Advantages of Foundation Services

Vice President of Global System Integrator Alliances in Oracle, Michelle Montalvo, stated that engineered systems delivered by Oracle are designed in a manner so that customers can reduce their expenditure. While costs are reduced, performance and productivity goes up and the IT infrastructure complexity reduces. He also added that Foundation Services will make use of Oracle engineering to help customers in transforming their investments into Oracle as a Service system.

How does it work

The Foundation Services provided by CSC will guide the clients so that they can adapt easily to the cloud and the As a Service economy model. It will help customers in selecting the applications and then transforming them to establish a private cloud system. All this is done in a very efficient way to ensure that the business goals are not hampered. The Business First approach that CSC uses is reflected in Foundation Services as well. It evaluates the business processes going on at the enterprise level and then establishes the workload that will help in generating the maximum return on investment from cloud based services.

Performance of Foundation Services so far

The reference architecture mentioned above, along with the services accompanying it, has already been successfully used to help clients in creating their own cloud environments. Sreedhar Kajeepeta, who is the Vice President of CSC Global Technology Consulting, said that Foundation Services have gained a lot of traction with their customers as well as Oracle. He also states that CSC is carrying forward what they learnt from the success of Financial Services for Oracle. They are now focusing on particular-use cases along with delivery models like the Oracle Database as a Service (DBaaS). CSC will be deploying DBaaS before 2012 is over.

Developing a reference architecture that is demonstrable is a very important part of this offering. This architecture provisions for Oracle middleware, application, and infrastructure by using virtual instances. To best use this service you should opt for [Oracle middleware training classes]. Essentially, Foundation Services by CSC helps in formation of a dependable foundation for Oracle in an As a Service environment. It also acts as a shop for runtime and development environments which can be deployed to private and trusted clouds. It provides environment footprint templates which help in accelerating the deployment of the environment. Most importantly, enterprise level business applications can be transformed to a cloud infrastructure.

IBM has added many features to DB2 10.1 to make it a lot more useful for big-data operations that are common in the modern day industry. The company also has a lot of secondary service businesses and systems that use the DB2 databases. There are three forms of DB2 databases. One of them is meant for mainframe, the other is used for IBM i that was previously known as OS/400, and the third one is for Linux, UNIX, and Windows platforms. The new releases also see IBM ramping up the compatibility with PL/SQL query language by Oracle. So if you intend to use these databases, Oracle PL/SQL can come in very handy.

The database used for Linux and Windows is called DB2 LUW, which had its latest 10.1 version released recently. Director of Product Strategy for Database Systems and Software, Bernie Spang said that DB2 10.1 mainly deals with big data and the details of data layer in different applications. The update for DB2 comes along with the upgrade for Info Sphere Warehouse. Both these products will be shipped on April 30 and that will mark the end of four years of work put in by hundreds of IBM engineers around the globe. The new database comes with various performance enhancements as well. You also get a new method for data-compression along with better compatibility with the databases from Oracle.

What has improved?

If you look at the new upgrade from a big-data point of view, you will see that IBM has strengthened the link between MapReduce clusters of Hadoop. These clusters run the Hadoop Distributed File System (HDFS). According to Spang, the previous connector used for linking Hadoop and DB2 was very basic. So IBM went back to the drawing board and created a connector that allows data warehouses to very easily suck and spit out data from Hadoop clusters. The new connector also meant a lot less work for database admins.

Access control and PL/SQL compatibility

Access control is always an important aspect and DB2 10.1 comes with fine-grained access controls for columns and rows. This makes it possible to lock out any user from any row or column of data. This even prevents you from partitioning an application for various user classes. IBM also added that the early access users for the 10.1 release are able to see 98% compatibility for PL/SQL queries that are running against DB2. This high percentage should be reason enough for people to go for Oracle PL/SQL training courses, if they are not very proficient in the language .

Data ingestion

Another big feature is called the continuous data ingest. This feature allows outside data feeds to send information into the database. It also enables the database to continuously send records to the data warehouse, without interrupting the queries which might be running on either box. Simply put, the ingestion process relies on parallely bringing the data into the warehouse and in the database. This is a truly unique method that has not been implemented by any other company.

Major improvements

Certain improvements have been made to the Object Relational Manager (ORM) as well. The ORM now has the ability to produce ‘SELECT FOR UPDATE’ queries along with the ‘bulk_create()’ command that can be used for insertion into large data sets. The GenericIPAddressField model, form field and valuators in Django 1.4 allow much better handling of IPv6 addresses. In-browser type testing frameworks are also supported. This is done using a LiveServerTestCase base class, which allows testing interactions between backbends and frontends of applications. The default project layout has also been updated. Now there is support for templates when you are creating new applications and projects.

