DSstar Feb 1, 2000: Vol. 4, No. 5

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February 1, 2000 / Vol. 4, No. 5

The On-Line Executive Journal for Data-Intensive Decision Support

IN THIS ISSUE:

PROBABILITY: WHICH VIEW IS CORRECT?
WELL-HYPED ORACLE PROJECT STUCK ON THE GROUND
SAS ANNOUNCES EXPANSION

Executive Editor-at-Large Inderpal Bhandari presents a guest editorial by Virtual Gold's Acting Director of Research:

The notion of probability is at the core of most data mining and data analytic tools. Yet there are two fundamentally different interpretations about the concept of probability. In part I of this two part-column, I comment on the differences between these approaches. Next week in part II, I will comment on how the two approaches can actually be reconciled -- and in the context of data mining practices peacefully co-exist.

In 1998, Oracle introduced with great fanfare the Raw Iron plan to market and sell specialized server appliances. But, more than 15 months later, systems still have not debuted, server makers will not commit to ship dates and many analysts are saying the plan is faulty.

SAS institute has partnered with many international corporations recently. In addition, it has announced fourth-quarter 1999 customer wins in its key initiative areas of data warehousing and data mining, as well as in its new e-business initiative.

Sybase Reports Fourth Quarter And Year-End Results
Based on a high demand for mobile and e-business solutions, Sybase, Inc. released positive results for the quarter ending December 31, 1999. Sybase had its second most profitable year in the company's history.

Oracle To Acquire Carleton Corporation
At a Special Meeting of Shareholders held on January 20, 2000, Carleton's shareholders approved the merger in which Carleton became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Oracle Corporation.

U.S. Government Agency To Implement SAIC Hummingbird EIP
Hummingbird Communications Ltd. announced that Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) has purchased the Hummingbird EIP (Enterprise Information Portal) for implementation at a large U.S. government agency.

Accrue Software Completes Acquisition of NeoVista Software
Accrue Software, Inc. a provider of Internet enterprise software solutions, announced that it has completed its acquisition of NeoVista Software, a privately held company with data mining applications and services.

ANGOSS Corporation To Produce KnowledgeSTUDIO 3.0 Beta
ANGOSS Software Corporation announced that KnowledgeSTUDIO version 3.0, the flagship data mining platform of ANGOSS, will be released to beta distribution on January 31, 2000.

eTime Capital Standardizes on Brio Technology
eTime Capital, an Internet-based business-to-business service for analyzing, managing, and financing trade receivables, is introducing to its customers a Web-based solution that combines business intelligence, enterprise reporting, and access to a customized portal from Brio.

Enterprise Computing Services To Release ECSDTool
Enterprises Computing Services, Inc., has announced the release of ECSDTool, a new kind of querying tool designed to extract business intelligence out of data.

IBM, SAS Institute Form Mutual Enterprises
SAS Institute and IBM announced a key relationship, the formation of a consulting practice and further development of e-business intelligence solutions that integrate IBM's DB2 database product family and SAS software. The announcement is the latest in a group of key strategic relationships forged by IBM as it refocuses its partnering efforts

Active Research Teams Up With MicroStrategy
MicroStrategy Incorporated and Active Research, a provider of Web-based Market Research Automation services, announced a partnership resulting in a new kind of market intelligence service. Now, organizations can attempt to better understand and respond to their customers through sophisticated Web-based analysis and reporting, ultimately resulting in increased profitability.

SPSS and Hyperion Expand Partnership
Addressing customer requirements for the next generation of analytic applications, SPSS Inc. has announced the completion of an OEM agreement with Hyperion where SPSS will provide Hyperion with forecasting technologies to extend the analytical power of Hyperion Essbase OLAP Server.

Sybase Tops Infoworld List In Customer Support
The annual "Product of the Year" issue of Infoworld selected Sybase's technical support newsgroups as the leader in customer support among BI companies.

TCC Teams With NCR
NCR has been selected by Taiwan Cellular Corporation to help continue the company's growth.

Cognos Partners With Zurich Commercial
Zurich Commercial has chosen an E-business solution that analyses and manages the company's relationships with its customers from Cognos. Dealing with many large commercial customers and insurance brokers, Zurich Commercial was launched in August 1999 and combines the former UK commercial portfolios of Zurich and Eagle Star.

"The Internet is a highly dynamic environment, and being able to track the business and analyze trends is vital."

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February 1, 2000 / Vol. 4, No. 5

* VERY IMPORTANT *