Object database pioneer Versant Object Technology Corp has added support for multiple sessions at the thread level to its core ODBMS engine as release 5.0, claiming it runs at least twice as fast as the previous versions. The Menlo Park, California company now offers Java, C++ and Smalltalk interfaces for application developers; VersantWeb and Versant SQL Suite data access modules supporting HTML, IIOP, SQL, ODBC and JDBC; plus adapters for integrating custom versions of the Iona Technologies Ltd and Expersoft Corp object request brokers with support for SunSoft Inc NEO due by year-end. It will also implement multi-threading for clients and servers and provide multi-session client capabilities in the core database server. 5.0 is out on Solaris priced from $3,500 with an HP-UX version due by the end of the quarter, the same time as a $2,150 NT implementation. VersantWeb is due in April; VersantSQL Suite is available now priced at $750 per user; the Java interface will be bundled at no extra charge next quarter, while C++ and Smalltalk interfaces are already included. Although more than 50% of its business is derived from its telecommunications customers, Versant is aiming the 5.0 release at a broad cross-section of companies it thinks will want to deploy discreet transaction, content, application and business process servers to fulfil their web-based network computing visions, leaving legacy applications on back-end databases.
