This is the README file for version 1.7.0 of the Helma Javascript
Web Application Framework.

==============
STARTING HELMA
==============

With the default package installed, all you need to do to get 
started is:
 -> make sure that you have Java 1.4 or higher installed
 -> call start.sh, resp. start.bat depending on your platform
 -> direct your web browser to http://localhost:8080/
See below for more detailed information.

===========
ABOUT HELMA
===========

Helma is an open source web application framework for fast 
and efficient scripting and serving of your websites and 
Internet applications.

Helma is written in Java and employs Javascript for its server-side 
scripting environment, removing the need for compilation cycles and 
reducing development costs while giving you instant access to leverage 
the whole wealth of Java libraries out there.

Helma pioneered the simple and codeless mapping of application objects 
to database tables, which has only recently come into vogue with other 
web frameworks. In addition, an embedded object-oriented database 
performs automatic data persistence of unmapped objects.

Helma has proven itself to be stable and fast, capable of serving high 
traffic sites with hundreds of thousands of dynamic pages per day. The 
Austrian Broadcasting Corporation, popular weblog hosting sites such 
as antville.org, twoday.net, and blogger.de, among many others, have 
successfully been deploying Helma for several years now.

===================
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
===================

You need a Java virtual machine 1.4 or higher to run Helma.

For Windows, Linux and Solaris you can get a Java runtime or development 
kit from http://java.sun.com/j2se/downloads.html. If you are on Mac OS X, 
you already have a Java runtime that will work well with Helma.

For other operating systems, please consult the documentation about the 
availabilty of a Java 1.4 (or higher) runtime.

============================
INSTALLING AND RUNNING HELMA
============================

Simply unzip or untar the contents of the archive file into any place 
on your hard disk. Start Helma by invoking start.bat or start.sh from  
the command line, depending on whether you are on Windows or 
Linux/Unix/MacOSX. If the java command is not found, try setting the
JAVA_HOME variable in the start script to the location of your Java
installation. 

You may also want to have a look at the start script for other settings.
You can adjust server wide settings in the server.properties file. For
example, you should set the smtp property to the name of the SMTP server
that Helma should use to send Email. Applications can be started or
stopped by editing the apps.properties file through the web interface
using the Management application that is part of Helma.

If you manage to get it running you should be able to connect your
browser to http://localhost:8080/ or http://127.0.0.1:8080/ 
(port 8080 on the local machine, that is).

Helma comes with a version of Jetty, a lightweight yet industrial strenth
web server developed by Mortbay Consulting. See http://jetty.mortbay.com/
for more information. While Jetty works well for deploying real web sites,
you may want to run Helma behind an existing web server. This is most
easily done by running Helma with the AJPv13 listener which allows you to
plug Helma into any web server using the Apache mod_jk module. See
http://tomcat.apache.org/connectors-doc/index.html for more 
information on mod_jk and AJPv13.

Finally, Helma can be plugged into Servlet containers using Servlet
classes that communicate with Helma either directly or via Java RMI.
(Be warned that these options may be harder to set up and maintain though,
since most of the recent development efforts have been geared towards the
mod_jk/AJPv13 setup.)

=====================================
DOCUMENTATION AND FURTHER INFORMATION
=====================================

After installing and running Helma, you will be able to access  
introductions to the features of Helma and the various included 
development tools. Further information you will find on the helma.org 
website:

http://helma.org/docs/guide/
http://helma.org/docs/reference/
http://helma.org/docs/tutorial/
http://helma.org/docs/docbook/

========================
MAILING LIST AND SUPPORT
========================

Please join us on the Helma mailing lists where we will be happy to 
answer any further questions you may have!

http://helma.org/development/mailinglists/



