GraFX has released minimized version of its Company Website Builder solution. MiniCWB is a small Content Management Software and is meant to satisfy the needs of those who do not have access to a database, but want a dynamic website, editable through admin area and most of all, based on a free solution.
Features:
- Totally Free - It is free, easy to use and works on any environment.
- Search Engine Optimized - miniCWB is SE optimized, meta keywords, title tags are inserted and the source code is 100% prepared to be preferred by Search Engines.
- Template Based - If you decide to change the design, it is very easy to maintain the content and change only the template layout.
- Easy-To-Use Admin Area - You are allowed to update your pages using the ADMIN area, which is extremely easy to use, provided with a small, but powerful WYSWYG editor. It's just like using a WORD editor.
- Text Based Database - No database required, all the content is written in text files. In many cases the hosting package does not contain MySQL database.
Saturday, November 25, 2006
Stakes high as Microsoft launches upgrades
Bill Hartnett got accustomed to the screaming.
As Microsoft Corp.'s manager of software sales to financial-services companies, Hartnett used to get pelted with complaints about the security and reliability of Microsoft's products.
Hartnett speaks openly about those dark days because he's sure they're well past. He and his colleagues contend the company is about to give businesses compelling reasons to not just tolerate Microsoft, but to be thrilled with it.
The occasion is the launch of crucial upgrades to Microsoft's most widely used and most profitable products. All at once, Microsoft is releasing a new Windows operating system, known as Vista; an update of the Office productivity package, which includes Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint; and server software that handles behind-the-scenes functions.
The products will begin to be available for business users on Thursday, with a consumer release of Windows and Office on Jan. 30.
Even in a less competitive world, the enormity of the launch would make this a crucial time for Microsoft. Vista has been delayed so long that it has been five years since the last overhaul of the operating system, which runs 90 percent of the world's personal computers. Office last got refreshed in 2003.
But the stakes are particularly high now. Savvy competitors using the Internet are challenging Microsoft's status as computing's vital plumbing provider. Meanwhile, Microsoft is spending some of the vast fortune it has amassed in desktop software to branch out with expensive splashes in video games and music players.
In other words, this is no time for Microsoft to deliver a dud in the core of its franchise. Next Thursday's corporate launch of Vista, Office and server software is being called "A New Day For Business," meaning Microsoft's customers, but the phrase applies in Redmond just as well.
Microsoft executives claim that computer users who upgrade to Vista or Office, but especially both together, will be dazzled by how much more productive they can become. The company spent years studying how people use its most popular programs and retooled the user interface accordingly, trying to make it easier to find and use features.
It also worked to make its software sturdier -- less prone to crashes and less vulnerable to hackers. Because of that and new tools aimed at pleasing corporate technology staffs, Microsoft estimates the labor costs of supporting a machine running Vista will be $507 per PC a year, down from $542 with Windows XP.
Despite the improvements, many analysts don't expect corporate technology buyers to rush to buy PCs with Vista or Office 2007 upgrades. Surveys have found that fewer than half plan to adopt Vista in its first year of release.
That's largely because switching can be a complicated, costly process. Many organizations only recently upgraded to Office 2003.
And while Vista and Office may look better, a lot of the features are likely to be seen as nice-to-haves rather than must-haves.
"If you look at Vista, you say, 'What's the killer app?'" said Forrester Research analyst Ted Schadler. "Somebody else will build a killer app on it, but until you get a killer app, you don't see the power of the platform."
His Forrester colleague, Kyle McNabb, who tracks business computing, believes the most powerful new item from Microsoft won't be something PC users can see. It's Microsoft's server software -- particularly the Sharepoint document-management service -- that McNabb believes has been best reshaped.
This is no small matter. Together, Sharepoint, the Exchange e-mail offering and Office software rang up $14.5 billion of Redmond's $44.3 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year, which ended June 30. That exceeded Windows sales of $13.2 billion.
These segments are so profitable -- that combined $27.7 billion from business software and Windows sales produced $19.9 billion in operating income that they all but float the company, letting Microsoft's entertainment and online divisions lose money.
Still, competitors have made important inroads -- one reason that Microsoft stock remains cheaper today than when Windows XP launched in 2001.
Open-source offerings such as Zimbra, an e-mail service that competes with Microsoft Exchange, have grabbed customers with lower sales prices and a more flexible delivery method. Zimbra founder Satish Dharmaraj thinks the Office 2007 launch is a great opportunity for his company, since it forces companies to think about what to do with their e-mail systems.
Other rivals, including Google Inc., are increasingly hosting Office-like applications over the Web for free, supported by ads.
For now, that threat to Microsoft is somewhat muted, since most businesses probably would rather pay for software than let their workers be distracted by ads all day. Even so, Microsoft has been racing to develop ways to deliver its software over the Web as well.
And it's not just a bunch of gnats targeting Microsoft. IBM Corp. sells a range of productivity applications and Web services. Database leader Oracle Corp. has been maneuvering closer to Microsoft's territory by pledging to support open-source products.
Microsoft's best chance of continued riches from the business sector likely lies in its products' ubiquity. Just about every PC user is familiar with Microsoft programs. That tends to make it safe for many companies, and a risk to use something else.
As Microsoft Corp.'s manager of software sales to financial-services companies, Hartnett used to get pelted with complaints about the security and reliability of Microsoft's products.
Hartnett speaks openly about those dark days because he's sure they're well past. He and his colleagues contend the company is about to give businesses compelling reasons to not just tolerate Microsoft, but to be thrilled with it.
The occasion is the launch of crucial upgrades to Microsoft's most widely used and most profitable products. All at once, Microsoft is releasing a new Windows operating system, known as Vista; an update of the Office productivity package, which includes Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint; and server software that handles behind-the-scenes functions.
The products will begin to be available for business users on Thursday, with a consumer release of Windows and Office on Jan. 30.
Even in a less competitive world, the enormity of the launch would make this a crucial time for Microsoft. Vista has been delayed so long that it has been five years since the last overhaul of the operating system, which runs 90 percent of the world's personal computers. Office last got refreshed in 2003.
But the stakes are particularly high now. Savvy competitors using the Internet are challenging Microsoft's status as computing's vital plumbing provider. Meanwhile, Microsoft is spending some of the vast fortune it has amassed in desktop software to branch out with expensive splashes in video games and music players.
In other words, this is no time for Microsoft to deliver a dud in the core of its franchise. Next Thursday's corporate launch of Vista, Office and server software is being called "A New Day For Business," meaning Microsoft's customers, but the phrase applies in Redmond just as well.
Microsoft executives claim that computer users who upgrade to Vista or Office, but especially both together, will be dazzled by how much more productive they can become. The company spent years studying how people use its most popular programs and retooled the user interface accordingly, trying to make it easier to find and use features.
It also worked to make its software sturdier -- less prone to crashes and less vulnerable to hackers. Because of that and new tools aimed at pleasing corporate technology staffs, Microsoft estimates the labor costs of supporting a machine running Vista will be $507 per PC a year, down from $542 with Windows XP.
Despite the improvements, many analysts don't expect corporate technology buyers to rush to buy PCs with Vista or Office 2007 upgrades. Surveys have found that fewer than half plan to adopt Vista in its first year of release.
That's largely because switching can be a complicated, costly process. Many organizations only recently upgraded to Office 2003.
And while Vista and Office may look better, a lot of the features are likely to be seen as nice-to-haves rather than must-haves.
"If you look at Vista, you say, 'What's the killer app?'" said Forrester Research analyst Ted Schadler. "Somebody else will build a killer app on it, but until you get a killer app, you don't see the power of the platform."
His Forrester colleague, Kyle McNabb, who tracks business computing, believes the most powerful new item from Microsoft won't be something PC users can see. It's Microsoft's server software -- particularly the Sharepoint document-management service -- that McNabb believes has been best reshaped.
This is no small matter. Together, Sharepoint, the Exchange e-mail offering and Office software rang up $14.5 billion of Redmond's $44.3 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year, which ended June 30. That exceeded Windows sales of $13.2 billion.
These segments are so profitable -- that combined $27.7 billion from business software and Windows sales produced $19.9 billion in operating income that they all but float the company, letting Microsoft's entertainment and online divisions lose money.
Still, competitors have made important inroads -- one reason that Microsoft stock remains cheaper today than when Windows XP launched in 2001.
Open-source offerings such as Zimbra, an e-mail service that competes with Microsoft Exchange, have grabbed customers with lower sales prices and a more flexible delivery method. Zimbra founder Satish Dharmaraj thinks the Office 2007 launch is a great opportunity for his company, since it forces companies to think about what to do with their e-mail systems.
Other rivals, including Google Inc., are increasingly hosting Office-like applications over the Web for free, supported by ads.
For now, that threat to Microsoft is somewhat muted, since most businesses probably would rather pay for software than let their workers be distracted by ads all day. Even so, Microsoft has been racing to develop ways to deliver its software over the Web as well.
And it's not just a bunch of gnats targeting Microsoft. IBM Corp. sells a range of productivity applications and Web services. Database leader Oracle Corp. has been maneuvering closer to Microsoft's territory by pledging to support open-source products.
Microsoft's best chance of continued riches from the business sector likely lies in its products' ubiquity. Just about every PC user is familiar with Microsoft programs. That tends to make it safe for many companies, and a risk to use something else.
Microsoft Banks on Business Upgrades
Bill Hartnett got accustomed to the screaming. As Microsoft Corp.'s manager of software sales to financial services companies, Hartnett used to get pelted with complaints about the security and reliability of Microsoft's products.
Hartnett speaks openly about those dark days because he's sure they're well past. He and his colleagues contend the company is about to give businesses compelling reasons to not just tolerate Microsoft, but to be thrilled with it.
The occasion is the launch of crucial upgrades to Microsoft's most widely used and most profitable products. All at once, Microsoft is releasing a new Windows operating system, known as Vista; an update of the Office "productivity" package, which includes Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint; and server software that handles behind-the-scenes functions.
The products will begin to be available for business users Nov. 30, with a consumer release of Windows and Office on Jan. 30.
Even in a less competitive world, the enormity of the launch would make this a crucial time for Microsoft. Vista has been delayed so long that it has been five years since the last overhaul of the operating system, which runs 90 percent of the world's personal computers. Office last got refreshed in 2003.
But the stakes are particularly high now. Savvy competitors using the Internet are challenging Microsoft's status as computing's vital plumbing provider. Meanwhile, Microsoft is spending some of the vast fortune it has amassed in desktop software to branch out with expensive splashes in video games and music players.
In other words, this is no time for Microsoft to deliver a dud in the core of its franchise. Next Thursday's corporate launch of Vista, Office and server software is being called "A New Day For Business," meaning Microsoft's customers, but the phrase applies in Redmond just as well.
Microsoft executives claim that computer users who upgrade to Vista or Office, but especially both together, will be dazzled by how much more productive they can become. The company spent years studying how people use its most popular programs and retooled the user interface accordingly, trying to make it easier to find and use features.
It also worked to make its software sturdier than ever _ less prone to crashes and less vulnerable to hackers. Because of that and new tools aimed at pleasing corporate technology staffs, Microsoft estimates the labor costs of supporting a machine running Vista will be $507 per PC a year, down from $542 with Windows XP.
Despite the improvements, many analysts don't expect corporate technology buyers to rush to buy PCs with Vista or Office 2007 upgrades. Surveys have found that fewer than half plan to adopt Vista in its first year of release.
That's largely because switching can be a complicated, costly process. Many organizations only recently upgraded to Office 2003.
And while Vista and Office may look better, a lot of the features are likely to be seen as nice-to-haves rather than must-haves.
"If you look at Vista, you say, `What's the killer app?'" said Forrester Research analyst Ted Schadler. "Somebody else will build a killer app on it, but until you get a killer app, you don't see the power of the platform."
His Forrester colleague Kyle McNabb, who tracks business computing, believes the most powerful new item from Microsoft won't be something PC users can see. It's Microsoft's server software _ particularly the Sharepoint document-management service _ that McNabb believes has been best reshaped.
This is no small matter. Together, Sharepoint, the Exchange e-mail offering and Office software rang up $14.5 billion of Redmond's $44.3 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year, which ended June 30. That exceeded Windows sales of $13.2 billion.
These segments are so profitable _ that combined $27.7 billion from business software and Windows sales produced $19.9 billion in operating income _ that they all but float the company, letting Microsoft's entertainment and online divisions lose money.
Still, competitors have made important inroads _ one reason that Microsoft stock remains cheaper today than when Windows XP launched in 2001.
Open-source offerings such as Zimbra, an e-mail service that competes with Microsoft Exchange, have grabbed customers with lower sales prices and a more flexible delivery method. Zimbra founder Satish Dharmaraj thinks the Office 2007 launch is a great opportunity for his company, since it forces companies to think about what to do with their e-mail systems.
Other rivals, including Google Inc., are increasingly hosting Office-like applications over the Web for free, supported by ads. For now, that threat to Microsoft is somewhat muted, since most businesses probably would rather pay for software than let their workers be distracted by ads all day. Even so, Microsoft has been racing to develop ways to deliver its software over the Web as well.
And it's not just a bunch of gnats targeting Microsoft. IBM Corp. sells a range of productivity applications and Web services. Database leader Oracle Corp. has been maneuvering closer to Microsoft's territory by pledging to support open-source products.
Proof that Microsoft is watching closely came in the recent $400 million cooperation pact it signed with Linux vendor Novell Inc., a deal aimed at strengthening Microsoft's hand against other open-source players. Even after the agreement was signed, however, Microsoft and Novell were squabbling over its details.
Microsoft's best chance of continued riches from the business sector likely lies in its products' ubiquity. Just about every PC user is familiar with Microsoft programs. That tends to make it safe for many companies, and a risk to use something else.
Of course, that ubiquity is also a hazard for Microsoft. Its software is the ripest possible target malicious hackers could exploit, so they do. And being everywhere often ties Microsoft's hands. Microsoft considered more radical changes to Vista, for example, but feared whether users and third-party software developers would be able to adapt.
This landscape means that "Microsoft's always going to be a half-step to a full step behind" many of its rivals, said McNabb at Forrester. But at the same time, he added, "they don't have to be the innovation leader."
Hartnett speaks openly about those dark days because he's sure they're well past. He and his colleagues contend the company is about to give businesses compelling reasons to not just tolerate Microsoft, but to be thrilled with it.
The occasion is the launch of crucial upgrades to Microsoft's most widely used and most profitable products. All at once, Microsoft is releasing a new Windows operating system, known as Vista; an update of the Office "productivity" package, which includes Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint; and server software that handles behind-the-scenes functions.
The products will begin to be available for business users Nov. 30, with a consumer release of Windows and Office on Jan. 30.
Even in a less competitive world, the enormity of the launch would make this a crucial time for Microsoft. Vista has been delayed so long that it has been five years since the last overhaul of the operating system, which runs 90 percent of the world's personal computers. Office last got refreshed in 2003.
But the stakes are particularly high now. Savvy competitors using the Internet are challenging Microsoft's status as computing's vital plumbing provider. Meanwhile, Microsoft is spending some of the vast fortune it has amassed in desktop software to branch out with expensive splashes in video games and music players.
In other words, this is no time for Microsoft to deliver a dud in the core of its franchise. Next Thursday's corporate launch of Vista, Office and server software is being called "A New Day For Business," meaning Microsoft's customers, but the phrase applies in Redmond just as well.
Microsoft executives claim that computer users who upgrade to Vista or Office, but especially both together, will be dazzled by how much more productive they can become. The company spent years studying how people use its most popular programs and retooled the user interface accordingly, trying to make it easier to find and use features.
It also worked to make its software sturdier than ever _ less prone to crashes and less vulnerable to hackers. Because of that and new tools aimed at pleasing corporate technology staffs, Microsoft estimates the labor costs of supporting a machine running Vista will be $507 per PC a year, down from $542 with Windows XP.
Despite the improvements, many analysts don't expect corporate technology buyers to rush to buy PCs with Vista or Office 2007 upgrades. Surveys have found that fewer than half plan to adopt Vista in its first year of release.
That's largely because switching can be a complicated, costly process. Many organizations only recently upgraded to Office 2003.
And while Vista and Office may look better, a lot of the features are likely to be seen as nice-to-haves rather than must-haves.
"If you look at Vista, you say, `What's the killer app?'" said Forrester Research analyst Ted Schadler. "Somebody else will build a killer app on it, but until you get a killer app, you don't see the power of the platform."
His Forrester colleague Kyle McNabb, who tracks business computing, believes the most powerful new item from Microsoft won't be something PC users can see. It's Microsoft's server software _ particularly the Sharepoint document-management service _ that McNabb believes has been best reshaped.
This is no small matter. Together, Sharepoint, the Exchange e-mail offering and Office software rang up $14.5 billion of Redmond's $44.3 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year, which ended June 30. That exceeded Windows sales of $13.2 billion.
These segments are so profitable _ that combined $27.7 billion from business software and Windows sales produced $19.9 billion in operating income _ that they all but float the company, letting Microsoft's entertainment and online divisions lose money.
Still, competitors have made important inroads _ one reason that Microsoft stock remains cheaper today than when Windows XP launched in 2001.
Open-source offerings such as Zimbra, an e-mail service that competes with Microsoft Exchange, have grabbed customers with lower sales prices and a more flexible delivery method. Zimbra founder Satish Dharmaraj thinks the Office 2007 launch is a great opportunity for his company, since it forces companies to think about what to do with their e-mail systems.
Other rivals, including Google Inc., are increasingly hosting Office-like applications over the Web for free, supported by ads. For now, that threat to Microsoft is somewhat muted, since most businesses probably would rather pay for software than let their workers be distracted by ads all day. Even so, Microsoft has been racing to develop ways to deliver its software over the Web as well.
And it's not just a bunch of gnats targeting Microsoft. IBM Corp. sells a range of productivity applications and Web services. Database leader Oracle Corp. has been maneuvering closer to Microsoft's territory by pledging to support open-source products.
Proof that Microsoft is watching closely came in the recent $400 million cooperation pact it signed with Linux vendor Novell Inc., a deal aimed at strengthening Microsoft's hand against other open-source players. Even after the agreement was signed, however, Microsoft and Novell were squabbling over its details.
