Last month Objectivity Inc began delivering a major upgrade of its object database, Objectivity/DB Version 2.0, adding SQL++ for ad hoc query and new application life-cycle features to help administer distributed databases and update deployed applications. The new functionality includes distributed schemas that can be shared by application developers to ease development of related applications; detachable databases for more flexible distribution of databases; on-line incremental back-up and restore for high availability of databases in production environments; schema evolution and object migration for upgrading deployed object applications and new database administrative tools and programmatic interfaces so developers can include database administration functions in applications. The new release addresses some important developer issues like distributed schema for building families of applications in distributed environments. The company, which claims the lion’s share of the object database market, has yet to record a profit. After two years it has strategic alliances with Digital Equipment Corp, Hewlett-Packard Co, IBM Corp, NCR Corp, Silicon Graphics Inc and Sun Microsystems Inc, 100 customers, 500 development seats, 10,000 run-time licences out and 10,000 deployed applications. Applications are the key to its eventual success. It figures the momentum of applications coming on-line will push it over the hump at the end of June, the end of its fiscal year. It estimates by then it will have 20,000 run-time copies in the field. Meanwhile, it is biding its time before making its next jump, to Microsoft Corp’s Windows NT.
