Water™ is a new Web services and all-purpose programming language that allows you to program in ConciseXML syntax.
Overview
Water is a dynamic language that unites the worlds of objects and Web Services in an elegant way. Water adheres to a "Learn Once, Use Everywhere" philosophy where data, logic, and presentation are manipulated and represented in a consistent way. Water is an All-Level Language because it can be used for both high-level and low-level tasks. Water was designed to support both object-oriented programming and functional programming.
Water uses an XML-based syntax called ConciseXML which is compatible with XML 1.0 and is as concise as popular programming languages. Water represents the first Pure Web Services environment where everything is a Web Service and has an XML representation. Water makes Web Services and XML live up to their promise.
The language specification is openly documented and a free runtime is available for commercial (and non-commercial) use. The Water runtime can be deployed in any or all tiers of a standard Java environment -- running as an applet, servlet, or stand-alone application. Water can be used for building high-performance multi-tier applications through the caching of both data and logic.
Water is particularly suited for building high-level languages including declarative, or modeling languages. Water has started to be used by independent software vendors (ISVs) to build custom languages for specific problem domains.
Water supports a flexible Object-Oriented security model called Capability Security. This is the same security model used in secure operating systems.
The design of Water was influenced by many other languages such as Scheme, Java, HTML, Lisp, Self, Smalltalk, Basic, ML, and Dylan. Water has the power of Lisp, and the ease of use of Basic.
The Inventors of Water: Mike Plusch and Christopher Fry
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Like Kernighan and Ritchie, Watson and Crick, Lennon and McCartney, yin and yang, the complementary skills of the developer team of Plusch (left) and Fry have proven to be the perfect blend for creating and enhancing the Water language.
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Christopher Fry, who like Mike Plusch, prefers to go by his last name, was born in L.A. and believes that code that obscures the intent of the programmer should be outlawed. He hales from MIT's Experimental Music Studio in its pre-Media Lab days and was part of BBN's natural language and knowledge understanding project. He also enjoyed starting coral Common LISP and founding HIP software which pioneered some graphical programming techniques. It was at Bowstreet that both Fry and Plusch got their hands dirty in Web services and determined that unifying the diverse functionality under one language would vastly simplify Web programming.
Plusch is an MIT and Sloan School graduate, whose drive for speed is well balanced by Fry's more cautious approach. Originally from Ohio, he had a particular dislike for programming, until Water came along. Plusch's business drive is a good foil for Fry's arts and sciences orientation.
Both Plusch and Fry are authors and oft-requested speakers on the technical conference tour. Fry has been published numerous times in the Communications of the ACM. Plusch has several books under his belt including, "Water: Simplified Web Services and XML Programming", published by Wiley.
Plusch was asked just how committed he is to the Water language. He responded, "I would not be surprised if I end up doing Water related work for the rest of my life. I'm considering getting my first tatoo -- the Water logo."
Here is where the two stand on a range of topics.
| Favorite style of music and favorite musical instrument |
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Plusch
Fry
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classical and piano
jazz and vibes
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| Favorite Computer |
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Plusch
Fry
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Macintosh
Symbolics |
| Most admired person |
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Plusch
Fry
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Bill Gates
Marvin Minsky |
| Favorite movie |
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Plusch
Fry
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Revenge of the Nerds
Animal House |
| Favorite work of fiction |
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Plusch
Fry
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The Hobbit
"Fiction cannot compare to what is actually occurring today, but if I must choose: Harry Potter and the Wizardry of Water" |
| Favorite nonfiction book |
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Plusch
Fry
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Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programming
Engines of Creation (the first book on nanotechnology)
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| Favorite computer language |
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Plusch
Fry
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Water
Water
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| Second favorite computer language |
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Plusch
Fry
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Python/Perl
Common LISP |
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Least favorite computer language
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Plusch
Fry
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XSLT
Perl
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Information Week Article
Clear Methods has produced Water, an XML programming language, and a run-time environment for Water code, called Steam Engine, which it's offering as part of "a pure Web-services platform."
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"Reducing complexity in software is what the world needs most.
Web apps are complex and slow. While others are just putting lipstick on a pig, Clear Methods offers a migration path to a much cleaner approach."
--Scott M. Johnson
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ConciseXML syntax
Water uses the ConciseXML syntax for Water Source. ConciseXML makes it convenient to represent logic, presentation, and data in an XML-based syntax.
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The Name "Water"
The name Water is a natural to describe the Water Language. While it is not an acronym, as some have wondered, the term connotes not only extreme power, capable of ushering in a "sea change", it is also a universal solvent, dissolving many problems. Like the liquid variety, the Water Language is scalable from a droplet to an ocean. Also, like the physical water, the founders predict that the Water Language will eventually find its way almost everywhere as a vital ingredient to success.
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