| Developer(s) | NetDynamics Inc. |
|---|---|
| Operating system | Cross-platform |
| Type | Application server |
| License | Proprietary |
NetDynamics Application Server was the first Java-based integrated software platform. The product was developed by NetDynamics Inc., a Silicon Valley start-up company founded in 1995 by Zack Rinat and Ofer Ben-Shachar. Unlike other early application server competitors, NetDynamics chose Java as the development language for the platform.
As Java became the dominant development language for web-based applications, NetDynamics experienced significant revenue growth in 1997 and 1998. However, the product soon encountered problems due to the relative immaturity of Java and the rush to release new product versions in a rapidly changing marketplace. Believing that the new JDBC API was too immature, NetDynamics created a proprietary database development API based on a product from Rogue Wave Software.
NetDynamics, Inc. was acquired by Sun Microsystems in July 1998. The application server software, together with the Netscape Application Server, was the basis for Sun's iPlanet Application Server offering.
By mid-1998, a new competitor, WebLogic, Inc., released a Java application server that was compliant with JDBC and another emerging standard, Java Beans. Due to better compliance with standards and better reliability, WebLogic Application Server eventually won out in the marketplace. Weblogic was acquired by BEA in late 1998 and soon became the company's flagship product. Ten years later, Oracle Corporation acquired BEA, and the product was renamed Oracle Weblogic.