Softwell Maker

The Maker project first began in 2002, within Freire Informática Ltda.^[1] a software factory in Bahia that operates in the public area, which developed over 100 solutions based on the Softwell Maker platform since the first versions of the product. In 2004, Softwell Solutions Ltda was created to be a specialized company in the evolution and improvement of Maker and other tools to improve the software development process.

The Softwell Maker platform is composed of two interdependent products, an IDE and a royalty-free runtime, respectively called Maker and Webrun. The IDE is in charge of recording all the specifications of the system within specific tables set up in a database, the Webrun reads these specifications and provides the ultimate application for the customer.

Applications developed by Softwell Maker are not tied to a programming language, so they will always be technologically upgraded preserving the real value of software: the business rules.

To support the widest range of applications, the product offers a comprehensive list of resources. A summary of the product capabilities:

• Access to multiple databases simultaneously;
• Production and consumption of Web services;
• Access Control, and audit logs;
• Support for HTTPS and client authentication;
• Exporting the source code to Java language;
• Database support: Firebird 1.5/2.0/2.5, PostgreSQL 8.0/8.1/8.2/8.3/8.4/9.0; Oracle 10G/11G; MS-SQL Server 2000/2005/2008, MySQL 5.0-5.5;
• Intensive use of AJAX;
• Support for themes (skins);
• Support for Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Safari;
• 3 layers Client / Server / Database;
• Self documentation;

The IDE of the Softwell Maker platform (which gives the product its name) currently in version 2.4 is an application for Microsoft Windows (win32) compatible with versions 2000, Me, XP and Vista (32 e 64 bits) of Windows; Softwell Maker platform is made up of a form designer, a report designer (MakerReport), flowcharts designer (MakerFlow), a set of wizards and tools to support the developer.

Used to develop the forms of an application with a visual approach. Available to the developer is a set of flexible components that can be added to the form and positioned through the mouse or keyboard, according to the WYSIWYG philosophy. The forms may or may not be connected to a table in the database, but can also be connected to other databases, whole or in part, by facilitating the integration of various databases.

This allows for reports with visual support for graphics, table cross-references, and sub-reports groups at various levels. The generated reports can be executed in the environment Win32/WINE, or be exported to Jasper, a reports generator written in Java.

Sometimes called MakerFlow or simply Flow, this is the component that allows the independence of the code, since the actions and business rules will be defined with a visual approach. The programming flow path allows only logic, allowing the team to concentrate efforts on implementing the details of the desired behavior and not the underlying core functions, like displaying text and a button.

There is a set of tools to support the development in the Softwell Maker platform, like:

• New form wizard – Uses the database definition to infer the corresponding registration form;
• Multi-form Creator – Allows automatic generation of forms with several tables at once;
• Access control to the project – which allows users to define determined software artifact (form, report, flow, …)
• Automatic versions control of system objects – The Softwell Maker IDE automatically

supports the latest copies of each object changed, restoration points of all software;

• Project Packer – saves all the software into a single compressed file, allowing any to be carried to a different environment;
• Task Scheduler - Allows scheduling of the flow execution in a specific date or pattern.
• Registry of functions – The Maker API can be extended by this interface, enabling the development of applications that are of the native support of the Softwell Maker IDE to some kind of appeal that might be necessary, or even to change the behavior of some existing resource;
• Data Dictionary – This feature allows the tool to handle the database through user-friendly names of tables, views and the infields.
• Repository – Allows the reuse of objects between several projects, allowing a single object to be available simultaneously in various projects;