SDSC to Host Forum on Latest in Web Technologies

Published 06/24/1996

For more information, contact:
Ann Redelfs
SDSC
619-534-5032
619-534-5113 (FAX)
redelfs@sdsc.edu

San Diego, CA -- Speakers from Netscape and Sun Microsystems will describe the latest techniques for designing World Wide Web sites at the June 26 meeting of the Southern California Web Programmers Forum (SCWPF) at the San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC).

Open to interested developers, programmers, Webmasters, and the general public, the SCWPF has been organized to share information about Web programming technologies such as CGI, Java, and the Virtual Reality Modeling Language. The SCWPF meetings are sponsored by SDSC.

"It's difficult to keep up with the rapid advances in Web technologies," said Jay Boisseau, a senior programmer/analyst at SDSC who founded the forum with Todd Elvins and Peter Kochevar. "We formed the Southern California Web Programmers Forum to bring together application developers and Webmasters to exchange information about the latest advances."

The featured speaker at the meeting, Kemer Thomson of Sun Microsystems, will discuss the Java language and the emerging standard for connecting Java programs to commercially available database software. Thomson will talk about the design goals and draft programmers interface components, as well as go over two pieces of sample code to show how one would query and update a database across the Web using Java.

Netscape Communications Corp. will also have a representative at the meeting to discuss its Javascript programming language and the development of Navigator Plug-Ins, which extend the capabilities of Netscape's market-leading Web browser.

"One of the most entertaining aspects of the SCWPF is the chance to see and hear about the latest in Web technology from the developers themselves," said Kochevar, an SDSC senior fellow and visiting scientist from Digital Equipment Corporation. "Forum participants learn from people with similar interests but from a variety of academic, commercial, educational, and government environments."

JULY MEETING TO FEATURE VIRTUAL BANKING

At the July 24 meeting, Tom Meyer of First Virtual (http://www.fv.com)--the first entry in the business of electronic Internet banking--will talk about writing good Java programs, which is much different than just writing Java, and writing code that pays attention to machine architectures. Meyer will also discuss secure Web-based commerce directed development at First Virtual.

The SCWPF meets on the fourth Wednesday of every month. Each meeting features one or two guest speakers who are accomplished developers or authors. Time is also devoted to related activities such as discussing Web technologies, demonstrating members' projects and vendors' products, and collaborating on applications.

SCWPF meetings begin at 7 p.m. in the SDSC auditorium. For more information or directions to SDSC, contact Jay Boisseau at 619-534-8375, or visit the SCWPF Web page at http://www.sdsc.edu/scwpf/.

SDSC, a national laboratory for computational science and engineering, is sponsored by NSF, other agencies, the State and University of California, and private organizations; is affiliated with the University of California, San Diego; and is administered by General Atomics. For more information, see http://www.sdsc.edu or contact Ann Redelfs, redelfs@sdsc.edu, or 619-534-5032.