Abstract: Take a virtual tour of Linux Business Expo at Comdex Las Vegas with John K and see answers to common Kylix questions

Linux Business Expo - The show within the show

by John Kaster, DevRel and Michael Swindell, Linux Product Manager

It's Wednesday night in the middle of COMDEX week, and I'm waiting for my flight back home, so I thought I'd record my impressions of Linux Business Expo while they're fresh in my mind.

As J.D. Hildebrand has mentioned in his Developer News article, COMDEX is huge. It is so large that COMDEX isn't really one show; it's actually several different shows, all occuring at the same time. This year, we had our Inprise/Borland booth inside Linux Business Expo, showcasing our current and imminent support for the Linux platform.

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Demand and excitement for any news of our support for Linux is high, and it is clear that we need to do a better job of letting our existing developer community and the Linux development community know how we already support Linux, and what we're planning to do in the near future.

One developer came rushing up to our head table, exclaiming "Tell me Delphi is available!"

So, I said "Delphi is available!"

"On Linux?" he asked

I replied, "No, you didn't ask THAT."

Do you want the good news first or the bad news first?

The availability of Delphi on Linux is the number one question we are being asked by the attendees at the show. We are planning to support all our development tools on Linux. Interbase is already available for Linux, and in fact has been available for quite a while. We recently shipped Visibroker for Linux as well. JBuilder for Linux was being demonstrated at the show, and will ship shortly after a stable JDK for Linux is available. JBuilder for Linux will be very similar to JBuilder 3 for Solaris, which was released this quarter.

When I told one developer we were indeed working on Delphi for Linux and actually already had both the C++ and Object Pascal compilers working for it, he said "If you weren't so ugly, I'd kiss you."

I'm not sure, but I think that meant he was pretty happy. Whether or not I am indeed kissable is a matter I intend to take up with my wife.

We have actually previously announced that we are working on Delphi and C++ Builder for Linux, but most people at the show evidently missed the press release. The project is code named Kylix, and you can see the Kylix press release on the Borland web site.

Kylix?

Here's some of the typical questions asked at Linux Business Expo, and the answers to them. Michael Swindell, the Linux Product Manager, provided them for all of us to use in the booth. Although the details of the answer are subject to change, this is at least an attempt to let our developer know what we are planning for Linux support in Delphi and C++ Builder.

Is Kylix "Delphi for Linux"?

Kylix is the project to develop both Delphi and C++Builder for Linux. Kylix will have a feature set very similar to the Windows versions of Delphi and C++Builder.

When did the Kylix project begin?

The Kylix project began in Spring 1999 at about the time of the first Linux World conference. The project began in a mostly research phase, but some development such as the primary backend compiler work also began in Spring 1999. The project was switched from a research project to a development project by Dale Fuller, the interim Inprise CEO, in the summer of 1999.

When will Kylix be available?

The products that will come out of the Kylix project are expected to be available around mid 2000. More exact timeframes will be disclosed as the project moves along.

Why are you announcing the Kylix project this far in advance?

While it's Borland's historical operating mode to be generally "tight lipped" about products in development, there has been a greater than usual degree of speculation and rumor about Delphi and C++Builder for Linux. We're very happy to see the Linux development community and the Windows development community this excited about the prospect of Delphi and C++Builder for Linux and we want to provide some facts to clear up, dispell, and confirm some of the rumor and speculation, and begin the planning of application development projects for 2000.

Is Kylix a native Linux development tool?

Definitely. Native rapid application development is the primary goal of the Kylix project. A completely new ultra high performance Linux native code compiler is under development specifically for the Kylix project. Also, a new native Linux Visual Component Library (VCL) is under development to provide a fully component-based abstraction to the Linux operating system, GUI, Internet and database access.

Is the Kylix VCL compatible with the Delphi and C++Builder VCL?

Yes, with qualifications. The new Linux VCL architecture is based on the Delphi and C++Builder VCL architecture. The orginal VCL was designed as a component framework deeply abstracting the Windows operating system in order to radically simplify Windows development. The new Linux VCL is based on the same architecture but some differences in the underlying operating system and graphics subsystems will surface as minor differences between the two VCLs.

Which GUI toolkit will the Linux VCL based on?

There are several GUI toolkits currently being evaluated. Details on GUI toolkits will be disclosed at a later date. It is Borland's belief and goal that there should be greater interoperability both visually and technically between GUI toolkits and Borland will be taking steps in this direction.

Which Linux Desktop, KDE or GNOME, will Kylix apps work with?

Kylix generated apps will operate perfectly under either KDE or GNOME. The amount of desktop support directly encapsulated in Kylix has not yet been determined. It's Borland's intention to provide as much cross-desktop support as possible to the developer.

Will I be able to recompile a Delphi for Windows app under Kylix?

Many basic applications will simply recompile - a form and button "hello world" application for example. However, most applications will likely require some modifications in order to compile with Kylix. Though some source changes may be necessary, porting from Windows to Linux with Delphi, C++Builder, and Kylix will by far be the fastest and easiest way to build native applications for both platforms.

Will Kylix be both Delphi and C++Builder in the same IDE?

