Daily Archives: February 14, 2011

OperaWatir and OperaDriver allow you to build automated tests that interact with your pages just as a user would, such as clicking links, entering text and submitting forms.

OperaWatir is a branch of the open source toolkit Web Application Testing in Ruby (WATIR). With the initial release of OperaWatir, all major browsers are now represented. For organizations that already use Watir for their internal testing, OperaWatir will allow them to include Opera in their range of automated tests.

OperaDriver is the backend of OperaWatir that communicates with the Opera browser. While OperaWatir is written in Ruby, OperaDriver is written in Java, and it allows developers to create automated tests using the Java-based JUnit testing framework.

OperaWatir and OperaDriver are the newest releases in Opera’s ongoing drive to give back to the web developer community. Other efforts include:

Opera Dragonfly, the set of on-board developer tools available in Opera’s desktop browser.
Open the Web, a cross-disciplinary team that works directly with web developers to help them build sites that work across browsers and devices.
Opera Mobile Emulator, a version of Opera Mobile that runs on desktop PCs to allow for faster development and smooth testing of sites on mobile devices.
“The Web works best when it works everywhere,” said Christen Krogh, Chief Development Officer, Opera Software. “OperaWatir and OperaDriver represent another step in making that a reality. At the same time, we can help developers spend less time testing and more time doing what they love. Everyone wins, and the Web takes a step forward in cross-browser compatibility.”

How to get OperaWatir and OperaDriver

More details about OperaWatir and OperaDriver can be found on http://www.opera.com/developer/tools/. Source code for both projects can be found on GitHub. Source code for OperaWatir is available from https://github.com/operasoftware/operawatir/. Source code for OperaDriver is available from https://github.com/operasoftware/operadriver/.

Miami HEAT fans long have been able to share their excitement about the NBA team on Facebook, but now they can make shopping for HEAT merchandise a trusted part of their Facebook experience. That’s because Milyoni, the leader in social commerce, recently teamed up with Symantec Corp. (Nasdaq: SYMC) to offer the enhanced security of Symantec’s VeriSign® Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) Certificates to merchants aiming to reach customers via Facebook and other social networking outlets.

SHOP HEAT, the Miami HEAT’s fan store, is the latest to implement VeriSign SSL security through Milyoni’s Conversational Commerce™ solution, the first shopping cart that operates entirely within Facebook. With Facebook’s 500 million users, Milyoni offers merchants an enormous opportunity to weave social networking with the ability to discuss and buy merchandise directly on the site. And by offering VeriSign SSL Certificates to merchants who use the Conversational Commerce solution to establish stores on Facebook, Milyoni is enabling merchants to display the familiar “VeriSign Trusted” checkmark and seal, the Internet’s No. 1 trust mark.

“Through Conversational Commerce from Milyoni, we have an opportunity to entertain and engage our loyal fan base with the latest in social commerce technology” said Jennifer Tobias, director of Interactive Marketing and New Media for the Miami HEAT. “The fact that we can deploy VeriSign SSL security as part of SHOP HEAT is a big differentiator for us, and will make it that much easier for us to convert loyal fans into customers of our new Facebook store”

VeriSign SSL Certificates use the industry’s most advanced encryption to protect online commerce transactions, while communicating that the site operator’s identity has been independently authenticated by Symantec. Sites protected with VeriSign SSL also are scanned daily for malware by Symantec. VeriSign SSL has been shown to help sites of all kinds establish the level of trust necessary to drive traffic to online stores, convert shoppers into buyers, and build loyal, lasting customer relationships.

“If a premium location is the No. 1 rule in retail, then Facebook is now prime property for online merchants” said John Corpus, CEO of Milyoni. “We developed Conversational Commerce to marry the viral nature of the social network with opportunities to offer merchandise that enhances loyalty and drives revenue – all within the Facebook experience. By offering VeriSign SSL, we’re making it easy for merchants to establish trust with customers who may not be accustomed to purchasing merchandise within Facebook. VeriSign SSL puts shoppers at ease, and that’s a very good thing for merchants.”

“The power of social networking is that it allows excitement to spread among friends online, which can mean great things to merchants who look to harness that dynamic for viral marketing and sales campaigns,” said Fran Rosch, vice president of Trust Services at Symantec. “However, the nascent nature of social commerce lends itself to ‘wait and see’ unless consumers know their data is protected and that they can trust the merchant. That’s why Milyoni’s decision to offer VeriSign SSL Certificates is so crucial. The highly recognized trust seal lets consumers know the vendor is authentic and the transaction through Milyoni’s Conversational Commerce solution is secure”

More than 100,000 websites display the VeriSign seal by deploying VeriSign SSL or VeriSign Trust Seal solutions. As the most popular security mark in the world, the VeriSign seal is viewed by Internet users more than half a billion times in a single day.