Microsoft's best chance of continued riches from the business sector likely lies in its products' ubiquity. Just about every PC user is familiar with Microsoft programs. That tends to make it safe for many companies, and a risk to use something else.
Of course, that ubiquity is also a hazard for Microsoft. Its software is the ripest possible target malicious hackers could exploit, so they do. And being everywhere often ties Microsoft's hands. Microsoft considered more radical changes to Vista, for example, but feared whether users and third-party software developers would be able to adapt.
This landscape means that "Microsoft's always going to be a half-step to a full step behind" many of its rivals, said McNabb at Forrester. But at the same time, he added, "they don't have to be the innovation leader."
Microsoft hopes latest software keeps lucrative business customers satisfied
Bill Hartnett got accustomed to the screaming. As Microsoft Corp.'s manager of software sales to financial services companies, Hartnett used to get pelted with complaints about the security and reliability of Microsoft's products.
Hartnett speaks openly about those dark days because he's sure they're well past. He and his colleagues contend the company is about to give businesses compelling reasons to not just tolerate Microsoft, but to be thrilled with it.
The occasion is the launch of crucial upgrades to Microsoft's most widely used and most profitable products. All at once, Microsoft is releasing a new Windows operating system, known as Vista; an update of the Office "productivity" package, which includes Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint; and server software that handles behind-the-scenes functions.
The products will begin to be available for business users Nov. 30, with a consumer release of Windows and Office on Jan. 30.
Even in a less competitive world, the enormity of the launch would make this a crucial time for Microsoft. Vista has been delayed so long that it has been five years since the last overhaul of the operating system, which runs 90 percent of the world's personal computers. Office last got refreshed in 2003.
But the stakes are particularly high now. Savvy competitors using the Internet are challenging Microsoft's status as computing's vital plumbing provider. Meanwhile, Microsoft is spending some of the vast fortune it has amassed in desktop software to branch out with expensive splashes in video games and music players.
In other words, this is no time for Microsoft to deliver a dud in the core of its franchise. Next Thursday's corporate launch of Vista, Office and server software is being called "A New Day For Business," meaning Microsoft's customers, but the phrase applies in Redmond just as well.
Microsoft executives claim that computer users who upgrade to Vista or Office, but especially both together, will be dazzled by how much more productive they can become. The company spent years studying how people use its most popular programs and retooled the user interface accordingly, trying to make it easier to find and use features.
It also worked to make its software sturdier than ever -- less prone to crashes and less vulnerable to hackers. Because of that and new tools aimed at pleasing corporate technology staffs, Microsoft estimates the labor costs of supporting a machine running Vista will be $507 per PC a year, down from $542 with Windows XP.
Despite the improvements, many analysts don't expect corporate technology buyers to rush to buy PCs with Vista or Office 2007 upgrades. Surveys have found that fewer than half plan to adopt Vista in its first year of release.
That's largely because switching can be a complicated, costly process. Many organizations only recently upgraded to Office 2003.
And while Vista and Office may look better, a lot of the features are likely to be seen as nice-to-haves rather than must-haves.
"If you look at Vista, you say, `What's the killer app?"' said Forrester Research analyst Ted Schadler. "Somebody else will build a killer app on it, but until you get a killer app, you don't see the power of the platform."
His Forrester colleague Kyle McNabb, who tracks business computing, believes the most powerful new item from Microsoft won't be something PC users can see. It's Microsoft's server software -- particularly the Sharepoint document-management service -- that McNabb believes has been best reshaped.
This is no small matter. Together, Sharepoint, the Exchange e-mail offering and Office software rang up $14.5 billion of Redmond's $44.3 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year, which ended June 30. That exceeded Windows sales of $13.2 billion.
These segments are so profitable -- that combined $27.7 billion from business software and Windows sales produced $19.9 billion in operating income -- that they all but float the company, letting Microsoft's entertainment and online divisions lose money.
Still, competitors have made important inroads -- one reason that Microsoft stock remains cheaper today than when Windows XP launched in 2001.
Open-source offerings such as Zimbra, an e-mail service that competes with Microsoft Exchange, have grabbed customers with lower sales prices and a more flexible delivery method. Zimbra founder Satish Dharmaraj thinks the Office 2007 launch is a great opportunity for his company, since it forces companies to think about what to do with their e-mail systems.
Other rivals, including Google Inc., are increasingly hosting Office-like applications over the Web for free, supported by ads. For now, that threat to Microsoft is somewhat muted, since most businesses probably would rather pay for software than let their workers be distracted by ads all day. Even so, Microsoft has been racing to develop ways to deliver its software over the Web as well.
And it's not just a bunch of gnats targeting Microsoft. IBM Corp. sells a range of productivity applications and Web services. Database leader Oracle Corp. has been maneuvering closer to Microsoft's territory by pledging to support open-source products.
Proof that Microsoft is watching closely came in the recent $400 million cooperation pact it signed with Linux vendor Novell Inc., a deal aimed at strengthening Microsoft's hand against other open-source players. Even after the agreement was signed, however, Microsoft and Novell were squabbling over its details.
Microsoft's best chance of continued riches from the business sector likely lies in its products' ubiquity. Just about every PC user is familiar with Microsoft programs. That tends to make it safe for many companies, and a risk to use something else.
Of course, that ubiquity is also a hazard for Microsoft. Its software is the ripest possible target malicious hackers could exploit, so they do. And being everywhere often ties Microsoft's hands. Microsoft considered more radical changes to Vista, for example, but feared whether users and third-party software developers would be able to adapt.
This landscape means that "Microsoft's always going to be a half-step to a full step behind" many of its rivals, said McNabb at Forrester. But at the same time, he added, "they don't have to be the innovation leader."
Hartnett speaks openly about those dark days because he's sure they're well past. He and his colleagues contend the company is about to give businesses compelling reasons to not just tolerate Microsoft, but to be thrilled with it.
The occasion is the launch of crucial upgrades to Microsoft's most widely used and most profitable products. All at once, Microsoft is releasing a new Windows operating system, known as Vista; an update of the Office "productivity" package, which includes Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint; and server software that handles behind-the-scenes functions.
The products will begin to be available for business users Nov. 30, with a consumer release of Windows and Office on Jan. 30.
Even in a less competitive world, the enormity of the launch would make this a crucial time for Microsoft. Vista has been delayed so long that it has been five years since the last overhaul of the operating system, which runs 90 percent of the world's personal computers. Office last got refreshed in 2003.
But the stakes are particularly high now. Savvy competitors using the Internet are challenging Microsoft's status as computing's vital plumbing provider. Meanwhile, Microsoft is spending some of the vast fortune it has amassed in desktop software to branch out with expensive splashes in video games and music players.
In other words, this is no time for Microsoft to deliver a dud in the core of its franchise. Next Thursday's corporate launch of Vista, Office and server software is being called "A New Day For Business," meaning Microsoft's customers, but the phrase applies in Redmond just as well.
Microsoft executives claim that computer users who upgrade to Vista or Office, but especially both together, will be dazzled by how much more productive they can become. The company spent years studying how people use its most popular programs and retooled the user interface accordingly, trying to make it easier to find and use features.
It also worked to make its software sturdier than ever -- less prone to crashes and less vulnerable to hackers. Because of that and new tools aimed at pleasing corporate technology staffs, Microsoft estimates the labor costs of supporting a machine running Vista will be $507 per PC a year, down from $542 with Windows XP.
Despite the improvements, many analysts don't expect corporate technology buyers to rush to buy PCs with Vista or Office 2007 upgrades. Surveys have found that fewer than half plan to adopt Vista in its first year of release.
That's largely because switching can be a complicated, costly process. Many organizations only recently upgraded to Office 2003.
And while Vista and Office may look better, a lot of the features are likely to be seen as nice-to-haves rather than must-haves.
"If you look at Vista, you say, `What's the killer app?"' said Forrester Research analyst Ted Schadler. "Somebody else will build a killer app on it, but until you get a killer app, you don't see the power of the platform."
His Forrester colleague Kyle McNabb, who tracks business computing, believes the most powerful new item from Microsoft won't be something PC users can see. It's Microsoft's server software -- particularly the Sharepoint document-management service -- that McNabb believes has been best reshaped.
This is no small matter. Together, Sharepoint, the Exchange e-mail offering and Office software rang up $14.5 billion of Redmond's $44.3 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year, which ended June 30. That exceeded Windows sales of $13.2 billion.
These segments are so profitable -- that combined $27.7 billion from business software and Windows sales produced $19.9 billion in operating income -- that they all but float the company, letting Microsoft's entertainment and online divisions lose money.
Still, competitors have made important inroads -- one reason that Microsoft stock remains cheaper today than when Windows XP launched in 2001.
Open-source offerings such as Zimbra, an e-mail service that competes with Microsoft Exchange, have grabbed customers with lower sales prices and a more flexible delivery method. Zimbra founder Satish Dharmaraj thinks the Office 2007 launch is a great opportunity for his company, since it forces companies to think about what to do with their e-mail systems.
Other rivals, including Google Inc., are increasingly hosting Office-like applications over the Web for free, supported by ads. For now, that threat to Microsoft is somewhat muted, since most businesses probably would rather pay for software than let their workers be distracted by ads all day. Even so, Microsoft has been racing to develop ways to deliver its software over the Web as well.
And it's not just a bunch of gnats targeting Microsoft. IBM Corp. sells a range of productivity applications and Web services. Database leader Oracle Corp. has been maneuvering closer to Microsoft's territory by pledging to support open-source products.
Proof that Microsoft is watching closely came in the recent $400 million cooperation pact it signed with Linux vendor Novell Inc., a deal aimed at strengthening Microsoft's hand against other open-source players. Even after the agreement was signed, however, Microsoft and Novell were squabbling over its details.
Microsoft's best chance of continued riches from the business sector likely lies in its products' ubiquity. Just about every PC user is familiar with Microsoft programs. That tends to make it safe for many companies, and a risk to use something else.
Of course, that ubiquity is also a hazard for Microsoft. Its software is the ripest possible target malicious hackers could exploit, so they do. And being everywhere often ties Microsoft's hands. Microsoft considered more radical changes to Vista, for example, but feared whether users and third-party software developers would be able to adapt.
This landscape means that "Microsoft's always going to be a half-step to a full step behind" many of its rivals, said McNabb at Forrester. But at the same time, he added, "they don't have to be the innovation leader."
Microsoft hoping for business upgrades
Bill Hartnett got accustomed to the screaming. As Microsoft Corp.‘s manager of software sales to financial services companies, Hartnett used to get pelted with complaints about the security and reliability of Microsoft‘s products.
The occasion is the launch of crucial upgrades to Microsoft‘s most widely used and most profitable products. All at once, Microsoft is releasing a new Windows operating system, known as Vista; an update of the Office "productivity" package, which includes Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint; and server software that handles behind-the-scenes functions.
Even in a less competitive world, the enormity of the launch would make this a crucial time for Microsoft. Vista has been delayed so long that it has been five years since the last overhaul of the operating system, which runs 90 percent of the world‘s personal computers. Office last got refreshed in 2003.
In other words, this is no time for Microsoft to deliver a dud in the core of its franchise. Next Thursday‘s corporate launch of Vista, Office and server software is being called "A New Day For Business," meaning Microsoft‘s customers, but the phrase applies in Redmond just as well.
It also worked to make its software sturdier than ever — less prone to crashes and less vulnerable to hackers. Because of that and new tools aimed at pleasing corporate technology staffs, Microsoft estimates the labor costs of supporting a machine running Vista will be $507 per PC a year, down from $542 with Windows XP .
That‘s largely because switching can be a complicated, costly process. Many organizations only recently upgraded to Office 2003.
"If you look at Vista, you say,
What‘s the killer app?‘" said Forrester Research analyst Ted Schadler. "Somebody else will build a killer app on it, but until you get a killer app, you don‘t see the power of the platform."
This is no small matter. Together, Sharepoint, the Exchange e-mail offering and Office software rang up $14.5 billion of Redmond‘s $44.3 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year, which ended June 30. That exceeded Windows sales of $13.2 billion.
Still, competitors have made important inroads — one reason that Microsoft stock remains cheaper today than when Windows XP launched in 2001.
Other rivals, including Google Inc., are increasingly hosting Office-like applications over the Web for free, supported by ads. For now, that threat to Microsoft is somewhat muted, since most businesses probably would rather pay for software than let their workers be distracted by ads all day. Even so, Microsoft has been racing to develop ways to deliver its software over the Web as well.
And it‘s not just a bunch of gnats targeting Microsoft. IBM Corp. sells a range of productivity applications and Web services. Database leader Oracle Corp. has been maneuvering closer to Microsoft‘s territory by pledging to support open-source products.
Proof that Microsoft is watching closely came in the recent $400 million cooperation pact it signed with Linux vendor Novell Inc., a deal aimed at strengthening Microsoft‘s hand against other open-source players. Even after the agreement was signed, however, Microsoft and Novell were squabbling over its details.
Microsoft‘s best chance of continued riches from the business sector likely lies in its products‘ ubiquity. Just about every PC user is familiar with Microsoft programs. That tends to make it safe for many companies, and a risk to use something else.
Of course, that ubiquity is also a hazard for Microsoft. Its software is the ripest possible target malicious hackers could exploit, so they do. And being everywhere often ties Microsoft‘s hands. Microsoft considered more radical changes to Vista, for example, but feared whether users and third-party software developers would be able to adapt.
This landscape means that "Microsoft‘s always going to be a half-step to a full step behind" many of its rivals, said McNabb at Forrester. But at the same time, he added, "they don‘t have to be the innovation leader."
The occasion is the launch of crucial upgrades to Microsoft‘s most widely used and most profitable products. All at once, Microsoft is releasing a new Windows operating system, known as Vista; an update of the Office "productivity" package, which includes Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint; and server software that handles behind-the-scenes functions.
Even in a less competitive world, the enormity of the launch would make this a crucial time for Microsoft. Vista has been delayed so long that it has been five years since the last overhaul of the operating system, which runs 90 percent of the world‘s personal computers. Office last got refreshed in 2003.
In other words, this is no time for Microsoft to deliver a dud in the core of its franchise. Next Thursday‘s corporate launch of Vista, Office and server software is being called "A New Day For Business," meaning Microsoft‘s customers, but the phrase applies in Redmond just as well.
It also worked to make its software sturdier than ever — less prone to crashes and less vulnerable to hackers. Because of that and new tools aimed at pleasing corporate technology staffs, Microsoft estimates the labor costs of supporting a machine running Vista will be $507 per PC a year, down from $542 with Windows XP .
That‘s largely because switching can be a complicated, costly process. Many organizations only recently upgraded to Office 2003.
"If you look at Vista, you say,
What‘s the killer app?‘" said Forrester Research analyst Ted Schadler. "Somebody else will build a killer app on it, but until you get a killer app, you don‘t see the power of the platform."
This is no small matter. Together, Sharepoint, the Exchange e-mail offering and Office software rang up $14.5 billion of Redmond‘s $44.3 billion in revenue in the last fiscal year, which ended June 30. That exceeded Windows sales of $13.2 billion.
Still, competitors have made important inroads — one reason that Microsoft stock remains cheaper today than when Windows XP launched in 2001.
Other rivals, including Google Inc., are increasingly hosting Office-like applications over the Web for free, supported by ads. For now, that threat to Microsoft is somewhat muted, since most businesses probably would rather pay for software than let their workers be distracted by ads all day. Even so, Microsoft has been racing to develop ways to deliver its software over the Web as well.
And it‘s not just a bunch of gnats targeting Microsoft. IBM Corp. sells a range of productivity applications and Web services. Database leader Oracle Corp. has been maneuvering closer to Microsoft‘s territory by pledging to support open-source products.
Proof that Microsoft is watching closely came in the recent $400 million cooperation pact it signed with Linux vendor Novell Inc., a deal aimed at strengthening Microsoft‘s hand against other open-source players. Even after the agreement was signed, however, Microsoft and Novell were squabbling over its details.
Microsoft‘s best chance of continued riches from the business sector likely lies in its products‘ ubiquity. Just about every PC user is familiar with Microsoft programs. That tends to make it safe for many companies, and a risk to use something else.
Of course, that ubiquity is also a hazard for Microsoft. Its software is the ripest possible target malicious hackers could exploit, so they do. And being everywhere often ties Microsoft‘s hands. Microsoft considered more radical changes to Vista, for example, but feared whether users and third-party software developers would be able to adapt.
This landscape means that "Microsoft‘s always going to be a half-step to a full step behind" many of its rivals, said McNabb at Forrester. But at the same time, he added, "they don‘t have to be the innovation leader."
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Solara Announces Recent Operating Results and Current Drilling Activity
Solara Exploration Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:SAA.A - News; TSX VENTURE:SAA.B - News; "Solara" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that since August, it has participated in the drilling and casing of ten potential gas wells situated on various projects in Alberta. The Company's working interests vary from 30% to 75% in the cased gas wells. One of the wells in which Solara has a 50% interest has been completed and had final test flow rate of 920 thousand cubic feet of gas per day (Mcf/d) and 46 barrels of oil per day (Bbls/d) from one zone. Solara has a 35% interest in a second well that had a final test flow rate of 1.5 million cubic feet of gas per day (MMcf/d) and 75 barrels of oil per day (Bbls/d), from two zones. The Company's share of production from the two wells is estimated at 215 barrels of oil equivalent per day (Boe/d) based on the final test flow rates.
The test periods were conducted over a period of up to 77 hours. The operator has plans underway to tie-in the two wells for production by late December 2006 or early January 2007, which may or may not be produced at their final flow test levels. The remaining eight wells will be completed and evaluated prior to year end. Additional information with respect to these wells will be released once it becomes available.
Mindoro Resources Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:MIO - News; FWB:WKN 906167) and Panoro Minerals Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:PML - News; FWB:PZM) today reported the results from a drilling program carried out on the Agata North and Agata South porphyry copper-gold drill targets on the Agata Project, Surigao Gold District, Philippines. Of five drill hole attempts, none reached the source of the respective strong target IP chargeability anomalies due to very bad ground conditions related to an intensely fractured and sheared ultra-mafic cap rock. Given the high potential of the targets, and the fact that porphyry copper-gold mineralization had previously been discovered by Mindoro on the Assmicor prospect at Agata, new strategies will be devised to successfully test these promising targets in 2007.
