Daily archive: March 12, 2008

iPhone Update 2.0

March 12, 2008, by No comments yet

Well, it has taken me some time, but I am finally writing about the previously mentioned iPhone 2.0 update per el Steve. From my (admittedly different) perspective, the greatest change is that Apple will be allowing two major things happen:

  1. Native software on the iPhone.
  2. Apple will eventually allow the iPhone to work on other than AT&T networks.

To me, the new software will eventually force Apple to allow even more development on this platform. I know Apple is publicly unhappy and only allowing it with a stern face about security. But, I think they are privately very happy.

Last day @ DUG 2008

March 12, 2008, by No comments yet

So, this is the last day at DUG 2008. It has been a good trip. I learned quite a bit about the upcoming new Colleague Advance update that will happen for us in ’09 (already in general release). Overall, it looks like a good product. Here are some observations:

  1. Some folks will have a hard time getting others at their institution to go along with the new change.
  2. Getting an integrated product may be hard, but the benefits of updated and synced data can not be ignored (despite the problems mentioned in #1)
  3. Despite my preference for open source products (read: MySQL, PostgreSQL), I like the move to a (mostly) standards compliant M$-SQL Server. It is much easier to become familiar with a system that you can read about and install on your workstation or laptop. This is my biggest complaint about UniData. It is hard to learn about since you have to use IBM manuals and Datatel does not offer data mappings on their site.
  4. The move to a database-agnostic layer on the back-end is a great move. It will lead to options and eventual savings for the purchaser.

At the end of the day, the institution is looking for a good product and value for its investment. These types of conferences work to ensure that outcome by leveraging not only the company’s experience, but also the end-user’s invaluable ingenuity.