Cloud Sherpas Releases Open-Source Framework For Short-Cutting Google Apps Development

The 'Ferris' platform uses Python development tools and is designed to dramatically reduce application development time.

Integrator Cloud Sherpas has launched an open source, Python framework that could help reduce the amount of time it takes to develop a custom Google Apps application by up to 80 percent. The platform, called Ferris, has already been used internally by Cloud Sherpas to create hundreds of different applications built on the Google App Engine. It is a lightweight framework distributed for free under the Apache License, Version 2.

"Ferris enabled us to build an Android tablet mobile application, and got it into production in about a week," said Cliff Dixon, vice president of IT at Quality Distribution Inc (QDI), in a press release about the technology. A Cloud Sherpas customer, the global logistics company used Ferris and Google App Engine to overhaul its pickup, delivery, and service ticketing system. "With the help of Ferris, all of the repetitive developer tasks were eliminated, allowing us to focus on the business logic."

For developers who are reading this post, here are some of Ferris' key features (there are plenty of others, so visit the Ferris framework website for more details)...