Welcome to 5 Minute Briefing: Oracle an information resource prepared by Database Trends and Applications Magazine and published in cooperation with the Independent Oracle Users Group (IOUG). To subscribe, click here.

Oracle Unveils Data Integration Suite

Yesterday, Oracle announced the immediate availability of Oracle Data Integration Suite, which provides a comprehensive end-to-end data integration platform that connects heterogeneous data sources and applications and delivers clean, accurate, and timely data across the enterprise. Oracle Data Integration Suite is a component of Oracle Fusion Middleware.

Built on open standards, Oracle Data Integration Suite components enable a consistent and open framework for data integration across heterogeneous data sources and applications that include IBM DB2, MySQL, Microsoft SQL Server, Teradata, Oracle Database, and Oracle and other ERP Applications. “Oracle is committed to delivering an integrated and comprehensive data integration platform," said Amlan Debnath, vice president, Oracle Server Technologies. "This approach is critical for lowering total cost of ownership and reducing the need for support and maintenance for companies facing today's data integration challenges."

Oracle Data Integration Suite offers fully integrated, best-in-class capabilities that address the data integration needs of an organization by coupling new technologies for service-oriented architecture(SOA) with conventional data management components like extract, load, and transform (E-LT), data quality (DQ), data profiling (DP) and master data management (MDM). Oracle Data Integration Suite combines Oracle's core strengths in SOA-based Business Process Management (BPM) and change management with Oracle Hyperion's Master Data Management capabilities. By unifying BPM, MDM, DQ, and DP capabilities in its core E-LT foundation; Oracle can provide businesses with the most comprehensive and end-to-end data integration solution in an open and standards-based SOA framework.

Oracle Data Integration Suite incorporates in-memory data grid technology as an option and there are two new products, Oracle Data Profiling and Oracle Data Quality for Oracle Data Integrator, which are jointly developed with Harte-Hanks Trillium Software. The Trillium Software System is embedded into Oracle Data Integrator. Additional information on Oracle Data Integration Suite is available here.

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Applimation Acquires Gamma Enterprise Technologies

Applimation, the leading provider of enterprise data management solutions for Oracle, PeopleSoft and Siebel environments, announced it has acquired Gamma Enterprise Technologies, creator of InfoShuttle, application data management software for companies running SAP applications. According to the company, the acquisition makes Applimation the largest independent global enterprise application data management company offering the most comprehensive product portfolio.

“The deal is something that we wanted to do to fill out our vision to be the leader in the enterprise application data management,” Bob Markese, Applimation’s CEO, told 5 Minute Briefing. “We believe that this is an ideal time to extend our industry leadership position into SAP solutions. Gamma is the recognized leader in data provisioning and data security for companies running SAP, providing an excellent match for Applimation's best-of-breed solutions for Oracle applications."

Over the past several years, the enterprise data management space has seen independent application data management companies snapped up by larger software vendors with the IBM purchase of Princeton Softech and HP’s acquisition of OuterBay. "We can compete with the larger players. No other company offers the breadth of products and expertise across all major enterprise resource planning applications as does this combination of Applimation and Gamma," Markese said. "Our combined product suites complement each other and will enable us to develop new and enhanced products." At this point, he added, the two product lines will remain independent.

The Applimation Enterprise Data Management Suite enables organizations to manage the growth of structured and unstructured data to achieve information lifecycle management objectives, improve operational efficiency, reduce total cost of ownership and meet compliance requirements. For more information about Applimation, go here. For more information about Gamma, go here.

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Tideway Systems Announces Enhanced Tideway Knowledge Update

Tideway Systems has announced an enhanced Tideway Knowledge Update (TKU) service for Tideway Foundation 7.0, its application dependency mapping (ADM) solution. The community-directed offering catalogs software and hardware assets running in data centers and continually enhances Tideway’s Knowledge Network. The library will now be updated monthly to continuously increase the number of software products recognized across platforms.

Tideway Foundation 7.0, provides a “complete mapping of business applications to the underlying infrastructure, including all the hardware, middleware and switches,” Kosten Metreweli, vice president of business development at Tideway, told 5 Minute Briefing. TKU content comprises patterns that easily detect simple or complex software and business applications distributed across platforms. The service currently has over 3,000 patterns that identify software processes and sub-processes, providing an unmatched level of granularity to ensure maximum completeness. TKU covers multiple product types, including, end-user applications; middleware and databases, including the Oracle database and, infrastructure, cluster and availability software and virtualization platforms. Previously, it had been updated quarterly.

Using Tideway Foundation and the TKU, Metreweli noted, when Oracle issues its critical patch updates, DBAs can more easily identify which Oracle databases need the specific patch and which applications will be affected. “It saves time and effort and takes out risk,” Metreweli said.

