Altova Announces Version 2008 Release 2
Altova, creator of XMLSpy, the industry-leading XML editor, and other popular XML, data management, UML, and Web services tools, has announced the availability of Version 2008 Release 2 of its line of software tools. The new release adds a host of new features and enhancements to Altova’s product line, including support for working with very large files in XMLSpy, extended Office Open XML (OOXML) functionality across multiple products, and support for creating Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN) diagrams in UModel. “Office 2007 documents are becoming more prevalent and OpenXML has been adopted as an ISO standard,” Alexander Falk, president and CEO for Altova, told 5 Minute Briefing in a private interview.
Altova has expanded support for OOXML to its MapForce data mapping, integration and conversion tool; StyleVision, its style sheet designer for converting XML and database content in HTML and other document forms; and DiffDog, which lets designers compare and merge text or source code files and synchronize directories, among other tools in its lineup. For example, MapForce v2008r2 supports the OOXML data format in Microsoft Excel 2007 and users can now map Excel 2007 data to and from XML, databases, text, EDI, and Web services, and then convert data instantly or autogenerate an application for recurrent transformations. “It expands the reach of MapForce as a data integration tool,” Falk said. Along the same lines, StyleVision can now publish XML and database data in Word 2007 documents.
The new release contains several other new features as well. XMLSpy v2008r2 contains a number of advanced optimizations for very large file support, resulting in a reduction of memory-consumption by up to 80 percent compared to the previous version when opening and validating XML documents in Text View. XMLSpy users can open and work with files that are about four-to-five times larger than those supported in the past. XMLSpy v2008r2 also provides multiple features for optimizing XSLT development, including new entry helper windows and support for Java, C#, JavaScript, and VBScript in the XSLT 1.0/2.0 and XQuery engines. This enhanced functionality equips XMLSpy and AltovaXML users with the first universal XSLT engines to support all of these programming dialects. XMLSpy’s support for seamless integration with and code generation for Visual Studio has been extended to include Visual Studio 2008.
UModel v2008r2 now supports the Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN), allowing users to create BPMN diagrams to illustrate a business process prior to development. UModel’s support for BPMN will aid users in developing, documenting, and implementing standards in large organizations or complex industries with many interacting business entities. UModel v2008r2 also includes updated code generation and reverse engineering support for Java 6.0, C# 3.0, and Visual Basic 9.0, including accurate parsing of new language constructs introduced in C# 3.0 and VB 9.0 that directly support XML. This added functionality makes UModel the first UML tool to support C# 3.0 and VB 9.0.
Altova typically has two major releases a year with new features integrated across the product line. “People are using the tools together,” Falk said. By upgrading the entire suite at once, the different tools can be more easily bundled together into workflows, he added. For a complete list of new features, go to the Altova Web site.
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Breaking News - Melissa Data Debuts Real-Time Web Service to Improve Address Data Quality
Melissa Data, a developer of high-performance mailing technology solutions, has released a new Web service called SmartMover, a real-time move-update solution that improves mail deliverability by updating mailing lists against USPS 48-month NCOA Link change-of-address data. “This is really a unique and new service whereby a customer would basically program in a call from their database to this Web service,” Greg Brown, director of marketing for Melissa Data, told 5 Minute Briefing. “There is really no software to install and maintain. The USPS provides us with updated information weekly.”
SmartMover can be accessed anytime - because it is always available via the Internet - making it suitable for just-in-time mailings or whenever a database needs to be updated with the most current mailing addresses, according to Melissa Data. The SmartMover Web can be built right into a customer's application so address updating is done when they want, with no delay.
“This is actually updating the information in the customer's database. There is no messy data merge. There is no importing or exporting and there is no delay. It is in real time,” Brown said. The solution is targeted at larger-volume customers “that really have a lot of records that they would need to update,” he added.
The reason it is important to have correct address information is two-fold, Brown explained. In an effort to reduce undeliverable mail, one of the postal service requirements for First Class mailing discount is that the mailing has to be NCOA Link-updated. This requirement will be extended to Standard Mail beginning in November, he said. The other issue, Brown said, is that if mail has to be forwarded, it can be delayed in getting to recipients, and if address changes have not been recorded at all and the mail cannot be delivered, postage, paper and printing has been wasted. “It is great if you can identify that before it is mailed out,” he said.
The SmartMover Web service can be added to existing customers’ Data Quality Web Service (DQWS) subscriptions or companies can choose an a la carte service with pay-as-you-go processing. Melissa Data is offering a free trial of the SmartMover real-time Web service. For more information, go here.
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EnterpriseDB Launches Blade Partner Program
EnterpriseDB, an enterprise open source database company, has launched the EnterpriseDB Blade Partner Program and announced the first 16 companies to join the program. “Blade” is the term given to a technology solution that is complementary to or integrated with EnterpriseDB’s Postgres Plus or Postgres Plus Advanced Server products. There is no fee for participating in the program.
