Development Issues | Data delivery and permissioning |
Software licensing | Product Integration |
Jigsaw™ Platform is a component-based architecture based on Microsoft® COM technologies. It consists of families of display controls, containers and datafeed server components. The result is a very flexible environment, where user can combine Jigsaw components with other third party objects or containers.
Clients have asked a variety of questions, in particular relating to exactly what can and cannot be done within the Jigsaw framework.
Here are some of the questions that are most frequently asked. If you cannot find the answer to your question here please email us at:
Development issues / back to top
Q. What exactly is COM?
A. Microsoft COM (Component Object Model) technology is used to create re-usable software components and link them together to build applications. These components can also be inserted into any application, which supports COM technology, such as Internet Explorer browser.
Q. Why not use Java applets instead?
A. COM components (e.g. ActiveX® controls) have an additional advantage in that they can be used within applications written in a variety of languages, and they can be manipulated using simple scripts, such as those written in VBScript or JavaScript. This provides the ability to produce highly customised solutions within a short period of time.
Q. Is Jigsaw Platform available on Linux/UNIX?
A. Not the display controls or containers. COM technology is designed for the Microsoft Windows-family of operating systems, and therefore is not supported on Linux/UNIX. However, the servers which supply data to the Jigsaw Platform, such as MarketCast server, are developed as cross-platform solutions and available on both Linux/UNIX and Windows environments.
Q. Can Jigsaw Platform be integrated into a web browser? Does it support HTML5?
A. Yes, Jigsaw Platform components implemented as ActiveX controls can be loaded and run from within Internet Explorer and manipulated by either JavaScript or VBScript. There is also a set of web components created in HTML5, which can be used in any modern browser.
Q. Is the Jigsaw Platform interface open?
A. Yes, Jigsaw components implement several additional COM interfaces to integrate with Jigsaw container services such as user interface, linking, etc. These Jigsaw Interfaces are open and documented, and can be used to develop additional Jigsaw components.
Q. Can Jigsaw Platform support any ActiveX control?
A. Yes, Jigsaw Platform will support any well-written, standard ActiveX controls. However, in order to access specific Jigsaw container services (such as linking), the control must implement Jigsaw Interfaces.
Q. Can third parties build Jigsaw Platform components?
A. Yes, Jigsaw Platform and Jigsaw Interfaces are open and documented, facilitating the creation of additional Jigsaw components by any developer.
Q. What programming languages can be used with Jigsaw Platform?
A. Jigsaw Platform components and servers can be written in any language that supports COM. These include Microsoft Visual C++, Microsoft Visual Basic. Web components can be created using JavaScript.
Q. What are Jigsaw container services?
A. Jigsaw container services are set of functions provided by a container via Jigsaw Interfaces. For example, real-time links between components, datafeed connections, printing, component-specific menus and toolbars, etc.
Software licensing / back to top
Q. Does Jigsaw Platform have a licensing system?
A. Yes. Jigsaw Platform provides a licensing system that facilitates the licensing of single components or groups of components. Licensing can apply to single instances or alternatively to user groups for either definite or indefinite periods of time.
Data delivery and permissioning / back to top
Q. What distribution platforms does Jigsaw Platform support?
A. Jigsaw supports RMDS, TIBCO Rendezvous, Bloomberg Appliance, Interactive Data PlusFeed, RaiCache. Additionally, Jigsaw comes with it's own network distribution server.
Q. Is Jigsaw Platform restricted to market data distribution architectures mentioned above?
A. Jigsaw is data vendor independent platform. This means that Jigsaw can be interfaced to virtually any data distribution environment. The Jigsaw Platform is also available as integrated solution with other vendor agnostic real-time market data connectivity solutions.
Q. How about client's proprietary database access?
A. If such databases can be accessed via an “Open Access”interface that is implemented as an ODBC driver, an appropriate Jigsaw component could be created to support the display of data from these databases.
Q. Does Jigsaw Platform have support for market data permissioning?
A. Jigsaw relies on the market data permissioning facilities provided by the data distribution architecture. For RMDS, Data Access Permissioning System (DACS) is supported.
Product Integration / back to top
Q. Is it possible to integrate trading controls in Jigsaw Platform?
A. Trading components implemented as ActiveX controls can be integrated in Jigsaw Platform. Orchid has produced a prototype set of trading controls which demonstrate how an order entry window can be activated from a standard Jigsaw display component (e.g. chart).
Q. Does Jigsaw Platform support drag and drop between applications as well as within the container?
A. Yes. In addition, Jigsaw can export formulas into applications such as Excel, and maintain live links between the applications.