PowerFolder
Workflow Server Version 0.5
Test Drive
By Gary Steinmetz
PowerFolder 工作流服务器版本0.5 试驾之旅
作者： 盖瑞。史太恩米特
译者： Helloworld2004
翻译日期: 2004年11月13日
IntrodUCtion 介绍
1.1 Overview 概述
Workflow represents defined processes within businesses and elsewhere. Examples of these
processes are an employee requesting and being approved for vacation time-off, submission of a
purchase request, and an automated system for keeping inventory within a specified range.
工作流表示了在业务内部和其他地方定义工作流程。这些流程的例子是：一个职员提
出休假要求，然后被批准；发送一个购买要求，然后一个自动处理系统在一个指定范围内
保存库存清单。
PowerFolder is a workflow server. Simply speaking, it's a set of Java components bundled with
other open source software. It is open source and distributed under LGPL (Limited GNU Public
License).
PowerFolder是一个工作流服务器。简单说来，它是一组与其他开源软件一起打包的
Java组件。它是开放源代码的，在LGPL协议许可的前提下发布。
1.2 About This Version 关于此版本
1.2.1 Purpose 目的
Development of Power Folder began August 2001. This version is functional and capable of
developing and running each of these test-drives (i.e. test cases). In fact the below examples were
developed completely within the Power Folder framework. Beyond a little jsp scripting (using
just one variable - 'client'), logic flow, and simple variables (just 3 types - Boolean, Decimal, and
String), no in-depth programming knowledge is required (e.g. object-oriented concepts,
compiling, persistence).
PowerFolder的开发始于2001年8月。这个版本是有效的，而且可供开发，可以运行
每个测试运行（或者说测试案例）。实际上，下面的例子都是完全在PowerFolder框架内
部开发的。除了很少一点JSP脚本 (仅仅用了一个变量—client)，逻辑流程，和简单的
变量（只有3种类型-布尔，双精度和字符串），需要一些并不深入的编程知识。（例如
面向对象的概念，编译，持久性）
This is version 0.5 and a beta at that. So why release it? Two reasons - feedback and promotion.
First, workflow products intend to model a wide array of real-life situations, some very nuanced.
With feedback, the direction and 'what's-important' will become a lot clearer. Second, generating
community and peer interest is a vital part of any software project.
这是版本0.5而且是一个beta版本。那么为什么要发布它呢？两个原因--寻求反馈
和鼓励。首先，工作流产品设计用来为大量的现实生活情景来建模，一些非常复杂。具有
反馈的话，开发方向和"何为重要的"将变得更加清楚。第二，产生交互和爱好是任何软
件项目的灵魂部分。
While the examples below 'just' display messages to the command console and have a rather
generic user interface, the fundamentals of a workflow system are in place - state management,