CodeGear, the renowned developer tools subsidiary of Borland, has announced the availability of Delphi2007 for Win32. Win 32 is a new version of the rapid application development (RAD) environment with new support for Microsoft, Windows Vista and AJAX.
This is a major launch under the Borland’s subsidiary CodeGear after it was formed on November 2006 ending a tense period of speculation and uncertainty for this old player in the development tools sector. The company in February 2006 had announced an ambitious strategy to accelerate its automated lifecycle management (ALM) business, which involved a plan of eliminating its developer’s tool arm. The Borland executives announced a Q3 deadline for a sale. The package included the company’s famous products namely Delphi programming language and IDE, JBuilder, C# Builder and Interbase. But as the deadline came closer Borland rejected the idea of selling the tools group and instead formed CodeGear, a wholly owned subsidiary by the company.
But unlike CodeGear, which is very new, Delphi has been in existence since a decade. Delphi has made its mark since its inception in 1995 when Borland revived its version of Pascal. It introduced the rapid application development environment and named it Delphi - turning Pascal into a visual programming language. The strategic decision was to make database tools and connectivity a central part of the new Pascal product.
The first version of Delphi appeared in 1995 as a powerful Windows programming development tool. Delphi 1 extended the Borland Pascal language by providing object-orientated and form-based approach, a fast native code compiler, visual two-way tools and database support with a close integration with Windows and the component technology. Delphi 2 in 1996 was developed for the Win32 platform for full Windows 95 support and integration. Delphi 3 in 1997 introduced new features and enhancements in code insight technology, DLL debugging, component templates and the like. Delphi 4 in 1998 introduced docking, anchoring and constraining components. Windows 98 support, improved OLE and COM support as well as extended database support. Delphi 5 in 1999, aimed for high- productivity development for the Internet. It introduced concepts like various desktop layouts, the concept of frames, XML support and so on.
The 2000 edition of Delphi 6, introduced new features and enhancements in the areas of IDE, XML, Internet, Compiler and Database Support. The highlight of this release was the support for cross-platform development. This means it enabled the same code to be compiled with Delphi in Windows and Kylix under Linux. Borland’s Delphi 7 launched in 2001, marked the much-awaited migration path to Microsoft.Net. Delphi 8 marked the eighth anniversary of Delphi. This release was named Octane and it provided features like Visual Component Library (VCL) and Component Library for Cross-platform (CLX) development for Win32 (and Linux) as well as new features and continued framework, compiler, IDE, and design time enhancements. Delphi 9 known as Diamondback came out in 2005 which supported Delphi for Win 32, Delphi for .NET and C#. It brought out the function of having several different type projects in one project group and it also enabled to switch between them without closing the IDE. Delphi 2006 known as ‘DeXter’ included functions like a complete RAD support for C++ and C# in addition to Delphi for Win32 and Delphi for .NET programming languages. This gave a perfect setting for users to move to ignore the older versions and install the newer one instead. With the 2006 release came the Turbo Delphi release for Win 32 and .Net development, which gave a line of products as a subset of the Delphi 2006.
The latest release Delphi 2007 Win 32 , allows developers to work on multiple platforms which involves both the old and latest versions. This means Delphi 2007 will not only run on the latest Windows Vista but will also continue running on Windows 2000 or XP. It also provides Web 2.0 technologies with Delphi’s new support for AJAX . Also, new DBX4 database architecture streamlines database connectivity and supports the latest versions of SQL databases.
It is available in two editions:
Delphi 2007 for Win32 Professional Edition
This version is meant for individuals or departments who want Delphi’s proven visual Rapid Application Development (RAD) approach for Win32 development with support for Windows Vista™ and AJAX techniques for building interactive web pages.
Delphi 2007 for Win 32 Enterprise Edition
Delphi 2007 for Win32 Enterprise is for enterprise development organizations that need AJAX support for more complex web applications and support for enterprise database connectivity.
Delphi 2007 for Win32 will be available for pre-ordering on February 20, 2007 and shipping in March 2007. Delphi 2007 for Win32 can be ordered now and will ship simultaneously in English, German, Japanese and French in March. Delphi 2007 for Win32 Professional new user pricing is USD 899; special upgrade pricing is USD 399. Delphi 2007 for Win32 Enterprise new user pricing is USD 1,999; special upgrade pricing is USD 1,299.
For more information on system requirements, languages, pricing and availability, you can visit www.codegear.com/products/delphiwin32.
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