About Milyoni

Milyoni is the leading social commerce application for Facebook with stores that reach over 38 million fans. Milyoni solution, called Conversational Commerce™, consist of the iFanStore, Social Merchandising, and the Merchant Dashboard. Customers include the Miami HEAT, UFC, University of Oklahoma and HBO. More information is available at www.milyoni.com.

About Symantec

Symantec is a global leader in providing security, storage and systems management solutions to help consumers and organizations secure and manage their information-driven world. Our software and services protect against more risks at more points, more completely and efficiently, enabling confidence wherever information is used or stored. More information is available at www.symantec.com

HP today announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Vertica, a privately held, real-time analytics platform company based in Billerica, Mass. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The acquisition of Vertica will enhance HP capabilities for information optimization, adding sophisticated, real-time business analytics for large and complex sets of data in physical, virtual and cloud environments. Vertica’s platform helps customers analyze massive amounts of data simply, quickly and reliably, resulting in “just-in-time” business intelligence.

“In today’s highly competitive environment, customers need the ability to manage the increasing amounts of data and growing streams of information with more flexible, more dynamic architectures,” said Shane Robison, executive vice president and chief strategy and technology officer, HP. “Vertica’s unique platform combines simplicity with industry-leading performance, allowing HP to leap ahead of the industry in the race to analyze massive amounts of data.”

“By combining Vertica’s offerings with HP’s brand and global reach, customers will benefit from the commitment, expertise and resources from the largest technology company in the world,” said Christopher Lynch, president and chief executive officer, Vertica. “Combined with HP, we will be able to better help customers develop flexible business performance solutions that improve decision making and streamline business processes.”

HP expects the acquisition to close in the second quarter of its fiscal year 2011. After the acquisition closes, Vertica products will be available through HP sales and service channels.

About Vertica

Vertica is the leading provider of next-generation analytics platforms enabling companies to monetize their data at the speed and scale necessary to deliver significant value to customers and shareholders. Vertica’s scalability and flexibility are unmatched in the industry. Vertica is used by more than 300 customers across a variety of industries worldwide, including Groupon, Twitter, Verizon, AOL, Guess!, Zynga, Playdom, Bank of America, BlueCross BlueShield, AdMeld, Sunoco, Mozilla and Comcast. Vertica’s North American headquarters is located in Billerica, Mass.

About HP

HP creates new possibilities for technology to have a meaningful impact on people, businesses, governments and society. The world’s largest technology company, HP brings together a portfolio that spans printing, personal computing, software, services and IT infrastructure to solve customer problems. More information about HP is available at http://www.hp.com.

Sybase 365, a subsidiary of Sybase, Inc., the global leader in mobile messaging and mobile commerce services, announced the availability of its comprehensive suite of IPX (IP eXchange) services for RIM’s BlackBerry® Infrastructure. Sybase 365 provides connectivity between RIM’s BlackBerry Infrastructure and mobile operators around the world using the secure private Sybase® IPX 365™ network. The global service gives mobile operators a scalable, reliable and cost-efficient solution for connecting to the BlackBerry Infrastructure.

The Sybase IPX 365 network is designed to serve both fixed and mobile network operators with the premium quality of service and security required in the conversion to IP networks. The full suite of IPX 365 services includes global data roaming (GRX), SMS and MMS messaging hubs, IPX Voice and roaming signalling —all run over a leading, high quality Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) network.

“With the proliferation of smartphones worldwide, connectivity is a key service for mobile operators, who historically had to connect their customers using international private circuits or through a secure tunnel over the public internet,” said Howard Stevens, senior vice president, International Operations, Sybase 365. “By hosting connectivity to RIM’s BlackBerry Infrastructure through an IPX network, which is vastly superior to the public internet, the service is more scalable and efficient.”

About Sybase 365
Sybase 365, a subsidiary of Sybase, Inc. (an SAP company; NYSE: SAP), is the global leader in enabling mobile information services for mobile operators, financial institutions and enterprises. We provide our customers with the widest offering in SMS, MMS, GRX, IPX interoperability, end-to-end mobile commerce solutions, innovative mCRM, mobile marketing and content delivery services. Sybase 365 processes more than 1.5 billion messages per day, reaching 900 operators and 4.5 billion subscribers around the world. For more information, visit: www.sybase.com/365