The second batter up will be the new Tanner CPU design, which incorporates
all of Katmai's features but delivers them on a more robust Slot 2 connector.
Intel originally positioned this beefed-up 32-bit chip as a transition chip for
customers wanting to migrate to Merced. Intel intended for both Tanner and
Merced to be based on the forthcoming Slot M connector architecture. However,
Intel has since backed away from its earlier positions regarding Tanner and
Merced migration. It is now planning to release Tanner as a Slot 2 product.
On the server front, Intel still plans to release its much anticipated 450NX
chipset later this year. And rumors are circulating that Intel is planning a
bonus for enterprise customers: the ability to directly address up to 8GB of
system memory. Although only a stopgap measure until Merced's 64-bit addressing
scheme is available, this bonus will let customers create larger databases and
house more complex applications. Windows NT 5.0 will supposedly include support
for this new addressing scheme when it ships next year.
Can Intel afford to delay Merced? If you asked that question a year ago, the
answer was a resounding no. However, given the wholesale migration by
traditional UNIX vendors to the Merced platform, Intel is operating in a state
of grace with regard to next-generation CPU development. These same UNIX vendors
are Intel's biggest competitors in the enterprise CPU architecture space. Intel
has its rivals right where it wants them, and any delay in Merced's delivery
schedule will only serve to frustrate rivals' efforts to transition from their
proprietary RISC-based roots.
Plato Bundled with SQL Server 7.0
Throughout the early betas of SQL Server 7.0 and Plato (the code name for
Microsoft's online analytical processing--OLAP server), Microsoft hadn't decided
whether to package Plato separately or bundle it with SQL Server 7.0. Microsoft
has finally reached a decision: It will bundle Plato with SQL Server 7.0.
Most current OLAP solutions are expensive and complex, which hinder the
widespread adoption of OLAP and decision-support applications, especially in
small and midsize businesses. Bundling Plato changes this outlook dramatically.
OLAP will be available by default for all SQL Server installations, allowing
many businesses to use data-warehousing, data-mart, and decision-support tools.
As a result, many companies will need to get their database administrators
(DBAs) up to speed on OLAP technologies.
SQL Server's inclusion of Plato will heat up the OLAP marketplace. Although
SQL Server users will welcome the bundle, vendors of low-end OLAP products will
feel the squeeze of increased competition.
Microsoft is planning to release SQL Server 7.0 and Plato in October. You
can integrate Plato with Microsoft Office applications, such as Excel pivot
tables. The OLAP server includes the Object Linking and Embedding Database (OLE
DB) for OLAP provider and ActiveX Data Objects MultiDimensional (ADOMD) for
custom access. (For more information about Plato, see Karen Watterson, "A
New Kid on the OLAP Block," NT News Analysis, May 1998.)
—Michael Otey
The Great Informix Giveaway
Wanted: Windows NT database developers with a sense of adventure and
extra time on their hands. The reward: Receive $75,000 worth of database
software free.
No, this deal is not a trick or a misprint. Instead, it is an effort by
Informix to stimulate developer interest in its NT-based database products.
Informix's radical strategy of giving away valuable software mimics Microsoft's
successful developer programs. The idea is to get Informix software into
as many developer hands as possible and hope that at least some developers catch
the Informix fever.
Informix has been languishing on the outer fringe of the rapidly growing NT
database market, garnering only 2 percent to 3 percent of the overall market
share. Given that the market for NT databases grew by more than 91 percent in
1997 and is now estimated at $872 million, Informix would be a fool not to
pursue a larger piece of the pie.
Will Informix's radical plan serve it up a larger piece? The outcome
depends on the whims of the developer community. Informix has traditionally been
very strong in UNIX circles, but UNIX developers are abandoning UNIX for NT in
droves. If Informix effectively leverages its name brand with these familiar
customers, it might have a shot at increasing its market share. Still, Informix
needs to get the word out about all this free software. Might I suggest a
megaphone?
—Craig Barth
Microsoft Office 2000 to Get SQL Savvy
It's official: Microsoft is naming the next version of its market-leading
productivity suite Office 2000. Office 2000 is shaping up to be a database-savvy
release. Specifically, Microsoft is enhancing both Excel and Access to make them
better clients to the company's forthcoming SQL Server 7.0.
On the Excel front, Microsoft is adding native support for the Object
Linking and Embedding Database (OLE DB) for OLAP API, bolstering the package's
already impressive array of data access protocols. Excel 2000 users can tap into
SQL Server 7.0's online analytical processing (OLAP) server (code-named Plato)
and analyze multidimensional data using Excel's pivot table feature. (For more
information about Plato, see the story "Plato Bundled with SQL Server 7.0,"
page 40.)
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