Coss Solutions

Application Development Framework (ADF)

For all of our migration and development projects COSS uses an Application Development Framework (ADF). The ADF is developed exclusively for the Microsoft .NET framework. The ADF provides control over application parts from within a standard GUI. Also functionality is provided for database access, help functions, a user authentication module and code translation.

A trial version of the ADF is available for download. Please register, log in from our main page and you will find a link to the download of the package in the top left menu.

Mixing programming languages has been simplyfied as a result of the standards of the Microsoft .NET environment while at the same time the advantages of OO concepts can be used in an optimal way.

No extensive knowledge of .NET or OO is required
The ADF consists of a collection of classes providing all neccessary interaction with .NET components. Your COBOL code will be ported to a series of standard containers. Interaction between these containers is provided fully by the GUI engine of the ADF. This means a COBOL programmer is instantly productive in .NET while no extensive training or study is needed. A developer does not even need to have extensive knowledge of OO concepts.

However, because the developers are being moved to the OO based .NET environment, the knowledge will grow in a natural way, enhancing their market value, to a level that may be expected from a nowadays developer.

Look at the detailed manual of the ADF

Migration
The ADF is a perfect tool for migration of legacy applications. As a result of the generic approach of the containers and the handling of the GUI it is possible to extract the business logic of your legacy application directly into the containers the ADF provides.

The ADF (in production) is a runtime environment in between the application software and the .NET framework. The application GUI is controlled by the ADF and triggers the right containers at the right time. All business logic is housed in these containers. For ease of use these containers are all predefined in COBOL templates.

Automated migration
Because the ADF provides a standard application structure, a close to fully automated migration is possible. COSS partners with Cornerstone Technology who has the tools to provide this automated migration strategy. Cornerstone offers programming language independent tooling for software analisys and an extraction mechanism for isolation of business logic.

If you require more information about the advantages of the ADF please use our contact form.