ADF vs ArcGIS Server JavaScript/flex/Silverlight API

Author: flyingis

ArcGIS Server has become the core product of ArcGIS. Javascript/flex API brings great convenience and shocking user experience to GIS application development, however, it seems that the process of setting up and making great contributions to the ArcGIS Server will gradually fade out of sight, it must be whether the ADF will be replaced by JavaScript/flex or even the Silverlight API that will be launched immediately.

In the past, some of my impressions on ArcGIS Server were on web-based desktop, some of which were considered to be ArcIMS with wings inserted, and most closely related to GIS service software based on SOA architecture, this is one of the concepts that ESRI has been promoting in the past. like IBM and Oracle, the essence of Concentration Technology extraction is very effective in the Chinese market, but I think this process not only needs to be promoted in the market, A practical technical system is also required to ensure that the technology is not necessarily a new technology. At least the architecture, logic, and philosophy are novel. ArcGIS Server is not equal to arcengine + ArcIMS, it is because its design includes status, pooling, process, object recycling, security, service architecture organization, and standard support, the ADF and rest-based client application development frameworks are both products based on the service system. Since they are based on SOA, these products should be rich and varied, whether it is the past ADF, arcexplorer, desktop applications, mobile devices, JS/flex/Silverlight API, ArcGIS image Ser Ver, or even new development framework technologies in the future, can be placed on the root system of ArcGIS Server. "Fusion-center" is a good name, in the design of the enterprise-level GIS application solution that I participated in over the past year, I have guided customers to construct the overall GIS solution, organically integrating business and GIS into a service center, before that, some domestic and foreign GIS projects may have already done so to improve and improve the business process. Now we can put forward the core concepts as a summary, which is similar to the SOA process.

Do not repeat the concept of hyping. The subjects of all concepts hyping should be companies. Individuals are only analyzing the support points of these concepts. Therefore, at the market level, there is no conflict between the ADF and JavaScript/flex/Silverlight APIs. Instead, they play an important role together. At the technical level, do not describe the advantages and disadvantages of the ADF and other client APIs, it is the choice between various client application development frameworks. There are a lot of hot bucket stickers in various forums. At the end of the competition, everyone feels meaningless, because each API has its own position. Some foreign applications have begun to use JavaScript/flex APIs to replace the ADF. This is because no better framework can meet their requirements, but now there are more options.

Compared with other client application development frameworks launched by ESRI, the biggest advantage of the ADF is the stateful design (the rest service based on the client application development framework is stateless ), you can make full use of AO resources for application development with the administrator role, suitable for enterprise-level deep GIS applications, and make full use of server-side resources (for public-level applications, obviously, it is more appropriate to use the client API to distribute the pressure to the client ). The GP Tool provides a large Extension Space for WebGIS applications, but the premise is that the existing or custom tbx tool must be used on the desktop. The ADF can be independent of any other software (without cache) implement all functions in GP through servercontext to reduce software costs. The current application development framework has its own advantages. How to select an appropriate development framework based on your application is the core of our consideration. From a macro perspective, the client application development framework and RIA application will become a trend of GIS development in the next two years.