Newsgroups: comp.databases
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From: awd@dbase.a-t.com (Alastair Dallas)
Subject: Re: Relational Database info needed.
Message-ID: <1991Jun13.182129.21197@dbase.a-t.com>
Originator: awd@dbase
Lines: 31
Nntp-Posting-Host: dbase
Organization: Ashton-Tate, Inc.
References: <5383.28501503@miavx1.acs.muohio.edu> <1991Jun09.222112.10715@chinet.chi.il.us>
Date: Thu, 13 Jun 91 18:21:29 GMT

Someone writes>
> Someone else writes>
> > I need a relational database for DOS, UNIX, OS/2 and Windows
>
> Ha-ha, not for a year.

(New news program; I don't know how to get it to auto-include
the original posting.)

dBASE IV is implementing a broad cross-platform strategy to satisfy just
this sort of requirement: One database across many environments.  We
are currently shipping on DOS, VMS, Macintosh and several flavors of
Unix (such as SCO Xenix imminent if not already).  Windows has been
announced for year's end (I believe).  These flavors of dBASE read
each other's application object code (.dbo) without recompilation.
I think product compatibility across platforms is going to be a
significant factor to everyone eventually--apparently Ashton-Tate
agrees with me and they are investing heavily now to get there first.

The second poster ("Someone else," above) made the comment that other
xBase vendors might have cross-platform products by next year.  To
which I answer, "Not if they're doing anything else right now," 
because this stuff is HARD.

/alastair/
-- 
|Disclaimer: I am speaking for myself, not as a spokesman for Ashton-Tate,
|which does not monitor my outbursts here.  I reserve all rights to my
|opinions in terms of commercial endorsements.