September 29, 1997

Aiming For Objects Small firm enters object-relational database race By John Foley nterSystems Corp., a private company that has been selling special-purpose database software for 18 years, hopes to reinvent itself as a general supplier of object-relational databases. The Cambridge, Mass., software developer will announce this week that it has begun shipping Cache, a relational database that manages ActiveX, C++, and Java objects. Cache also supports object-oriented characteristics such as persistence, inheritance, and polymorphism. The system has a multidimensional data model at its core, making it well-suited for complex transaction-processing applications, say company officials. "We've really tried to engineer it to be able to tackle tens of thousands of concurrent users," says Paul Grabscheid, VP of strategic planning. Features include a data cache for high performance in three-tier networks, Web tools, and a connectivity layer for Visual Basic programmers. The system runs on Windows NT, Windows 95, OpenVMS, and Unix, and costs from $125 to $1,000 per concurrent user. "Cache gives IS the opportunity to extend online transaction processing to a broader range of new applications," according to a report from the Aberdeen Group, a Boston research firm. The predecessor to Cache is a transaction-processing database called OpenM, which has gained a following among health-care companies. Partners Healthcare in Boston is a longtime OpenM user that is developing clinical applications on Cache for doctors in the organization's network of Boston-area hospitals. Steve Flammini, corporate director of applications development at Partners Healthcare, says Cache's multidimensiona l engine works well with applications that involve complex data relationships, such as lab results, surgery schedules, and patient records. "[Cache's] data model is highly adaptable," he says. Partners Healthcare already uses Cache to support a surgery-scheduling system for Massachusetts General Hospital. Next year, the organization plans to move a client-server network at Brigham & Women's Hospital to Cache. Eventually, says Flammini, as many as 50,000 PCs could be connected to Windows NT-based Cache servers. Back to News in Review Send Us Your Feedback Top of the Page

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