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An August 05, 2005, news release described results to date on the Agata Project where IP surveys had defined a cluster of strong and extensive chargeability anomalies in a favorable structural setting near the intersection of cross-faults with the Philippine Fault. The two strongest anomalies, Agata North and Agata South, were selected for drill testing. Porphyry-related vein mineralization had previously been intersected by Mindoro in 1999 on the Assmicor prospect, confirming the porphyry potential of the Agata Project. At Assmicor, porphyry-type quartz-magnetite-chalcopyrite veining grading 0.70% Cu and 0.19 g/t Au was intersected over 2.5 meters, as well as several gold-mineralized intercepts in east-dipping intrusive sills. The mineralization and alteration are interpreted by the Joint Venture consultant, Dr. Bruce Rohrlach, as being related to a porphyry system nearby to the east and he has strongly recommended follow-up on this target. Agata North is a strong chargeability anomaly, extending over two kilometers by 300 to 400 meters wide, with correlating copper-zinc-gold-in-soil anomalies, extensive rock alteration and fracturing, and several copper showings. The stacked anomalies are consistent with a porphyry copper-gold system at depth. Drilling commenced in November, 2005. After over three months and three lost holes, the deepest of which reached only 123 meters in highly broken, sheared and gougy ultra-mafics, a new drill contractor was selected. A fourth drill hole was attempted and was lost at 233 meters in the ultra-mafic cap. Agata North remains a very high priority porphyry copper-gold target with a strong sulphide concentration indicated below the ultra-mafic cap, and with abundant indications of a porphyry setting. Mindoro will be working with drill contractors to devise a method of completing a hole into the target zone during early 2007, likely by pre-collaring an open hole through the cap ultra-mafic using a tricone bit and heavy drill muds, followed by coring.
Agata South is also a strong chargeability anomaly, with flanking resistivity anomalies, and extending over two kilometers of strike. Porphyry-related alteration has been mapped near-by. Extensive copper-gold and zinc-in soil anomalies have been defined, as well as copper showings, and abundant epithermal gold prospects, some of which are being actively mined by artisanal miners. These multiple stacked anomalies point strongly to the presence of a porphyry copper-gold system at depth. A single hole was drilled, commencing in March. This intersected limestone and schist before intersecting ultra mafics at 180 meters. Considerable difficulties were again encountered in the ultra mafics, and after three months the hole was abandoned at 251 meters. Agata South is also a very high priority porphyry copper-gold target and the joint venture will persevere with drilling. In this case it is thought that the terrain will allow the target to be drilled from the west, thus avoiding the ultra-mafic sheet.
The Surigao Joint Venture holds one of the largest land positions in the Surigao Gold District where there have been several significant porphyry copper-gold discoveries in recent years (maps can be seen on Mindoro's website). The Surigao Joint Venture partners are Mindoro, Minimax Mineral Exploration Corp., a private Philippine company, and Panoro Minerals Ltd. The current phase of work and budget has been completed, and planning is in progress for ongoing work.
Agata also covers an area of nickel-iron laterite mineralization which has been described in releases dated July 12 and July 26, 2006. Similar nickel-iron laterite is being mined on the Tubay project, nine kilometers to the south. The Surigao Joint Venture will be seeking ways to aggressively advance the Agata nickel-iron laterite prospect in the near future.
Programs are carried out under the supervision of Tony Climie, P.Geol., who is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101.
The test periods were conducted over a period of up to 77 hours. The operator has plans underway to tie-in the two wells for production by late December 2006 or early January 2007, which may or may not be produced at their final flow test levels. The remaining eight wells will be completed and evaluated prior to year end. Additional information with respect to these wells will be released once it becomes available.
Mindoro Resources Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:MIO - News; FWB:WKN 906167) and Panoro Minerals Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:PML - News; FWB:PZM) today reported the results from a drilling program carried out on the Agata North and Agata South porphyry copper-gold drill targets on the Agata Project, Surigao Gold District, Philippines. Of five drill hole attempts, none reached the source of the respective strong target IP chargeability anomalies due to very bad ground conditions related to an intensely fractured and sheared ultra-mafic cap rock. Given the high potential of the targets, and the fact that porphyry copper-gold mineralization had previously been discovered by Mindoro on the Assmicor prospect at Agata, new strategies will be devised to successfully test these promising targets in 2007.
ADVERTISEMENT
click here
An August 05, 2005, news release described results to date on the Agata Project where IP surveys had defined a cluster of strong and extensive chargeability anomalies in a favorable structural setting near the intersection of cross-faults with the Philippine Fault. The two strongest anomalies, Agata North and Agata South, were selected for drill testing. Porphyry-related vein mineralization had previously been intersected by Mindoro in 1999 on the Assmicor prospect, confirming the porphyry potential of the Agata Project. At Assmicor, porphyry-type quartz-magnetite-chalcopyrite veining grading 0.70% Cu and 0.19 g/t Au was intersected over 2.5 meters, as well as several gold-mineralized intercepts in east-dipping intrusive sills. The mineralization and alteration are interpreted by the Joint Venture consultant, Dr. Bruce Rohrlach, as being related to a porphyry system nearby to the east and he has strongly recommended follow-up on this target. Agata North is a strong chargeability anomaly, extending over two kilometers by 300 to 400 meters wide, with correlating copper-zinc-gold-in-soil anomalies, extensive rock alteration and fracturing, and several copper showings. The stacked anomalies are consistent with a porphyry copper-gold system at depth. Drilling commenced in November, 2005. After over three months and three lost holes, the deepest of which reached only 123 meters in highly broken, sheared and gougy ultra-mafics, a new drill contractor was selected. A fourth drill hole was attempted and was lost at 233 meters in the ultra-mafic cap. Agata North remains a very high priority porphyry copper-gold target with a strong sulphide concentration indicated below the ultra-mafic cap, and with abundant indications of a porphyry setting. Mindoro will be working with drill contractors to devise a method of completing a hole into the target zone during early 2007, likely by pre-collaring an open hole through the cap ultra-mafic using a tricone bit and heavy drill muds, followed by coring.
Agata South is also a strong chargeability anomaly, with flanking resistivity anomalies, and extending over two kilometers of strike. Porphyry-related alteration has been mapped near-by. Extensive copper-gold and zinc-in soil anomalies have been defined, as well as copper showings, and abundant epithermal gold prospects, some of which are being actively mined by artisanal miners. These multiple stacked anomalies point strongly to the presence of a porphyry copper-gold system at depth. A single hole was drilled, commencing in March. This intersected limestone and schist before intersecting ultra mafics at 180 meters. Considerable difficulties were again encountered in the ultra mafics, and after three months the hole was abandoned at 251 meters. Agata South is also a very high priority porphyry copper-gold target and the joint venture will persevere with drilling. In this case it is thought that the terrain will allow the target to be drilled from the west, thus avoiding the ultra-mafic sheet.
The Surigao Joint Venture holds one of the largest land positions in the Surigao Gold District where there have been several significant porphyry copper-gold discoveries in recent years (maps can be seen on Mindoro's website). The Surigao Joint Venture partners are Mindoro, Minimax Mineral Exploration Corp., a private Philippine company, and Panoro Minerals Ltd. The current phase of work and budget has been completed, and planning is in progress for ongoing work.
Agata also covers an area of nickel-iron laterite mineralization which has been described in releases dated July 12 and July 26, 2006. Similar nickel-iron laterite is being mined on the Tubay project, nine kilometers to the south. The Surigao Joint Venture will be seeking ways to aggressively advance the Agata nickel-iron laterite prospect in the near future.
Programs are carried out under the supervision of Tony Climie, P.Geol., who is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101.
Vonage places call for EnterpriseDB database
Vonage Holdings Corp. is starting to deploy an open-source database from EnterpriseDB Corp., complementing the voice-over-IP (VoIP) provider's existing Oracle and MySQL databases.
Vonage has already ported part of its ticketing system for managing customer support from MySQL to EnterpriseDB Advanced Server, according to Tim Smith, president of Vonage Network. The software is running on T1000 and T2000 servers from Sun Microsystems Inc. using the experimental OpenSolaris operating system -- so far without any problems.
Vonage is also looking "fairly seriously" at moving its multi-terabyte billing records database from Oracle 9 to EnterpriseDB, Smith said.
Smith said he likes EnterpriseDB because it offers much of the power of Oracle, including compatibility with Oracle applications, but at the price of the open-source MySQL. "Oracle is a sledgehammer. MySQL is a small hammer. We needed something in between," he said.
Gaining a foothold into Vonage is the latest win for EnterpriseDB, which has been a roll since launching a little more than a year ago. The company now claims about 45 companies using its database, which is a customized version of the PostGreSQL open-source database optimized for high-transaction environments, according to CEO Andy Astor. The list of customers includes Sony Online, which replaced Oracle databases with EnterpriseDB for core online gaming systems, and Agri Stats Inc., which swapped out IBM DB2 databases.
PostGres Inc. also counts about 15 partners, including Sun, which in early August selected EnterpriseDB to provide support for copies of PostGreSQL bundled into servers running Sun's Solaris 10 operating system.
EnterpriseDB that month also won $20 million in financing, bringing the total amount of financing it has received up to $28.5 million.
Due to its low support prices, which range from $1 to $5,000 per processor per year, EnterpriseDB competes with other open-source database providers such as Ingres Corp., MySQL AB and GreenPlum Software Inc., which has also developed a custom version of PostGreSQL.
Due to its strong compatibility with Oracle applications, three-quarters of the deployments have been at companies that are heavy Oracle users, said Astor. "They are adding to their infrastructure, building new applications or even leveraging us as a second source," Astor said.
That makes sense to Forrester Research Inc. analyst Noel Yuhanna, who said open-source databases such as EnterpriseDB are making a lot of headway into enterprises' less-critical applications.
"A lot of enterprises are looking at open-source databases. But they are wondering how they can minimize the impact on their applications to keep migration costs down," he said.
EnterpriseDB goes a long way toward solving that problem, Yuhanna said, because more than 80% of Oracle applications can run "seamlessly" with EnterpriseDB.
Smith agreed. EnterpriseDB is "more or less compatible with Oracle," requires minimal retraining for his Oracle database administrators and costs about one-fifth the price, he said. Those savings gains, combined with competent performance and scalability, are why Vonage is seriously looking to move its billing database, which stores billions of heavily-accessed call data records, to EnterpriseDB, explained Smith.
"There are lots of small records," he said. "We're not too worried about the table size; we just want to be comfortable that we can hammer it [EnterpriseDB] with a load."
Vonage has already ported part of its ticketing system for managing customer support from MySQL to EnterpriseDB Advanced Server, according to Tim Smith, president of Vonage Network. The software is running on T1000 and T2000 servers from Sun Microsystems Inc. using the experimental OpenSolaris operating system -- so far without any problems.
Vonage is also looking "fairly seriously" at moving its multi-terabyte billing records database from Oracle 9 to EnterpriseDB, Smith said.
Smith said he likes EnterpriseDB because it offers much of the power of Oracle, including compatibility with Oracle applications, but at the price of the open-source MySQL. "Oracle is a sledgehammer. MySQL is a small hammer. We needed something in between," he said.
Gaining a foothold into Vonage is the latest win for EnterpriseDB, which has been a roll since launching a little more than a year ago. The company now claims about 45 companies using its database, which is a customized version of the PostGreSQL open-source database optimized for high-transaction environments, according to CEO Andy Astor. The list of customers includes Sony Online, which replaced Oracle databases with EnterpriseDB for core online gaming systems, and Agri Stats Inc., which swapped out IBM DB2 databases.
PostGres Inc. also counts about 15 partners, including Sun, which in early August selected EnterpriseDB to provide support for copies of PostGreSQL bundled into servers running Sun's Solaris 10 operating system.
EnterpriseDB that month also won $20 million in financing, bringing the total amount of financing it has received up to $28.5 million.
Due to its low support prices, which range from $1 to $5,000 per processor per year, EnterpriseDB competes with other open-source database providers such as Ingres Corp., MySQL AB and GreenPlum Software Inc., which has also developed a custom version of PostGreSQL.
Due to its strong compatibility with Oracle applications, three-quarters of the deployments have been at companies that are heavy Oracle users, said Astor. "They are adding to their infrastructure, building new applications or even leveraging us as a second source," Astor said.
That makes sense to Forrester Research Inc. analyst Noel Yuhanna, who said open-source databases such as EnterpriseDB are making a lot of headway into enterprises' less-critical applications.
"A lot of enterprises are looking at open-source databases. But they are wondering how they can minimize the impact on their applications to keep migration costs down," he said.
EnterpriseDB goes a long way toward solving that problem, Yuhanna said, because more than 80% of Oracle applications can run "seamlessly" with EnterpriseDB.
Smith agreed. EnterpriseDB is "more or less compatible with Oracle," requires minimal retraining for his Oracle database administrators and costs about one-fifth the price, he said. Those savings gains, combined with competent performance and scalability, are why Vonage is seriously looking to move its billing database, which stores billions of heavily-accessed call data records, to EnterpriseDB, explained Smith.
"There are lots of small records," he said. "We're not too worried about the table size; we just want to be comfortable that we can hammer it [EnterpriseDB] with a load."
MySQL gets another database engine
NitroSecurity Inc. and MySQL AB said yesterday that they will jointly develop a storage engine for the open-source MySQL database that is optimized for very large high-performance databases.
The engine will be based on NitroSecurity's NitroEDB technology, which is now used in the Portsmouth, N.H., vendor's real-time network security software. The technology is said to offer fast performance for databases with billions of records -- even when running on commodity hardware.
MySQL has a modular architecture that allows users to plug in a storage engine of their own choosing. MyISAM, the default storage engine for MySQL, is still the most widely used, according to MySQL CEO, Marten Mickos. The most popular alternative, however, is InnoDB, which is developed by Innobase Oy in Helsinki, Finland.
In the past year, MySQL rival Oracle Corp. has bought both Innobase and Sleepycat Software Inc., whose BerkeleyDB database can also be used as a storage engine for MySQL. Whereas Oracle agreed to continue developing InnoDB for MySQL for an undisclosed number of years, MySQL has taken many steps to wean its users off possible dependence on Oracle-owned technology.
In April, MySQL created a program to help encourage third-party companies to make engines compatible with its database while also announcing that it would create its own, code-named Falcon. In August, MySQL said that future versions of its database will not support BerkeleyDB.
Solid Information Technology Inc. is releasing the SolidDB storage engine for MySQL by the year's end.
The engine will be based on NitroSecurity's NitroEDB technology, which is now used in the Portsmouth, N.H., vendor's real-time network security software. The technology is said to offer fast performance for databases with billions of records -- even when running on commodity hardware.
MySQL has a modular architecture that allows users to plug in a storage engine of their own choosing. MyISAM, the default storage engine for MySQL, is still the most widely used, according to MySQL CEO, Marten Mickos. The most popular alternative, however, is InnoDB, which is developed by Innobase Oy in Helsinki, Finland.
In the past year, MySQL rival Oracle Corp. has bought both Innobase and Sleepycat Software Inc., whose BerkeleyDB database can also be used as a storage engine for MySQL. Whereas Oracle agreed to continue developing InnoDB for MySQL for an undisclosed number of years, MySQL has taken many steps to wean its users off possible dependence on Oracle-owned technology.
In April, MySQL created a program to help encourage third-party companies to make engines compatible with its database while also announcing that it would create its own, code-named Falcon. In August, MySQL said that future versions of its database will not support BerkeleyDB.
Solid Information Technology Inc. is releasing the SolidDB storage engine for MySQL by the year's end.
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
MySQL AB & NitroSecurity to Jointly Develop Database Storage Engine
MySQL AB, developer of the world's most popular open source database, and NitroSecurity, a provider of high performance and scalable enterprise security solutions, today announced they have signed a strategic agreement to jointly develop and market a database engine for MySQL® based on NitroSecurity’s NitroEDBTM extreme performance relational database technology.
NitroSecurity originally developed its database technology to address the growing demand for real-time analysis within the network security event management market. Utilizing unique indexing techniques, data management methods and query processing algorithms, the technology enables “multiple order of magnitude” increases in relational data management and query performance with multi-billion record volumes – running on commodity hardware. The technology is currently deployed in NitroView Enterprise Security Manager, the industry’s highest performance network security monitoring and analysis solution.
“NitroSecurity’s proven experience delivering their database technology to the IT security market gives us a premier new database engine partner with unique capabilities,” said Marten Mickos, CEO of MySQL AB. “Together, we look forward to extending MySQL’s enterprise reach by delivering a new high-performance database solution that can handle very large amounts of data.”
MySQL AB is the developer of the MySQL database server, one of the most popular and fastest-growing products of its kind. Forrester Research recently estimated the overall enterprise database market to be greater than $10 billion annually. In April, the company launched its MySQL Certified Storage Engine Program – a way for third-party ISVs and open source community developers to produce high-quality database engines for the millions of MySQL database users worldwide. More information on the program is available at http://solutions.mysql.com/engines.html.
“A perfect data storm is brewing formed by the tidal wave of data generated by today’s applications combined with the demand for real-time analysis and reporting of information derived from this data,” says Ken Levine, CEO of NitroSecurity. “The integration of NitroSecurity’s high performance storage engine with MySQL’s industry leading database server will enable end-users to address this phenomenon without a linear increase in hardware investment.”
Under the terms of the agreement, MySQL will integrate NitroSecurity’s NitroEDB database storage engine with MySQL’s database server. The resulting solution will be compatible with applications utilizing MySQL’s current release of its database server and will be marketed by both companies.
About NitroSecurity
NitroSecurity develops and markets ultra-high performance network security monitoring, analysis and protection solutions based on the NitroEDB database – an extreme performance and highly scalable relational database technology. Headquartered in Portsmouth, NH, NitroSecurity’s customer base includes more than 100 global organizations in industries such as healthcare, education, financial services, government, retail/hospitality, and managed services. For more information, please visit www.nitrosecurity.com.
