad ant toolbar objects for complete compatibility with the Attachmate EXTRA! OLE automation support interface. Complete documentation for the object interface is included with the PASSPORT Object Toolkit. More detailed information can be found on the Zephyr web site at http://www.zephyrcorp.com/passport-object-toolkit.htm.
A screenshot of the object hierarchy is available at http://www.zephyrcorp.com/images/screenshots/object-hierarchy.gif
Migrating Your Attachmate EXTRA! Application to PASSPORT
Since the PASSPORT object interface is compatible with the Attachmate EXTRA! ® OLE automation support in