System iNetwork

April 1, 2008

Vendors Take System i Reigns

So, in Chris Maxcer's recent article, Shearer Throws Down at the COMMON Opening Session, he notes that Shearer wants attendees to leave this year's conference full of renewed vigor and excitement. Well, although I wasn't terribly energized by the opening session, a few things that I heard in press conferences really did get me hopeful and excited for this year's new products.

First, I'll start off with the Big Bang: BCD's customized modernization suite, ClearPath. With it, users can choose from a variety of BCD products in order to choose the right services for their specific modernization plan.

Along the same lines, looksoftware's new SNAP solutions enable users to plug Outlook and Sharepoint (more front-ends to come) into back-end System i data for improved usability. It sounds good in writing, and it looks great in person --even a non-techie like myself could be whipping around those files with ease!

The next product to get me wide-eyed was also from BCD -- this was just a pre-release meeting, as the product won't be available until June, but the new product, Presto, promises to "instantly" web enable green screen apps to modern, browser-based applications without coding. Yeah, pretty thrilling.

And I can't wrap this up without mentioning Profound Logic's new iData database editing tool. iData is a browser-based solution with an interface similar to a desktop application. Users can add, change, delete, and display records in any database file. Customers can also search System i data, sort records, update multiple files at once, and create grids so users can enter information directly into the database. Users also can try out the Basic and Pro editions for 30 days when they try out the free tool.

So, there you have it folks -- with or without IBM, vendors are revamping this platform to fit our new, modern world. Hang on tight -- it's going to be a fast ride!

— Erin Bradford, associate editor

Posted by ebradford at April 1, 2008 9:59 AM