InformationWeek: The Business Value of Technology

SQL Anywhere 7.0 bundles the database and synchronization technology in one package for the first time. New features include 128-bit encryption, a native OLE DB driver, a stored procedure debugger, and support for the Psion Epoc and Wind River Systems VxWorks mobile operating systems. The software will be priced at $399 for one user and $999 for 10.

Stanley Associates Inc. uses SQL Anywhere as the foundation for equipment-inventory management applications it developed and manages for the U.S. Army. The mobile databases running on PCs at 21 military installations in 11 countries are used to track military equipment, weaponry, and spare parts at depots and on supply ships around the world. The databases are replicated four times every day to a central Sybase SQL Anywhere database at Stanley Associates' Alexandria, Va., headquarters.

Although SQL Anywhere is designed for mobile systems, Stanley Associates has based its distributed client-server applications on the Sybase software since 1995. That's because the mobile database software is easier to manage and maintain than an enterprise database system--an important factor given the limited staff resources at the remote locations, says Eric Murchie-Beyma, technical director for army systems at the company. The mobile database is also able to transfer data over the Internet.

Stanley Associates is testing release 7.0 and will upgrade to it soon. "There are a lot of features we're anxious to get into production," Murchie-Beyma says. For example, the OLE DB support will improve system performance: The software's ability to adjust data cache sizes automatically will eliminate one reason to send maintenance personnel to the remote locations, saving travel costs.

Photo by Roy Karten