CompriseIT

SAP made the first version of the NetWeaver Composition Environment generally available on the 14^th December (you can download a trial copy from SDN here).

So will this tool make any difference to you as a user / owner of an SAP landscape ?

That really depends upon what you plan to do with your SAP system over the next 5 years.

If you plan to do very little and deliver your system via SAPGUI then you can stop reading here.

If you have a backlog of user requirements, a pro-SAP development tools policy and some resources that want to build value on-top of SAP it could be just what you have been waiting for.

So what do you get….

1.  You get NetWeaver version 7.1 software to install – on your laptop (if you want to)
2.  SAP Java Application Server supporting  JEE 5
3. A lite version of SAP portal to create Workflows (guided procedures) and host your new application.
4. A version of SAP Visual Composer that reads SAP Enterprise (Web)Services to create simple Web User Interfaces
5. A version of SAP WebDynpro for the creation of complex Web User Interfaces
6. A copy of the Eclipse IDE to host (most of) your development

You can also get a copy of the Enterprise Services Repository to run in this environment if you don’t have one in your current landscape.

So what…….

In our view the real value of NetWeaver CE is that is allows SAP customers to gain experience with the SAP development tools in a low cost and low risk environment. Before CE you had to install a number of difference components (between 2-5) before you could even start to write (or draw) your first application. With CE you can hook it up to your SAP system in minutes and be creating your first applications in hours. Now we are not suggesting that these applications could be put live or that you don’t need to consider the impact on you SAP landscape….but that you now have somewhere that you can try new ideas and an architecture that gives you choices as to which components you upgrade and which you don’t. We would definitely recommend installing a copy somewhere in your SAP landscape…today.

This entry was posted on Friday, January 4th, 2008 at 12:21 pm and is filed under Giving Value. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.