Security

Django 1.3 used SHA 1 hashing for security, but the newer version uses PBKDF2 as the default password hashing algorithm. This improves the security considerably. The new version also makes it a lot easier to change the hashing algorithm.  So, you can go for the bcrypt2 algorithm if you like it better.

Another aspect which will help in strengthening the security is that the session backend is cookie based. It uses cryptography signing for the session data and greatly helps in making the sessions more secure. The CSRF features have also been improved through the introduction of protection for DELETE and PUT requests. It should be noted that Django 1.4 does not support Python 2.4 and is compatible with Python 2.5, 2.6, and 2.7 only. This should not be a concern for most of the users as OS vendors use Python 2.5 or higher for the default version. If you use Python 2.4, then you will need to stick to Django 1.3 which will receive security upgrades till Django 1.5 is released.

HTML 5

The admin and various other bundled templates have been switched to using the HTML 5 doctype. Officials have said that Django will still maintain compatibility with the old browsers, but this change will mean that users will be able to utilize different features of HTML 5 in admin pages. They will no longer need to override the given templates to make changes to the doctype or lose their HTML validity.

This year has already seen several developments in Java’s technology. The number of people using and learning java is rising steadily. Several developers are opting for java training courses to enhance their skills. This article will summarize all the recent developments in java technology.

Java SE 6 EOL extended

The Java SE Roadmap shows a timeline for the end of life of public releases and support for JDK 6. The roadmap is provided by Oracle for Java’s commercial offerings. It aids customers in understanding their options in terms of support and maintenance that is available. The Java SE releases are maintained for at least 3 years from the availability date. The SE releases are also frequently updated with security fixes, bug fixes and other updates for the 3 year period before it reaches its end of life.

The end of life date for JDK 6 has been postponed from July to November 2012. The change has been made in the favor of easing the transition to JDK 7. The company has also updated the end of life policy in order to make all intentions clear for this release and the release of future ones as well. Java’s policies have remained consistent throughout the company’s history. For people who require lengthier support lifetimes, Oracle provides Java SE Support.

New Java VM specifications and language

The Java SE 7 Edition of the JMV and Java language specifications are available in the HTML and PDF format on the website and it is anticipated that they will be available in a published book format soon. The specifications are referred to as JVMS7 and JLS7, emphasizing the fact that both are linked to Java SE 7. Originally, the JVMS and JLS came before Java community processes, making it impossible to link them to any Java SE pl
atform. The versions based on SE are simpler for everyone to understand, including those who are newly learning to use the technology through java training courses.

The developer community and JavaFX 2

JavaFX 2 was released in October 2011. A thriving community of developers has already begun developing unique applications for the latest release. The rise in popularity was seen after the JavaFX 2 Beta for Windows became available for download. The number of developers experimenting with JavaFX 2 is on the rise. With an increasing number of people enrolling for java training courses, automatically more and more developers are coming up in the industry. Developers are reporting issues and also submitting requests for desired features, instead of waiting for things to happen on their own. All this activity is resulting in higher quality in terms of releases.

The community of Java developers has become quite active in recent months as compared to the past. The healthy ecosystem is great, especially after a period of stagnation. Online forums are the more wide-spread way of sharing information and facts about recent developments. There is a steady rise in the frequency of Java-related developments that the community is witnessing because of this activity.

The addition to the comprehensive Java™ curriculum already offered by Firebox gives them a baker’s dozen of Java™ offerings ranging from introductory to complex and specific language application training. In the new intermediate course students will learn to use common API packages, such collections for storing groups of objects, Swing for building GUI applications, and JDBC for accessing a database. These two new Java™ training courses are a sub-set of the Firebox 5-Day Java Bootcamp, which covers all topics from the 3-day and the 2-day course. Founder Julie Johnson commented on the new split option; “At the end of our 5-Day Intro to Intermediate Java Bootcamp course our students are armed with the fundamentals to start creating real-world applications”.

“From Java™ running a remote-controlled Mars rover to many small appliances, products that run Java programs have become more popular than ever,” Johnson continued; “And the need for well trained Java™ programmers has grown too.”

“It’s truly had to believe that more than 3 billion mobile phones run Java™ today and that 31 times more Java phones ship every year than Apple and Android combined” Johnson added.

