MobileDataNow is a neat product offered from FireTrust that allows individuals to stay connected to important data when they’re on-the-go, via email, SMS or IM. It uses a really slick OpenLaszlo application for the administrative interface.
Here’s how it works: You install MobileDataNow and configure (using the OpenLaszlo-based admin interface) it to point to one or more of your data sources (which can be databases or SOAP web services). You configure user access permissions and define some queries and views of data. Then, when you want to perform a particular query, you use your cellphone to send an SMS (text message) to your MobileDataNow server. You can even pass query parameters via the message. The returned data arrives in your cellphone, formatted how you want it.
The idea is that you prepare the data reports you access regularly using the OpenLaszlo admin interface, and then you’re able to get at that data via SMS (or email or even IM).
From an RIA development perspective, it has some neat features: There’s a simple but very handy context-sensitive help. You define your database queries using a WYSIWYG query editor that recognizes the database table structure and prompts you as you build the query (it also shows the generated SQL in real-time). And of course there’s lots of drag-and-drop shortcuts.
There is a free version – if you only have one user, then there is no charge. If you just want to see the admin app, there is a hosted demo.
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