The Problem
Business application developers spend an inordinate amount of effort creating and maintaining the mappings between applications and databases. The Gartner Group estimates that this activity accounts for up to 40 percent of a developer's time. Today most application-to-database logic is buried in application code and stored procedures as hard coded Data Manipulation Language (DML). Anytime the database tables or columns change (because of new information requirements or performance tuning), this has an impact on the DML. Developers must manually search for DML and recode it, which can be further complicated when single databases serve multiple applications.
 
The Solution
Visualizing the usage of data by applications allows developers to understand and quickly address the impact of database change. Providing new means to locate, maintain, and encapsulate the DML for better reuse leads to productivity breakthroughs.
 
Product Description
PLATINUM SQL-Compass is a complete visual modeling tool for managing the interaction between applications and databases. It delivers extraordinary productivity, with easy-to-use visual modeling and impact analysis tools architected to minimize the time spent developing and maintaining these mappings.
 
The visual mappings that represent native database DML can be modeled from scratch in SQL-Compass, or existing application code can be scanned to visualize where the existing data access mappings are already defined as hard-coded DML. Once modeled, SQL-Compass helps the modeler understand where proposed or actual database changes will impact application DML.
 
In addition to impact analysis, SQL-Compass can generate encapsulated DML, called SQL Components. SQL Components can be deployed at any tier of an application and support all major middleware connectivity solutions, including: SQL*Net, ODBC, RDO, and JDBC. Cross platform deployment and the reusability of data access across an organization enables SQL Components to be easily deployed as a reusable, consistent, optimized way for programmers to access data. SQL Components' deployed value is further enhanced by the ability to quickly facilitate database changes by simply regenerating the impacted SQL Components.
 
Features and Benefits

• DML Modeling. The visual mappings that represent native database Data Manipulation Language (DML) can be modeled from scratch in SQL-Compass, or existing application code can be scanned to visualize where the existing data access mappings are already defined as hard-coded DML in stored procedures or application code.
• Impact Analysis and Mitigation. Once the DML has been scanned from application code or stored procedures, or modeled from scratch, SQL-Compass helps the modeler understand where proposed or actual database table or column changes will impact application DML. SQL-Compass can encapsulate the DML and generate it as reusable SQL Components. The impact of database structure changes on the application can be mitigated by simply regenerating the impacted SQL Components.
• Component Reuse. SQL-Compass can encapsulate the DML and generate it as Java Beans or COM components called SQL Components. SQL Components can be deployed at any tier of an application and support all major middleware connectivity solutions, ie. SQL*Net, ODBC, RDO, JDBC, etc. Cross platform deployment and the reusability of data access across an organization enables SQL Components to be easily deployed as a reusable, consistent, optimized way for programmers to access data.

Technical Specifications
 
Application Development Language Compatibility:

• Visual Basic
• Java
• Stored procedures of all databases listed

Database Compatibility:

• Oracle
• Microsoft SQL Server
• Sybase
• ODBC

Operating System Compatibility:

• Windows NT 4.0; Windows 95