ILOG JViews Offers Big Leap Forward From Basic Graphics Primitives

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.—December 8, 1998—For some, Java 2D is coming. For others, it's already here. ILOG already offers ILOG JViews, the fastest, most comprehensive solution for creating and maintaining high-performance Java graphics interfaces. Today at the Java Business Expo in New York, ILOG also announced it will support Sun Microsystems' Java 2D APIs within ILOG JViews. ILOG is the world's leading vendor of software components, according to market researcher International Data Corp.

Java 2D is one of the most important features of Sun’s new Java Development Kit (JDK) 1.2, adding new low-level graphics primitives that enhance the basic screen drawing capabilities previously available. The upcoming version of ILOG JViews is designed to seamlessly support Java 2D, but enable developers to work at a higher level, utilizing graphics objects that represent real elements of the application. Developers can use ILOG JViews to create industrial-strength graphics interfaces that are automatically rendered via the Java 2D primitives, saving significant development time.

The combination of ILOG JViews and Java 2D will enable developers to rapidly add rich visualization capabilities to their Java applets and applications, such as web-based mapping, relationship displays and easy-to-design, data-aware icons. No other visualization product offers all these sophisticated visualization features in a single solution. By leveraging ILOG's many years of experience building enterprise-grade graphical components, Java developers can insure their application’s screen will have the fastest zooming, panning, selection and redraw updates.

Moving Beyond 2D Primitives
"The industry response to Sun's Java 2D is already strongly positive," said Bill Scull, vice president of worldwide marketing at ILOG. "These new 2D graphics primitives will become the standard for rendering graphics in Java. And following Sun’s open software model, companies like ILOG can now build new capabilities on this standard technology that will help expand the selection of Java applications in the enterprise."

ILOG JViews also supports Sun’s Swing, the reusable, platform-independent JavaBeans components within JDK 1.2 that comprise simple GUI forms-based elements like buttons and text fields. Prior to the release of ILOG JViews 2.0 in October, most web-based graphics interfaces did not deliver the richness that native-platform GUIs can offer. However, ILOG JViews adds a higher level of visually rich capabilities to Swing, giving developers the scalability and performance they need for the most demanding applications in domains such as network management and supply chain planning. Developers can design applications with highly customized, visually rich Java interfaces that are as advanced as those in traditional applications.

"We are delighted to see ILOG support JDK 1.2 and Java 2D," said Jon Kannegard, vice president and general manager of the Java platform at Sun Microsystems, Inc.’s Java software division. "This represents an important advancement of Java technology with rich visualization capabilities to satisfy the needs of enterprise developers."

Industry Applauds ILOG's Complete Java 2D Support
Enterprise application vendors like leading, web-based digital mapping provider Global Geomatics laud ILOG's support of the new JDK 1.2 Java 2D primitives. "A key part of drawing a web-based map is the actual rendering of information on the screen. A wide variety of line styles and polygon filling techniques need to be supported if you want the maps to be visually appealing. We are very pleased that ILOG JViews supports Java 2D. It directly furthers our goal of creating the next generation in GIS products," said Gilles Clement, CEO of Global Geomatics.

"We are glad to hear that ILOG will take advantage of the new features offered by Java 2D/JDK 1.2. Sun's Java 2D and ILOG JViews is a great combination that enables us to develop industrial- strength web-based graphical user interfaces without spending any cycles at the pixel level," said Michael Zoratti, senior Java developer at Architel Systems Corporation, a leading Toronto-based provider of operations support systems.

Pricing and Availability
ILOG currently has plans to begin shipping the version of ILOG JViews that supports Java 2D early next month. It will run on any Java platform and any web browser that supports JDK 1.2, including Netscape Communicator, Microsoft Internet Explorer and Sun's HotJava. Prices will start at $6,500 for a single developer license, the same price as the current version.

About ILOG
ILOG (NASDAQ NMS: ILOGY; Nouveau Marche: Ilog) is the world’s leading provider of advanced C, C++ and Java software components for graphics and resource optimization. ILOG products deliver high-performance data visualization for user interfaces; integer, linear and constraint solvers for resource optimization, scheduling, logistics and planning applications; dynamic rules systems for intelligent agents and real-time data flow control; and components for integrating modules with real-time and relational data sources. ILOG was founded in 1987 and now employs more than 450 people in seven countries. Visit www.ilog.com for additional information.

ILOG is a registered trademark, and ILOG JViews is a trademark of ILOG. All other company and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.