Cincom Systems Inc has introduced a networked version of its Ultra database management system for DEC VAX users, describing the new 1.5 release as a halfway house to full distributed database. The new release requires that one machine on the network operate as the database node, but it supports accesses and upgrades from machines across the network. The new release also offers a claimed 79% faster data loading than the previous ones and adds security features: the Spectra relational query language enables administrators to set limits on what information users are cleared to access. The 1.5 release of Ultra uses a new 1.1 version of the Mantis applications generator that supports batch mode working, windows, virtual screens that are larger than the physical screen, and Kanji language support. Previous versions of Ultra ran only on standalone VAXen and VAXclusters, and Cincom makes it clear that its aim is full distributed database, but unlike its much younger relational competitors, it acknowledges that it is still several years away. The new release of Ultra, which will be free to existing users, costs from $20,000 and $90,000 including Mantis 1.1, while Mantis 1.1 alone costs $8,000 to $28,000.
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