The battle for workstation hearts and minds between Unix and Windows NT is set to heat up dramatically over the next few months now that Dassault Systemes SA and Microsoft Corp are optimizing a version of the classic Unix CAD/CAM application, Catia, for Windows NT. Compaq, HP, Intergraph and others have already announced plans to develop high-performance versions of their NT workstations designed specifically for running Catia, the most popular CAD/CAM design tool. Catia 5.0 includes a new version of the program’s key application engine which will run on Unix or NT and enable designs to be shared between the two environments. It claims to use Java, Corba and Microsoft OLE.
