In This Issue:

CipherSoft
Relicore
Netegrity
DataDirect Technologies
Book Beat

CipherSoft Releases Exodus 4.0, Integrates with JDeveloper

CipherSoft Releases Exodus 4.0, Integrates with JDeveloper CipherSoft, a producer of conversion tools and services, announced Exodus 4.0, which provides Oracle users with an automated tool for converting Oracle Forms and PL/SQL to Java-based applications or Enterprise JavaBean environments. Exodus makes the conversion with limited operator intervention; according to the company, conversion can be 90 percent faster than manual conversion of Oracle forms and PL/SQL and can reduce conversion costs by as much as 80 percent. In addition, CipherSoft has integrated Exodus with Oracle JDeveloper, and has been selected as one of five Oracle Migration Partners. "Exodus 4.0 includes a number of significant functional enhancements that will make it possible for us to further support and automate our clients' business processes," says Jennifer McNeill, president of CipherSoft.

Web Locator CipherSoft www.ciphersoftinc.com Oracle Migration Partners /products/forms/htdocs/FormsJavaSOD.html Relicore www.relicore.com Netegrity, Inc. www.netegrity.com DataDirect Technologies datadirect-technologies.com

Relicore Clarity Supports Oracle9iAS

Relicore, a member of the Oracle PartnerNetwork, now supports Oracle9i Application Server (Oracle9iAS) with its Clarity product. Relicore Clarity operates with Oracle9iAS to automate management of Oracle9iAS-based enterprise-application infrastructures and support complex applications from production through deployment.

Clarity automatically discovers an application environment, creates dependency maps of the interconnections in the environment, and tracks changes that occur in the environment in real time.

"By enabling Relicore Clarity to work with the foundation of Oracle9iAS and Oracle Database, we've brought to market a powerful solution to address the significant trend in distributed-application development and deployment," says Firdaus Bhathena, founder, president, and CEO of Relicore.

Oracle and Netegrity Expand Alliance

Netegrity, a leading provider of application infrastructure for access and identity management, announced an expanded alliance with Oracle designed to provide customers with a flexible and secure infrastructure to run applications. With this alliance, joint customers of Oracle and Netegrity will be better able to authenticate users' identities across the enterprise, no matter what software application they are using. Under the expanded alliance, the companies plan to enhance the existing integration between the identity management solutions in Oracle9i Application Server and Netegrity SiteMinder, which will enable customers to centralize the management of all user privileges, eliminating redundant administration of user information.

"The tighter integration between the Oracle9i infrastructure and SiteMinder enables our customers to further extend their SiteMinder investments into their Oracle environments," says Barry Bycoff, Netegrity chairman, president, and CEO.

DataDirect Connect .NET for Oracle

DataDirect Technologies announced DataDirect Connect for .NET 1.1, a set of updated data-connectivity components that enables software developers to access enterprise data using Microsoft's .NET Web-services architecture. The new version adds support for distributed transactions on Oracle databases and updated support for several Oracle data types. Also included is support for ODBC/JDBC escape sequences.

Book Beat Oracle9i Performance Tuning Tips & Techniques By Rich Niemiec Osborne/McGraw-Hill's Oracle Press www.oraclepress.com ISBN 0-07-222473-8 Tuning a database is one of the most important, and perhaps most complicated, activities a DBA undertakes. This new book by Rich Niemiec, considered by Oracle Corporation to be one of the world's top Oracle technology experts, takes the mystery out of tuning tasks, covering everything from simple to advanced topics. In this update to his 1999 performance tuning book, Niemiec starts by providing a thumbnail sketch of the Oracle9i Database, including valuable information about enhancements and improvements since Oracle8i. The book also covers the many tools Oracle provides for monitoring and tuning, including tips for their use and information for interpreting reports. Perhaps most valuable is the information Niemiec provides that's not documented elsewhere, such as details about little-known V$ views and in-depth coverage of X$ tables that provide precise tuning infor- mation. This bonus information alone makes the text a valuable reference for any DBA interested in tuning. Oracle SQL and PL/SQL Handbook By John Adolph Palinski Addison-Wesley Publishing www.awl.com ISBN 0-201-75294-8 Need to get up to speed fast on database concepts and administering an Oracle database? Then this book is for you. Written by John Palinski, an applications supervisor with the Omaha Public Power District, this text is designed to teach readers core database theory while providing practical instruction for using the Oracle database. The author introduces database concepts and terms in straightforward language, ensuring that readers of all backgrounds will comprehend the material. Next, the book moves on to detailed and practical information for logging into an Oracle database and performing routine tasks. The tasks include building a database, creating and populating tables, and writing simple queries. The book rapidly moves into more advanced topics, showing readers how to create more complex queries, use materialized views, and generate reports using SQL*Plus. Clearly written chapters make this handbook valuable reference material.