Conference ulysse::rdb_vms_competition

    Check with DB/ACCESS in Cupertino, CA. They were supposed to have
    finished their MS-DOS interface late last year. They also interface
    to Rdb and DBMS (both via Datatrieve) with an Application Program
    Interface that is SQL-based. The prdouct handles access to
    heterogeneous databases in heterogeneous environments.
    It might help you given your requirements.
    Phone: 1-800-982-9911
    
    ---- Michael Booth

    Real clever! Iforgot the product name. It's Access/Star from DB/ACCESS.
    
    ---- Michael Booth

Also, contact the Database Languages Product Manager, Wendy NOVA::Caswell.
There are things happening, but you need to contact her to find out what may
be relevant to your situation.

    Also, there is a product from Network Innovations, (come on, somebody
    knows the name) that lets you access Rdb/VMS from PCs.
    
    Also, Alisa systems has announced VAX SQL support from the MAC with
    there SQL-link product (not available yet, but announced).
    
    Jim
    

    The Network Innovations product is called CL/1, I think. Apple bought
    Network Innovations last week.
    
    ---- Michael Booth

>< Note 88.5 by AUNTB::BOOTH "A career of MISunderstanding" >
>                                   -< CL/1 >-
>
>    The Network Innovations product is called CL/1, I think. Apple bought
>    Network Innovations last week.
>    
>    ---- Michael Booth

Almost.  CL/1 is the name for the interface between PC software and a
host.  I don't think it exists yet, except as the inner guts of a
product called MULTIPLEX which Network Innovations has been selling for
a little over a year.  MULTIPLEX allows an MSDOS-based PC to access all
sorts of data on VAXen, including VAX Rdb/VMS. 

    Thank folks...
    I called up Network Innovation (408-257-6800), they are sending
    me information on their products. The only thing is that I much
    rather go with a CMP solution!
    
    Thanks for all the help!
    Ali

Hi,

I'm project leader for a "solution system".  We're in phase 0 now and I'm 
working on the alternatives and feasibility document.  The "solution" will
consist of a bunch of diskless PC's connected to a VAXserver 3500.  There's
going to be a relational database maintained on the VAXserver for shared access
by the PC's.    There are a lot of programs which have to get developed to run
on the PC's which will have to access the VAXserver database for read and write
transactions.  I had planned to use Rdb/VMS for the VAXserver Db manager, and
PCSA as the DECnet environment which links up the PC's and the server, but I
don't have any clue as to what's needed to develop PC based MS-DOS programs
that access an Rdb/VMS database running on the PC server node of a diskless PC
network. I put a note in the Rdb conference but it seems that there's no
Rdb/DOS planned and someone there recommended this note in this conference. 

What I need for the document that I'm working on is a list of DEC and 3rd party
products that are required to allow MD-DOS program development of programs
which access an Rdb database.  Normally, I would use a language compiler and a
run time library of Rdb database access routines. 

For the feasibility part of my document, I only need one instance of a list
of products needed to do this (and how much it will cost to include them in 
the solution).

For the alternatives part of my document, several instances will be needed.

So far from this note I've got

product              company               in-DEC           supported
name                 name, etc.            contact          compilers
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Access/Star          DB/ACCESS
                     Cupertino, Ca
                     1-800-982-9911
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
???????              DEC's Database        Wendy Casswell
                     Languages Product     NOVA::CASWELL
                     Group
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
MULTIPLEX            Network Innovations
                     408-257-6800
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Q1: Are there folks in DEC I should be channeling my queries through for
these products?

Q2: Are there any others I should be investigating?

-bob lambert-
financial industries systems group
pdm1-1, marlboro, ma.
dtn 291-0301

    Another possibility is Gateway Systems on Okemos, MI. (517-349-7740).
    Their product will let the front-end processes run on the PCs. It
    can also allow parts of the database to be downloaded to the PCs
    for processing efficiency. Last time I talked to them, they were
    ready to go with the VAX version that would link to Rdb/VMS (they
    originally ran on HP hardware). The product is called the Synergist.
    It looks very interesting...has a 4GL-type development environment
    that runs on a PC. Then the code gets uploaded to the VAX host.
    
    I have some literature, but it's about 8 months old. They were supposed
    to display at the December, 1987 DEXpo. It might be worth
    investigating.
    
    The Network Innovations product is CL/1. It is the "guts" of Multiplex.
    Multiplex is a specific product aimed at transferring data from
    databases to spreadsheets. CL/1 is aimed at connectivity of PCs
    and host databases.
    
    ---- Michael Booth

and definitely talk to Wendy before going down the 3rd party path.