Novell Ships PerfectOffice Developer Reference Set

New Reference Set Replaces Current Product SDK's

OREM, Utah -- May 16, 1995 -- Novell, Inc. today announced that it will ship the PerfectOffice Developer Reference Set to its third-party developers. Designed to help PerfectFit Partners build applications that enhance PerfectOffice, the Reference Set will help developers use parts of PerfectOffice more easily in their own development projects. Novell will now incorporate product SDK's (software developer kits) in the PerfectOffice Developer Reference Set rather than offering them individually, making it more streamlined for developers.

Since the release of the PerfectOffice suite, many developers have expressed an interest in being able to integrate their current applications or to create new applications that integrate with one or more of the PerfectOffice suite products. The PerfectOffice Developer Reference Set will enable developers to do that by walking them through the process and providing samples. This new reference set is available to all 1500+ PerfectFit partners, as well as all other developers who integrate with PerfectOffice and its components.

"A key part of the PerfectFit Partner third-party developer program has been for Integrated Software Vendors (ISVs) and System Integrators (SIs) to easily build add-on and custom solutions to PerfectOffice," said Mark Calkins, vice president and general manager of Novell's Applications Division. "PerfectOffice is the most open suite on the market today, and by consolidating SDK's into the new PerfectOffice Developer Reference Set, PerfectFit Partners provides a more comprehensive solution for developers. Solutions offered in this set are exactly what our top developers have been asking for to move forward in their development."

The PerfectOffice Developer Reference Set comes in two parts: the PerfectOffice Developer Reference Manual and the PerfectFit Shared Code Developer Reference Manual.

The PerfectOffice Developer Reference Manual

The PerfectOffice Developer Reference Manual was designed to help developers achieve goals of having applications integrate closely with and have the same "look and feel" as PerfectOffice products. The manual outlines the method of integration provided with the PerfectOffice products.

Methods of integration include: PerfectScript, the popular cross-application macro language, Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE), Visual Basic Extensions (VBXs) for PerfectOffice, Windows Open API (WOAPI) used to control WordPerfect, Presentations, GroupWise and DAD, Quattro Pro's DDL Interface API and the DAD Extension API.

There are two main sections to the PerfectOffice Developer Reference Manual - applications and technology. The applications section discusses which APIs are supported by each PerfectOffice component and the technology section discusses the various integration methods available in the PerfectOffice applications as well as which applications support these technologies.

PerfectFit Shared Code Developer Reference Manual

Through PerfectFit's Shared Code, there is a core system of functionality shared by all applications. The Shared Code is contained in a series of Dynamic Link Libraries (DLLs). Many of the APIs contained in these DLLs have been exposed to third-party developers to encourage integration and development efforts. Shared Code allows third-party developers to integrate pre-developed technology and functionality into their own applications. It also provides a method to develop applications with a similar "look and feel" to products from within Novell's applications.

The Shared Code subsystems documented in the reference manual include: the About Box API, Binary Initialization Files (BIF), Clipboard Support, Command Interface API, Custom Controls, Dialog Box Manager API, Document Conversion API, Dynathetas, File System Interface, Menus, Message Box APIs, Multimedia APIs, Persistent Macro Variables, String Handling Interface, Viewer APIs and the Writing Tools API for Speller, Thesaurus and Grammatik.

Novell's PerfectFit Partners

Novell's PerfectFit Partners developer program was launched in October 1994 to encourage developers to design, build and market products which support Novell's network suite PerfectOffice, through the use of PerfectFit Technology. PerfectFit Technology enables all APIs to have the same "look and feel" across all applications. Since the launch, over 1,500 companies have become a PerfectFit Partner at one of the three levels. Members of the development community, including commercial developers, independent software vendors (ISVs), value-added resellers (VARs), consultants and corporate developers can become PerfectFit Partners.

Developers interested in becoming a PerfectFit Partner can call the Novell PerfectFit Partners Developer Relations Group at (801) 228-9510, 1-800-REDWORD, and/or explore the Novell home page at http://www.novell.com/.