- BYOD (Bring Your Own Device): staff and contractors use personal devices to access the host
- Mobile enablement: host applications are accessed from Smartphones, PDAs, and tablets
- Apple products support: iPad and Mac replace traditional PC (Windows or Linux) workstations
- Self-service access: clients and partners are given self-service access to selected transactions
- Globalization of supply and fulfillment chains: host may be accessed from DBCS workstations
The solution
Virtel serves 3270 transactions as web pages with 3270 screen, full-screen GUI, or mobile accordion layouts to thin client web browsers. Virtel doesn't require installing anything
outside the host: no client software and no intermediate servers. It works with any JavaScript-enabled web browser (IE, Safari, Firefox, Chrome, etc) regardless of platform or OS.
Because it relies exclusively on open standards (HTML, JavaScript, Ajax, REST, and WOA), Virtel supports instantly any new web client: with Virtel your web access solution is both
client-agnostic and future-proofed. To those clients (mobile devices and Apple products) that do not have PFKs, Virtel serves virtual PFKs. For the DBCS workstations used in China,
Russia, Japan, and other countries, Virtel supports integrated DBCS/EBCDIC conversion. Virtel provides a welcome relief from the time consuming and costly obligation to support an
ever-growing list of web clients.
Key benefits
- Extend legacy host applications to thin clients
- Eliminates middle-tier servers and client APIs
- Works with any browser, platform or OS
- Facilitates BYOD, mobile access, Apple products support, self-service, globalization, and other such modernization initiatives
- Extends relevance and investment of core system to web application deployments
- Lowers web client and web access TCOs
- Improves web access performances and scalability without impacting host footprint
- Increases longevity of web access infrastructure
Step 1: extending 3270 screens to thin client web browsers
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 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
New users need user friendly GUIs – New employees, and clients or partners given
self-service access to host transactions are not familiar with the host applications. They cannot use 3270 screens without training. 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 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
- 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 an accordion layout, 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 select different presentation templates based on the user's device. Or
different web access 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
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