The Issue ...

CASE tools are essential tools for System i developments. Many clients already have them and plan to use them for years to come. Unfortunately, these products barely cover code maintenance activities issues, if they cover them at all:

• Definition of work environments and automation of transfer processes between the environments
• Simultaneous maintenance of the same source code on several different levels
• User request management
• Separation of roles between different people involved in application change

Solution...

ARCAD-Skipper covers all of these points. Skipper has two different interface levels:

• The 3GL/Object level, compatible with ALL the CASE tools on the market. This level functions on a principle of automatic feed of ARCAD-Skipper version logs during compilation phases. Before even entering the CASE tool, a developer merely has to specify which ARCAD version he is working in, and all the code generated is then attached to that version. Concurrent access to the same piece of source code is prevented, unless it can be handled in the CASE tool itself.
  All these ‘upstream’ processes (transfers to test and production) can then be automated in ARCAD-Skipper, in combination with traditional code (RPG, COBOL, CLP, etc.) as needed.
• The 4GL level is reserved for certain market CASE tools for which we have developed highly sophisticated interface levels.
  Our Skipper tool already has interfaces for a number of products currently on the market.
• AGL Adelia: ARCAD-Skipper includes different interface levels with the Hardis Adelia development tool line. These include:
  • An interface with Adelia/400 products. ARCAD-Skipper allows management of both 4GL components (Adelia entities such as templates, management rules, file entities, and more) and 3GL components (generated source code and OS objects).
  • An interface between Adelia/IWS and Adelia Web Studio. ARCAD-Skipper provides complete management of multi-platform components and integrates its control processes directly from the host server for the Adelia repository.
• Synon/2e CASE tool (or Cool/2e or Advantage/2e): (available mid-2007) With ARCAD-Skipper, you can now manage n number of projects in parallel, even if they have components in common. Component allocation processes will be compatible with all special entities used in the CASE tool (functions, procedures, management rules, etc.).
  With this new interface, we will go much further than any other Change Management tool on the market, and meet the needs of any number of project teams.

Conclusion

If the CASE tool you use is not on this list, you can contact us at any time. We will be happy to look into coverage of other CASE tools. We aim to be as open as possible, to all the operators on our market.