Developer Product Briefs
ERWin Data Modeler and ComponentOne LiveLinq
New tools for data modeling and a new class library for LINQ.
Erwin Data Modeler 7.3
With more complex data sources throughout the enterprise and demands to move beyond structured information, modeling tools are moving beyond their roots. For one thing, database developers can now find them in application lifecycle management suites.
Case in point is Erwin from CA Inc., one of the most widely used of the data-modeling tools. The new CA ERwin Data Modeler 7.3 can now be integrated with Visual Studio Team System 2008 and SQL Server 2008, among a number of other key data repositories including Teradata and IBM Corp.’s DB2 for its mainframe-based z/OS v9.
The tight integration between ERwin and SQL Server allows for all SQL Server database objects to be captured in ERwin data models for analysis, says CA partner Antonio Amorin, president of Northbrook, Ill.-based Data Innovations.
The new release of ERwin also boasts new reporting capabilities via a bundled copy of BusinessObjects Crystal Reports, which provides graphical rendering in spreadsheets, PDFs and HTML.
“Our techie geeks love that because they can completely customize any report they want, when a model is published,” says Donna Burbank, a senior principal product marketing manager at CA.
The new release also has a new option for data profiling, thanks to a recent partnership with Exeros Inc., whose data profiler is now integrated into ERwin. The data profiling lets developers compare data distributed throughout disparate legacy systems, which CA says will ease the process of identifying information such as customer data, and making sure it’s consistent with structural designs. This allows architects and those on implementation teams to ensure data is modeled so it can be used in data marts, warehouses and master-data management hubs.
| Erwin Data Modeling Suite |
| CA Inc. |
| ca.com |
| Price: $8,000 |
| 800-225-5224 |
ERwin, which recently celebrated its 20th anniversary, is among the leading suppliers of data modeling tools, says Forrester Research Inc. analyst Jeffrey Hammond. “ERwin is probably the most traditional of the data modeling tools,” he notes. Other key providers include Embarcadero Technologies Inc. and Sybase Inc., according to Forrester. IBM, Microsoft and Quest Software Inc. also are emerging providers of data management tools.
LiveLinq Boosts Queries
One of the key benefits of Microsoft LINQ is that it can cut down development time for data-driven applications. But for those looking to optimize the speed of applications developed in LINQ and for dynamic views of data rendered in LINQ-based queries, ComponentOne LLC is readying a new tool called LiveLinq. Available as a community technology preview in February and slated for release next month, LiveLinq is a new class library that the company says speeds up LINQ queries by indexing in memory. ComponentOne claims “typical” performance boosts of 10 to 50 times.
| LiveLinq |
| ComponentOne LLC |
| componentone.com |
| Price: $8,000 |
| 800-858-2739 |
| 412-681-4343
|
The live views will render data dynamically to users of apps using LiveLinq libraries. Any developer familiar with LINQ should be able to use LiveLinq without training, says ComponentOne Product Manager Chris Meredith.