GeneXus at short and medium term by Nicolas Jodal

What features have been added, and what features can we look to see in Ceibo version Beta 3 and updates to come?
With the Beta 3 we have reached the functionality goals for Web Panels. We include, in particular, the possibility of using several subfiles in a Web Panel and the free style subfiles. Now we are going to dedicate ourselves to ‘closing’ the details left aside in order to achieve the desired functionality.
Is the use of multiple subfiles very different?
Only on a minimal level because the concept is the same, but now, for example, the order (of the subfile) is defined in the subfile itself as opposed to in the rules.
Why was that included?
This was included because we felt it was a necessary facility to develop portal type applications on the Internet. What is a ‘free-style' subfile?
It is a subfile that shows the data in the format that the user desires, instead of showing the data in lines and columns. For example, if you want to display a piece of news, you can place the headline on a line, the summary on another one, then in another line  you can put the link to the note’s body. This is done with a free-style subfile.
What are the solutions for AS/400 as a server?
For AS/400, we launched the Java generator, applets, and Servlets. The applets are used for applications of Intranet type oriented to forms, and the Servlets are used for Internet applications oriented to Web pages. We are carrying out performance tests and are using SQL as the access meted for those tests. If the tests are not satisfactory, we are going to be using the facility of access to record (the same access method RPG uses) that. What will happen with the Webpanels’ RPG generator?
In the Ceibo version, the Webpanels’ RPG generator will not be using the new editor. In the future however, we will launch a version that will use the new editor, although it must be noted that the implementation’s priority will depend on Webpanels’ performance in Java.  
Are the low-level functions for XML public?
Yes, they are going to be public. In beta 3 they are implemented for C, VB and VFP. In next beta they will be implemented for Java.
What features are still to be created for the Ceibo version?
The three main features still to be completed are Web Transactions, multiple DBMS per model, and a new grammar.
What is being done with respect to the Web Transactions?
We want to be able to define the type of form when facing a transaction, page type for example, and generate it automatically with the new Web Panels’ editor. This feature was ready in the old editor and, at this moment, it is working with the new editor for one-level transactions, but as there has not been enough testing yet, we were not inclined to include it in beta 3.  We have to implement it for more than one level and solve some visual matters, mostly associated to how the prompt will work. This aspect is of particular importance to us. 
What about multiple DBMS per model?
The basic idea is to allow accessing, from a model, tables of other DBMS’ through data views. For example, if you want to implement a Data Warehouse in a DBMS and the operational database is in another one, the loading processes can be carried out by defining data views.  In the Ceibo version, this feature will be implemented for C/SQL and, most likely for Java as well. Generators of future Ceibo evolutions will be including this feature.
How long will it take to have Web Transactions and MDB Mode?
We will be testing one more beta version prior to releasing the Web transactions and DBMMode. As soon as this process is completed, we are going to launch the Ceibo version, most likely to be the version 7.0, rather than 6.2. 
What are the future Ceibo version’s evolutions going to be like?
Future versions are slated to include what had to be sacrificed in order to have the HTML editor  First, the Active X editor, (though in the Ceibo version, it will not be included in the final, but held off until Ceibo version Evolution1). Then, aside from Active X, the Evolution 1 will make better use of the low-level functions in Web panels in order to improve performance and scalability.