EnterpriseDB’s recently released Postgres Plus is an open source distribution of the PostgreSQL database. Postgres Plus enhances PostgreSQL with performance improvements and ease-of-use capabilities for developers and DBAs, according to the company. The company also introduced Postgres Plus Advanced Server, a commercially licensed product that adds advanced capabilities to Postgres Plus, including Oracle compatibility.
The first 16 companies accepted into the Blade program include Alpha Software, Bungee Labs, Concursive, Continuent, Elastra, HyperBac Technologies, JackBe, JasperSoft, MuleSource, Nexaweb, Optwize, SnapLogic, Tableau Software, Talend, Truviso, and WaveMaker. Product downloads and company profiles for each of the Blade partners are available on the EnterpriseDB Web site.
Joint customers of EnterpriseDB and its Blade partners benefit in a number of ways, Bob Zurek, CTO of EnterpriseDB, told 5 Minute Briefing. First, they know the solution has been tested “to ensure that both solutions jointly interoperate,” he said. Additionally, customers receive “really good, rock solid support for their use of the solution. And then the other thing is we make it very easy to distribute the joint product solution to the customer, when they go to the Blade Partner Program site,” said Zurek.
Participation in the EnterpriseDB Blade Partner Program is limited to companies that meet three criteria. In addition to accreditation testing to ensure interoperability with the Postgres Plus products, clear and reciprocal customer support processes must be established between EnterpriseDB and the Blade partner. Finally, joint marketing strategies, including reciprocal, high-visibility Web site presence and executive interview podcasts, must be set. EnterpriseDB will also provide each Blade partner with leads to prospects expressing interest in the partner’s Blade.
EnterpriseDB in March announced it had closed a $10 million round of Series C venture capital financing. Investors included IBM. “People see us as a prominent open source database, one of the leaders in the industry,” said Zurek. “We expect hundreds of companies that need a supporting database for their solution would be excited about joining the program,” said Zurek. For more information, go here.
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Business Objects Roadmap Hot Topic at SAPPHIRE 2008 and ASUG Conference
SAP’s plans for Business Objects was a hot topic for at SAPPHIRE 2008, the annual trade show for the SAP ecosystem, which is held in conjunction with the annual conference of ASUG, the Americas SAP Users Group. ASUG is the world's largest customer-run community of SAP professionals. According to Rod Masney, chairperson of ASUG’s board of directors, user group members are interested in SAP’s roadmap for Business Objects as well as ways that the user group can have an influence on the roadmap and the role the user group will play in integrating BO and SAP technology. “This was a huge deal for SAP and is top of mind for the membership,” Masney told 5 Minute Briefing in a private interview. “It really extends the SAP offering.”
Other key topics at the conference, which is being held this week in Orlando, FL, included upgrades and the move to enterprise SOA. “We are also focused on benchmarking and best practices,” Masney said.
According to Masney, ASUG will be unveiling the results of a re-branding exercise the organization had undergone. The new tagline is “Real Experience, Real Advantages.” “We are sharing real-life experiences,” he said. “It is not theoretical. It is real people sharing real-life experiences and people can learn from their insights.” Approximately 15,000 SAP customers, partners and SAP employees are expected to attend SAPPHIRE 2008 and the ASUG conference. For more information about ASUG, go here.
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IBM Acquires InfoDyne
IBM has announced it has acquired InfoDyne, a leader in high-speed platforms and data feed connectors, based in Park Ridge, IL. According to IBM, InfoDyne complements its software products for the financial markets industry, such as WebSphere Front Office for Financial Markets, WebSphere MQ Low Latency, and WebSphere DataPower appliances. InfoDyne products will become part of the IBM Software Group WebSphere software brand.
InfoDyne provides software “that is designed to enable today's highly competitive trading firms and other venues to process exploding data volumes at micro-second response rates,” said Tom Rosamilia, general manager, WebSphere Software, IBM Software Group, during a conference call announcing the deal. “This is really a big play for us in the low latency space. We see lots of firms out there - lots of trading firms - needing to process loads of information,” he observed. InfoDyne’s market data delivery platform and rich feed handler portfolio take data from hundreds of sources and deliver it in a standardized format, helping customers to control escalating data feed costs.
The addition of InfoDyne’s capabilities is intended to strengthen IBM’s product portfolio in providing an exchange-neutral platform, with high-speed connectivity that gives firms faster access to market data, accelerates their ability to execute and complete trades, and enhances the flexibility required to comply with both current and future regulations. “Low latency environments are constantly tuned to ensure that the raw data and analytics required to supporting the trading desks are fast and reliable,” said Rosamilia. “We have seen an explosion of this type of data in the past few years, so we really believe that this platform will give us some advanced capability. In fact, we think that the combination of InfoDyne and IBM WebSphere is going to result in one of the most powerful software offerings for market traders in the financial services industry.”
“Our product today is a sixth-generation release,” observed Guy Tagliavia, InfoDyne's president and CEO. “It is very mature technology.” For more about InfoDyne, go here. For more about IBM's products for financial markets, go here.
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