Force.com improves link to Google's cloud

Salesforce.com has introduced a new version of Force.com that improves the cloud-computing platform's integration with Google App Engine.

The launch follows on from an initial version of Force.com for Google App Engine, released in December, that first allowed developers to create applications drawing on both companies' cloud platforms.

The latest announcement, made at the Google I/O conference in San Francisco on Wednesday, allows developers to take advantage of the introduction of Java support into App Engine, a feature announced in April.

Java support is intended to make Google App Engine more enterprise-friendly, according to Google, while Force.com was constructed from the beginning with enterprises in mind.

For example, Salesforce.com said it is providing Java libraries that can run on Google App Engine, allowing App Engine applications to read and write to Force.com using the Force.com SOAP programming interface.

Java-based App Engine applications can now interact directly with the native database, workflow and logic capabilities in Force.com, the companies said. Previously, App Engine developers could carry out this interaction using the Python scripting language.

The companies are offering a sample application demonstrating an App Engine catalogue shopping program that interacts with data stored in Force.com.