Most major enterprises may have 100 or more packaged software applications, which are continuously being updated. With TKU, “we can recognize the latest stuff,” Metreweli said. For more information, go here.

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Oracle Releases Oracle’s JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Tools 8.97

Oracle has announced the general availability of Oracle's JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Tools 8.97, continuing the evolution of JD Edwards EnterpriseOne toward a service-oriented architecture. These latest tools provide streamlined system management, faster performance for client browsers and improved reporting based on XML standards. “We continue to invest in the product line. We continue to look for value that we can provide to our customers. We do this all under the banner of Oracle strategy that is called Applications Unlimited,” Lyle Ekdahl, vice president of product strategy for Oracle's JD Edwards EnterpriseOne, told 5 Minute Briefing.

Streamlined management is a key enhancement in the product, explained Ekdahl. “We really streamlined system management around a new product called Server Manager, which is a centralized Web console that we use to monitor and manage all the JD Edwards Enterprise server components. As you get into a distributed system you can have many server components and certainly JD Edwards is no exception to that rule. But now we have one centralized place for you to manage - meaning, deploy new servers, set them up, patch them, monitor them.”

JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Tools 8.97 also includes increased support for SOA. “JD Edwards has been involved in supporting Web services and SOA for the last couple of years, but we have done that through a legacy set of third-party technologies that were set to the side, but then integrated to Edwards,” said Ekdahl. “Now, what we have done is taken standard Oracle components and embedded them into our architecture.” Now, JD Edwards natively supports business services in an SOA environment. “You have the ability to create, publish and consume Web services using your JD Edwards tools environment, which would include lifecycle management and things of that nature. It is all in one interface now and they don't need to go to a set of third-party tools to manage those integrations.”

To give users performance and usability improvements, JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Tools 8.97 provides simplified menu navigation, use of browser tabs, easier import/export of data on JDE EnterpriseOne application forms and delivers support for the Firefox browser. Additionally, deepening the embedded use of Oracle Business Intelligence Publisher, JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Tools 8.97 users can launch a complete run-publish-distribute cycle from a single user interaction, output multiple objects such as invoices from a single batch of data and gain the ability to produce reports in multiple formats, including Adobe PDF, HTML, RTF, Microsoft Excel and Microsoft PowerPoint, XML and eText. For more information, go here.

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Infogain Expands in Oracle ERP Services Market

Infogain Corp., a provider in CRM, ERP, integration and business intelligence solutions and services, has completed its acquisition of Spider Systems, Pune, India. According to Infogain, the acquisition establishes it as a strong player in the ERP market space with the ability to deliver Oracle ERP services in response to current customer requests and market potential. With the acquisition, stated the company, Infogain is one of the only mid-size firms that provides services for Oracle Applications, Peoplesoft, Seibel, Oracle Fusion, as well as Oracle Retail. “We are going to be able to cover the complete Oracle platform from the technical to the application suite and there are very few companies in the marketplace that can do all of that that are our size,” Glenn Gramling, senior vice president for sales and marketing, Infogain, told 5 Minute Briefing. Infogain has “over 120 consultants doing a tremendous amount of BEA work,” he added.

The acquisition of Spider is part of Infogain's strategy to become a leading business process solution provider for mid-market companies, which it describes as a next step in the evolution of the company's ERP and integration services. This strategy is expected to result in greater opportunities for Infogain to deliver complete solutions in the Oracle ERP space to its clients, including full lifecycle implementations, migrations to Oracle Apps 11i, development and customization of reports and interfaces, pre- and post-implementation audits, and post-implementation support both onsite and offshore. With the acquisition of Spider, Infogain will offer an Oracle DBA "Think Tank," a specialized team supporting the company's 75-plus Oracle DBAs as they solve complex database and design issues.

The Pune team will operate as a division of Infogain. The 20,000 square-foot center in Pune will offer Infogain access to the current team of 150 and a new talent pool. The Spider business will function as an Infogain company and will eventually be fully integrated into Infogain's operations, with the former Spider headquarters functioning as an ERP center of excellence. More information on Infogain is available here.

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Enterprise Search Market Heats Up

We all know that we have a lot of data and information. The problem is finding it in timely fashion. And that is why Microsoft recently snapped up Norway's Fast Search & Transfer for $1.2 billion (mere chump change, of course, compared to its bid for Yahoo, but it still got some attention). But that is only the tip of the iceberg.

According to a research report released by Gartner yesterday, total software revenue worldwide from enterprise search will reach $989.7 million this year, up 15 percent from 2007. By 2010, Gartner forecasts the market will grow to $1.2 billion. The rate of growth will slow to low double digits over the next few years, Gartner said. Unisphere Research, our research arm, conducts proprietary research with leading IT user groups. To read abstracts of these studies, go here. Are you interested in having proprietary research conducted for your company about issues of concern to you? For more information, send an email to Tom@dbta.com.

