Data access for Java junkies

Intersolv (ISLI) is giving Java developers an easier way to access information stored in corporate databases.

The company has posted three Java Database Connectivity (JDBC)-based products to its Web site for free downloading.

The products make it easier for developers to link new Java-based applications and applets to new and existing server-based databases over the Internet or private networks.

Sun Microsystems (SUNW), Java's inventor, introduced the JDBC specification last spring. Designed to give Java applets direct connectivity to databases, the JDBC spec defines an API (application programming interface) similar to a more general specification called Open Database Connectivity (ODBC), but is specifically designed for Java developers.

JDBC-based data access software is becoming more important as developers flock in droves to Java as a development language for Internet and intranet applications. The software will also make it easier to get server data from network computers from Sun and other companies.

The three Intersolv products available for free download include the following:

JDBC/ODBC Bridge, a software package for translating JDBC calls into ODBC equivalent commands so that developers can use existing ODBC drivers with new Java-based applications.

Native-API Partly Java Drivers, which translate JDBC calls into the proprietary APIs used by database vendors, such as Oracle, Sybase, and Informix Software. The drivers let developers add new Java applications to networks already using proprietary database vendor middleware.

JDBCTest, a graphical tool for testing JDBC code and for learning the JDBC API.