US 2006/0150148 A1Published application

System and method for non-programmatically constructing software solutions

AssigneeOpenSpan, Inc.

InventorsStephen Beckett, Antony Castagno, Damon Lockwood, Horace McDougald

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Abstract

A visual software development system in which a user can graphically build a design or software solution without having to write software code includes one or more adapters that interrogate interfaces of the software platform that a software system or systems is built in accordance with and generate descriptions that the user can then incorporate into the design. The software systems can be of disparate technology platforms, an adapter provided that suits each platform. The descriptions can be represented graphically for the user with icons in an integrated development environment (IDE), and the user can build the design by dragging or otherwise selecting descriptions to be used and connecting them together to graphically represent the flow of information or communication of events among the descriptions.

Claims28

Dependent claims

A visual software development system, comprising:

a first adapter to generate descriptions for a first software system, the first software system built in accordance with a first platform of a plurality of software platforms, the first adapter being associated with the same software platform as the first software system, the first adapter interrogating at least one element of the first software system utilizing the first platform and generating at least one description corresponding to an element of the first software system without altering or extending the first software system, the first adapter having a user interface to initiate interrogation;
an integrated development environment (IDE) to build a design using the descriptions, the IDE having a user interface to graphically select descriptions and create the interconnections, the design comprising user-selected descriptions and interconnections between descriptions and graphical icons representing the user-selected descriptions and interconnections, the user-selected descriptions and interconnections together defining a user-defined algorithm;
and
a loader to enable the user-defined algorithm to be effected in response to the descriptions and interconnections.

1 more element

A computer-implemented visual software development method, comprising:

generating descriptions for a first software system using a first adapter, the first software system built in accordance with a first platform of a plurality of software platforms, the first adapter being associated with the same software platform as the first software system, the first adapter interrogating at least one element of the first software system utilizing the first platform and generating at least one description corresponding to an element of the first software system without altering or extending the first software system, the first adapter having a user interface to initiate interrogation;
building a design in an integrated development environment (IDE) using the descriptions by selecting descriptions and interconnecting the descriptions with graphical icons representing the user-selected descriptions and interconnections, the user-selected descriptions and interconnections together defining a user-defined algorithm;
and
preparing the user-defined algorithm to be effected in response to the descriptions and interconnections.

1 more element

A computer program product for visual software development comprising a computer-usable medium carrying thereon:

instructions for generating descriptions for a first software system using a first adapter, the first software system built in accordance with a first platform of a plurality of software platforms, the first adapter being associated with the same software platform as the first software system, the first adapter interrogating at least one element of the first software system utilizing the first platform and generating at least one description corresponding to an element of the first software system without altering or extending the first software system, the first adapter having a user interface to initiate interrogation;
instructions for building a design in an integrated development environment (IDE) using the descriptions by selecting descriptions and interconnecting the descriptions with graphical icons representing the user-selected descriptions and interconnections, the user-selected descriptions and interconnections together defining a user-defined algorithm;
and
instructions for preparing the user-defined algorithm to be effected in response to the descriptions and interconnections.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.