[rmendis]

As a WebObjects Developer, i am growing concerned that the sales and market of the once very successful and high profile WebObjects is being throttled under the Apple brand.

I have to say that i am pleased with the way the technology has evolved under Apple. That is re-engineered in 100% java, focus on Web services and a reduction in price.

However, now that the product is independent of Mac OS X's Objective-C/Cocoa Foundation, i believe it is time for Apple to spin it off (ala FileMaker Inc.).

As an independent, WebObjects Inc, would be able to market separate products like:
* EnterpriseObjects for J2SE (WebLogic, Oracle Application Server, IBM WebSphere).

In addition, it may be able to partner with other services and consultancies (in addition to Apple's own iServices). WebObjects will need a big player/partner (like HP, Sun, EDS or CapGemini) to really build market share again.

[Millennium]

Actually, you might be surprised at how much marketshare WebObjects has. They're not exactly at ASP's level, but they're pretty high up. The U.S. Postal Service actually uses them, to power their own Intranet and package-tracking facilities.

[rmendis]

Originally posted by Millennium:
Actually, you might be surprised at how much marketshare WebObjects has. They're not exactly at ASP's level, but they're pretty high up. The U.S. Postal Service actually uses them, to power their own Intranet and package-tracking facilities.

I know how much market share WebObjects has...but it used to be a lot more. Most certainly there used to be much enthusiam surrounding the product 1-2 years ago. That has died down in recent months.

[OptimusG4]

Only due to Microsoft's empty promises of this .NET bull****.

[rmendis]

Originally posted by OptimusG4:
Only due to Microsoft's empty promises of this .NET bull****.

Perhaps it's all part and parcel of the .com bust.

Either way it really is a digression.
Wouldn't WebObjects be better off as a separate entity like FileMaker Inc.?

I think it would.
WebObjects Inc., would still benefit from being an Apple owned company as mac users will be loyal to it just as they are to FileMaker. However, it may acquire better perception and mindshare in the corporate space as an independent.

Also as a product focused company, WebObjects Inc. (essentially engineering and marketing/sales) will be able to partner with several services companies, Apple included (iServices) to produce WebObjects solutions. Also WebObjects Inc., may be able to partner with other tool vendors (Windows and Solaris J2SE IDEs for example) for WebObjects Developer on Windows and possibly Solaris/Linux?

Other branched products:
* WebObjects Studio (for Mac OS X only...the current WebObjects Developer)
* WebObjects for Windows (Developer & Deployment bundled with a Java IDE - other than the legacy ProjectBuilderWO - more expensive than the Mac OS X version)
* WebObjects for Solaris/Linux (Developer & Deployment again bundled with a J2SE IDE - even more expensive than the Windows one :-)

Currently the three platforms are supported in one package, though Windows support is lacking and second to the Mac OS X support.
I think this is a reason why interest in WebObjects has diminished somewhat, not as some believe the re-write in 100% java.