The challenge
Legacy host applications such as CICS and IMS remain the workhorses of transaction-intensive processing for many organizations. But their 3270 user interface has not kept up with the times. Today, end-users prefer the universal access, intuitive navigation, and assisted data entry of web applications. And the gap between host and web technology has become even wider and more visible with the recent explosion of smartphones, PDAs and tablets, as web access devices.
The solution
Virtel is a host/web protocol converter that runs on the host and can be configured to serve 3270 applications as user-friendly mobile-specific web pages to thin-client web browsers on smartphones, PDAs, and tablets. It is a quick, easy, safe, and cost-effective solution to combine the proven business logic of legacy host applications, with the user friendliness of GUIs, and the convenient outreach of mobile delivery.
Key benefits
- Access host (3270) applications from smartphones, PDAs, and tablets
- Serve 3270 transactions as user friendly web pages (GUIs) instead of outdated 3270 screens
- Serve concurrently traditional 3270 screen, full-screen GUI, and mobile-friendly accordion layouts for same transactions
- Save time and money over redeveloping, replacing, and front-ending
- Extend relevancy of legacy systems for mobile access applications
- Eliminate need to install or support IT assets outside host
- Lower TCO
- Improve performances while reducing host footprint
- Future-proof: support with any future web client that runs JavaScript-enabled web browser
All
Step 1: extending host (3270) applications "as-is" to mobile devices
Installation and deployment – It takes only two hours to install Virtel on the host. Deployment is instant because there is nothing to install outside the host: simply point the mobile browsers to the installation-defined URL.
Presentation and ergonomics – With its default presentation template (no development required) Virtel serves each 3270 screen as a web page that retains the familiar 3270 screen presentation and ergonomics, except for virtual PFKs served to mobile devices.
Serving 3270 screens as web pages with 3270 presentation
and ergonomics + virtual PFKs
Step 2: serving user-friendly web pages to mobile devices
Mobile users need user friendly GUIs – Mobile web access is often associated with the extension of host (3270) transactions to clients and partners that are not familiar with the host applications. They cannot be served 3270 screens. They need the intuitive navigation, and assisted data entry of web applications.
Converting 3270 screens to GUIs – Virtel uses custom-developed scenarios and templates to dynamically convert the 3270 screens into a user friendly GUI with:
- A redesigned workflow and tab/button-based navigation
- Drop-down lists, graphical calendars, and check boxes to assist the data entry
- New Ajax-based features (auto-suggest, auto-complete, etc) that accelerate or even automate data entry
End-users are not aware that the web pages are working behind the scene with a legacy (3270) host application.
Converting several 3270 screens into a user friendly web page
Step 3: serving accordion-layout web pages to smartphones and PDAs
Full screen vs. accordion layout – A full screen layout works on the larger display of a traditional workstation, notebook, or even tablet, but it is totally unpractical on the smaller display of a smartphone and PDA. With smartphones and PDAs, application fields are best served with a vertically-arranged accordion layout: it reduces the length of the rows, which allows using larger fonts for better readability.
Converting 3270 screens to accordion layout GUIs – The same Virtel technology used to dynamically convert 3270 screens into full-size web pages intended for traditional workstations, notebooks and tablets, can also serve accordion layout web pages to the smaller displays of smartphones and PDAs. All it takes is to insert accordion layout widgets inside the Virtel presentation templates. Accordion layout web pages can have the same GUI features as full-size web pages:
- A redesigned workflow and accordion based navigation
- Drop-down lists, graphical calendars, and check boxes to assist the data entry
- New Ajax-based features (auto-suggest, auto-complete, etc) that accelerate or even automate data entry
As with full-size web pages, end-users are not aware that the accordion layout web pages are working behind the scene with a legacy (3270) host application.
Creating a mobile accordion web page from a 3270 screen
Step 4: serving several presentations concurrently
Different users need different web presentations – While some users will access from a smartphone or PDA and will need accordion layout web pages, others will access concurrently from traditional workstations, notebooks or tablets and will need full-size web pages or even a traditional 3270-screen interface.
Serving users the presentation they need – Virtel can be configured to identify at logon the user's device and to select the appropriate presentation template. Or different URLs can be defined: one per presentation style. Either way, Virtel will concurrently serve to different users the same 3270 application with traditional 3270-screen, full-size GUI, or accordion layout presentations.
Serving the same application concurrently with 3270, GUI,
and accordion layout presentations
Read more
- Read more about Virtel Web Suite
- Read more about Virtel UI modernization
- Read more about Virtel product architecture
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