About MySQL
MySQL AB develops and supports a family of high-performance, affordable database products. The company’s flagship offering is ‘MySQL Enterprise’, a comprehensive set of production-tested software, proactive monitoring tools, and premium support services.
MySQL is the world's most popular open source database software, with over 10 million active installations. Many of the world's largest and fastest-growing organizations use MySQL to save time and money powering their high-volume Web sites, business-critical systems and packaged software -- including industry leaders such as Yahoo!, Alcatel, The Associated Press, Suzuki and NASA.
With headquarters in the United States and Sweden -- and operations around the world -- MySQL AB supports both open source values and corporate customers' needs in a profitable, sustainable business. For more information about MySQL, please visit www.mysql.com.
MySQL is a registered trademark of MySQL AB in the United States and other countries. NitroSecurity and the NitroSecurity logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of NitroSecurity. Other product names may be trademarks of their respective companies.
NitroSecurity originally developed its database technology to address the growing demand for real-time analysis within the network security event management market. Utilizing unique indexing techniques, data management methods and query processing algorithms, the technology enables “multiple order of magnitude” increases in relational data management and query performance with multi-billion record volumes – running on commodity hardware. The technology is currently deployed in NitroView Enterprise Security Manager, the industry’s highest performance network security monitoring and analysis solution.
“NitroSecurity’s proven experience delivering their database technology to the IT security market gives us a premier new database engine partner with unique capabilities,” said Marten Mickos, CEO of MySQL AB. “Together, we look forward to extending MySQL’s enterprise reach by delivering a new high-performance database solution that can handle very large amounts of data.”
MySQL AB is the developer of the MySQL database server, one of the most popular and fastest-growing products of its kind. Forrester Research recently estimated the overall enterprise database market to be greater than $10 billion annually. In April, the company launched its MySQL Certified Storage Engine Program – a way for third-party ISVs and open source community developers to produce high-quality database engines for the millions of MySQL database users worldwide. More information on the program is available at http://solutions.mysql.com/engines.html.
“A perfect data storm is brewing formed by the tidal wave of data generated by today’s applications combined with the demand for real-time analysis and reporting of information derived from this data,” says Ken Levine, CEO of NitroSecurity. “The integration of NitroSecurity’s high performance storage engine with MySQL’s industry leading database server will enable end-users to address this phenomenon without a linear increase in hardware investment.”
Under the terms of the agreement, MySQL will integrate NitroSecurity’s NitroEDB database storage engine with MySQL’s database server. The resulting solution will be compatible with applications utilizing MySQL’s current release of its database server and will be marketed by both companies.
About NitroSecurity
NitroSecurity develops and markets ultra-high performance network security monitoring, analysis and protection solutions based on the NitroEDB database – an extreme performance and highly scalable relational database technology. Headquartered in Portsmouth, NH, NitroSecurity’s customer base includes more than 100 global organizations in industries such as healthcare, education, financial services, government, retail/hospitality, and managed services. For more information, please visit www.nitrosecurity.com.
About MySQL
MySQL AB develops and supports a family of high-performance, affordable database products. The company’s flagship offering is ‘MySQL Enterprise’, a comprehensive set of production-tested software, proactive monitoring tools, and premium support services.
MySQL is the world's most popular open source database software, with over 10 million active installations. Many of the world's largest and fastest-growing organizations use MySQL to save time and money powering their high-volume Web sites, business-critical systems and packaged software -- including industry leaders such as Yahoo!, Alcatel, The Associated Press, Suzuki and NASA.
With headquarters in the United States and Sweden -- and operations around the world -- MySQL AB supports both open source values and corporate customers' needs in a profitable, sustainable business. For more information about MySQL, please visit www.mysql.com.
MySQL is a registered trademark of MySQL AB in the United States and other countries. NitroSecurity and the NitroSecurity logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of NitroSecurity. Other product names may be trademarks of their respective companies.
City of Vienna Deploys Red Hat Enterprise Linux
Red Hat (NASDAQ: RHAT), a provider of open source solutions, today announced that the city of Vienna has selected Red Hat Enterprise Linux as the platform of choice for its servers. Austria’s capital is using the operating system for both mission-critical applications such as database servers and other systems including file servers.
ebizQ received the following details:
The decision to go with Red Hat as the platform of choice was made on the basis of extensive positive experiences in the past and a fundamental decision to deploy the most reliable and efficient technologies.
Linux has a strong reputation within Magisterial Department 14 of the city of Vienna. In many ways, its use of the open source operating system is exemplary of other public institutions and enterprises. From the early 1990s the city of Vienna has been running Linux servers. At the start, these were mainly systems with FreeBSD. However, as the city of Vienna looked to the future and the migration of mission-critical systems to Linux, it decided that required a reliable Linux platform, developed and supported by a professional vendor.
“Red Hat has always had a rigorous focus on the stability of its Linux platform, a commitment that has been apparent and appreciated by us ever since we began deploying Red Hat,” explains Franz Brauneder, server management at the City of Vienna. “In addition, Red Hat could always provide the largest partner network and the most certifications from ISVs and IHVs. Not only was this a key factor for our choice of an operating system, but it is reflected in our own experience of the outstanding quality of the Red Hat software. Since the start of our use of Red Hat, we have not once had a critical problem connected with the operating system.”
To date, the city of Vienna has migrated more than 100 servers to Red Hat Enterprise Linux, principally deploying Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES and AS on HP hardware. Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES is used by the city of Vienna to power its Samba file servers and Apache servers, together with legacy applications written by the city of Vienna itself. For applications such as its Oracle databases, which need both a lot of resources and highly availability, the IT managers of the city of Vienna selected Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS. In the future, the city of Vienna expects to expand this area of its Linux installation with the imminent deployment of PostgreSQL on Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS together with the migration of its AIX-Unix databases to Red Hat’s flagship solution.
To effectively manage its steadily growing Linux infrastructure, the city of Vienna uses the Red Hat Satellite Server with provisioning module. All Red Hat Enterprise Linux systems are being integrated into the management console of the Satellite Server and can be managed centrally. On-demand remote access is also easily possible. In addition, the provisioning module allows IT managers of the city of Vienna to set up new computers remotely over the network. For added security, Red Hat Satellite Server can also be run completely disconnected from the Internet and consequently provides an especially high degree of security from hacking attacks.
”The city of Vienna is a landmark cooperation for Red Hat,” commented Werner Knoblich, Vice President and General Manager, Red Hat EMEA. “The city of Vienna has made a fundamental decision for an expanded deployment of open source software in order to, among other things, avoid vendor-lock-in. Fully open source and with no hidden costs, Red Hat Enterprise Linux is not only the distribution with the fewest patches by far, but its maintenance by the community ensures Red Hat’s customers are guaranteed the highest product quality and vendor-independence.”
ebizQ received the following details:
The decision to go with Red Hat as the platform of choice was made on the basis of extensive positive experiences in the past and a fundamental decision to deploy the most reliable and efficient technologies.
Linux has a strong reputation within Magisterial Department 14 of the city of Vienna. In many ways, its use of the open source operating system is exemplary of other public institutions and enterprises. From the early 1990s the city of Vienna has been running Linux servers. At the start, these were mainly systems with FreeBSD. However, as the city of Vienna looked to the future and the migration of mission-critical systems to Linux, it decided that required a reliable Linux platform, developed and supported by a professional vendor.
“Red Hat has always had a rigorous focus on the stability of its Linux platform, a commitment that has been apparent and appreciated by us ever since we began deploying Red Hat,” explains Franz Brauneder, server management at the City of Vienna. “In addition, Red Hat could always provide the largest partner network and the most certifications from ISVs and IHVs. Not only was this a key factor for our choice of an operating system, but it is reflected in our own experience of the outstanding quality of the Red Hat software. Since the start of our use of Red Hat, we have not once had a critical problem connected with the operating system.”
To date, the city of Vienna has migrated more than 100 servers to Red Hat Enterprise Linux, principally deploying Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES and AS on HP hardware. Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES is used by the city of Vienna to power its Samba file servers and Apache servers, together with legacy applications written by the city of Vienna itself. For applications such as its Oracle databases, which need both a lot of resources and highly availability, the IT managers of the city of Vienna selected Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS. In the future, the city of Vienna expects to expand this area of its Linux installation with the imminent deployment of PostgreSQL on Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS together with the migration of its AIX-Unix databases to Red Hat’s flagship solution.
To effectively manage its steadily growing Linux infrastructure, the city of Vienna uses the Red Hat Satellite Server with provisioning module. All Red Hat Enterprise Linux systems are being integrated into the management console of the Satellite Server and can be managed centrally. On-demand remote access is also easily possible. In addition, the provisioning module allows IT managers of the city of Vienna to set up new computers remotely over the network. For added security, Red Hat Satellite Server can also be run completely disconnected from the Internet and consequently provides an especially high degree of security from hacking attacks.
”The city of Vienna is a landmark cooperation for Red Hat,” commented Werner Knoblich, Vice President and General Manager, Red Hat EMEA. “The city of Vienna has made a fundamental decision for an expanded deployment of open source software in order to, among other things, avoid vendor-lock-in. Fully open source and with no hidden costs, Red Hat Enterprise Linux is not only the distribution with the fewest patches by far, but its maintenance by the community ensures Red Hat’s customers are guaranteed the highest product quality and vendor-independence.”
LizardTech Introduces ArcMap Plug-in for Spatial Express
LizardTech, a division of Celartem, Inc., and a leading provider of software solutions for managing and distributing digital content, announced the release of the ArcMap Plug-in for Spatial Express, an add-on to ESRI’s ArcMap application. LizardTech’s Spatial Express enables storage of MrSID and JPEG 2000 images natively in Oracle® Spatial 10g, an option to Oracle Database Enterprise Edition.
Until now, LizardTech’s customers, who widely used ArcMap, were not able to add raster imagery stored with Spatial Express in an Oracle Spatial database to ArcMap projects because ArcMap did not support Oracle’s GeoRaster methodology. However, with the release of the ArcMap Plug-in for Spatial Express, customers can now use their non-GeoRaster applications with Spatial Express.
Since Spatial Express adds the capability to store MrSID and JPEG 2000 imagery natively in Oracle Spatial, customers can use the applications with which they are most familiar while saving 95 percent of the storage space required for their imagery on their database and preserving the ability to easily query by coordinates and other spatial criteria.
“LizardTech’s goal is to build tools that allow customers to use their applications of choice with Spatial Express,” said Jon Skiffington, LizardTech product manager. “Many of our customers use ArcMap, but were not able to use it with Spatial Express. Now our customers can easily work with imagery stored using Spatial Express in their ArcMap projects.”
Spatial Express customers can download the free ArcMap Plug-in for Spatial Express now from LizardTech’s new Spatial Express web page: http://www.lizardtech.com/products/spatial/ This page also provides access to the latest updates and other key product information.
LizardTech is exhibiting this week at the GEOINT 2006 Symposium in Orlando, FL. Stop by booth #941 where information will be available about LizardTech’s complete line of geospatial products.
About Spatial Express
LizardTech Spatial Express enables storage of MrSID® and JPEG 2000 images natively in Oracle Spatial. Spatial Express helps organizations maximize their investment in Oracle Spatial 10g by enabling dramatic reductions of up to 95 percent for raster image storage. Spatial Express also enables organizations to lower costs and keep all raster, vector, and business information in a common Oracle Database. Further, because LizardTech's Spatial Express uses Oracle GeoRaster interface, MrSID® and JPEG 2000 images can be viewed in any GeoRaster-enabled application, easing training, deployment, and support costs.
About LizardTech
LizardTech, a division of Celartem, Inc., was founded in 1992 to build valuable business solutions from technologies created by the world's leading research organizations including Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and AT&T Labs. LizardTech is a leader in applying state-of-the-art technologies to the real-world challenges of managing, distributing, and accessing large complex digital content such as aerial photographs, satellite imagery, and color scanned documents. LizardTech's software is installed on millions of desktops and integrated into a wide variety of platforms and applications. LizardTech has offices in Seattle, London and Tokyo. LizardTech is a division of Celartem, Inc., which is wholly owned by Celartem Technology Inc., (Hercules: 4330). For more information about LizardTech, visit www.lizardtech.com.
About Celartem
Celartem Technology Inc., develops and sells innovative technologies for
storage, access and distribution of rich media content. Celartem has developed
technology in the areas of digital image compression, scalable image viewing and secure
content distribution and management. Celartem is listed on the Osaka Securities
Exchange, Hercules:4330. Established in 1996, Celartem is headquartered in Tokyo,
Japan and has a wholly owned subsidiary, Celartem Inc. with headquarters in Seattle.
Until now, LizardTech’s customers, who widely used ArcMap, were not able to add raster imagery stored with Spatial Express in an Oracle Spatial database to ArcMap projects because ArcMap did not support Oracle’s GeoRaster methodology. However, with the release of the ArcMap Plug-in for Spatial Express, customers can now use their non-GeoRaster applications with Spatial Express.
Since Spatial Express adds the capability to store MrSID and JPEG 2000 imagery natively in Oracle Spatial, customers can use the applications with which they are most familiar while saving 95 percent of the storage space required for their imagery on their database and preserving the ability to easily query by coordinates and other spatial criteria.
“LizardTech’s goal is to build tools that allow customers to use their applications of choice with Spatial Express,” said Jon Skiffington, LizardTech product manager. “Many of our customers use ArcMap, but were not able to use it with Spatial Express. Now our customers can easily work with imagery stored using Spatial Express in their ArcMap projects.”
Spatial Express customers can download the free ArcMap Plug-in for Spatial Express now from LizardTech’s new Spatial Express web page: http://www.lizardtech.com/products/spatial/ This page also provides access to the latest updates and other key product information.
LizardTech is exhibiting this week at the GEOINT 2006 Symposium in Orlando, FL. Stop by booth #941 where information will be available about LizardTech’s complete line of geospatial products.
About Spatial Express
LizardTech Spatial Express enables storage of MrSID® and JPEG 2000 images natively in Oracle Spatial. Spatial Express helps organizations maximize their investment in Oracle Spatial 10g by enabling dramatic reductions of up to 95 percent for raster image storage. Spatial Express also enables organizations to lower costs and keep all raster, vector, and business information in a common Oracle Database. Further, because LizardTech's Spatial Express uses Oracle GeoRaster interface, MrSID® and JPEG 2000 images can be viewed in any GeoRaster-enabled application, easing training, deployment, and support costs.
About LizardTech
LizardTech, a division of Celartem, Inc., was founded in 1992 to build valuable business solutions from technologies created by the world's leading research organizations including Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and AT&T Labs. LizardTech is a leader in applying state-of-the-art technologies to the real-world challenges of managing, distributing, and accessing large complex digital content such as aerial photographs, satellite imagery, and color scanned documents. LizardTech's software is installed on millions of desktops and integrated into a wide variety of platforms and applications. LizardTech has offices in Seattle, London and Tokyo. LizardTech is a division of Celartem, Inc., which is wholly owned by Celartem Technology Inc., (Hercules: 4330). For more information about LizardTech, visit www.lizardtech.com.
About Celartem
Celartem Technology Inc., develops and sells innovative technologies for
storage, access and distribution of rich media content. Celartem has developed
technology in the areas of digital image compression, scalable image viewing and secure
content distribution and management. Celartem is listed on the Osaka Securities
Exchange, Hercules:4330. Established in 1996, Celartem is headquartered in Tokyo,
Japan and has a wholly owned subsidiary, Celartem Inc. with headquarters in Seattle.
DBI Delivers Brother-Eagle Monitoring Solution
Database-Brothers has announced the availability of Brother-Eagle, a powerful, yet light-weight enterprise database monitoring solution that can display performance metrics for several databases at a glance. Brother-Eagle monitors all of organization's Oracle and DB2 LUW databases and looks for performance problems or inefficiencies that need correction.
Performance is summarized in single, easy-to-read stock ticker-like graphical presentation that links directly to expert advice and performance tips to aid in rapid problem resolution. Monitoring solution also assigns health and performance efficiency scores to each database that can be viewed in scrolling display.
Brother-Eagle Standard is available now free of charge. Brother-Eagle Professional is available now through November 30 for just $89. Both the Brother-Eagle Standard Edition freeware and the Brother-Eagle Pro Edition can be downloaded.
Performance is summarized in single, easy-to-read stock ticker-like graphical presentation that links directly to expert advice and performance tips to aid in rapid problem resolution. Monitoring solution also assigns health and performance efficiency scores to each database that can be viewed in scrolling display.
Brother-Eagle Standard is available now free of charge. Brother-Eagle Professional is available now through November 30 for just $89. Both the Brother-Eagle Standard Edition freeware and the Brother-Eagle Pro Edition can be downloaded.
Oracle Announces WebCenter Suite
Oracle has announced Oracle WebCenter Suite, a component of Oracle Fusion Middleware. The Oracle WebCenter Suite will improve information worker productivity by delivering a unified, context-aware user experience that integrates a full set of enterprise services. The Oracle WebCenter Suite delivers unified environment that provides user access to business applications, structured and un-structured content, business intelligence, enterprise search, business processes, and communication and collaboration services.
Open, standards-based architecture supports integration of Web 2.0 services such as Mashups, Wikis, VOIP, RSS feeds, discussion forums, and online web content publishing into structured applications.
The Oracle WebCenter Suite will be licensed as an option on top of Oracle Application Server Enterprise Edition at a cost of $50,000 per CPU. The Oracle WebCenter Suite 10g R3, will deliver the Oracle WebCenter Framework, Oracle WebCenter Services and the Oracle WebCenter Studio and will include SIP-based instant messaging, online presence, threaded discussion and wiki services as well as Oracle Secure Enterprise Search and a limited use license of Oracle Content Database. It is scheduled to be generally available in calendar year 2006. The Oracle WebCenter Composer and Oracle WebCenter Spaces are scheduled to be available in future release.
Open, standards-based architecture supports integration of Web 2.0 services such as Mashups, Wikis, VOIP, RSS feeds, discussion forums, and online web content publishing into structured applications.