All of the Java training courses from Firebox Training are instructor-led. This means there is always an expert to learn from whether the class is delivered in their Denver training center, online or onsite. During class these hands-on Java™ training classes spend 50% to 60% of the time doing practical labs. For a quick sample of the training check out this Firebox video: http://www.fireboxtraining.com/blog/2012/04/03/using-switch-statements-with-strings-in-java-1-7/

Platform independence, object orientation and the Java API class are three reasons learning Java today has become so popular. A Java™ program runs on any computer with a Java Runtime Environment (JRE). A JRE is available for almost every type of computer, PCs running Windows, Macintosh computers, Unix or Linux computers, huge mainframe computers, and even cell phones. From game consoles to scientific supercomputers, laptops to datacenters, cell phones to the Internet, Java is in wide use and it only runs well if Java™ programmers have the right training.

Firebox Training was founded in 2007 in Golden, Colorado. Since that time they have delivered training for well known organizations including, General Dynamics, Bank of America, Comcast, NREL, Citrix, Time Warner, City of Denver, City of Los Angeles and HP, just to name a few. Instructors travel to client locations across the globe. Most recently Firebox completed training in Ft. Bragg, New York, Boston, Austin, Seattle and Denver.

The new VoiceToApps application has just been released and works on iPhone, iPad, and on the second and third generation iPod Touch with external microphone.  Users just need an internet connection, WiFi or 3G/EDGE.  VoiceToApp is $.99 to dowload, and is an all in one application with SMS, e-mail, Facebook and Twitter.

With VoiceToApps, users can use their voice to send emails, SMS messages or texts, without typing, when they touch the microphone dictation tab.    No need to worry about spelling, VoiceToApps takes care of that as well and corrects grammar and conjugation so you may just seem a little smarter while saving even more time.  If you need to send a message in a foreign language, the VoiceToApps translates 20 different languages.

Once the message has been dictated, the text can be copied to a Facebook or Twitter account.

If you have an Android phone, Vlingo Virtual Assistant can recognize commands, send texts and messages, search the web, get directions, voice dial, and open other apps.  This application can also update Facebook and Twitter accounts.  The application is free for devices running 2.1 or higher.

The feedback is that Vlingo for Android combines fast and accurate voice to text technology with the intelligence to recognize speech patterns and specific annunciations as well.  The expanded  “ActionBar,” works with the content and capabilities of KAYAK, Fandango and OpenTable.

The InCar feature, available on all Vlingo-supported devices, is a hands  free InCar solution that allows you to send and receive messages, make calls, and get directions while keeping both hands on the wheel.  InCar requires 2.2 and a Bluetooth or wired headset in order to function as designed.

Voice to text messaging is progressing and the applications are getting better and more robust.  If you are interested in creating your own unique application, Android training courses can help you turn your ingenuity into reality.

Oracle’s Support For JavaFX

Since the launch of JavaFX, many other technologies have arrived for creating graphically oriented and rich looking applications. Some of these technologies are Microsoft Silverlight, HTML 5, Adobe Flash and Apple iOS. When Sun was acquired by Oracle, many people pondered over the future of JavaFX.  Oracle answered these speculations by releasing JavaFX 2.0 in 2011, and it also plans on releasing JavaFX 3.0 in summer of 2013. JavaFX 3.0 is already being touted as the next generation of Java clients. Oracle also said, after its acquisition of Sun was complete, that there would no longer be large gaps between successive releases. They followed it up with the release of JDK 7.

To further extend their support for Java, Oracle’s Director of Java Technology Outreach, Sharat Chander stated that from April 2 onwards, two prominent personalities from the world of JavaFX would support Oracle. These two advocates were revealed to be Stephen Chin and Jim Weaver. They are expected to join the Java Evangelist team of Oracle. Chander also states that people can expect the advocates to be involved in various activities which will make the best use of their JavaFX expertise. This information was released by Chander on the Java Source blog. Oracle did not reveal anything further, even after requests for more information.

How JavaFX Has Changed

The hiring of the two experts showcases the commitment of Oracle towards JavaFX.  Analyst Al Hilwa adds that the new approach by Oracle allows them to keep the good things from JavaFX technology and remove the detractions. Oracle will be able to retain the rich GUI capabilities that come with the language but they will not have to deal with the scripting language part. Hilwa also states that he likes the method being used as it delivers more value to the community. Before Oracle changed its strategy in 2011, the scripting language used in JavaFX was not seen as very useful because plug-ins were slowly being replaced by HTML 5 features. If you actually want to utilize JavaFX after the strategy change made by Oracle, you should look for an Oracle training course.