The Kylix project is being developed to support both Delphi and C/C++ RAD development. While it is initially intended that both languages be supported or able to be supported in the same development e nvironment, how the tools are packaged has yet to be determined.

How will Kylix be priced?

We haven't decided that yet.

Are you concerned whether there is a market for commercial products on Linux?

Our research has shown great demand for tools like Delphi and C++Builder on Linux. Our research has also shown that developers are eager to purchase high quality, high performance, supported development tools.

Which Linux distributions will Kylix and Kylix generated applications support?

Kylix and Kylix generated applications will support the major Linux distributions in 2000, including Red Hat Linux and Corel Linux. Other major distibutions to be supported in the first release will be announced at a later date.

Is Kylix an Open Source project?

While the Kylix project itself is not being developed in an Open Source model, it is a top requirement that developers be able to use Kylix to develop both Open Source and proprietary applicaitons. To accomplish this may require that some portions of the Kylix project itself be released under an Open Source license. These details are currently under investigation.

How far along is the Kylix project?

All areas of the Kylix project - compilers, VCL, IDE, database connectivity - are well underway.

When will we be able to see Kylix?

We expect to publicly demonstrate Kylix in early 2000. Exact dates and events will be disclosed as we know them.

When will the Kylix beta be available and how can I get on the beta program?

Information on the Kylix beta schedule has not yet been released. The Kylix beta program is now full.

What databases will be supported in Kylix?

The R&D team is currently working on MySQL and Interbase support. Other major databases will be supported and announced before Kylix is released.

Will a Linux BDE be included in Kylix?

It has not yet been determined whether or not the BDE, with support for Paradox and Dbase, will be available in Kylix.

Will developers have to learn a new data access model?

No, the primary data access model in Kylix will be Midas for Local, Client/Server, and Multi-tier Distributed database access. This will allow desktop and Web applications to seamlessly scale from local to distributed data models as needs dictate. So if developer use datasets and Midas today, little if anything will appear to have changed with Kylix. A new cross-platform data access layer will sit under Midas providing thin high-performance, easily distributable and easily maintainable data access.

Will Kylix support Interfaces for Delphi development?

Yes, Interfaces are supported and will work exactly the same in Kylix as in Delphi. Therefore instances may be created directly or with a call to QueryInterface. The Delphi Interface language features were designed to support COM, but are implemented independently of COM. Therefore Kylix will not support Dispinterface or the Dual-interface mechanism that allows Interfaces to be invoked remotely via COM. There are several 3rd party implementations of COM remoting on Linux so the mechanism in the compiler will be available but a default implementation will not be provided.

How is Kylix different than other commercial and open source development tools for Linux?

While tools such as GCC, Emacs, MetroWerks Code Warrior, and Cygnus Code Fusion are well suited for system level development, rebuilding the Linux kernel for example, Kylix is focused on building high performance native Linux applications. The Kylix development environment takes the traditional "Compiler/Editor/Debugger" to a completely different level by radically simplifying the multitude of complex application technologies such as GUI (Graphical User Interface), database, Internet, client/server, and distributed object technologies.

That's about all the questions I can remember, so I'll move on to the rest of the show.

A Whole Lotta Showing Going On

Linux Business Expo was very busy for us. The first day, we handed out 1000 60-day evaluation CDs of our Windows-based products to attendees (even after telling them that the evals were Windows versions). Although we had more CDs shipped that day, it took over a day to get them to the booth, and many people came back several times to check if the CD was at the booth yet.

We had many people interested in JBuilder for Linux, and most were not even aware that we already supported Linux with VisiBroker and Interbase.

The other booths were also very busy, particularly the various flavors of the actual operating system, like Corel, TurboLinux, and Red Hat. Scott Strool and I (you may know Scott from his ADO and Excel article) had two breaks where we found the time to take some pictures, so I've included them here. Unfortunately, the big crowd scenes didn't really turn out, or Scott forgot to email them to me, so you'll have to work with these.

Scott Strool (Sales Engineer) by the Windows NT station for showing the Windows-based products.

Sandy Ganz (now Sales Manager, but he used to be a Sales Engineer, so we still use him at the shows until all his technical knowledge disappears) showing an attendee JBuilder. One of the time I was actually able to photograph a part of the screen.

Michael Swindell (Kylix Product Manager) was pretty busy meeting with press at the show. Even when he had time for the booth, he still had lots of visits from the gray Media badge wearers.

The aisle at the back of the exhibit hall was the one you needed to use to move around.

We had good examples of penguin image reuse throughout the show floor. This was one of my favorites.

Many people were using the show as an opportunity to get up to speed on Linux in this training room.

Linux wasn't the only Unix variant at the show. Every morning, their demons were found in different locations and positions. Wonder if the devil made me do it?

One of the slower times at our booth. For obvious reasons, we couldn't take pictures when it was busy.

TurboLinux also drew a lot of people whenever they were giving presentations.

The slashdot people never do stop talking.

These young ladies (and the Klingon) represent the multiple language versions of Xlinux. I think I'll try the Klingon version.

Unfortunately, there are not many taxi lines. To leave the show, it can often take over an hour to get a taxi to return to your hotel. It doesn't matter if you leave early or late, there's always a line. I recommend getting a hotel near the show, and booking a reservation early for next year.