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The Focus on Data Quality

With yesterday’s Super Tuesday elections, the nation’s attention turned to data quality. Would all the votes be counted and counted accurately? Sadly, since the year 2000, that has not always been the case. Indeed, voting problems have put a focus on the potential shortcomings of the electronic collection and analysis of data. With electronic votes miscounted and lost, many experts have urged the continuation of the use of paper records as well. Our problems with voting have been a humbling experience and the lessons we have learned and are learning about data quality can be broadly applied. To follow trends in the industry, keep reading 5 Minute Briefing and subscribe to Database Trends and Applications magazine e-edition here.

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Complete Oracle Training at COLLABORATE 08 – IOUG Forum

Looking to enhance your Oracle knowledge? COLLABORATE 08 – IOUG Forum is the place for complete Oracle training, providing you with:

• More than 425 sessions in six user-driven tracks, including architecture, business intelligence/warehousing, database, development, Fusion Middleware and professional development
  
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• Admittance to 600 other educational sessions presented by the Oracle Applications Users Group (OAUG) and Quest International Users Group (Quest), co-hosts of COLLABORATE 08

View the session schedule for details on session offerings, and then register through the IOUG by March 13 to save up to $400 and receive exclusive access as an Oracle technology professional! Choose priority code EM10 when registering.

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Two Top-notch Oracle Education Events at the Colorado Convention Center

RMOUG Training Days is just around the corner, taking place February 13-14 at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver, CO. RMOUG Training Days registrants can now attend another event at this venue, COLLABORATE 08 – IOUG Forum, taking place April 13-17, and save on registration.

Register for RMOUG Training Days and save on either of these IOUG Forum opportunities:

• Attend IOUG Sunday University Seminars for only $400 USD*, almost a $60 discount.
  
• Attend the entire COLLABORATE 08 conference for only $1,095 USD*, with up to $1,000 in savings
  

To take advantage of either of these discounts, you must first be registered for RMOUG Training Days . Upon registration completion, you will receive an e-mail confirmation with a promotional code to secure your COLLABORATE 08 – IOUG Forum registration discount. Simply enter the code when registering for COLLABORATE 08 – IOUG Forum and save!

*Registration rates apply to all registration periods with the exception of onsite.

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Secure Your Housing for COLLABORATE 08 – IOUG Forum Register today for COLLABORATE 08 - IOUG Forum, April 13-17 in Denver, CO to take advantage of the IOUG’s discounted hotel rates. Housing information is only available after you secure your registration through the IOUG. Instructions will be provided during the online registration process, as well as in your registration confirmation e-mail. Hotel rooms are filling up fast, so register today !

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Complete the IOUG's InstaPoll Question on Oracle Acquired Products

Oracle has made several strategic acquisitions over the past year. Which acquired products do you currently use?

Visit the IOUG Web site and answer this question. You may also view the Poll Archive to find out what others had to say about
various Oracle technologies.

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Join the IOUG to Take Advantage of Exclusive Member Benefits

Take advantage of exclusive IOUG member benefits, including the opportunity to save up to $400 USD on COLLABORATE 08 – IOUG Forum, taking place April 13-17 in Denver, CO, by joining the IOUG today. IOUG members have exclusive access to:

• SELECT Journal, the IOUG's quarterly technical publication that was rated a top member benefit in the IOUG 2007 membership survey.
  
• Library of Oracle Knowledge (LoOK), an online repository filled with thousands of technical tips, articles and papers.
  
• Discounted registration to COLLABORATE 08, a premier customer-driven event presented jointly by the IOUG, Oracle Applications Users Group (OAUG) and Quest International Users Group (Quest), offering attendees numerous educational sessions, networking opportunities and vendor interaction.
• And much more!

Join the IOUG today!

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Founded in 1993, the Independent Oracle Users Group (IOUG) (formerly International Oracle Users Group) is a user-driven membership organization for Oracle technology and database professionals serving more than 15,000 database administrators, developers, architects, technical managers and other Oracle professionals throughout North America and worldwide. The IOUG empowers its members and the broader Oracle community through their technical publication, SELECT Journal, Web site resources including more than 3000 papers, tips and articles and networking with other users through online discussion forums, Special Interest Groups and a network of regional Oracle user groups. For more information about the IOUG, please visit the IOUG Web site.

Database Trends and Applications, published by Unisphere Media, provides timely coverage of the technology and intelligence needed to conceptualize, plan, initiate, implement and manage large-scale integrated information projects. Unisphere Media also publishes 5 Minute Briefing: Data Integration, a summary of news, trends, and insights addressing crucial data integration challenges and 5 Minute Briefing: MultiValue, a review of news, technical tips and insights for the MultiValue database community. Visit our Web site here.

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