Conference ulysse::rdb_vms_competition

485.0. "Oracle's RMS interface/Progress 4GL" by OBIWAN::HANSON (Imagine...) Thu Nov 09 1989 16:07

    
    
    
    
I just received the following blurbs, and thought that it would be of 
interest here.  The first is a new Oracle announcement, the second is
a piece on Progress 4GL to Rdb.  Looks like Oracle just never quits!
    
    Bob
    
    
    
    
BELMONT, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oracle Corp. 
(NASDAQ/NMS:ORCL), the world's largest supplier of database software 
and services, Monday announced SQL Connect to RMS, the latest member 
of the Oracle SQL Connect gateway product family. 

SQL Connect to RMS links the ORACLE relational database management 
system to RMS, the file system that is native to Digital Equipment 
Corp.'s VAX/VMS computers.  With SQL Connect to RMS, VAX users preserve 
their investment in RMS data, while stepping up to the functionality of 
the ORACLE RDBMS and its associated development tools and applications. 

SQL Connect to RMS makes it possible for users to query existing 
RMS data using standard SQL commands and gives RMS users complete 
control over the migration from RMS files to ORACLE. 

``SQL Connect to RMS liberates previously VAX-bound RMS data 
allowing it to be shared throughout heterogeneous computing 
environments,'' said Brian Owen, senior director of the Oracle DEC 
Products Division.  ``For the first time, any ORACLE application can 
join data from ORACLE with data stored in IBM's DB2 and VAX RMS 
files,'' added Owen.

SQL Connect is a major component of ORACLE's open, distributed 
database architecture in that it provides access from ORACLE 
applications running on more than 80 different platforms to data in 
non-ORACLE databases and files.  In addition to SQL Connect to RMS, the 
SQL Connect family includes gateways to IBM's DB2 and SQL/DS database 
management systems.

Production shipments of SQL Connect to RMS start in the first 
quarter of 1990.  Prices range from $2,300 on a MicroVAX II to $95,500 
on a VAX 6000 Model 460.



Progress 4GL to interface with DEC's RDB/VMS environments          
Business Wire, 07-NOV-89 - CIS�

ANAHEIM, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Progress Software Corp. Tuesday 
announced an interface gateway that allows users of its PROGRESS 
fourth-generation language (4GL) to build distributed applications 
using data stored in Digital Equipment Corp.'s Rdb/VMS relational 
database management system (RDBMS).

The announcement was made on the first day of the DEXPO West '89 
exhibition held here.

In addition to Rdb, the PROGRESS 4GL will run atop Oracle Corp.'s 
DBMS, and transparently read and write Digital's RMS files, as part of 
PROGRESS Version 6 to be released in the second quarter of next year. 
The PROGRESS 4GL will continue to be offered with its own RDBMS as 
well.

The PROGRESS 4GL, with ANSI-standard Structured Query Language 
(SQL), interfaces with Rdb through a database gateway using Digital's 
Rdb SQL.

With PROGRESS, users of DEC systems will be able to build and run 
distributed applications in VAXUltrix and RISC/Ultrix 
operating environments with complete support for standard networking 
protocols, such as DECnet and TCP/IP, regardless of the database used.

The PROGRESS Data Dictionary provides a convenient central 
repository to manage data stored not only in Rdb databases and RMS 
files, but also in all PROGRESS-supported distributed databases in the 
DEC environment.

As a result, with the same PROGRESS program, users can process 
data simultaneously and transparently from Rdb, RMS, Oracle and 
PROGRESS databases.  PROGRESS will also support DEC's Common Data 
Dictionary, CDD/Plus, and all native DEC editors, including EDT. 

PROGRESS uses a client-server architecutre that makes it feasible 
to run PROGRESS-based applications across DECnet networks and 
VAXclusters.  The PROGRESS client and server can connect to each other 
using DECnet or other communications protocols to provide the benefits 
of cooperative processing.

For example, support for DECnet DOS allows users to connect DOS 
machines using NetBIOS to a VAX/VMS server, off-loading the client 
processing and significantly improving system-wide performance.

According to Ken Morse, business development manager of Digital's 
Database Systems Group, ``We are pleased to add a quality 4GL like 
PROGRESS to the growing number of products available on Digital's 
strategic data management technologies, Rdb and CDD/Plus.  We are also 
pleased to welcome Progress Software to RSVP, our Rdb Solutions Vendor 
Program.''

RSVP is a Digital program that offers support to over 125 software 
vendors developing applications and tools on Rdb.

``There is no other 4GL that offers such a robust and complete 
distributed application development environment for Digital users,'' 
said Chad Carpenter, Progress Software's senior vice president of 
sales and services.  ``Our intent is for PROGRESS to provide DEC users 
with complete flexibility in their choice of operating environments, 
network protocols and databases supported.''

The PROGRESS Rdb Gateway will be offered as a front-end application 
development module at prices raning from $2,550 to $115,000, depending 
on the DEC host processor used, and will be available in the second 
quarter of 1990.

In addition to Digital environments, PROGRESS is portable across 
UNIX, XENIX, AIX, MS-DOS and CTOS/BTOS operating systems, and is 
available on hundreds of micro- and minicomputers and workstations.

Progress Software Corp. is a rapidly growing supplier of 
application development software whose revenues increased from 
$6.1 million in 1987 to $15.3 million in 1988.  The Bedford, 
Mass.-based company is projecting sales in excess of $24 million for 
1989.



Footnotes:
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    I didn't see the "write" capability to RMS ... do we dare to assume?
    
    Also, was there any indication of HOW the RMS file is described
    to Oracle ?  We know that O is not going to support CDD+. 

        

    
    Gerry, 
    
    Not too many vendors choose to allow their products to write to file
    systems on other platforms for a number of reasons, not the least of
    which is that it doesn't behoove the manufacturer to develop a path
    OFF of their systems. 
    
    And no, you're not missing anything from the article... There truly was
    no indication of HOW they'll pick up RMS descriptions.  They'll
    probably peek at Datatrieve domains, though, eh?  ;^)
    
    Bob

    Being familiar with the way that oracle did the network joins and
    stuff, but not knowing anything about this product, I can bet you the
    way they will do this is the way we wrote applications to do it.

    The RMS file must be defined in a special oracle table
    When a call is made to this RMS file a temp table is created
    The RMS file is read into the database indexes built
    The join is completed.
    The temp table is deleted

    I may be wrong, but I wouldn't expect anything a whole lot more
    elaborate.  Maybe the load would be specific and only select certain
    data. I would really be surprised if write capability was included.
    Wouldn't you have poor performance you ask? Of course, but oracle would
    just blame RMS for it.

    Sparky 

    Who_thinks_oracle_talks_big_for_someone_who_can't_even_keep_their_database
    from_being_corrupted.