The Oracle WebCenter Suite will be licensed as an option on top of Oracle Application Server Enterprise Edition at a cost of $50,000 per CPU. The Oracle WebCenter Suite 10g R3, will deliver the Oracle WebCenter Framework, Oracle WebCenter Services and the Oracle WebCenter Studio and will include SIP-based instant messaging, online presence, threaded discussion and wiki services as well as Oracle Secure Enterprise Search and a limited use license of Oracle Content Database. It is scheduled to be generally available in calendar year 2006. The Oracle WebCenter Composer and Oracle WebCenter Spaces are scheduled to be available in future release.
Certicom Collaborates with Texas Instruments for RFID Authentication and Encryption
Certicom Corp. (TSX: CIC) today launched Certicom Security for RFID Product Authentication, a solution that ensures authenticity and prevents counterfeiting of high-value items as they move through the supply chain. In collaboration with Texas Instruments Incorporated (NYSE: TXN) (TI) Certicom is using its elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) expertise to add item-level RFID tag security that protects product information and proves the legitimacy of products, such as pharmaceuticals and other high-value consumer goods.
For products like these that require a high level of security, RFID solutions providers can use Certicom security and TI’s family of ISO 15693 RFID tags to deliver product protection with authentication and encryption.
Certicom and TI are currently engaged with companies in the pharmaceutical supply chain where valuable medicines are susceptible to counterfeiting, which can lead to significant asset losses and patient consumer safety issues. In tandem, they are addressing the high-value goods industry where protection of brand integrity is imperative to reducing product theft and diversion of goods for sale on the black market. Examples of these products range from brand-name apparel and cosmetics to professionally signed baseballs, poker chips, printer ink cartridges and legal documents.
Certicom uses standards-based and proven cryptographic protocols for its RFID appliance, including a standardized public-key cryptography scheme from IEEE 1363a. This efficient ECC-based digital signature scheme enables a high level of security to be added to the tag without requiring a lot of computing power and storage. For example, at 160 bits, ECC provides the same level of protection as a 1024-bit RSA key but is approximately one-third the size.
“By collaborating with Certicom, we demonstrate a highly efficient, standardized security solution that delivers privacy protection and authentication,” said Joseph Pearson, business development manager for TI RFID. “A standardized approach is imperative to provide a proven level of security, and to promote interoperability and compatibility going forward.”
Certicom Security for RFID Product Authentication works as a distributed system where there may not be dedicated Internet connectivity to a database, to provide real-time authentication of a tagged product. A simple application programming interface (API) enables developers to integrate the product’s components with RFID middleware and enterprise applications.
“The RFID industry is telling us that what is needed is a security infrastructure that provides the smallest possible standardized digital signatures, along with privacy protection features, with integrated key management to meet the needs of the supply chain constituency, especially the pharmaceutical manufacturers and retailers,” said Jim Alfred, director of product management for Certicom. “TI has been instrumental in providing their expertise and insight on the industry when it comes to what is required for RFID product authentication. This is what we are delivering.”
Certicom Security for RFID Product Authentication will be demonstrated at Texas Instruments’ Booth #3015 at the RFID Healthcare Industry Adoption Summit at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C., November 12-15, 2006. The Summit is sponsored by National Association of Chain Drug Stores and the Healthcare Distribution Management Association.
For more information on how TI and Certicom are collaborating on RFID product authentication and to view the demonstration of Certicom’s new security product in action, please visit www.ti.com/rfidvidcast. For more information on the product visit: www.certicom.com/rfid.
About Certicom
Certicom protects the value of your content, applications and devices with government-approved security. Adopted by the National Security Agency (NSA) for classified and sensitive but unclassified government communications, Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) provides the most security per bit of any known public-key scheme. As the undisputed leader in ECC, Certicom security offerings are currently licensed to more than 300 customers including General Dynamics, Motorola, Oracle, Research In Motion and Unisys. Founded in 1985, Certicom’s corporate offices are in Mississauga, ON, Canada with worldwide sales and marketing headquarters in Reston, VA and offices in the US, Canada and Europe. Visit www.certicom.com
About Texas Instruments
Texas Instruments is the world’s largest integrated manufacturer of radio frequency identification (RFID) transponders and reader systems. Capitalizing on its competencies in high-volume semiconductor manufacturing and microelectronics packaging, TI is a visionary leader and at the forefront of establishing new markets and international standards for RFID applications. For more information, contact TI-RFid™ Systems at 1-800-962-RFID (7343) (North America) or +1 214-567-7343 (International), or visit the Web site at www.ti-rfid.com.
Texas Instruments Incorporated provides innovative DSP and analog technologies to meet our customers’ real world signal processing requirements. In addition to Semiconductor, the company includes the Educational & Productivity Solutions business. TI is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and has manufacturing, design or sales operations in more than 25 countries.
Texas Instruments is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TXN. More information is located on the World Wide Web at http://www.ti.com.
For products like these that require a high level of security, RFID solutions providers can use Certicom security and TI’s family of ISO 15693 RFID tags to deliver product protection with authentication and encryption.
Certicom and TI are currently engaged with companies in the pharmaceutical supply chain where valuable medicines are susceptible to counterfeiting, which can lead to significant asset losses and patient consumer safety issues. In tandem, they are addressing the high-value goods industry where protection of brand integrity is imperative to reducing product theft and diversion of goods for sale on the black market. Examples of these products range from brand-name apparel and cosmetics to professionally signed baseballs, poker chips, printer ink cartridges and legal documents.
Certicom uses standards-based and proven cryptographic protocols for its RFID appliance, including a standardized public-key cryptography scheme from IEEE 1363a. This efficient ECC-based digital signature scheme enables a high level of security to be added to the tag without requiring a lot of computing power and storage. For example, at 160 bits, ECC provides the same level of protection as a 1024-bit RSA key but is approximately one-third the size.
“By collaborating with Certicom, we demonstrate a highly efficient, standardized security solution that delivers privacy protection and authentication,” said Joseph Pearson, business development manager for TI RFID. “A standardized approach is imperative to provide a proven level of security, and to promote interoperability and compatibility going forward.”
Certicom Security for RFID Product Authentication works as a distributed system where there may not be dedicated Internet connectivity to a database, to provide real-time authentication of a tagged product. A simple application programming interface (API) enables developers to integrate the product’s components with RFID middleware and enterprise applications.
“The RFID industry is telling us that what is needed is a security infrastructure that provides the smallest possible standardized digital signatures, along with privacy protection features, with integrated key management to meet the needs of the supply chain constituency, especially the pharmaceutical manufacturers and retailers,” said Jim Alfred, director of product management for Certicom. “TI has been instrumental in providing their expertise and insight on the industry when it comes to what is required for RFID product authentication. This is what we are delivering.”
Certicom Security for RFID Product Authentication will be demonstrated at Texas Instruments’ Booth #3015 at the RFID Healthcare Industry Adoption Summit at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, D.C., November 12-15, 2006. The Summit is sponsored by National Association of Chain Drug Stores and the Healthcare Distribution Management Association.
For more information on how TI and Certicom are collaborating on RFID product authentication and to view the demonstration of Certicom’s new security product in action, please visit www.ti.com/rfidvidcast. For more information on the product visit: www.certicom.com/rfid.
About Certicom
Certicom protects the value of your content, applications and devices with government-approved security. Adopted by the National Security Agency (NSA) for classified and sensitive but unclassified government communications, Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) provides the most security per bit of any known public-key scheme. As the undisputed leader in ECC, Certicom security offerings are currently licensed to more than 300 customers including General Dynamics, Motorola, Oracle, Research In Motion and Unisys. Founded in 1985, Certicom’s corporate offices are in Mississauga, ON, Canada with worldwide sales and marketing headquarters in Reston, VA and offices in the US, Canada and Europe. Visit www.certicom.com
About Texas Instruments
Texas Instruments is the world’s largest integrated manufacturer of radio frequency identification (RFID) transponders and reader systems. Capitalizing on its competencies in high-volume semiconductor manufacturing and microelectronics packaging, TI is a visionary leader and at the forefront of establishing new markets and international standards for RFID applications. For more information, contact TI-RFid™ Systems at 1-800-962-RFID (7343) (North America) or +1 214-567-7343 (International), or visit the Web site at www.ti-rfid.com.
Texas Instruments Incorporated provides innovative DSP and analog technologies to meet our customers’ real world signal processing requirements. In addition to Semiconductor, the company includes the Educational & Productivity Solutions business. TI is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and has manufacturing, design or sales operations in more than 25 countries.
Texas Instruments is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TXN. More information is located on the World Wide Web at http://www.ti.com.
db4o Version 6 Debuts to Dedicated Community of 15,000 Developers and Growing
World's Largest User Community of Object Database Technology Receives a Faster, Leaner db4o Persistence Solution Native to Java and .NET
db4objects (www.db4o.com), creator of the leading open source object database, today announced the release of db4o Version 6.0, which is up to 10x faster and 90% leaner (less memory consumption) than Version 5. Version 6 also supports a new server side cursor technology for deterministic response times when querying in C/S multi-user environments, which allows even more Java and .NET developers to now take advantage of db4o’s ultra-easy object storage capabilities.
db4o is fostered by the world’s largest community of object database users -- more than 15,000 registered developers and growing -- and is quickly approaching one million downloads. Based on this unprecedented support and their innumerable contributions, db4o has established a mainstream alternative for object persistence, versus traditional relational databases like Oracle or MySQL.
Development managers at leading companies like Boeing, Bosch, Intel, Siemens, Seagate and Ricoh are already using db4o to slash development costs and time and stay ahead of their competition -- in part because db4o's technology eliminates the tedious work required to solve the classic “impedance mismatch" problem. This occurs whenever Java or .NET application objects must be painstakingly converted for compatibility with a relational database management system (RDBMS).
Object-relational mappers such as RedHat's Hibernate and Oracle's Toplink provide decent “band aid” fixes to automate this additional work. But only db4o's native object persistence solution stores objects exactly as they are represented in the native application, eliminating the object-relational mismatch entirely. As a result, db4o helps cut development costs by up to 50%, and the resulting software assets are easier to maintain and reuse. Also, db4o runs up to 55x faster than Hibernate, as shown by two independent benchmarks (OO7 on www.odbms.org and Pole Position on www.polepos.org), making this advanced database technology feasible for use in a whole new class of applications.
Version 6, available as of today in beta version for immediate and free download from http://files.db4o.com/db4o_60/, features significant performance improvements, both for in-process, embedded mode as well as for client/server operation. db4o now not only appeals even more to its customary audience developing embedded applications with very limited resources -- such as smartphones, photocopiers, car electronics, and packaged software products -- but also powers real-time control systems and websites better than ever.
In comparison to Version 5, in-process transactions with db4o now run up to 10x faster (e.g., on Commits of added objects), while memory consumption is now constant at 3MB in all but one Pole Position benchmark test cases, reduced from up to 27MB in Version 5.
Version 6 also comes with updates of two powerful components: the db4o Replication System (dRS) v6.0, to ensure compatibility to backend relational databases like Oracle and MySQL, and the new ObjectManager v6.0, which helps developers browse and debug db4o databases in an object-oriented manner.
What Customers Are Doing
Ricoh Company, Ltd., Japan’s leading maker of digital office solutions with annual sales over $17BN, recently forged a partnership with db4objects to develop the company’s future product development platform using db4o. "db4o provides a persistence solution for our broad range of technical challenges and for our stringent quality standards. After a long period of evaluation, we found that db4o has the flexibility to fit our cutting-edge architectures, which aim to achieve better productivity in our object-oriented software development," said Tatsuo Ito, software team leader at Ricoh in Tokyo, Japan.
Intel Corp., the world's largest silicon company, partners with db4objects to integrate its IT solutions. "db4o will make application development much easier for our group. The OR mapper/SQL database alternative really did not allow us to do everything we needed and forced us to contort our application designs. By comparison, implementing with db4o was seamless and worked within our existing architecture," said Sean DeMartino, Intel software engineer and XP coach.
Collaborative Approach Makes the Difference
Object database technology dates back to the late 1980s, but only db4o has managed to gather an expansive and passionate open source developer community, driving development to deliver the product exactly the way users need it. The open source model also ensures sustainable low or no-cost offerings to db4o's customers.
Unlike closed source vendors, db4o plans its product roadmap collaboratively in public and maintains an agile approach based on broad and immediate user feedback. All the project management tools, core product design discussions, and even db4objects' skypecasted planning meetings are open to community members, who can check any development progress in publicly available, twice-hourly continuous builds. This scrutiny produces high-quality software with specific relevance to user needs, which is unmatched in the closed source software world.
Users contribute code, ideas, bug fixes, and documentation to the software production, significantly increasing the productivity per dollar invested in the db4o platform. Since the open source process is entirely Internet-based, db4objects is as global as only a handful of closed-source companies, spread out over virtually every country of the world and equally balanced over the major hotspots including the US, Japan, China, India, Europe, and Brazil. All this helps to keep costs in check to sustainably offer db4o at much lower prices than closed source competitors.
"It's of crucial importance for commercial open source vendors to focus on the issues important to their community,” explains Stephen O'Grady, senior analyst at RedMonk. “The db4objects community's priority, as it should be, has been on performance, and db4objects the company has accordingly invested heavily in speed with some compelling results."
db4objects licenses db4o technology under a dual distribution plan: Its GPL open software version is ideal for evaluation, non-profit, academic and certain cases of in-house use. And db4objects offers affordable commercial license terms and support packages for companies wishing to embed db4o into their commercial products for redistribution, requiring direct support with guaranteed response times and indemnification. With its global production system, db4objects today supports commercial customers in more than 30 countries at competitive prices.
“db4o brings the power of open source to the next level,” says Christof Wittig, CEO of db4objects. “Unlike Linux and MySQL, which have commoditized conventional software categories with low-cost products, the db4o community brings an innovative solution to market, where closed source attempts have failed consistently. Version 6 eliminates a number of performance constraints of earlier versions, and expands the reach of this innovation to an even larger audience of cutting-edge Java and .NET software developers.”
About db4objects, Inc
db4objects, Inc (www.db4o.com) provides db4o, the world's most popular object database, native to Java and .NET and available under open source and commercial licenses. With 15,000 registered community members and nearing one million downloads, db4o is used in a broad array of industries around the globe. Customers include the world's most innovative companies, including Boeing, Bosch, Intel, Ricoh, and Seagate. db4objects is based in San Mateo, California, and backed by noted Silicon Valley luminaries including Mark Leslie, founding CEO of Veritas; Jerry Fiddler, founding CEO of Wind River; and Vinod Khosla, founding CEO of Sun Microsystems.
db4objects (www.db4o.com), creator of the leading open source object database, today announced the release of db4o Version 6.0, which is up to 10x faster and 90% leaner (less memory consumption) than Version 5. Version 6 also supports a new server side cursor technology for deterministic response times when querying in C/S multi-user environments, which allows even more Java and .NET developers to now take advantage of db4o’s ultra-easy object storage capabilities.
db4o is fostered by the world’s largest community of object database users -- more than 15,000 registered developers and growing -- and is quickly approaching one million downloads. Based on this unprecedented support and their innumerable contributions, db4o has established a mainstream alternative for object persistence, versus traditional relational databases like Oracle or MySQL.
Development managers at leading companies like Boeing, Bosch, Intel, Siemens, Seagate and Ricoh are already using db4o to slash development costs and time and stay ahead of their competition -- in part because db4o's technology eliminates the tedious work required to solve the classic “impedance mismatch" problem. This occurs whenever Java or .NET application objects must be painstakingly converted for compatibility with a relational database management system (RDBMS).
Object-relational mappers such as RedHat's Hibernate and Oracle's Toplink provide decent “band aid” fixes to automate this additional work. But only db4o's native object persistence solution stores objects exactly as they are represented in the native application, eliminating the object-relational mismatch entirely. As a result, db4o helps cut development costs by up to 50%, and the resulting software assets are easier to maintain and reuse. Also, db4o runs up to 55x faster than Hibernate, as shown by two independent benchmarks (OO7 on www.odbms.org and Pole Position on www.polepos.org), making this advanced database technology feasible for use in a whole new class of applications.
Version 6, available as of today in beta version for immediate and free download from http://files.db4o.com/db4o_60/, features significant performance improvements, both for in-process, embedded mode as well as for client/server operation. db4o now not only appeals even more to its customary audience developing embedded applications with very limited resources -- such as smartphones, photocopiers, car electronics, and packaged software products -- but also powers real-time control systems and websites better than ever.
In comparison to Version 5, in-process transactions with db4o now run up to 10x faster (e.g., on Commits of added objects), while memory consumption is now constant at 3MB in all but one Pole Position benchmark test cases, reduced from up to 27MB in Version 5.
Version 6 also comes with updates of two powerful components: the db4o Replication System (dRS) v6.0, to ensure compatibility to backend relational databases like Oracle and MySQL, and the new ObjectManager v6.0, which helps developers browse and debug db4o databases in an object-oriented manner.
What Customers Are Doing
Ricoh Company, Ltd., Japan’s leading maker of digital office solutions with annual sales over $17BN, recently forged a partnership with db4objects to develop the company’s future product development platform using db4o. "db4o provides a persistence solution for our broad range of technical challenges and for our stringent quality standards. After a long period of evaluation, we found that db4o has the flexibility to fit our cutting-edge architectures, which aim to achieve better productivity in our object-oriented software development," said Tatsuo Ito, software team leader at Ricoh in Tokyo, Japan.
Intel Corp., the world's largest silicon company, partners with db4objects to integrate its IT solutions. "db4o will make application development much easier for our group. The OR mapper/SQL database alternative really did not allow us to do everything we needed and forced us to contort our application designs. By comparison, implementing with db4o was seamless and worked within our existing architecture," said Sean DeMartino, Intel software engineer and XP coach.
Collaborative Approach Makes the Difference
Object database technology dates back to the late 1980s, but only db4o has managed to gather an expansive and passionate open source developer community, driving development to deliver the product exactly the way users need it. The open source model also ensures sustainable low or no-cost offerings to db4o's customers.
Unlike closed source vendors, db4o plans its product roadmap collaboratively in public and maintains an agile approach based on broad and immediate user feedback. All the project management tools, core product design discussions, and even db4objects' skypecasted planning meetings are open to community members, who can check any development progress in publicly available, twice-hourly continuous builds. This scrutiny produces high-quality software with specific relevance to user needs, which is unmatched in the closed source software world.
