In-Depth

September Inside IBM

• 09/01/1998

IBM Software Press Release:

IBM Transaction Systems' MQSeries Workflow is a management system that automates business processes across heterogeneous systems. Part of IBM's MQSeries family of Business Integration software, MQSeries Workflow is the next version of IBM's FlowMark offering, renamed with this version.

MQSeries Workflow enhancements include full support for 32-bit Windows platforms, Windows NT, ActiveX Clients, Client Runtime Libraries and a richer set of development aids. Key features include:

• Workflow Servers: connect all clients, actually controlling the execution of processes throughout the organization.

• Buildtime for Windows NT and 95: allows network administrators to graphically depict the processes and their activities in a process model and define all other pieces of the workflow model via a graphical user interface.

• Administration Utility: feature allows administrators to start and stop server components, query their status, view various system properties, monitor a multitude of events, and view their associated messages.

• Standard Client: Available on Windows NT and Windows 95, the MQSeries Workflow standard client provides a graphical user interface (GUI) to manage processes and work items.

• Client for Lotus Notes: Available for Windows NT, Windows 95, and OS/2, MQSeries Workflow Client for Lotus Notes is an interface to Lotus Notes, which relies on the workflow client API.

• Audit Trail: Audit trail data is in the workflow database.

• Operates with Microsoft BackOffice Server: server runs as NT service, SMS installation support, transport independence, and NT Unified Logon support.

Advancing in this summer’s MIPS war, the S/390 G5 Parallel Enterprise Server 10-way Turbo model passed the 1,000 MIPS (1,040 MIPS) barrier making it the industry’s first available mainframe server to offer more than 1,000 MIPS performance in a single system.

At the same time, IBM announced it was expanding the high end of the S/390 G5 Server family with two additional models. The S/390 G5 is a general purpose, enterprise business computer that can support many thousands of users performing mixed workloads — a variety of tasks at the same time — from e-mail to e-commerce, to database searches and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) applications.

The S/390 G5 Server processor complex also sets high marks by delivering internal memory bandwidth that exceeds 15 GB per second and includes 8 MB of Level 2 cache memory packaged in chips containing an industry-leading 60 million transistors.

The Parallel Sysplex clustering can harness up to 32 S/390 systems to provide almost 30,000 MIPS while functioning as a single system. The S/390 G5 Servers was expected to ship in volume late this past August.

IBM is incorporating industry-leading marketing campaign management software from Boston-based Exchange Applications, into its end-to-end business intelligence solutions. With this move, IBM combines the data mining function, industry-specific data models, and hardware and database applications of its DecisionEdge solutions, with the ability to exploit that data in the development of timely and customized marketing programs that target the identified needs of individual consumers.

DecisionEdge enables marketing managers to analyze consumer behavior. Exchange Applications’ marketing automation and campaign management software, known as VALEX, enables IBM customers to develop advanced, closed-loop marketing programs based on knowledge gleaned from the analysis of consumer behavior. VALEX allows companies to create, execute and capture the response from marketing campaigns, while improving customer satisfaction.

The IBM/VALEX agreement builds on IBM’s February business intelligence announcement, during which, IBM unveiled an integrated portfolio of new, industry-specific data analysis and marketing applications; new data mining, data warehouse, and data mart software; new business intelligence-specific consulting and services; and advanced business intelligence analysis tools from IBM Research; a team of over 2,500 IBM business intelligence specialists and developers.

IBM’s VisualAge for Java Version 2.0 supports the development of Java applications that can scale from Windows NT to OS/390 enterprise application servers. The new version of VisualAge for Java leverages recently developed IBM Java technology, such as servlet development support for the IBM WebSphere application server environment. The new features of the tool increase performance, streamline program maintenance, improve project management through team programming, and make it easier to connect Java applications to enterprise systems.

Some of the new features include:

A High-Performance Compiler (HPC) that delivers enhanced Java performance by optimizing code to run on specific server platforms, including Windows NT, AIX, OS/2, OS/400 and OS/390.

New Enterprise Access Builders that provide persistence support, as well as connectivity to additional enterprise application servers.

Data Access JavaBeans that allow developers to easily create Java code, enabling easy Java application access to JDBC-enabled relational databases from a single Java application.

Integrated Java team programming support.

A new remote debugging tool that allows for the testing and debugging of multi-tier, multi-language applications spanning multiple server platforms.

A new Open Tool Integrator API for integrating third-party tools, such as those provided by the IBM Object Connection "Partners in Development."

Support for building Java applications for AS/400 and System/390.

Support for AIX as a development platform as well as existing support for Windows NT and OS/2.

Complete support for IBM's enterprise Java solutions.

A beta version of VisualAge for Java, Professional Edition, is available now as a Web download on VisualAge Developer Domain, IBM’s online resource for Java developers. The full product release for the Windows and OS/2 platforms will be available later in the third quarter of 1998. Support for the AIX and OS/390 platforms will be available in the fourth quarter.