NeXT Computer Inc has launched its own answer to the object distribution problem in the shape of Portable Distributed Objects, designed to provide an object-oriented foundation to client-server computing and enable users to build company-wide custom applications using objects across the enterprise. It will also increase interoperability between NeXTstep clients and server environments, and between NeXTstep and emerging distributed computing and object-oriented standards. It is designed to enable users to encapsulate complex network computing resources in re-usable software objects, which NeXT calls ObjectWare, third-party reusable network-based objects created for critical, computational, data- or server-intensive tasks such as telecommunications, data feed distribution, custom analytics, multimedia distribution and rendering, reducing the time to market for complex custom applications, and creating applications that can be easily modified. The company says in will conform to the Common Object Request Broker, Distributed Computing Environment and Distributed Management Environment. Portable Distributed Objects is expected to be available for Hewlett-Packard Co and Data General Corp machines by the end of the year, and pricing will be announced then. The Redwood City, California company also has a special NeXTstep Evaluation Kit that contains both the User and Developer versions of NeXTstep 3.1 for Intel Corp processors, available from May 25 to July 31 at $300.