Users contribute code, ideas, bug fixes, and documentation to the software production, significantly increasing the productivity per dollar invested in the db4o platform. Since the open source process is entirely Internet-based, db4objects is as global as only a handful of closed-source companies, spread out over virtually every country of the world and equally balanced over the major hotspots including the US, Japan, China, India, Europe, and Brazil. All this helps to keep costs in check to sustainably offer db4o at much lower prices than closed source competitors.
"It's of crucial importance for commercial open source vendors to focus on the issues important to their community,” explains Stephen O'Grady, senior analyst at RedMonk. “The db4objects community's priority, as it should be, has been on performance, and db4objects the company has accordingly invested heavily in speed with some compelling results."
db4objects licenses db4o technology under a dual distribution plan: Its GPL open software version is ideal for evaluation, non-profit, academic and certain cases of in-house use. And db4objects offers affordable commercial license terms and support packages for companies wishing to embed db4o into their commercial products for redistribution, requiring direct support with guaranteed response times and indemnification. With its global production system, db4objects today supports commercial customers in more than 30 countries at competitive prices.
“db4o brings the power of open source to the next level,” says Christof Wittig, CEO of db4objects. “Unlike Linux and MySQL, which have commoditized conventional software categories with low-cost products, the db4o community brings an innovative solution to market, where closed source attempts have failed consistently. Version 6 eliminates a number of performance constraints of earlier versions, and expands the reach of this innovation to an even larger audience of cutting-edge Java and .NET software developers.”
About db4objects, Inc
db4objects, Inc (www.db4o.com) provides db4o, the world's most popular object database, native to Java and .NET and available under open source and commercial licenses. With 15,000 registered community members and nearing one million downloads, db4o is used in a broad array of industries around the globe. Customers include the world's most innovative companies, including Boeing, Bosch, Intel, Ricoh, and Seagate. db4objects is based in San Mateo, California, and backed by noted Silicon Valley luminaries including Mark Leslie, founding CEO of Veritas; Jerry Fiddler, founding CEO of Wind River; and Vinod Khosla, founding CEO of Sun Microsystems.
Red Hat Enterprise Linux becomes platform of choice for servers in city of Vienna
Red Hat (NASDAQ: RHAT), the world's leading provider of open source solutions, today announced that the city of Vienna has selected Red Hat Enterprise Linux as the platform of choice for its servers. Austria’s capital is using the operating system for both mission-critical applications such as database servers and other systems including file servers. The decision to go with Red Hat as the platform of choice was made on the basis of extensive positive experiences in the past and a fundamental decision to deploy the most reliable and efficient technologies.
Linux has a strong reputation within Magisterial Department 14 of the city of Vienna. In many ways, its use of the open source operating system is exemplary of other public institutions and enterprises. From the early 1990s the city of Vienna has been running Linux servers. At the start, these were mainly systems with FreeBSD. However, as the city of Vienna looked to the future and the migration of mission-critical systems to Linux, it decided that required a reliable Linux platform, developed and supported by a professional vendor.
“Red Hat has always had a rigorous focus on the stability of its Linux platform, a commitment that has been apparent and appreciated by us ever since we began deploying Red Hat,” explains Franz Brauneder, server management at the City of Vienna. “In addition, Red Hat could always provide the largest partner network and the most certifications from ISVs and IHVs. Not only was this a key factor for our choice of an operating system, but it is reflected in our own experience of the outstanding quality of the Red Hat software. Since the start of our use of Red Hat, we have not once had a critical problem connected with the operating system.”
To date, the city of Vienna has migrated more than 100 servers to Red Hat Enterprise Linux, principally deploying Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES and AS on HP hardware. Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES is used by the city of Vienna to power its Samba file servers and Apache servers, together with legacy applications written by the city of Vienna itself. For applications such as its Oracle databases, which need both a lot of resources and highly availability, the IT managers of the city of Vienna selected Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS. In the future, the city of Vienna expects to expand this area of its Linux installation with the imminent deployment of PostgreSQL on Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS together with the migration of its AIX-Unix databases to Red Hat’s flagship solution.
To effectively manage its steadily growing Linux infrastructure, the city of Vienna uses the Red Hat Satellite Server with provisioning module. All Red Hat Enterprise Linux systems are being integrated into the management console of the Satellite Server and can be managed centrally. On-demand remote access is also easily possible. In addition, the provisioning module allows IT managers of the city of Vienna to set up new computers remotely over the network. For added security, Red Hat Satellite Server can also be run completely disconnected from the Internet and consequently provides an especially high degree of security from hacking attacks.
”The city of Vienna is a landmark cooperation for Red Hat,” commented Werner Knoblich, Vice President and General Manager, Red Hat EMEA. “The city of Vienna has made a fundamental decision for an expanded deployment of open source software in order to, among other things, avoid vendor-lock-in. Fully open source and with no hidden costs, Red Hat Enterprise Linux is not only the distribution with the fewest patches by far, but its maintenance by the community ensures Red Hat’s customers are guaranteed the highest product quality and vendor-independence.”
For more information on Red Hat Enterprise solutions, please visit: http://www.redhat.com/rhel
About Red Hat, Inc.
Red Hat, the world's leading open source solutions provider, is headquartered in Raleigh, NC with satellite offices spanning the globe. CIOs and other senior-level IT executives have ranked Red Hat as the industry's most valued vendor for two consecutive years in the CIO Insight Magazine Vendor Value study. Red Hat is leading Linux and open source solutions into the mainstream by making high-quality, low-cost technology accessible. Red Hat provides an operating system platform, Red Hat Enterprise Linux, along with applications, management, and middleware solutions, including JBoss Enterprise Middleware Suite. Red Hat is accelerating the shift to service-oriented architectures and enabling the next generation of web-enabled applications running on a low-cost, secure open source platform. Red Hat also offers support, training and consulting services to its customers worldwide and through top-tier partnerships. Red Hat's open source strategy offers customers a long term plan for building infrastructures that are based on and leverage open source technologies with a focus on security and ease of management. Learn more: http://www.redhat.com
Linux has a strong reputation within Magisterial Department 14 of the city of Vienna. In many ways, its use of the open source operating system is exemplary of other public institutions and enterprises. From the early 1990s the city of Vienna has been running Linux servers. At the start, these were mainly systems with FreeBSD. However, as the city of Vienna looked to the future and the migration of mission-critical systems to Linux, it decided that required a reliable Linux platform, developed and supported by a professional vendor.
“Red Hat has always had a rigorous focus on the stability of its Linux platform, a commitment that has been apparent and appreciated by us ever since we began deploying Red Hat,” explains Franz Brauneder, server management at the City of Vienna. “In addition, Red Hat could always provide the largest partner network and the most certifications from ISVs and IHVs. Not only was this a key factor for our choice of an operating system, but it is reflected in our own experience of the outstanding quality of the Red Hat software. Since the start of our use of Red Hat, we have not once had a critical problem connected with the operating system.”
To date, the city of Vienna has migrated more than 100 servers to Red Hat Enterprise Linux, principally deploying Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES and AS on HP hardware. Red Hat Enterprise Linux ES is used by the city of Vienna to power its Samba file servers and Apache servers, together with legacy applications written by the city of Vienna itself. For applications such as its Oracle databases, which need both a lot of resources and highly availability, the IT managers of the city of Vienna selected Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS. In the future, the city of Vienna expects to expand this area of its Linux installation with the imminent deployment of PostgreSQL on Red Hat Enterprise Linux AS together with the migration of its AIX-Unix databases to Red Hat’s flagship solution.
To effectively manage its steadily growing Linux infrastructure, the city of Vienna uses the Red Hat Satellite Server with provisioning module. All Red Hat Enterprise Linux systems are being integrated into the management console of the Satellite Server and can be managed centrally. On-demand remote access is also easily possible. In addition, the provisioning module allows IT managers of the city of Vienna to set up new computers remotely over the network. For added security, Red Hat Satellite Server can also be run completely disconnected from the Internet and consequently provides an especially high degree of security from hacking attacks.
”The city of Vienna is a landmark cooperation for Red Hat,” commented Werner Knoblich, Vice President and General Manager, Red Hat EMEA. “The city of Vienna has made a fundamental decision for an expanded deployment of open source software in order to, among other things, avoid vendor-lock-in. Fully open source and with no hidden costs, Red Hat Enterprise Linux is not only the distribution with the fewest patches by far, but its maintenance by the community ensures Red Hat’s customers are guaranteed the highest product quality and vendor-independence.”
For more information on Red Hat Enterprise solutions, please visit: http://www.redhat.com/rhel
About Red Hat, Inc.
Red Hat, the world's leading open source solutions provider, is headquartered in Raleigh, NC with satellite offices spanning the globe. CIOs and other senior-level IT executives have ranked Red Hat as the industry's most valued vendor for two consecutive years in the CIO Insight Magazine Vendor Value study. Red Hat is leading Linux and open source solutions into the mainstream by making high-quality, low-cost technology accessible. Red Hat provides an operating system platform, Red Hat Enterprise Linux, along with applications, management, and middleware solutions, including JBoss Enterprise Middleware Suite. Red Hat is accelerating the shift to service-oriented architectures and enabling the next generation of web-enabled applications running on a low-cost, secure open source platform. Red Hat also offers support, training and consulting services to its customers worldwide and through top-tier partnerships. Red Hat's open source strategy offers customers a long term plan for building infrastructures that are based on and leverage open source technologies with a focus on security and ease of management. Learn more: http://www.redhat.com
omcast Wins 2006 BE Award - Top Project in Geospatial: Communications Category
Comcast, the leading provider of cable, entertainment, and communications products and services in the United States, has won a 2006 BE Award for its Comcast Northern Division Upgrade Initiative in New England. The award category was “Geospatial: Communications.”
The BE Awards of Excellence, which are judged by an independent panel of industry experts and presented at an evening ceremony during the annual BE Conference (www.be.org), honor the extraordinary work of Bentley users improving the world’s infrastructure. These projects set benchmarks for their industries and showcase the imagination and technical mastery of the organizations that created them.
Comcast began its network initiative across New England in 1994, and all substantial upgrade activity was completed by 2003. As a result of this project, 27,535 miles were upgraded to a fiber-rich architecture – increasing bandwidths to 750 megahertz or higher.
The network upgrades were completed on time and on budget. When operating at full capacity, teams were designing and building more than 5000 miles of network per year. In addition to improving network reliability, the installation of a fiber-rich architecture enabled, in each newly upgraded area, the most advanced service offerings currently available.
MicroStation and Bentley Communications Solutions helped Comcast meet its aggressive project timelines by enabling the design team to quickly produce and disseminate information to construction crews and project coordinators. On average, the design team was able to produce 45,000 to 60,000 map prints per month.
Due to the database back end of the Bentley Communications Solutions, all mapped data was linked to Comcast’s Oracle database, providing nearly limitless reporting of location, quality control, address, billing system, and statistical data. As Robert Hegarty, GIS analyst, Comcast, pointed out, “The ability that Bentley software provides to easily document network assets linked to a back-end database has created a scale of efficiency previously unrealized, and the possibilities are only beginning to be tapped.”
Address management has played a major role in communicating engineering information to the billing system and other functional groups such as telephony provisioning and marketing. In addition, maintenance programs continue to benefit from the ability to locate infrastructure components and network assets using real-world coordinates. Moreover, purchasing efficiency and accuracy are improved by the ability to extract bill of material data for all construction work directly from Oracle, and often to match that data to a part number in the purchasing system.
For more information on Comcast’s winning project and all of the other 2006 BE Award projects, visit www.be.org/awards. For more information on the Bentley products used in this project, visit www.bentley.com/geospatial.
About Comcast
Headquartered in Philadelphia, Comcast Cable is a division of Comcast Corporation, the nation’s leading provider of cable, entertainment, and communications products and services. With 23.3 million cable customers, 10 million high-speed Internet customers, and 1.6 million voice customers, Comcast is principally involved in the development, management, and operation of broadband cable networks and in the delivery of programming content.
Comcast’s Northern Division serves 3.5 million customers in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, New York, Connecticut, Western Pennsylvania, Eastern Ohio, and West Virginia. The division is based in Manchester, New Hampshire, and employs more than 9000 professionals.
About the BE Conference
The BE Conference, which consistently scores a 99 percent attendee satisfaction rating, is a once-a-year learning opportunity for Bentley user organizations offering professional training, technology updates, keynotes, and best practice sharing. At these sessions, attendees better themselves, better their organizations, and better the ways they can improve the world’s infrastructure.
For more information on BE Conference 2007, taking place April 29-May 3 in Los Angeles, California, and BE Conference Europe, taking place June 10-14 in London, United Kingdom, go to www.be.org/beconference.
The BE Awards of Excellence, which are judged by an independent panel of industry experts and presented at an evening ceremony during the annual BE Conference (www.be.org), honor the extraordinary work of Bentley users improving the world’s infrastructure. These projects set benchmarks for their industries and showcase the imagination and technical mastery of the organizations that created them.
Comcast began its network initiative across New England in 1994, and all substantial upgrade activity was completed by 2003. As a result of this project, 27,535 miles were upgraded to a fiber-rich architecture – increasing bandwidths to 750 megahertz or higher.
The network upgrades were completed on time and on budget. When operating at full capacity, teams were designing and building more than 5000 miles of network per year. In addition to improving network reliability, the installation of a fiber-rich architecture enabled, in each newly upgraded area, the most advanced service offerings currently available.
MicroStation and Bentley Communications Solutions helped Comcast meet its aggressive project timelines by enabling the design team to quickly produce and disseminate information to construction crews and project coordinators. On average, the design team was able to produce 45,000 to 60,000 map prints per month.
Due to the database back end of the Bentley Communications Solutions, all mapped data was linked to Comcast’s Oracle database, providing nearly limitless reporting of location, quality control, address, billing system, and statistical data. As Robert Hegarty, GIS analyst, Comcast, pointed out, “The ability that Bentley software provides to easily document network assets linked to a back-end database has created a scale of efficiency previously unrealized, and the possibilities are only beginning to be tapped.”
Address management has played a major role in communicating engineering information to the billing system and other functional groups such as telephony provisioning and marketing. In addition, maintenance programs continue to benefit from the ability to locate infrastructure components and network assets using real-world coordinates. Moreover, purchasing efficiency and accuracy are improved by the ability to extract bill of material data for all construction work directly from Oracle, and often to match that data to a part number in the purchasing system.
For more information on Comcast’s winning project and all of the other 2006 BE Award projects, visit www.be.org/awards. For more information on the Bentley products used in this project, visit www.bentley.com/geospatial.
About Comcast
Headquartered in Philadelphia, Comcast Cable is a division of Comcast Corporation, the nation’s leading provider of cable, entertainment, and communications products and services. With 23.3 million cable customers, 10 million high-speed Internet customers, and 1.6 million voice customers, Comcast is principally involved in the development, management, and operation of broadband cable networks and in the delivery of programming content.
Comcast’s Northern Division serves 3.5 million customers in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, New York, Connecticut, Western Pennsylvania, Eastern Ohio, and West Virginia. The division is based in Manchester, New Hampshire, and employs more than 9000 professionals.
About the BE Conference
The BE Conference, which consistently scores a 99 percent attendee satisfaction rating, is a once-a-year learning opportunity for Bentley user organizations offering professional training, technology updates, keynotes, and best practice sharing. At these sessions, attendees better themselves, better their organizations, and better the ways they can improve the world’s infrastructure.
For more information on BE Conference 2007, taking place April 29-May 3 in Los Angeles, California, and BE Conference Europe, taking place June 10-14 in London, United Kingdom, go to www.be.org/beconference.
Oracle launches SMB Kit for Oracle Partners
Oracle, the world’s largest enterprise software company, today launched an innovative online resource designed to launch EMEA partners further into the lucrative small and medium business (SMB) market for Oracle technology products. Boasting cutting edge web design, the SMB Kit for Oracle Partners is available to members of the Oracle PartnerNetwork and is a one-stop shop for resellers who want a slice of the SMB pie.
The kit explains everything partners need to know about Oracle’s technology product offerings for SMBs, including Oracle® Database 10g Standard Edition, Oracle® Application Server 10g and Oracle® Application Express. Importantly, the kit also outlines in detail how to market to SMBs and provides links through the Oracle PartnerNetwork to support services, which provide consultation on how to develop a successful SMB strategy.
IDC estimates that small and medium businesses (1-499 employees) will account for around 53% of total IT spending in Western Europe during 2006 (1).
“This is an incredibly exciting market for our partners and this SMB Kit will help them get their foot further in the door with SMBs in their local market,” said Penny Philpot, Senior Director, Oracle EMEA Alliances and Channels. “This is an important initiative for the Oracle PartnerNetwork. Oracle is committed to helping partners achieve success and actively develops and delivers industry leading tools that help partners improve their businesses,”
“The SMB market is a huge opportunity and Oracle is constantly striving to find better ways to help our partners succeed. With this tool they will not be approaching SMB prospects cold, they will have access to Oracle’s vast global experience in selling world-class enterprise software to the world’s leading businesses.” she continued.
The SMB Kit for Oracle Partners is now available in English and will shortly be developed into other key European languages including French, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish and Turkish.
The kit explains everything partners need to know about Oracle’s technology product offerings for SMBs, including Oracle® Database 10g Standard Edition, Oracle® Application Server 10g and Oracle® Application Express. Importantly, the kit also outlines in detail how to market to SMBs and provides links through the Oracle PartnerNetwork to support services, which provide consultation on how to develop a successful SMB strategy.
IDC estimates that small and medium businesses (1-499 employees) will account for around 53% of total IT spending in Western Europe during 2006 (1).
“This is an incredibly exciting market for our partners and this SMB Kit will help them get their foot further in the door with SMBs in their local market,” said Penny Philpot, Senior Director, Oracle EMEA Alliances and Channels. “This is an important initiative for the Oracle PartnerNetwork. Oracle is committed to helping partners achieve success and actively develops and delivers industry leading tools that help partners improve their businesses,”
“The SMB market is a huge opportunity and Oracle is constantly striving to find better ways to help our partners succeed. With this tool they will not be approaching SMB prospects cold, they will have access to Oracle’s vast global experience in selling world-class enterprise software to the world’s leading businesses.” she continued.
