Developers Will Find C++ Applications Playing Surprisingly Strategic Role in 2008 With Multi-Core and SOA

BOULDER, CO--(Marketwire - January 8, 2008) - The software development community may remember 2008 as the year that C++ regained respect as a robust development platform. With the recent shift to multi-core processors and the accelerated adoption of service orientated architecture (SOA) standards like Service Component Architecture (SCA), C++ developers soon will be able to harness significant improvements in performance and integration.

While developers often think of developing new applications on Microsoft's .NET or a variety of Java platforms, C++ remains one of the most widely deployed development languages for mission critical applications. The reason for this is simple; C++ continues to be better for many use cases, and software developers want to be able to use the 'right tool for the job.' In addition, because of recent releases of servers leveraging multi-core chips and new developments in SOA, many developers can use 2008 to look at their existing C++ applications in a whole new light.

"The Gartner applications research team received more customer inquiries about, 'How can I modernize my legacy applications,' than any other topic in 2007, and that trend looks to continue in 2008," said Mark Driver, research vice president at Gartner. "Overall, enterprises are looking to generate higher performance and broader integration with what they already have. They can do more than they think, especially with the innovations around multi-core and SOA, and they do not need to start from scratch."

"2008 will be an inflection point in C++ development. With the new developments in supporting multi-core hardware and SOA, C++ will again achieve parity in a company's strategic application portfolio," said Bart Foster, chief executive officer of Rogue Wave Software. "Rogue Wave continues to invest in developing solutions businesses need to tap the new potential in C++ applications."

The Multi-core Migration

"By 2008 single-core servers will be virtually unavailable," said David Linthicum, an industry thought leader and partner at ZapThink. "It's imperative that companies realize how important multi-core technology is and how valuable it's going to be in the very near future. When utilized properly, multi-core can save companies a lot of time and money and can significantly improve application performance."

Many business applications are written as single-threaded programs, handling only one task at a time. With multi-core hardware, many of these applications hit the wall and are not able to take advantage of the technology -- in fact, they may even run slower due to reduced clock speeds in multi-core central processing units (CPUs). Existing technologies such as application servers help for some business applications, but many will need to be rewritten to support concurrent processing, to enable them to handle multiple tasks in a way that leverages multi-core hardware. Rewriting these applications can be time consuming, risky and extremely costly. The other alternative is to utilize tools that abstract the complexity of multi-threading away, like the ones available from Rogue Wave.

As more single-threaded applications encounter problems and as enterprises adopt multi-core technology -- even more so in late 2007 and into 2008 -- organizations will be faced with the difficult task of how to leverage it.

When utilized properly, multi-core hardware can create a more flexible and scaleable environment while consuming less power. However, one of the biggest obstacles that companies face is the shift from single-core to multi-core CPUs. Within the next year or so, the number of single-core CPUs will drop, which is why companies need to be able to leverage multi-core architectures and do so quickly.

C++ Taps SOA Innovations

Many organizations have adopted SOA development models to deliver flexible and agile application components, but frequently have traded performance and scalability in order to achieve these benefits. However, recent developments, including advancements in the specifications Service Component Architecture (SCA), and Service Data Objects (SDO), are enabling C++ applications to enjoy all of the benefits of agility and flexibility of an SOA without sacrificing high performance and other benefits that C++ provides.

The SCA standard significantly improves the ability to integrate C++ applications into SOA architectures that need to support different technologies by offering a repeatable development model, eliminating the time, cost and risk involved in constantly rewriting code. Rogue Wave has helped guide these standards, particularly related to C++.

Rogue Wave's HydraSCA is the first commercially available run-time that supports the SCA specification, enabling a repeatable model for service enablement in high-performance environments. HydraSCA supports SCA components implemented in C++, Java, and BPEL. Rogue Wave also offers the most complete platform support across the IT spectrum allowing applications to be incorporated into SOA, legacy, and other environments.

And while many perceive C++ as a legacy language, C++ came from a basis of innovation which continues to expand in the standards and open source communities. The C++ language is undergoing a significant enhancement in the C++0X version of the standard, which includes several major new features. In addition, C++ projects are the second most active projects on both Apache and SourceForge. The Apache "stdcxx" project, a cross-platform C++ Standard Library, is largely based on code donated by Rogue Wave, and ships with Rogue Wave SourcePro C++.

Cool to Be Part of the C++ Crowd Again

C++ developers, themselves, can look at 2008 as a breakout year for their own careers as well. According to PayScale, a global online compensation research provider, the median salary for C++ developers is three to twelve percent higher than those of Java or .NET developers. And popular job boards, including CareerBuilder, Dice and Monster, show a robust demand for C++ developers within financial services, telecom, aerospace and defense and other large industries, comparable to job postings for Java and .NET developers.

"Some businesses have the misconception that they're locked into C++. The reality is that C++ is alive and kicking," added Foster. "C++ applications offer the same services found on popular platforms such as failover, interoperability across languages, and load balancing. More importantly, they can exploit concurrent processing without the large investment required for recoding to a multi-threaded model."

About Rogue Wave

Rogue Wave Software, Inc. is the leading provider of enterprise class C++ components and infrastructure that enable organizations to build and deploy high performance applications. Only Rogue Wave provides the most complete C++ technology stack including C++ components, UI components, run-time infrastructure, and services. Today, thousands of organizations worldwide have chosen Rogue Wave. For more information, visit www.roguewave.com.

Rogue Wave and SourcePro are registered trademarks of Rogue Wave Software, Inc. in the United States and other countries. All other company and product names mentioned may be trademarks of the companies with which they are associated.

Contact Information: Media Relations Contact: Suzanne Miller Reidy Communications (314) 795-4225