Object-oriented development software, enhanced communications are highlights of 6.07
The enhancements provided with SAS System Release 6.07, which existing users automatically receive for no charge, include the SAS/EIS object-oriented development software for building customised executive information systems; support for further Unix environments; enhanced communications facilities, including support for LU6.2, DECnet and TCP/IP protocols, providing peer-to-peer communications in MVS, CMS, VMS and Unix environments; enhanced security capabilities, extending down to field level; support for Windows 3.0 and OS/2; enhanced menu-driven analysis systems; and three additional software applications – SAS/Insight for data visualisation, SAS/Lab for laboratory-data analysis, and SAS/PH-Clinical for evaluating new drugs. Also on the cards is a new multi-environment spreadsheet component which is to be added into SAS 6.07 later in the year. This is one of the results of the user ballot, and 1,000 orders for the new product have already been received. SAS/Calc provides three-dimensional spreadsheets, integrated graphics, spreadsheet linking, goal-seeking and consolidation management. Supporting Motif and DECwindows, SAS/Calc will first be available for IBM mainframes under MVS and CMS, and for the DEC VAX series under VMS. As reported briefly (CI No 1,684), SAS System version 6.07 is to be released in stages. In addition to the Unix environments already supported by SAS System – HP-UX on Hewlett-Packard’s 9000/300 and 9000/800, and SunOS on the Sun-3 and Sun-4 machines – the first two batches, which are now available, run under IBM’s AIX; DEC’s Ultrix; HP-UX on Hewlett-Packard’s 9000/400, 9000/600 and 9000/700 machines; Domain OS on the Apollo DN2000, DN3000 and DN4000; MIPS RISC/os; BOS on Bull’s DPX/2 systems; Sinix on Siemens’ MX 300 and 500 machines; Irix on Silicon Graphics’ IRIS; Data General’s DG-UX, and all 88open-compliant systems. Family three, to follow in the autumn, will address the MVS, CMS, VMS and other Unix environments, through peer-to-peer communications, enabling access to databases hosted in these environments. And family four will include upgrades for OS/2 version 1.3 and Windows 3.0. The shipment of phase four, scheduled for the latter part of the year, may be delayed if users vote to wait for IBM to release the 32-bit OS/2 version 2.0; otherwise OS/2 v2.0 will be saved for the Family five release. SAS Institute is heavily biased towards the OS/2 environment, and European manager Art Cooke made no bones about the fact that the Windows version is being developed only in response to market demand. Mark Cates from SAS Institute in the US, delivered a paper at SEUGI which slated Windows 3.0 for its multi-tasking limitations, and inferior file system for applications with an intensive throughput, and for its lack of data protection and inefficient use of memory.
Users ballet for Apple Mac version
So what have users been balloting for, for the future? One of the main requests is for a version of the SAS System for the Apple environment, which SAS Institute agrees should now be possible, following the release of the System 7 operating system. Other than this, says Steve Darbyshire, users are mainly only requesting new features, such as the Graphics Editor, which will be available soon with Release 7. Really, he says, we have been pre-empting user requests – the spreadsheet capabilities, Graphics Editor and the Executive Information System development environment, as well as the new database access facilities, have all been demands by users. Since Unix now accounts for 10% of new business, Darbyshire reckons it won’t be long before SAS users ask for access to databases such as Oracle on Unix workstations – SAS is already looking at this. SAS’ MultiVendor Architecture, and the new communications introduced with version 6.07, is driving SAS users more and more towards co-operative processing. When asked if this was likely to persuade the company to start up negotiations with a database management system vendor, Darb
yshire was adamant that SAS has all the necessary information management qualities of a database technology it gained when it acquired a small database company, MRI, from Intel Corp, that had reported success, particularly in Spain and the US, with its System 2000 database product. SAS is afiercely independent company and Darbyshire made it quite clear that the company will not be approaching any database peddlers in the future – so SAS will not be putting in a bid to buy Oracle Corp.
Graphics capability seen as a plus, but lack of AS/400 version raises eyebrows
Another plus for SAS, says Price Waterhouse’s John Kane, is its graphics facilities, which are ahead of products such as Information Builders UK Ltd’s fourth generation language-based Focus product. Graphics Editor for SAS will soon be available on the SAS System, in response to persistent user demand. SAS’ Steve Darbyshire confirmed the importance of graphics, saying that many IBM and DEC sites use SAS for its business graphics. In general it seems to be thumbs up for SAS, but one matter that puzzled John Kane was SAS’ reluctance to do a version for the AS/400 – Kane’s feeling is that there should be a real demand for this environment. But, according to SAS Software Ltd’s Steve Darbyshire, users have not balloted to run SAS on the AS/400. The machine, he explains, is not a suitable environment for data delivery, not having enough available cycles to run concurrent sessions of SAS – as the machines get bigger, then maybe SAS will go under OS/400, but for the meantime, users are satisfied with the new capability to access data from the AS/400 – via a read-write interface.
A blue chip array of major users
Among SAS Institute’s users are Unilever Research Laboratories and SmithKline Beecham, though SAS points out that its product is not targeted solely at the chemical and pharmaceutical industry, but also at manufacturing and distribution, and at the transport, finance, banking and insurance service sectors. Some 70% of MVS sites use SAS for monitoring computer performance. Dutch airline KLM runs the SAS System as a personal computer and mainframe application for ensuring its flights are filled, and reckons that in so doing it makes annual savings of around UKP25m. And Price Waterhouse runs SAS on an IBM 3090 at its European development centre in the London Docklands, both for its own use in analysing mainframe performance, and for building executive management-type systems for customers as part of its consultancy services. – Susan Norris
