Developer Connection: Spinning Our Web

by Stacey Miller

Today s technology gives us the chance to improve the IBM Developer Connection (DevCon) product once again. The original DevCon is a great offering, but we realize that "the times they are a-changing." And, one of the fastest changing areas today is on the Internet. We can now harness the power of the Web to bring you the most up-to-date, real-time delivery of tools and technology. We can truly provide cross-platform tools at your fingertips!

Have You Noticed Our New, Improved Web Site?
When was the last time you visited our Web site? The DevCon Web site at http://www.developer.ibm.com/devcon/ has been enhanced. On our new pages, you'll find such items as:
 * General DevCon Information
 * Our "Tool Tidbits" column
 * Links to other "cool" Web sites
 * Product announcements
 * The current, complete DevCon catalog (including descriptions of all the products)

Future Web Features
In the future, DevCon subscribers will also have access to a whole new set of Web pages, including:
 * Our "oldies but goodies" products
 * The complete Developer Connection News
 * Dynamic updates and FixPaks
 * Special promo offerings
 * The ability to order and renew your subscription
 * Direct, e-mail access to our support team
 * The DevCon Feedback form, which can be automatically sent to the DevCon Team
 * Updated and enhanced newsletter articles
 * The complete, most current DevCon catalog with the latest products available to download
 * Real-time access to information and tools, including updates to products and toolkits, as well as Beta versions of operating systems

Best of all, these pages will not be static. They will be updated frequently. So visit our pages often to make sure that you don't miss out on a single update. And, if you haven't visited the DevCon pages lately, check us out!

Your DevCon catalog will actually be a "smart" catalog. The catalog will let you know where the most current version of the products are (CD vs. Web) and will actually launch a Web session for you, if necessary. You will have the option of either downloading the Web-version or installing from the CD.

The new, improved DevCon Web site will use IBM's technology for some of the enhancements you will soon see. For instance, to implement online subscription ordering, registration, and payment, we are looking at using IBM's Net.Commerce components to support this level of electronic commerce (e-commerce). For user forums or discussions, we are looking at using Lotus Notes 4.x on our Web server. Both Net.Commerce and Notes 4.x will provide us with some of the most "tried and true" Internet products available on the market today.

DevCon Online!
The combination of these future Web features, coupled with the ability to order or renew your subscription and provide input directly into the DevCon team, will be called Developer Connection Online! But don't worry, DevCon Online! will not replace your hardcopy newsletter or your CDs DevCon Online! is simply the next natural step as we strive to improve our product for you. We want to know what you think of our new direction. Either complete the Feedback form on the Web site and e-mail it to DevCon technical support or e-mail me directly at staceym@aussmtp.austin.ibm.com.