The SMB Kit for Oracle Partners is now available in English and will shortly be developed into other key European languages including French, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish and Turkish.
DBI Declares War on Identity Theft With New Release of Brother-WatchDog Digital Surveillance Solution for Oracle and DB2
Database-Brothers, Inc. (DBI),
an industry leading provider of database performance and accountability
solutions for Oracle and DB2 LUW, today announced a new version of
Brother-WatchDog(TM), a breakthrough software solution designed to capture
and record database activities to create immutable audit trails and hold
privileged users accountable. Featuring robust data auditing capabilities
for both Oracle and DB2 LUW databases, Brother-WatchDog helps organizations
fight the risks of identity and information theft, enables PCI and HIPAA
compliance and improves SOX preventative and detective internal controls.
"Today's corporate data is literally naked and exposed to the
increasing risk of theft," said Scott Hayes, CEO and founder of DBI. "From
personal credit card data to private medical records, today's businesses
are an open buffet of information. And yet, even though their most valuable
data assets are exposed, businesses around the globe lack the data auditing
tools necessary to identify data breaches. This means that any privileged
user with data access rights can come right in and consume as much data as
they want without detection."
"Through detection of unusual behavior, database activity monitoring
can limit insider misuse of database systems, enforce separation of duties
for database administrators and limit certain external attacks - all
without affecting database performance, requiring structural database
changes or forcing application changes," said Rich Mogull, research vice
president, Gartner in the July 12, 2006 Gartner research note: "Top Five
Steps to Prevent Data Loss and Information Leaks."
"The risk of identity theft is further exacerbated by the increasing
use of business process outsourcing, and the out-sourcing of out-sourcing,"
said Marie Buretta, an IBM GOLD Consultant. "The result is that poorly
encrypted data is copied and sent, copied and sent, copied and sent - from
outsourcer to outsourcer. This means sensitive data, that can in many
situations be easily decoded, is now all over the globe. There is simply no
audit trail of who has the data, how many times it has been copied and
forwarded, and how to reel it in after the outsourcing effort is complete.
It is just a security disaster waiting to happen."
Digital Surveillance with Brother-WatchDog
DBI's new release of Brother-WatchDog is a powerful database activity
monitoring and auditing solution designed to track access and updates to
corporate database data according to configurable business process
guidelines. Like a video camera, Brother-WatchDog captures and records all
configured data activities to create immutable audit trails and hold
privileged users accountable. Brother-WatchDog tracks Web application end
user identities and locations, and correlates them to their database
statement activities. This gives companies the power to hold all privileged
users - including DBAs,
decision analysts, clients and application users - accountable for the
data they change or simply view.
Brother-WatchDog can answer:
* Who initiated data access or updates
* What data was accessed or updated
* Where the activity originated from (specifically, what IP Address)
* When the database activity occurred (date and time)
* How much data was impacted
* Whether the access or update succeeded or failed
* What was the cost of the activity
Using an unobtrusive Web Server "zap," the new version captures end
user identity and location "fingerprint" information and passes this
fingerprint into the audited database via the existing connection pool.
Here Brother- WatchDog correlates the fingerprint identity to its database
activities. This information is secured using tamper evident seals, or
digital signatures, to assure management and auditors that the audit data
accurately reflects genuine database activities.
With a portfolio of "out-of-the-box" built-in reports, Brother-WatchDog
provides immediate insight into suspicious and actionable database
activities. Flexible, easy-to-use customizable ad hoc reporting features
help customers to quickly find "needles in haystacks" or perform forensic
data research. Brother-WatchDog can span a heterogeneous database
enterprise to provide audit capabilities across an entire organization.
Promotion, Pricing and Availability
Over 71 percent of data breaches in 2006 have occurred in government,
higher education and healthcare organizations. To help fight the war on
identity theft and help eliminate data crimes and corruption worldwide, DBI
is offering free licenses of the newest Brother-WatchDog database auditing
software solution to organizations in these three industries. Free licenses
will be available, for up to 2 CPUs, for all orders placed by government,
higher education and healthcare organizations before December 31, 2006.
Brother-WatchDog for Oracle, with support for Oracle 9.2 and 10g, and
Brother-WatchDog for DB2 are both available now. Non-promotional pricing
starts at $10,785 per CPU. US patent pending. For more information, please
visit: http://www.database-brothers.com/war .
About Database-Brothers, Inc.
Database-Brothers, Inc. (DBI), headquartered in Austin, Texas, is an
industry leader in distributed DB2 LUW and Oracle database accountability
and performance best practices methodologies, services, and products that
enable companies to accelerate business accountability and performance with
clarity. For more information about DBI, visit
http://www.database-brothers.com or call (866) 773-8789.
Database-Brothers, Inc, DBI, the DBI logos, and all other DBI product
or service names are registered trademarks or trademarks of
Database-Brothers, Inc. All other trademarks or registered trademarks
belong to their respective companies.
an industry leading provider of database performance and accountability
solutions for Oracle and DB2 LUW, today announced a new version of
Brother-WatchDog(TM), a breakthrough software solution designed to capture
and record database activities to create immutable audit trails and hold
privileged users accountable. Featuring robust data auditing capabilities
for both Oracle and DB2 LUW databases, Brother-WatchDog helps organizations
fight the risks of identity and information theft, enables PCI and HIPAA
compliance and improves SOX preventative and detective internal controls.
"Today's corporate data is literally naked and exposed to the
increasing risk of theft," said Scott Hayes, CEO and founder of DBI. "From
personal credit card data to private medical records, today's businesses
are an open buffet of information. And yet, even though their most valuable
data assets are exposed, businesses around the globe lack the data auditing
tools necessary to identify data breaches. This means that any privileged
user with data access rights can come right in and consume as much data as
they want without detection."
"Through detection of unusual behavior, database activity monitoring
can limit insider misuse of database systems, enforce separation of duties
for database administrators and limit certain external attacks - all
without affecting database performance, requiring structural database
changes or forcing application changes," said Rich Mogull, research vice
president, Gartner in the July 12, 2006 Gartner research note: "Top Five
Steps to Prevent Data Loss and Information Leaks."
"The risk of identity theft is further exacerbated by the increasing
use of business process outsourcing, and the out-sourcing of out-sourcing,"
said Marie Buretta, an IBM GOLD Consultant. "The result is that poorly
encrypted data is copied and sent, copied and sent, copied and sent - from
outsourcer to outsourcer. This means sensitive data, that can in many
situations be easily decoded, is now all over the globe. There is simply no
audit trail of who has the data, how many times it has been copied and
forwarded, and how to reel it in after the outsourcing effort is complete.
It is just a security disaster waiting to happen."
Digital Surveillance with Brother-WatchDog
DBI's new release of Brother-WatchDog is a powerful database activity
monitoring and auditing solution designed to track access and updates to
corporate database data according to configurable business process
guidelines. Like a video camera, Brother-WatchDog captures and records all
configured data activities to create immutable audit trails and hold
privileged users accountable. Brother-WatchDog tracks Web application end
user identities and locations, and correlates them to their database
statement activities. This gives companies the power to hold all privileged
users - including DBAs,
decision analysts, clients and application users - accountable for the
data they change or simply view.
Brother-WatchDog can answer:
* Who initiated data access or updates
* What data was accessed or updated
* Where the activity originated from (specifically, what IP Address)
* When the database activity occurred (date and time)
* How much data was impacted
* Whether the access or update succeeded or failed
* What was the cost of the activity
Using an unobtrusive Web Server "zap," the new version captures end
user identity and location "fingerprint" information and passes this
fingerprint into the audited database via the existing connection pool.
Here Brother- WatchDog correlates the fingerprint identity to its database
activities. This information is secured using tamper evident seals, or
digital signatures, to assure management and auditors that the audit data
accurately reflects genuine database activities.
With a portfolio of "out-of-the-box" built-in reports, Brother-WatchDog
provides immediate insight into suspicious and actionable database
activities. Flexible, easy-to-use customizable ad hoc reporting features
help customers to quickly find "needles in haystacks" or perform forensic
data research. Brother-WatchDog can span a heterogeneous database
enterprise to provide audit capabilities across an entire organization.
Promotion, Pricing and Availability
Over 71 percent of data breaches in 2006 have occurred in government,
higher education and healthcare organizations. To help fight the war on
identity theft and help eliminate data crimes and corruption worldwide, DBI
is offering free licenses of the newest Brother-WatchDog database auditing
software solution to organizations in these three industries. Free licenses
will be available, for up to 2 CPUs, for all orders placed by government,
higher education and healthcare organizations before December 31, 2006.
Brother-WatchDog for Oracle, with support for Oracle 9.2 and 10g, and
Brother-WatchDog for DB2 are both available now. Non-promotional pricing
starts at $10,785 per CPU. US patent pending. For more information, please
visit: http://www.database-brothers.com/war .
About Database-Brothers, Inc.
Database-Brothers, Inc. (DBI), headquartered in Austin, Texas, is an
industry leader in distributed DB2 LUW and Oracle database accountability
and performance best practices methodologies, services, and products that
enable companies to accelerate business accountability and performance with
clarity. For more information about DBI, visit
http://www.database-brothers.com or call (866) 773-8789.
Database-Brothers, Inc, DBI, the DBI logos, and all other DBI product
or service names are registered trademarks or trademarks of
Database-Brothers, Inc. All other trademarks or registered trademarks
belong to their respective companies.
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Documents Tell Your Customers
What you think of them — which isn’t much, it seems. Chris Stone, CEO of StreamServe Inc., laments that IT managers are missing an opportunity to help their companies improve customer relations every time invoices, lease documents and other papers are printed.
“It’s amazing how much business relationship mail is junk mail,” Stone says. Take a peek at most bills from big corporations, and you’ll see that the paperwork is designed for the business and not its customers, he contends. “We’re just a number on an invoice,” Stone says. But he claims that his company’s Persuasion software lets you design readable customer documents and customize them for people other than your CFO. You can even add marketing materials such as info about new cars for customers whose auto leases are expiring. A version of Persuasion that supports Web services and has a revised user interface will ship next month, Stone says. It will also support applications built on top of SQL Server, DB2, SAP NetWeaver and IBM’s FileNet technology.
Live video is becoming a vital ...
... business service. So says Andy Howard, director of marketing at VBrick Systems Inc. He claims that companies are ratcheting up their use of video for applications such as monitoring offshore oil platforms or enabling CEOs to explain Page One scandals to their employees. To help, VBrick in the first quarter plans to ship a video encoder appliance with integrated management software from Media Publisher Inc. After it’s been installed centrally and at remote locations, the appliance can digitize, compress and decompress video feeds for WAN transmissions. Media Publisher CEO Rod Bacon says massive video broadcasts of events to PCs will be possible. “We all see that having large-scale events is the golden chalice,” he says. The goal is 100,000-plus seats. “That’s pretty challenging,” admits Howard — especially over a WAN.
The history of USB ports on your ...
... network can now be revealed. Later this week, SecureWave SA will release a security utility called Device Scanner to partners who sell its endpoint security tools.
“It’s amazing how much business relationship mail is junk mail,” Stone says. Take a peek at most bills from big corporations, and you’ll see that the paperwork is designed for the business and not its customers, he contends. “We’re just a number on an invoice,” Stone says. But he claims that his company’s Persuasion software lets you design readable customer documents and customize them for people other than your CFO. You can even add marketing materials such as info about new cars for customers whose auto leases are expiring. A version of Persuasion that supports Web services and has a revised user interface will ship next month, Stone says. It will also support applications built on top of SQL Server, DB2, SAP NetWeaver and IBM’s FileNet technology.
Live video is becoming a vital ...
... business service. So says Andy Howard, director of marketing at VBrick Systems Inc. He claims that companies are ratcheting up their use of video for applications such as monitoring offshore oil platforms or enabling CEOs to explain Page One scandals to their employees. To help, VBrick in the first quarter plans to ship a video encoder appliance with integrated management software from Media Publisher Inc. After it’s been installed centrally and at remote locations, the appliance can digitize, compress and decompress video feeds for WAN transmissions. Media Publisher CEO Rod Bacon says massive video broadcasts of events to PCs will be possible. “We all see that having large-scale events is the golden chalice,” he says. The goal is 100,000-plus seats. “That’s pretty challenging,” admits Howard — especially over a WAN.
The history of USB ports on your ...
... network can now be revealed. Later this week, SecureWave SA will release a security utility called Device Scanner to partners who sell its endpoint security tools.
Sybase to Promote its Solutions at Gitex 2006
The leading enterprise and mobility solutions provider also plans to expand its partnership network in addition to launching new products, meeting existing customers and identifying prospective customers at Gitex 2006.
Sybase Products Middle East, the leading provider of enterprise infrastructure, information management and mobile software, today announced that they are participating in Gitex Dubai 2006. Sybase plans use the mega technology event as a platform to promote its world class products with a special focus on its data warehousing and Internet Banking solutions. Sybase also plans to launch new technologies, meet existing customers, identify prospective customers and expand its partnership network at Gitex 2006.
Speaking on their Gitex participation, Hisham Malak, Channels and Marketing Manager at Sybase Products Middle East, said, "Gitex, being the largest technology exhibition in the Middle East, is the perfect event for us to announce and promote our new technologies and initiatives, meet our customers and key decision makers, as well as identify new prospective customers and partners. It is also opportunity to further solidify our presence and commitment to the Middle East market, share customer successes and meet customers from diverse market sectors all under one roof over a five-day period."
Sybase is the largest enterprise software company exclusively focused on managing and mobilizing information from the data center to the point of action. For over 20 years, Sybase continues to provide open, cross-platform solutions that securely deliver information anytime, anywhere, enabling customers to create the "Unwired Enterprise" and gain an information edge. Today, the world's most critical data in commerce, communications, finance, government and healthcare runs on Sybase. Sybase solutions can be found in 95 of the Fortune 100 companies, over 6000 financial institutions worldwide including 68 of the top 100 banks worldwide, 75 of the top 75 Securities Industry Association Firms and all 20 of the leading U.S. life insurance companies.
"The Middle East IT market is growing at a fast pace. Companies are now looking for the latest cutting-edge technologies and solutions to maintain and enhance their market competitiveness. They are also seeking for ways to extend the life of their existing systems and offer services that go beyond the traditional. With Sybase, customers can optimize and enhance the investments they already own, link together the valuable data resources already in place, and extend the reach of business-critical information to users who were unable to access it before (such as the users who are on the frontlines)-giving them financial agility and a productive edge across all areas of their business," Malak stated.
Sybase is also recognized as a market leader in the Mobile & Wireless area with leadership positions in Mobile Databases, Mobile Middleware, Mobile Device Management & Security - to name a few. Using Sybase mobile technologies, companies can overcome the wide disparity of technology standards, protocols and platforms that limit access to today's mobile devices. Users are empowered at the point of action and have vital information at their fingertips, increasing overall productivity and customer satisfaction.
"We will be showcasing our popular technologies at Gitex in addition to demonstrating our latest releases such as PowerBuilder and PowerDesigner, our market leading Mobility Offerings such as Push Email and Mobile Device Management as well as our Internet Banking Solutions, which have realized great success in a short period of time." Malak added.
Sybase will be exhibiting at Sheikh Rashid Hall, Stand: H9-1 at Gitex. Sybase will also be hosting its annual Gitex executive dinner on November 20th at Le Meridien Mena Al Sehayi to thank its customers and partners for their continuous support.
About Sybase:
Sybase is the largest enterprise software company exclusively focused on managing and mobilizing information from the data center to the point of action. Sybase provides open, cross-platform solutions that securely deliver information anytime, anywhere, enabling customers to create an information edge. The world's most critical data in commerce, communications, finance, government and healthcare runs on Sybase. With Sybase, customers can optimize and enhance the investments they already own, link together the valuable data resources already in place, and extend the reach of business-critical information to users on the front lines-giving them a financial, agility and productivity edge across all areas of their business.
Sybase is a trademark of Sybase, Inc. ® indicates registration in the United States of America.
Sybase Products Middle East, the leading provider of enterprise infrastructure, information management and mobile software, today announced that they are participating in Gitex Dubai 2006. Sybase plans use the mega technology event as a platform to promote its world class products with a special focus on its data warehousing and Internet Banking solutions. Sybase also plans to launch new technologies, meet existing customers, identify prospective customers and expand its partnership network at Gitex 2006.
Speaking on their Gitex participation, Hisham Malak, Channels and Marketing Manager at Sybase Products Middle East, said, "Gitex, being the largest technology exhibition in the Middle East, is the perfect event for us to announce and promote our new technologies and initiatives, meet our customers and key decision makers, as well as identify new prospective customers and partners. It is also opportunity to further solidify our presence and commitment to the Middle East market, share customer successes and meet customers from diverse market sectors all under one roof over a five-day period."
Sybase is the largest enterprise software company exclusively focused on managing and mobilizing information from the data center to the point of action. For over 20 years, Sybase continues to provide open, cross-platform solutions that securely deliver information anytime, anywhere, enabling customers to create the "Unwired Enterprise" and gain an information edge. Today, the world's most critical data in commerce, communications, finance, government and healthcare runs on Sybase. Sybase solutions can be found in 95 of the Fortune 100 companies, over 6000 financial institutions worldwide including 68 of the top 100 banks worldwide, 75 of the top 75 Securities Industry Association Firms and all 20 of the leading U.S. life insurance companies.
"The Middle East IT market is growing at a fast pace. Companies are now looking for the latest cutting-edge technologies and solutions to maintain and enhance their market competitiveness. They are also seeking for ways to extend the life of their existing systems and offer services that go beyond the traditional. With Sybase, customers can optimize and enhance the investments they already own, link together the valuable data resources already in place, and extend the reach of business-critical information to users who were unable to access it before (such as the users who are on the frontlines)-giving them financial agility and a productive edge across all areas of their business," Malak stated.
Sybase is also recognized as a market leader in the Mobile & Wireless area with leadership positions in Mobile Databases, Mobile Middleware, Mobile Device Management & Security - to name a few. Using Sybase mobile technologies, companies can overcome the wide disparity of technology standards, protocols and platforms that limit access to today's mobile devices. Users are empowered at the point of action and have vital information at their fingertips, increasing overall productivity and customer satisfaction.