If you think that Apple’s staunch resistance against having Java on iOS platforms will deter Oracle, then you should think again. Oracle has already shown that JavaFX can run on an iOS device, while Google’s Android uses JavaFX. Despite all the changes and progress being made by Oracle, it seems difficult for JavaFX to compete with the likes of HTML 5 and Silverlight in the present scenario.

Package Inclusions

Every integrated solution is patched and pre-configured and comes with a pre-built data extraction layer, key performance indicators (KPIs) reports, dashboards, and data warehouse. Users are capable of exploring analytic content that has been delivered as soon as the installation is complete, which typically takes only a few hours. Each of the three integrated solutions comes with the installation of Oracle Fusion Middleware, Oracle Essbase, OBIEE 11.1.1.5 and Oracle Database 11g. The Oracle Data Integrator and BI packaged solution from Oracle, which includes Informatica PowerCenter and BI Applications release 7.9.6.3, are present too. All these packages provide users with data that is associated with project analytics, human resources, financial systems, procurements, spending, and the supply chain.

How CIBER Helps

Uses of Oxygen

Software as a Service (SaaS) and perpetual license models both use the extension of Vasont Universal Integrator (VUI) for integrating Oxygen with the CMS. The VUI extension has been designed in such a way that non-technical writers do not have any problems using it. Essentially, the extension combines the functionality of the CMS by Vasont with one of the best XML editing tools out there. Editors and authors are able to access the functionality of the CMS using the main menu of the authoring tools which they use. This is done through an editorial interface which practically unites the publishing and writing process. Users can also search for multimedia or textual content and then use it in documents that have been edited using Oxygen.

Importance of WebLNX

Vasont WebLNX, which is a simple site meant for users to submit content, and review content that has already been submitted, is also integrated with Oxygen. WebLNX helps writers work with structured content, and is especially useful for those who do not have much knowledge about XML. This issue can be resolved by attending an XML training course. Since WebLNX is a project on the web, it offers a suitable environment for working with experts situated around the world while making sure that the projects stay on schedule.

Result of the integration

President of Vasont Systems, Richard Schiding said that the editorial process is a lot smoother because of the tie up between Oxygen and Vasont. He also added that the company was happy with the extension and its performance as it complements the content managing capabilities of CMS in a very fluid manner. CEO of Syncro Soft, Stefan Vasile said that it is important for Syncro Soft to establish healthy relationship with the leading companies in the content management sector. He also added that the integration of Oxygen with the CMS and WebLNX tool gives a great solution to enterprise users.

The Vasont CMS makes it very simple for organizations to take care of business information along with documentation that is multilingual and technical in nature. The single source functionality of the system stores the content only once. This ensures accuracy as well as increases efficiency of adapting the content to different media formats. All this is done while handling the business process of publishing and creating content and managing the workflow.

Astoria 6.0 Capabilities

The preview of the Astoria 6.0 has been made available to select customers and is going through testing. The architecture in Astoria 6.0 allows users to do their work on a platform which works best for them. Astoria workbench is an Eclipse tool and is a console that allows publishing, managing, and authoring content. Workbench comes with all the portability and extensibility which has made Eclipse into one of the most widely used open source environment for software development. If you want to utilize the full potential of this combination, you should go for some XML training courses.

Editor Bridge

Editor Bridge, which is another module of Astoria, is built entirely using Java. Editor Bridge is a lot more than the editor-connectors that are file-based and are present in your normal XML content management solutions. It allows users who are using editors integrated with Astoria, like Oxygen, to perform as many as 18 element and file based actions from the user interface of the editor. Since Java is used for Editor Bridge, it makes sure that it runs on every platform that is supported by the vendor of the editor.

Architecture

Beneath the Editor Bridge and the Astoria Workbench, you have the communication architecture. Astoria 6.0 makes use of HTTPS (which is nothing but HTTP encrypted with SSL) for exchanging data and messages between the Editor Bridge or Workbench and the server side modules. Now, HTTPS is supported everywhere and is highly secure, which gives the users a wide variety of options regarding platforms that can be used along with the Astoria 6.0. Attending XML training classes can help you understand how the security aspect of Astoria works.

With the announcement of their integration with Mac platform, Astoria Software becomes the first company that is offering XML component content management on an Enterprise level for Apple. CEO and President of Astoria Software, Michael Rosinski, said that in his eyes, Software as a Service (SaaS) got a lot easier with Astoria 6.0. He said that Astoria is the premier On-Demand platform when it comes to XML content and Mac OS X is probably the most productive OS for users. When you link the two, it gives you bottom-line and top-line revenue benefits. It not only keeps the business leaders satisfied, but also gives users the ability to choose the platform on which they can build their content.