Press Release
September 15, 2003
Onset Releases SDK for METAmessage to Enable Custom BlackBerry Data-Access Solutions
New Software Development Kit Lets Customers, Partners Build Applications That Complement and Extend METAmessage for Wireless
SANTA CRUZ, CA - Onset Technology, a leading developer of enterprise access software for wireless handheld devices, announced today that it has released a software development kit (SDK) for its METAmessage® for Wireless enterprise server application. The SDK will enable customers, carrier partners, and third-party developers to create custom METAmessage data-access solutions for Research In Motion (Nasdaq:RIMM - News); (Toronto:RIM.TO - News) BlackBerry® deployments.
The METAmessage SDK provides access to the full internal functionality of METAmessage as it relates to writing a data-access connector for a particular data source or protocol. The SDK is accessible from most Windows-based programming languages and environments such as Microsoft C and C++, Visual Basic, Delphi, and others. The included code samples are in C++, compiled under Microsoft Visual Studio 6.0. Because the internal structure of data-access requests and results is XML-based, a familiarity with XML is required.
"Our base product includes connectors that let users immediately access virtually any information system. However, a number of our customers have asked for a means to further integrate METAmessage with their legacy and home-grown databases," said Eyran Blumberg, Onset's VP of Products. "From the start, we've built METAmessage to be scalable and open, so developing the SDK was straightforward. We're happy to make this tool available."
METAmessage, installed by over 1000 enterprise and government customers with over 100,000 users, is a complete, out-of-the-box solution for BlackBerry handheld access to the enterprise. Users can interact directly with a range of enterprise data systems including document management systems, enterprise applications, and internally developed databases. The user simply opens a form on the handheld and either requests information from or adds information to the data source.
METAmessage also enables BlackBerry handhelds for COOP planning and disaster recovery scenarios with handheld document storage, PIN updating, and PIN-to-PIN archiving features. Users can also get documents to send, read, or print; access the Web, without opening a browser, for driving directions, flight information, Google searches, and more; and, read email attachments and Web pages and print them anywhere, including network printers.
About Onset Technology
Founded in 1997, Onset Technology is the developer of METAmessage® for Wireless -- a unique software solution that gives business users access to virtually any data on their enterprise network using just a wireless email device such as RIM's BlackBerry® handheld. The software is broadly compatible with virtually all wireless devices and servers including those from strategic partners AT&T, Ericsson, Microsoft, and RIM. Since its introduction last year, METAmessage has been widely adopted by Fortune 1000 companies, government agencies, and a range of large service organizations.
