Oracle takes grid mobile |
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By Robert Westervelt, News Writer
10 Jan 2005 | SearchOracle.com |
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Oracle Corp. today rolled out the second release to its 10g Lite Database, which will extend grid computing to mobile workers.
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We believe that mobile technologies are not something enterprises should buy from a third party.
Jacob Christfort,
chief technology officer, Oracle mobile, wireless and voice
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Oracle Database Lite only works in Oracle environments, and the mobile database option is not one Oracle customers have rushed to, according to industry analysts.
Jacob Christfort, chief technology officer of Oracle mobile, wireless and voice technology products, said the company believes customers will begin to turn to Oracle's mobile database software. Christfort said the software is a more efficient and secure alternative for workers who use laptops and handheld devices and who need to be in contact with an Oracle database.
"If people have mobile database applications, they will want to be buying from one system vendor," Christfort said. "It's so much easier and more secure to do it as part of a complete package."
Oracle's release of Database Lite coincides with Microsoft's plans for an extensive upgrade to its SQL Server mobile database software, due out early this year. Code-named Laguna, the enhancements include better synchronization capabilities and multivendor interoperability -- features that Sybase's iAnywhere mobile database subsidiary, which has a 70% stake in the mobile market, has built its reputation on, according to Noel Yuhanna, a senior analyst with Cambridge, Mass.-based Forrester Research Inc.
"Enterprises are standardizing on one or two key products to ensure lower cost,
manageability and operational efficiency," Yuhanna said. There has been an uptake in mobile databases, and Sybase continues to make investments keeping them ahead in the space."
Oracle Database Lite 10g uses data synchronization exchange data between Oracle databases and mobile workers. It does not connect to other vendor systems;, Christfort said this makes mobile communications more complicated and less secure.
"We believe the market Sybase is disappearing," Christfort said. "We believe that mobile technologies are not something enterprises should buy from a third party."
IBM has been Sybase's chief competitor, holding about 15% of the mobile database market with its DB2 Everyplace product. DB2 Everyplace allows users to install subsets of host databases onto their mobile devices and to synchronize the devices to the main databases.
In addition to data synchronization to an Oracle database, a mobile manager feature allows customers to administer and monitor their full mobile chain from a single, Web-based console. Application lifecycle management features are included to develop, deploy and manage mobile applications.
Development environments include support for Java and .NET tools, such as Oracle JDeveloper 10g and Microsoft Visual Studio .NET. Applications can be built using several programming languages, such as Java, C/C++ and Visual Studio for platforms, including Linux and Microsoft Windows.
Oracle Database Lite is available on all major operating systems, including Linux, Unix and Windows, and costs $100 per named user license.
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