Software portability: still an open issue?

Abstract

m Portability is widely regarded as a done deal, but, although progress has been made, the problem has not been solved; if anything, it is becoming more complex. The commercial impact of non-portability increases as information systems become more distributed and interoperability becomes a higher priority. This article explores the issues behind the issues and their technical and commercial impact. We also outline some possible solutions being evaluated, particularly within the X/Open community of IT buyers and suppliers. Proposals such as a “what-works-withwhat” information base and procurement assurance mechanisms are explored. pen systems are about interfaces— defining, stabilizing and managing them so that they can effectively hide implementation details—and about building a portfolio of conformant products. This process, coupled with healthy competition among suppliers, leads to commercial benefits such as flexibility and value in IS solutions. Already, in the mid-range server market, it is not difficult to produce server applications that are portable (and therefore commercially available) across a wide range of platforms. Platforms evolve as technology advances and applications evolve with them. This portability has now gone far beyond the operating system and embraces the user interface, networking, data access, security, messaging etc. Intense work on system and network management is necessary to complete the picture. Meanwhile, Microsoft has done “the same thing” on the client platform—but without the openness that most people want. As the dominant supplier of the client platform they also define standards. This is certainly good. The economics of the client platform cannot support the heterogeneity of the server market. Similarly, the cost of development and distribution for multi-platform software does not fit the client model that covers the full spectrum from personal applications to those of international corporations and governments. It would have been convenient to have had one, not two, paradigms of standardization, but this simply did not happen. Users and application developers have coped well despite the increasing functionality and complexity of application solutions that today’s businesses demand. These two paradigms must now come together in a client/server market where application solutions are increasingly deployed across Windows®-based clients and open, generally UNIX®-based, servers. This situation poses a new set of challenges for both user and application developer. O Software Portability: Still an Open Issue?