Mountain View, California based company Make Systems Inc has announced a new line of network decision applications for enterprise networks. NetMaker XA, eXtensible Architecture, is made up of an applications framework, task-specific tools, and tool-specific ‘Plug-ins’ to extend the functionality of the tools. The framework comprises a bundled Motif desktop environment from the IXI Ltd unit of Santa Cruz, California-headquartered Santa Cruz Operation Inc, and an object-oriented database based on Burlington, Massachusetts-based Object Design Inc’s ObjectStore, which serves as an application development system for new tools and Plug-ins, says the company. According to Make, it is a client-server-configured system that enables multiple authorised clients running X-server on any display device to access the system database server. NetMaker XA features an initial range of six data management and modelling tools. For the decision applications side, the company has built Visualiser which is a graphical data interpretation tool for managing network data. Interpreter is a traffic interpretation tool for analysing local network-wide area network communications and Accountant is a financial modelling and accounting tool for collating and allocating network costs. For engineering tools, the range features Planner, a device-specific simulation tool for engineering network changes; Analyser, a modular problem identifier for proactive trouble-shooting; and Designer, an adaptive network designer for optimising enterprise networks. Each of the tools’ functionality can be extended and specialised by using ‘Plug-ins’. Plug-in formats will be published by Make for use by third-party developers. The first of these comprise Simple Network Management Protocolr Discovery Plug-ins for Visualiser; Probe product interface Plug-Ins for Interpreter; a Router Device Library Pack Plug-in for Planner, to enable capacity planning for networks with Cisco Systems Inc, Wellfleet Communications Inc or other multi-protocol SNMP-based routers; and a Network Equipment Technologies Inc IDNX Device Library Plug-in, which customises XA tools for Redwood, California-based Network Equipment’s IDNX products. NetMaker XA tools will cost $8,000 each for the Visualiser and Interpreter, $11,000 each for the Accountant and Analyser, and $17,000 for Planner and Designer. Plug-in prices start from $4,000, with the Router Device Library Pack listing costing $6,000; the Network Equipment Technologies Plug-in will list for $9,000. All tools are available now, except for the Designer, which will ship in the fourth quarter. The system requires a Sun Microsystems Inc Sparcstation 10/40 file server running SunOS 4.1.2. And Make also announced that it is to convert its NetMaker XA line to run on the IBM Corp RS/6000. The company says the NetMaker XA line will be ready any day now.
