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Embarcadero Technologies, a provider of software solutions for application and database development, has announced a series of new technologies including new Windows UI and logging products for Delphi and C++Builder developers with support for Windows 10.
Embarcadero recently acquired Raize Components, the maker of CodeSite and Konopka Signature VCL Controls, which are two new Embarcadero add-on solutions for developers. Embarcadero CodeSite is a developer logging solution for Delphi, C++Builder and Visual Studio that helps developers debug deployed Windows applications. The Konopka Signature VCL Controls product is a Windows UI component solution for Delphi and C++Builder developers.
“Even in beta, Windows 10 has been a hit with end users and developers,” said Michael Swindell, senior vice president of products at Embarcadero, in a statement. “This resurgence in Windows interest is driving demand for both new applications and updates to millions of existing Windows-based solutions, creating new opportunities for Windows developers. The introduction of Konopka Signature VCL Controls puts the best Windows UI capabilities in the hands of Delphi and C++Builder developers at the opportune time to refresh their Windows applications.
“Raize software components have long been considered the highest quality Windows UI controls available to developers. The acquisition of Raize products and technology reinforces Embarcadero’s continued commitment to Delphi and C++Builder Windows developers and the popular VCL framework that powers millions of Windows applications today.”
Konopka Signature VCL Controls enable the quick design of modern user interfaces for Windows applications. The product features more than 200 Windows UI controls. With full VCL Styles support, developers can deliver custom and modern Windows 10 applications. The product also features more than 100 custom property editors to simplify Windows UI design and development.
The CodeSite Logging System gives Visual Component Library (VCL), FireMonkey and .NET developers deeper insights into how their live code is executing. This insight helps developers to more effectively locate problems to ensure their application is running correctly. CodeSite’s logging classes let developers capture information while their code executes and then send that information to a live display or to a log file. Both styles of logging—live logging and file logging—can be performed locally or remotely. CodeSite supports popular development frameworks and integrated development environments (IDEs), including Embarcadero’s RAD Studio and Microsoft’s Visual Studio.
“With the release of Windows 10 [July 29], it’s the perfect time for developers to be thinking about new and expanded Windows development as Microsoft brings Windows to more form factors and extends it with Bluetooth LE, IoT, and mobile support,” said John “JT” Thomas, senior director of application development products at Embarcadero. “Developers can seize the opportunity to build the UI/UX for connected apps that are automatically styled for Windows 10 by using Konopka Signature VCL Controls.”
Embarcadero also announced BeaconFence, an indoor/outdoor beacon-based user location and zone management solution for developers. The technology enables developers and independent software vendors (ISVs) to easily add interactive user and device proximity support to iOS, Android, Windows and OS X applications. Embarcadero said although BeaconFence can be used in a wide range of applications, it is particularly well-suited for retail, health care, entertainment and manufacturing application solutions.
The BeaconFence proximity components track and report user or device location, zone presence/enter/exit, and movement in both indoor and outdoor scenarios. This enables the development of interactive applications use end-user, customer or device proximity to or within any physical location, building or object. Using standard iBeacons and AltBeacons, BeaconFence supports simple radial zones as well as polygonal zones of virtually any shape or layout, the company said. Developers simply import a blueprint, bird’s-eye photo or drawing of the physical location layout, visually place beacons and draw zones. BeaconFence will then provide user or device location tracking including zone enter/exit events.
“Interactive proximity support was historically something relegated to sci-fi movies, yet recent steps forward have still been generally restricted to outdoor scenarios, with indoor support typically requiring expensive proprietary RFID receivers and tags,” Swindell said. “With BeaconFence, developers can now provide high-precision user tracking both indoors and outdoors using standard Bluetooth-enabled phones and tablets that users already carry, and off-the-shelf beacons that can easily be installed in any location.
“Furthermore, BeaconFence enables developers to easily develop applications that understand accurate user location and movement within developer defined polygonal zones, enabling solutions that go well beyond the traditional ‘am I near an object’ beacon and RFID proximity support. BeaconFence truly opens the door for new interactive applications for a wide variety of industries.”
BeaconFence is one of several Embarcadero tools that help developers build Internet of things (IoT) applications. User location and time zone management are critical when developing end-to-end IoT solutions.
In an Embarcadero-sponsored survey of 1,040 developers, conducted by Dimensional Research earlier this year, 77 percent of development teams surveyed said they will have IoT solutions in active development in 2015 and almost half of IoT developers anticipate their solutions will generate business impact by the end of 2015.