ExoLogic Announces Full, Public-Release of CubePort™,
The OLAP Porting Application
CubePort, now available via web
download, may be used by the general public with a simple registration process
and a pay-to-play model for production usage; a cost-free demo mode is also
integrated into the application.
CubePort is the wizard-based application that migrates
Hyperion Essbase cubes to the Microsoft SQL Server
Analysis Services product. In beta since
June 2004, and in full release since February 2005, it represents best-of-breed
portability in the OLAP space. With this
latest version, v.1.24, available immediately, is the most significantly
improved CubePort to date, the marketplace's first
OLAP/data mart porting stand-alone application.
Its patent-pending formula and report parser, ETL transparency process,
and other embedded technology, and consistent application of best-practices clearly
differentiates it from competition, which to date has been merely ad hoc.
Dr. Kenneth Kipers, a
recently branded member of the strategy team, adds, "CubePort
now offers such a thorough and exacting migration that having it run with the
assistance of a consultant has become somewhat of an afterthought, though it
still can be helpful. Using this
application or not is the difference between taking a few short days per cube
versus a few strenuous weeks or even months per cube to achieve the
conversion".
Automated Data Mart Porting:
Mr. Thomas Fimiani, one of the software architects and
principals at ExoLogic, summarizes the benefit of the technology, "Up to
now, portability in the Business Intelligence (BI)/OLAP space has been generally
immature and unavailable, unlike that of the relational space counterpart. At present, the hurdle is so high with moving
from one OLAP/BI product to another, that unless there's a bridge to recoup a
large amount of their investment (heavy embedded business logic and embedded
ETL, and the like), product-to-product transitions rarely happen. This is
primarily because of intimidating timeframes, expense, and surrounding logistical
issues when conversion is attempted on a manual basis. “
“CubePort aims to remove migration
impediments in the BI-space, that is, nearly
completely avoiding the extreme cost in moving entire servers of Essbase cubes and related staff knowledge over to another
product line. Clients invested into Essbase who do not expect a full-loss with respect to the
consulting dollars or internal resources spent on their current system, which
in most cases is very significant, need this kind of automated portability. This makes possible the ability to take full advantage
of Microsoft’s excellent cutting-edge and attractively-priced technology in
their Analysis Services product, and similarly, the wealth of quality,
third-party presentation products such as ProClarity
and Panorama”, says Mr. Fimiani.
Full Press
Release: http://www.exologic.com/PressReleases/2005June.htm
Mr. Fimiani adds, "Consider this
straightforward analogy: we liken the current state of BI portability to the
state of cell phone number portability before the recently added ability of a
customer to retain their current number.
Without this new ability, the costs of changing your cell phone number
and plan might be: the re-printing of business cards and other materials,
updating of web sites, and updating others' contact information, and more. This represents for most a significant
‘shrouded’ hurdle to moving from one cell phone plan to another, yet the
transition costs may very well outweigh any advantage of going to the new cell
plan, despite how desirable the plan may be. “
Skills Transition:
A member of the ExoLogic System Integration Team
states, "During some recent implementations, especially surprising to us as
a team was the speed in which CubePort helps the
customers’ BI development staff become skilled in the Microsoft BI product
suite, and surprising to them is how much their skills in their current OLAP
product can effectively translate to the MS suite. This knowledge transition is achieved partly
through intuitive comment and description mapping, a well-designed custom-built
equivalency MDX library, and other techniques.
To be sure, understanding that the object migration will get a customer
most of the way, the investment they’ve made into their people is also an often
underestimated issue. We address that
concern head-on".
Meeting New Demand:
Mr. Fimiani adds thoughts regarding consulting
companies and vendors, stating, “This product also helps software vendors and
consulting organizations capitalize on pent-up demand for newer OLAP/data mart
options, and the very obvious market shift in the recent few years towards the
MS BI suite of software, as well as the trend away from more pricey, and
generally less-standardized niche offerings.
Industry experts at OLAPReport.com (see:
http://olapreport.com/market.htm) have done a solid job in analyzing and
interpreting the market trends. We’re
seeing the same strong trends, even if more anecdotally. Moreover, speaking to the richness of the
third–party offerings as alluded to in earlier comments, continued product and
pricing innovation and related offerings on the MS BI client-side will further encourage
the demand”.
Pricing and Licensing Information:
Dr. Kipers describes the licensing
model, “The licensing model for the CubePort software,
best summed up as ‘pay-to-play’, avoids a large up-front server cost as
customers can buy on a per-cube basis.
Also, once the initial conversion of a cube has been made, subsequent
conversions of that cube may occur at no additional cost with relatively minor
changes to the original. This presents a
particular logistical advantage to the customer as they may effectively use the
original as a temporary staging area. As
a consequence, this is another way in which the learning curve is widened for
staff to become efficient and comfortable in the Analysis Services product.”
Partnership and Certification Programs:
The company seeks to further enhance its
partnerships with front-end software vendors, US-based and international-based consulting
companies, individual consultants, and ISVs who may wish to co-market ExoLogic
products with their own service and product offerings. ExoLogic also offers a CubePort Certification Program to train consultants and
internal IT staff.
About ExoLogic Corporation:
ExoLogic is a supplier of business intelligence
software for the enterprise, excelling in the BI and OLAP product porting
space. CubePort™,
its flagship product, offers a fractional-cost method of moving away from
Hyperion Essbase to Microsoft Analysis Services. A Microsoft partner, recognized ISV, and
vendor to the world's largest software company and various consulting companies,
ExoLogic is a leading supplier of solutions to organizations wanting to get the
most out their existing software and taking advantage of emerging software
products in the marketplace. ExoLogic
Corporation is a privately-held organization located in
Press release assembled and interviews by web
magazine Melroze.com, the monthly business, technology, entertainment and
lifestyle web magazine. http://www.melroze.com
Partnership and
Certification Contact:
Dr. Kenneth Kipers
tel (US): 972.764.5345
web: www.exologic.com
email: kipers@exologic.com
Product Contact:
Mr. Thomas Fimiani
tel (US): 972.764.2745
web: www.exologic.com
email: fimiani@exologic.com
ExoLogic Corporation
Suite #600
Addison (
tel (US): 972.764.5345
web: www.exologic.com
email: info@exologic.com
# # #
PRWeb Number: 255846