Net gets a svelte object
Looking to cash in on the Internet development craze, Object Design launches a new slimmed-down version of its object database for Java and C++ Web applications.
ObjectStore PSE Pro is a small desktop version of the company's database server. Developers can distribute copies of the database with their Java and C++ Web applications to store objects locally for better performance, the company said.
The desktop database includes the same application programming interface as Object Design's ObjectStore database server, so applications can be written to a single API and deployed just as easily on either the desktop or the server. Also, the database saves developers from having to write their own code to handle object management.
Object Design, the largest and most successful of a handful of object database software vendors, is attempting to carve out a niche serving Web developers who need a database capable of handling object data formats used in Web applications. The company also competes with relational database makers which also sell databases that can store objects, but only after they have been modified to fit the row-and-column format of relational systems. Oracle and Informix Software sell databases capable of storing object data types, but are too large for efficient online deployment.
Object Design is also negotiating with development tool companies to bundle the ObjectStore PSE pro database with their tools, said Robert Goldman, president and CEO of the company, who declined to name potential partners.
ObjectStore PSE Pro for Java has a small footprint, 250K or less, and the C++ version can run in 300K or less, allowing either version to be deployed over the Internet along with applications. It also includes transaction management features for support of transaction-based applications, such as order entry systems.
ObjectStore PSE Pro for Java runs on Windows 95, Windows NT, and Solaris operating systems. The database works with Sun Microsystems' Java Development Kit, Symantec's just-in-time complier and Caf? tools, and Microsoft's Visual J++ development tool.
The C++ version runs on Windows 95 and NT and is compatible with ANSI C++ and Microsoft Foundation Classes.
Both versions are in beta testing and will be available for purchase from the company's Web site beginning on October 1, priced at $250 per development license. Freeware versions of the database can be downloaded from the company's Web site. The company does not charge runtime license fees, so the database can be deployed with applications at no charge.