Web porting

Comparison software for financial products

Web porting through development of a PHP extension

eWorks took on the task of porting a Windows-based comparison software for financial products to the web (Internet). In order to expand the product range and to get started with internet-based solutions, a web front end of the former desktop software was developed in four months.

The new web frontend can be used simultaneously for business and private customers. Depending on the business customer target group, the user interface allows extensive setting of calculation parameters or, for private customers, very simple input with direct help - while avoiding unnecessary details. The proven and continuously updated routines of the desktop version are used for the comparative calculation of financial products. The software also features client management and an administration area for setting parameters and exporting invoice data and statistics.

Technically, the new web front end was implemented with PHP 4, MySQL 4 and Microsoft Visual C++ 2003. A special feature is a new PHP extension developed in C/C++, which enables simple access to the calculation kernel from PHP. Accordingly, the web front end is operated on a Windows Server 2003 system with IIS 6. Extensions can be used to add new functions to PHP, which are also more performant and save more memory than solutions written purely in PHP. Extensions are also the only option for high-performance use when connecting third-party libraries.

The eWorks FormHandler.PHP, a form library written in PHP that can be used to create complex online forms in just a few minutes, was used to display various forms. The library supports all common web form elements such as buttons, text fields and lists, but also offers additional options such as tables, wizards and tabs. Dynamically generated default values, dynamically modified help texts and extensive server and client validation (on the client with JavaScript) make operation convenient for the user.

Used technologies

PHP
XML

Related references

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