Eicon Technology Inc, the Montreal-based remote access equipment supplier, will next week launch a new family of products that enable users to access mainframe data from a browser or terminal server. The Aviva Family consists of five products: Aviva for Java is a browser-based emulator providing SNA host access; Aviva Web-to-Host Server automatically Web-enables SNA applications for browser-based clients via on-the-fly 3270-to-HTML conversion; Aviva for Terminal Servers provides mainframe connectivity for legacy desktops through Microsoft Corp’s Terminal Server and Aviva HostPrint Server enables 3270 and 5250 printing facilities for Windows NT servers. The fifth offering, Aviva for Desktops, is an old product that Eicon has renamed and added to the new family. Ladd Roberts, host access marketing manager for Eicon, said the most important feature of the new software was its integration with Aviva HotConnect. The patent-pending technology provides failsafe connectivity for users accessing mainframe data. If the network goes down, the software will automatically switch to the back-up network without breaking any connections, Roberts said. As the software can be programmed to run on SNA and TCP/IP networks, Roberts said it would also provide businesses with an easy migration path when they want to switch from an SNA to an IP-based infrastructure. In the past, PCs and terminal servers had to reconfigured by HotConnect switches the systems over automatically. Customers don’t have to buy the whole family of products, rather they can mix and match the software to suit their needs, Eicon said. Licenses are purchased on a per user basis, at $149 per seat.
