About FirstClass Application Services
FirstClass® Application Services (FCAS) is a protocol module that connects to your FirstClass server via a gateway, like Internet Services or Voice Services.
Using FCAS, you can extend the functionality of FirstClass by building applications that are then stored on the server machine. FCAS starts when the server is started, and stops when the server is shut down. FCAS applications can access the resources and databases available on the server without requiring their installation or configuration on client machines.
Developing an FCAS application once makes it available on all supported FirstClass platforms.
FCAS can run in a distributed environment. This allows you to run FCAS on a dedicated computer or, if required for high load sites, as a clustered service.
The development environment can be launched by anyone who is given a copy of the FCAS application, and can be used from any FirstClass client.
The link between the user, developer, and server is fully encrypted and secure. If you use FCAS to connect to databases, the database connection is made from the server. This means the database can remain safely behind a firewall and FirstClass permissions can be used to restrict users' access to the data.
The most basic FCAS application is a simple console to which you can print information. To make applications more useful and interactive, you must create forms. These forms are like any other custom forms, and can be distributed in the same ways.
To create FCAS applications, you first create the required forms using FirstClass Designer, then (using the BASIC language) program event procedures (such as button clicks) for the objects on the forms in FCAS.
Uses for FCAS applications
There are many ways you can use FCAS applications to enhance your FirstClass site's functionality. For example, FCAS applications can:
• link to customer, contact, and sales databases
• integrate user information with external databases
• extract database information and incorporate it into automatically generated messages
• import and export FirstClass information to other applications
• provide fast change password ability
• gather and process system or web statistics on the fly
• automate repetitive tasks
• create and parse FirstClass scripting scripts
• start and stop FirstClass Internet Services remotely.
Server applications
You can also create server applications that run within the server without using the client. These applications are commonly used as "watcher" applications, allowing FCAS to constantly monitor the server or databases and make changes as needed. These applications are especially useful when used with server statistics events.
Server applications can:
• query a personnel database regularly, and automatically create new FirstClass accounts for all new employees
• get server statistics event information that a new user had been created, and update the database
• create and schedule notifiers.
You can also use the SLEEP BASIC command to halt execution of a program until a specified time period has elapsed, or a specified date or time has been reached.
Server applications will ignore any FCAS code, such as displaying forms, that can't be run outside the client.
Calendar applications
Like server applications, calendar applications run within the server without using the client. They are launched through events on the FCAS gateway's calendar.
The event description must contain the application to be launched and any startupstring needed by the application. The event reminder must be set to At Time of Event, to trigger the application to launch.
If a noncalendar application is launched through the calendar, or the description doesn't match a valid calendar application, an error is reported to the FCAS console.
Calendar applications can be treated identically to server applications when programming.
Helper applications
Helper applications run either from a FirstClass rule or a central repository that associates an FCAS cluster and an application to be launched with a form ID.
In the case of rules, the association is only true when the rule is triggered. In the case of a central repository, all form IDs of that type will launch the application.
Most FCAS applications use forms that don't have an associated object on the server. Helper applications actually run whenever an "existing" object is open. Any changes made by a user are sent to the application as well as being saved to the FirstClass object.
The application can also make changes that are reflected on the server object as well as the user's client. These are useful for enhancing existing FirstClass objects and content by adding programmatic functionality to static content. For example, you could add a few fields to the User Info form which would be populated by a helper application from a personnel database or student information system.
 NoteAlthough a rule can be configured with many "when" actions, the FirstClass server only supports the Open Item action at this time. A 301 or greater server is needed in order to prevent spurious error dialogs when using message boxes together with rules-launched helper applications. Be sure to rebuild any helper applications you have developed under previous versions after checking the status of the application type in the Options dialog.
What you should already know
This help is intended for FirstClass administrators responsible for supporting FCAS on Mac, Windows, or Linux.
You should be familiar with the capabilities and terminology of:
• the FirstClass server
• the FirstClass client
• FirstClass Designer
• the BASIC programming language
• SQL, database design, and creating ODBC data sources (open database connectivity), if you will be using FCAS with databases
• your operating system.
This help is not a programming manual. For information on programming, we recommend you read additional materials.
Documentation conventions
For |
We do this |
menu commands |
Each level of menu commands is separated by >. For example, the Clear command under the Edit menu is shown as Edit > Clear. |
variables |
Text in italics indicates arguments, variables, or other information for which you must type your own value. |
syntax statements |
Optional elements in syntax statements are enclosed in square brackets. When there is a choice, "or" is indicated by |. Note FCAS ignores spaces. |
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