Sun and InstallShield Simplify Application Deployment On the Solaris Operating Environment

Business Wire, July 28, 1998

PALO ALTO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 28, 1998--Sun Microsystems, Inc. and InstallShield Software Corp. today announced an alliance to simplify application deployment on the Solaris(TM) operating environment.

The joint effort will shorten application development cycles by providing an easy, cross-platform installation look and feel -- making the simplicity familiar to current InstallShield users available on the Solaris operating environment.

"Administrators and users familiar with PC's will now find it even easier to leverage the reliability and scalability of Solaris to deliver their network services," said Richard Green, vice president of Solaris Software, Sun Microsystems. "Our alliance with InstallShield is another example of our commitment to make Solaris the most cost-effective network operating environment available today."

Under the agreement, Sun Microsystems and InstallShield Software Corp. are co-developers of the Solaris Web Start Wizards. This set of Java(TM) classes will be included in the runtime version of the InstallShield(R) Java(TM) Edition tool and as an API in the Solaris operating environment. Using InstallShield's tools in combination with the Solaris Web Start Wizard technology, developers will be able to build cross-platform installations and allow administrators to easily install Solaris applications both locally and remotely across the network.

"Our agreement with InstallShield represents a significant advantage for Sun customers and third party vendors," said Doug Kaewert, vice president of market development, Sun Microsystems. "Now Sun customers can, through a simple graphical interface, point-and-click their way through the installation and setup of Solaris applications -- making Solaris the only UNIX platform to offer the same ease of installation and setup familiar to Microsoft Windows users."

The new set of Java technology classes benefits from the experience and expertise that both companies have in software development and deployment. "This joint undertaking is a win/win situation for software developers and end-users," according to James Wright, Director of Developer Relations for InstallShield. "Working together, InstallShield and Sun can meet the needs of developers and IS managers worldwide for an easy to use, distributed, cross-platform installation solution."

A direct result of this joint effort is the immediate availability of the developer's toolkit for Solaris Web Start Wizards from Sun. Based on Java technology, Solaris Web Start Wizards are cross-platform, web-enabled, and take advantage of the strength of networked operating systems. The toolkit utilizes the technology foundation of InstallShield Java Edition to make Solaris application development and deployment easy for both Java and native applications. Early access to the developer's toolkit for Solaris Web Start Wizards is available for download at www.sun.com/solaris/webstart.>InstallShield plans to incorporate the new install classes into forthcoming releases of InstallShield Java Edition, a visual development tool for creating installation systems for applications (www.installshield.com/java). The GUI-based installation tools from InstallShield, written in the Java language, are easy to install and use, translate to a more consistent installation and end-user experience, and allow for remote installations across the network with no additional coding.

About Sun Microsystems Inc.

Since its inception in 1982, a singular vision, "The Network Is The Computer(TM)," has propelled Sun Microsystems (NASDAQ:SUNW), to its position as a leading provider of high-quality hardware, software and services for establishing enterprise-wide intranets and expanding the power of the Internet. with more than $9 billion in annual revenues, Sun can be found in more than 150 countries and on the World Wide Web at http://sun.com.

About InstallShield Software Corp.

InstallShield Software Corp. (www.installshield.com) is a provider of innovative software deployment tools. Founded in 1987, the privately held company is recognized worldwide as the leader in software deployment technologies. Products include InstallShield(R) Professional, InstallShield(R) Express(TM), InstallShield(R) Java(TM) Edition, InstallFromTheWeb(TM), PackageForTheWeb(TM) and DemoShield(R). Ninety-two of the top 100 independent software vendors and more than 100,000 corporate and commercial software developers worldwide rely on InstallShield technology to distribute their applications. Some of these applications include Sun Java(TM) Development Kit, Visio 5.0, IBM Enterprise Suite, Microsoft Commercial Internet System products, Symantec Visual Cafe, Netscape Navigator, and Adobe Pagemaker.

For more information: InstallShield Software Corp. is headquartered in Schaumburg, Ill, USA. For more information contact Michelle Zenner Kohler, Public Relations Specialist, InstallShield Software Corp., 900 National Parkway, Suite 125, Shaumburg, Ill. 60173, at 847/619-7044, or via e-mail at mkohler@installshield.com.