"We will be showcasing our popular technologies at Gitex in addition to demonstrating our latest releases such as PowerBuilder and PowerDesigner, our market leading Mobility Offerings such as Push Email and Mobile Device Management as well as our Internet Banking Solutions, which have realized great success in a short period of time." Malak added.
Sybase will be exhibiting at Sheikh Rashid Hall, Stand: H9-1 at Gitex. Sybase will also be hosting its annual Gitex executive dinner on November 20th at Le Meridien Mena Al Sehayi to thank its customers and partners for their continuous support.
About Sybase:
Sybase is the largest enterprise software company exclusively focused on managing and mobilizing information from the data center to the point of action. Sybase provides open, cross-platform solutions that securely deliver information anytime, anywhere, enabling customers to create an information edge. The world's most critical data in commerce, communications, finance, government and healthcare runs on Sybase. With Sybase, customers can optimize and enhance the investments they already own, link together the valuable data resources already in place, and extend the reach of business-critical information to users on the front lines-giving them a financial, agility and productivity edge across all areas of their business.
Sybase is a trademark of Sybase, Inc. ® indicates registration in the United States of America.
Firebird 2.0 flies
Flaming chicken with open sauce to go.
THE OPEN SAUCErelational database Firebird 2.0 has been officially released at the fourth international Firebird Conference in Prague, Czech Republic.
It has taken a community of Firechicken fans more than two years, dozens of wet weekends and sleepless nights to get the new relational database working.
Firebird 2.0 has shedloads more functions and coding designed to make it work better and improve security. It has better support for international languages and some new SQL language features.
According to the Firebird website, here, the database is built on more robust code and which will make the creation of Firebird 3.0 easier.
This includes a reworking of indexing to increase performance and cut bottlenecks in searching and matching.
Several limitations inherited from the legacy code have been ditched, such as the 252-byte limit on index size and the 30Gb limit on table size. There is also 64-bit platform support with released binaries available for AMD64 and Intel EM64T on Linux. A 64-bit version is apparently on the way, with Windows 64-bit builds ready for testing. On the security side there is beefed-up password encryption and inbuilt protection for a brute-force attack.
There is also support for SQL200x derived tables, including multi-level nesting and joining of sub queries.
There were no reports of kids queuing for 11 days to snap up copies of the relational database.
THE OPEN SAUCErelational database Firebird 2.0 has been officially released at the fourth international Firebird Conference in Prague, Czech Republic.
It has taken a community of Firechicken fans more than two years, dozens of wet weekends and sleepless nights to get the new relational database working.
Firebird 2.0 has shedloads more functions and coding designed to make it work better and improve security. It has better support for international languages and some new SQL language features.
According to the Firebird website, here, the database is built on more robust code and which will make the creation of Firebird 3.0 easier.
This includes a reworking of indexing to increase performance and cut bottlenecks in searching and matching.
Several limitations inherited from the legacy code have been ditched, such as the 252-byte limit on index size and the 30Gb limit on table size. There is also 64-bit platform support with released binaries available for AMD64 and Intel EM64T on Linux. A 64-bit version is apparently on the way, with Windows 64-bit builds ready for testing. On the security side there is beefed-up password encryption and inbuilt protection for a brute-force attack.
There is also support for SQL200x derived tables, including multi-level nesting and joining of sub queries.
There were no reports of kids queuing for 11 days to snap up copies of the relational database.
Market Adoption of MS SQL Server 2005 on the Rise
Survey reveals widespread use of MS SQL Server for running business intelligence, reporting and data warehousing applications.
GoldenGate Software Inc., a leading provider of transactional data management solutions, recently announced the results of a September 2006 survey, “SQL Server and Microsoft Technologies Reach across the Enterprise,” produced by Unisphere Research in cooperation with GoldenGate Software and the Professional Association for SQL Server (PASS). The key findings, announced at the 2006 PASS Community Summit in Seattle, point to the growing adoption of MS SQL Server 2005, as well as increasing reliance on MS SQL Server for supporting mission-critical applications.
The survey was designed to assess enterprise adoption levels for SQL Server, examine the types of applications organizations run today, and understand the plans for new applications in the coming year. Overall, 95% of respondents either run SQL Server 2005 today or plan to adopt the database platform within 2 years, citing performance, enhanced reporting, and extended business intelligence capabilities as the top drivers. More than 7 out of 10 respondents (71%) said the number of applications running within their SQL Server environments will increase over the coming year. According to respondents, the predominant types of applications running within their SQL Server environments are reporting functions, business intelligence and data warehousing, with more than a third (34%) identifying business intelligence or analytics as their top project priority this year. In terms of maintaining continuous operations, at least half of all survey respondents need to take their environment offline for upgrades, migrations and other maintenance tasks and most of this planned downtime is for up to four hours per episode.
“With new confidence in the database platform’s ability to run mission-critical applications for business intelligence and enterprise analytics, the survey findings reflect the rapid adoption of SQL Server in existing heterogeneous environments – with 85% of respondents reporting wide use of commercial and open source databases running alongside SQL Server,” said Sami Akbay, vice president of marketing at GoldenGate Software. “Enterprise applications and data warehouses no longer run in isolation, and therefore organizations must be able to easily move their transactional data across systems and at the same time minimize the risk of any downtime or outage. We see an increasing need to integrate data transactions in real time from other environments to MS SQL Server in order to give the business access to the most up to date, accurate information.”
GoldenGate provides high availability and real-time data integration solutions with support for the widest range of databases including Microsoft SQL Server and SQL Server 2005, Oracle, Sybase, DB2 UDB, HP NonStop Enscribe and MySQL.
GoldenGate Software Inc., a leading provider of transactional data management solutions, recently announced the results of a September 2006 survey, “SQL Server and Microsoft Technologies Reach across the Enterprise,” produced by Unisphere Research in cooperation with GoldenGate Software and the Professional Association for SQL Server (PASS). The key findings, announced at the 2006 PASS Community Summit in Seattle, point to the growing adoption of MS SQL Server 2005, as well as increasing reliance on MS SQL Server for supporting mission-critical applications.
The survey was designed to assess enterprise adoption levels for SQL Server, examine the types of applications organizations run today, and understand the plans for new applications in the coming year. Overall, 95% of respondents either run SQL Server 2005 today or plan to adopt the database platform within 2 years, citing performance, enhanced reporting, and extended business intelligence capabilities as the top drivers. More than 7 out of 10 respondents (71%) said the number of applications running within their SQL Server environments will increase over the coming year. According to respondents, the predominant types of applications running within their SQL Server environments are reporting functions, business intelligence and data warehousing, with more than a third (34%) identifying business intelligence or analytics as their top project priority this year. In terms of maintaining continuous operations, at least half of all survey respondents need to take their environment offline for upgrades, migrations and other maintenance tasks and most of this planned downtime is for up to four hours per episode.
“With new confidence in the database platform’s ability to run mission-critical applications for business intelligence and enterprise analytics, the survey findings reflect the rapid adoption of SQL Server in existing heterogeneous environments – with 85% of respondents reporting wide use of commercial and open source databases running alongside SQL Server,” said Sami Akbay, vice president of marketing at GoldenGate Software. “Enterprise applications and data warehouses no longer run in isolation, and therefore organizations must be able to easily move their transactional data across systems and at the same time minimize the risk of any downtime or outage. We see an increasing need to integrate data transactions in real time from other environments to MS SQL Server in order to give the business access to the most up to date, accurate information.”
GoldenGate provides high availability and real-time data integration solutions with support for the widest range of databases including Microsoft SQL Server and SQL Server 2005, Oracle, Sybase, DB2 UDB, HP NonStop Enscribe and MySQL.
Monday, November 13, 2006
Clear indication that Linux has arrived
Oracle’s announcement of providing support on Red Hat Linux is a clear indication that Linux has arrived. Linux, which started out as a hobby among some engineers, is today enterprise-ready and important enough for Oracle to provide support.
Is the Oracle announcement new? Oracle has always provided Linux support through its ‘Unbreakable Linux’ program, and this recent announcement is a deeper extension of that program. And Oracle’s move is primarily targeted at its customers running on Red Hat Linux.
However, customers today are using Linux for more than just database workloads. Linux has also been popular for edge services such as Web server, proxy, firewall, file server, print server, application server and workgroup servers. The cost of maintaining all the disparate systems and operating systems would be enormous and a real challenge indeed. Customers need broader support for Linux. For Novell, Linux is not just a server; Linux is a platform that can and is being targeted for specific workloads across enterprises, including the desktop, point of service, real time environments, integrated stacks for workgroup environments (co-develop ed with IBM) and more. For support for these types of broad Linux environments, Novell continues to expand potential Linux workloads.
Ask yourself—what is Oracle’s core business? If Oracle has to decide between providing world-class support for their database, or support the OS on which their database runs, what are they likely to choose?
Novell’s Open Platform Solutions and specifically the SUSE Linux Enterprise products are engineered for clients seeking a ‘desktop to data center’ platform that works across mixed IT environments and is supported directly by the manufacturer on a global basis. We have a stringent process for both hardware and software certification that partners (which includes Oracle too) undergo to get their products certified on Linux. Most organisations won’t even consider a solution that is not completely certified. When Novell and its partners certify a solution, we commit and guarantee the solution
will work.
From a business perspective, it is costly for IT vendors to support multiple operating systems. The business sense becomes even less justifiable when they have to maintain the support right through the product life cycle. Oracle may be prepared to handle the challenges of supporting an operating system, but what about the other vendors and their applications?
On the other hand, Novell has already been providing a high level of support for Oracle DB on SUSE Linux Enterprise. For example, the documentation we provide on installation and configuration of Oracle DB on SUSE is way ahead of anything that Red Hat or Oracle, for that matter, has published. Novell also supports Oracle Clustering File System (OCFS) 2 out-of-the-box.
Also, readers should take note that Oracle’s announcement is limited to the x86 and x86-64 bit platform. SUSE Linux Enterprise 10 supports over 7 different platforms including x86, x86-64 bit, IA-64 (Itanium), Power PC, IBM iSeries, pSeries and the zSeries mainframes. It works right from the Desktop to the datacenter, to the supercomputer. The advantage is that the customer needs only one OS for all their different platforms. They need expertise only in one operating system.
Customers today are reducing the complexity by consolidating their servers, operating systems and expertise to increase reliability, manageability and support. We welcome the Linux endorsement from a major technology company, but we say, keep it simple!
Is the Oracle announcement new? Oracle has always provided Linux support through its ‘Unbreakable Linux’ program, and this recent announcement is a deeper extension of that program. And Oracle’s move is primarily targeted at its customers running on Red Hat Linux.
However, customers today are using Linux for more than just database workloads. Linux has also been popular for edge services such as Web server, proxy, firewall, file server, print server, application server and workgroup servers. The cost of maintaining all the disparate systems and operating systems would be enormous and a real challenge indeed. Customers need broader support for Linux. For Novell, Linux is not just a server; Linux is a platform that can and is being targeted for specific workloads across enterprises, including the desktop, point of service, real time environments, integrated stacks for workgroup environments (co-develop ed with IBM) and more. For support for these types of broad Linux environments, Novell continues to expand potential Linux workloads.
Ask yourself—what is Oracle’s core business? If Oracle has to decide between providing world-class support for their database, or support the OS on which their database runs, what are they likely to choose?
Novell’s Open Platform Solutions and specifically the SUSE Linux Enterprise products are engineered for clients seeking a ‘desktop to data center’ platform that works across mixed IT environments and is supported directly by the manufacturer on a global basis. We have a stringent process for both hardware and software certification that partners (which includes Oracle too) undergo to get their products certified on Linux. Most organisations won’t even consider a solution that is not completely certified. When Novell and its partners certify a solution, we commit and guarantee the solution
will work.
From a business perspective, it is costly for IT vendors to support multiple operating systems. The business sense becomes even less justifiable when they have to maintain the support right through the product life cycle. Oracle may be prepared to handle the challenges of supporting an operating system, but what about the other vendors and their applications?
On the other hand, Novell has already been providing a high level of support for Oracle DB on SUSE Linux Enterprise. For example, the documentation we provide on installation and configuration of Oracle DB on SUSE is way ahead of anything that Red Hat or Oracle, for that matter, has published. Novell also supports Oracle Clustering File System (OCFS) 2 out-of-the-box.
Also, readers should take note that Oracle’s announcement is limited to the x86 and x86-64 bit platform. SUSE Linux Enterprise 10 supports over 7 different platforms including x86, x86-64 bit, IA-64 (Itanium), Power PC, IBM iSeries, pSeries and the zSeries mainframes. It works right from the Desktop to the datacenter, to the supercomputer. The advantage is that the customer needs only one OS for all their different platforms. They need expertise only in one operating system.
Customers today are reducing the complexity by consolidating their servers, operating systems and expertise to increase reliability, manageability and support. We welcome the Linux endorsement from a major technology company, but we say, keep it simple!
SQL Server Users Slow on ‘Serious Uptake’ of New DB
Kevin Kline is president of the Professional Association for SQL Server (PASS), an independent group for users of Microsoft Corp.’s flagship data�base. PASS is holding its annual conference in Seattle this week, and about 2,500 people are expected to attend, according to Kline, who works as technical strategy manager for SQL Server products at Quest Software Inc. Kline spoke with Computerworld last week about issues such as how PASS members feel about SQL Server 2005 a year after its launch.
Microsoft won’t support versions of SQL Server prior to the 2005 release on Windows Vista. In fact, Vista users will need to upgrade to Service Pack 2 of SQL Server 2005. Are users feeling pressured to upgrade? I think it is an issue. I’m hearing some grumbling about it, and it might actually slow down the adoption of Vista itself. People are telling me they don’t want to give up their existing database just for a new operating system. There’s not enough in Vista to force them to do that.
From your conversations with PASS members, what percentage have upgraded to SQL Server 2005? There are many shops with one or two instances of SQL Server 2005 running. I don’t consider that a strong commitment. Most SQL Server DBAs support a dozen instances of the database or more. So in measuring serious uptake — that is, DBAs who have half or more of their boxes [running] SQL Server 2005 — I’d say it’s about 20% or so.
What features are users still looking for Microsoft to add? There is a widespread desire for better tools. SQL Server 2005 [includes] a whole new interface called SQL Server Management Studio. In some ways, it’s a step back. There are a lot of new and neat features, but you hear a lot of complaints about what it doesn’t do. For example, SQL Server made its name going back to Version 7.0 with its GUI and not forcing DBAs to learn all of this SQL code. With 2005, new features like database mirroring or partitioning have to be addressed in code.
Visual Studio has long had a feature called Intellisense, which is like an auto-complete feature in Word. SQL Server users have been begging for something similar for eons. It was in the betas for Management Studio at one point, but Microsoft pulled it out.
Compliance is another huge issue. In the old days, people needed to know who had changed data. Now, many shops need to know who has looked at data. That capability is hard to build in without building in a lot of overhead. But people are looking to Microsoft for an answer.
There is also pain around change management. That isn’t a big deal if you’re an Oracle DBA with just one or two servers, but if you’re a SQL Server DBA with 24 servers to patch, it can be a real pain in the rear. Right now, the answers mostly come from other Microsoft products, like Systems Management Server. But that doesn’t soothe a lot of DBAs, because they don’t necessarily want to hand this [issue] off to another team.
Microsoft is expected to release SP2 of SQL Server 2005 early next year. It ties in with collaboration features, especially in Office. What impact will there be on SQL Server DBAs? After a certain point, adding another spell checker or template doesn’t change Office much. But SQL Server’s tie-ins with SharePoint and Excel will help people make more sense of data and turn it into actionable information. Most DBAs are still assessing [SP2]. They don’t know what will work and how much is going to be involved for them.
Microsoft won’t support versions of SQL Server prior to the 2005 release on Windows Vista. In fact, Vista users will need to upgrade to Service Pack 2 of SQL Server 2005. Are users feeling pressured to upgrade? I think it is an issue. I’m hearing some grumbling about it, and it might actually slow down the adoption of Vista itself. People are telling me they don’t want to give up their existing database just for a new operating system. There’s not enough in Vista to force them to do that.
From your conversations with PASS members, what percentage have upgraded to SQL Server 2005? There are many shops with one or two instances of SQL Server 2005 running. I don’t consider that a strong commitment. Most SQL Server DBAs support a dozen instances of the database or more. So in measuring serious uptake — that is, DBAs who have half or more of their boxes [running] SQL Server 2005 — I’d say it’s about 20% or so.
What features are users still looking for Microsoft to add? There is a widespread desire for better tools. SQL Server 2005 [includes] a whole new interface called SQL Server Management Studio. In some ways, it’s a step back. There are a lot of new and neat features, but you hear a lot of complaints about what it doesn’t do. For example, SQL Server made its name going back to Version 7.0 with its GUI and not forcing DBAs to learn all of this SQL code. With 2005, new features like database mirroring or partitioning have to be addressed in code.
Visual Studio has long had a feature called Intellisense, which is like an auto-complete feature in Word. SQL Server users have been begging for something similar for eons. It was in the betas for Management Studio at one point, but Microsoft pulled it out.
Compliance is another huge issue. In the old days, people needed to know who had changed data. Now, many shops need to know who has looked at data. That capability is hard to build in without building in a lot of overhead. But people are looking to Microsoft for an answer.
There is also pain around change management. That isn’t a big deal if you’re an Oracle DBA with just one or two servers, but if you’re a SQL Server DBA with 24 servers to patch, it can be a real pain in the rear. Right now, the answers mostly come from other Microsoft products, like Systems Management Server. But that doesn’t soothe a lot of DBAs, because they don’t necessarily want to hand this [issue] off to another team.
Microsoft is expected to release SP2 of SQL Server 2005 early next year. It ties in with collaboration features, especially in Office. What impact will there be on SQL Server DBAs? After a certain point, adding another spell checker or template doesn’t change Office much. But SQL Server’s tie-ins with SharePoint and Excel will help people make more sense of data and turn it into actionable information. Most DBAs are still assessing [SP2]. They don’t know what will work and how much is going to be involved for them.
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