Sentences Version 3.0. (Data News and Products).

Lazy Software have released Version 3.0 of Sentence, its database management system based on the Associative Model of Data which is said to be the first new database architecture since the advent of the Interact, and the only model to take account of its unique needs. It offers a scaleable alternative to the relational model of data. (See page 11.)

Sentences is the world's first commercial implementation of the associative model of data, whose database architecture is designed to reflect the structure of data in the real world and the way that brains perceive and process information. Simon Williams, inventor of the associative model of data and Sentences said:

`In Version 3.0 we have primarily addressed scalability, in order to allow our users to be more ambitious with their development plans. The addition of LazyView and Lazy Analytics brings a level of functionality as yet unavailable in other database architectures.'

Scalability

In Sentences Version 3.0, the emphasis is on scalability. The internal structure of the Sentences database has been restructured and disk access methods have been enhanced to improve performance, scalability and robustness. Also, the CPU cycles and disk accesses needed for data retrieval and update operations have been reduced.

A single Sentences database may comprise multiple chapter files, and Sentences Version 3.0 can manage individual chapter files that contain in excess of 100,000,000 associations (occupying around 16 gigabytes), an improvement of around 50 times over Sentences Version 2.0.

LazyView

LazyView is a feature of the associative model of data that gives users the ability to integrate data from multiple, disparate relational databases such as Oracle, DB2, SQL Server and others in real time. Data from target databases is aggregated to combine similar types of data and to resolve semantic conflicts and may be referenced, searched and queried via Sentences. Data may also be augmented locally to extend the functionality of target databases and to support `what if' scenarios. Data added in this way persists in Sentences' own data store.

The ability to operate in real time is a key differentiator for LazyView. Data from target databases is not copied or replicated in Sentences, so users are assured that what they are seeing via LazyView is current, and LazyView can operate effectively on very large databases without requiring additional storage capacity.

LazyView also resolves semantic conflicts. It can recognise that what one database calls a `Customer' is the same type of thing that another calls a "Client, or that an entity called `IBM' in one table is the same thing as an entity called "International Business Machines" in another. In such cases, LazyView will automatically aggregate the attributes of types and instances to present a coherent view.

Lazy Analytics

Due for release in the first quarter of 2003, Lazy Analytics adds OLAP capabilities to Sentences Version 3.0. enabling users to manipulate, slice and dice data for analysis purposes by applying analytical operations such as ratios, cumulative totals, trends and allocations across dimensions and across hierarchical levels.

www.lazysoft.com