Seagate Technology Inc’s Seagate Software has begun work on an on-line analytical processing-enabled version of its Crystal Info line of reporting software, merging the Holos technology it got when it bought Holistic Systems Ltd in June (CI No 2,938) with its market-leading Crystal product. The new version of Crystal, being developed under the code name BlackWidow and tentatively scheduled to reach market in the third quarter of next year, is going to use the Holos analytical processing engine. BlackWidow is intended to build, schedule, query and analyse data in Holos- style data cubes, turning out reports based on the information stored in the cubes. The current versions of Crystal access, analyse and schedule pre-created and ad hoc reports based on data extracted from SQL and desktop databases. The plan is to market BlackWidow through both the current Seagate Software Information Management Group distribution channels and via the direct sales organization Seagate inherited when it bought Holistic. Prices are not yet set. Separately, Seagate said last week that it has built a cut-down version of Crystal Reports 4.5 that will ship with Microsoft Corp’s forthcoming Internet Information Server 3.0, due out by the end of this month. The new version will provide Information Server users with ad hoc Web log analysis and let Web applications developers publish Microsoft SQL Server and Access database information to Hypertext Mark-up Language format. The combined Information Server and Crystal package will ship with a half-dozen pre-designed Web log analysis reports, plus a copy of Crystal Report Designer for users to add reports of their own design. Crystal hopes the bundled version will induce users to upgrade to Crystal Info, at $350 per user in five-user packs, so that they can then also access any other SQL, ODBC Open DataBase Connectivity or personal computer data sources.
