Project Templates are a selection of pre-configured, pre-programmed projects that are bundled with the Stardraw Control 2010 authoring tool. Each template represents a typical system type, e.g. boardroom, classroom, automated home, and contains the devices, their functions and a sophisticated user interface that is completely pre-programmed and fully-functional. At the same time, each Project Template is fully customizable, meaning that a system integrator can produce a complete control system front- (and back-) end, specific to a particular project, in minutes.
Critical to this is the addition of the next new feature, Driver Substitution, which enables you quite simply to drag a new driver from Stardraw Control's extensive product list and drop it onto an existing one: this substitutes one product in your already-programmed system for another and Stardraw Control intelligently re-assigns events and actions so that no re-programming is required.
The third of the new features is an extension of support for WebServices. WebServices are, despite the name, nothing to do with the internet but are more accurately described as a set of technologies that allow direct machine-to-machine communications across networks (including the internet, but also LANs and WANs). The recent extension to WebService support directly exposes the functions and properties of the devices in your system so that the UI, or any other process, can communicate with them directly and intelligently.
Commenting on these recent enhancements Stardraw.com CEO, David Snipp, remarked, "The extension to WebService support is hugely important for two main reasons. First it means that the developer can choose whether to have an abstracted system with centralised intelligence, or one with distributed intelligence, or even a combination of the two - each of these techniques has its own place and advantages. Secondly it massively reduces the effort involved in deploying non-Windows UIs using iPads, iPhones, Android devices and the like because no intermediate logic is required. Combined with Project Templates and Driver Substitution these enhancements mean that Stardraw Control systems can be rolled out even more quickly and profitably."
(Jim Evans)
