DataX/Florin

History

1992: Foundation of the company in Moscow

The DataX/FLORIN company is founded in 1992 in To Moscow as closed joint stock company. It is obliged by the emergence to small group of creators of the FLORIN project - a biological information system based on DBMS INFORMIX for work of specialists in the field of botany, scientific and commercial crop production. The CEO of the company- Serebryany Mikhail Maksovich.

In 1993 the company received the status of the VAR partner of the American company Informix Software, and afterwards - Strategic VAR with additional privileges. In 1997 DataX/FLORIN receives the status of the distributor of INFORMIX company (after IBM Software).

In 1993-94 in the company the strong group of system programmers and engineers was created that allowed to start accomplishment of large contracts, to create technical support service, to organize production and sale of own drawing software products.

In 1994, the DataX/FLORIN company started mastering of the modern open CASE tools supporting a full stroke of development of information systems. In January, 1994 DataX/FLORIN received the status of the sole distributor of Westmount Technology company. In the years ahead the company worked with companies Cadre Technologies, Cayenne Software, Sterling Software, Computer Associates which consistently owned the rights to the technology developed by specialists of Westmount Technology and which was the cornerstone of the products I-CASE and ObjectTeam. Later the CASE tools belonging now to Telelogic company are the best in the market and have the most full range of means for development of information systems.

Acquisition of experience of technical solutions was of great importance for the organization of multi-user work in the heterogeneous environment where it is necessary to support interaction of different platforms. Since September, 1994 DataX/FLORIN - the distributor of Network Computing Devices company, leading manufacturer of X-terminals, emulators of X-terminals and other network software products. In August, 1997 DataX/FLORIN is awarded the status Diamond Partner from NCD company.

Since November, 1994 DataX/FLORIN - the distributor of FTP Software company (nowadays NetManage) developing the network software.

In 1994 in the Authorized DataX/FLORIN training center training courses on the main disciplines - CASE tools, UNIX OS, administration of DBMS, development tools of applications were delivered. Afterwards students of both the commercial, and state organizations studied at these rates. Since 1994, DataX/FLORIN - the permanent participant professional international computer exhibitions in Moscow: UNIX EXPO, Comptek, Internet/Intranet.

In 1995, during the course of performance the FLORIN/Office project, in the company the new direction of works connected with the solution of relevant problems of practical application of CASE technologies forms. Afterwards it developed into the GRINDERY project and gave rise to technologies of end-to-end design - to one of key activities of the company. Since June, 1995 DataX/FLORIN becomes the distributor of ILOG company - producer of object-oriented work benches of programming. Later the company establishes the exclusive distributor relations with SuperNova Inc company. (earlier - Four Seasons Software), the producer of development tools of distributed transferable applications.

From the first days of the basis the company selected as the priority direction use of UNIX OS as the platform for different corporate solutions. Since May, 1995 DataX/FLORIN - the distributor of company The Santa Cruz Operation, Inc. (nowadays SCO Group), the developing UNIX OS for Intel platforms and which is also offering corporate solution Linux.

1996

In 1996 own FloX X-terminal is developed. In the same time the first samples of servers on the Digital Alpha platform which received afterwards the Lithops trademark gather.

Since 1996, in the company works on Intranet/Internet-solutions are developed. At the first international Intranet/Internet-technologies exhibition which was taking place in Moscow in November, 1996, the company shows the solutions for work with databases in the environment of Intranet/Internet and the first version of the FLORIN/Album software product.

Since June, 1996 DataX/FLORIN - the distributor of DPT company, SCSI/RAID controllers producer.

Agreement with Silicon Graphics on use of the DataX/Florin program-kirillizatora by it

On September 18, 1996 DataX/Florin announced agreement signature with Silicon Graphics company according to which the Cyrillic Support Manager (CSM) program-kirillizator developed by DataX/Florin will join in a set of the standard software supplied together with Silicon Graphics equipment to our market. Earlier similar agreements were signed with such suppliers of a computer hardware as HP, Sun Microsystems, Digital Equipment^[1].

CSM represents the mnogoplatformny complex kirillizator functioning with the main OS of Unix. This program maintains all most widespread codings of Russian (alternative 866 DOS, Windows 1251, ISO8859-5, KOI-8) and several keyboard layout patterns. Dynamic change of installations (for example, coding, loading of fonts, etc.) without interruption of the user session is provided. CSM allows to enter and display the Russian letters in the graphical environment X Window System and on any printers, both network, and directly connected to Unix machine.

Mr. Melikhov, the associate director of DataX/Florin, reported that the firm works on creation of version 5.0 which as it is planned, will go on sale at the end of 1996.

In 1996-97 DataX/FLORIN executes several large custom projects and during these developments there are new versions of tools of the GRINDERY family and also ways to use ready CASE tools within technology of end-to-end design are improved.

1997

Since August, 1997 DataX/FLORIN - the distributor of Digi International company, producer of the communication equipment.

In 1997, during the course of performance developments of a management information system for mining and processing works, in DataX/FLORIN the new direction of works - the dispatching systems constructed using FLORIN/Vidi and Vidi RealTime technologies is created.

In 1997-98 DataX/FLORIN expands a scope of technologies of end-to-end design due to improvement of the GRINDERY tools and emergence of essentially new GRINDERY Grabber software product and also due to expansion of target programming languages.

Since 1997 the company actively develops three main directions:

• design and development of multi-user information systems;
• dispatching offices and navigation systems of real time;
• Internet technologies.

Within the first direction the company projects and develops multi-user information systems for the large trading companies (Russia Reebok, NTM-service, MTPK of Mosregiontorg, Snezhnaya Koroleva Trading House) and the state enterprises (UGP "Goszagransobstvennost", NFZhR). During creation of information systems the company uses the developed technology approaches (technology of end-to-end design) which are constantly improved.

Within the second direction the company projects and develops navigation and dispatching real-time systems based on the developed DataX/FLORIN of technology and the Vidi RealTime component. For the solution of optimization transport tasks a system turns on electronic cards, the including address databases of data and the scheme of the organization of traffic. The server software is developed for integration into the system of means of wireless data transmission and an aircraft equipment. The solutions providing use of the digital systems of a technology radio communication for traffic control of objects on the basis of data transmission and voice intelligences are developed. The dispatching systems were developed and underwent approbation on the Moscow ambulance, on Mikhailovsky GOK, works with Ministry of Railways of the Russian Federation are continued.

The de facto company becomes the leader of the domestic market in the field of Web of technology of the increased responsibility and the maximum security requirements. The company developed cores of several trade payment systems on the Internet (Cashew, Rapida, payment systems of Menatep SPb bank).

1999: IBM begins to sell a product of Grindery Grabber company

In February, 1999 the company received the status of IBM as the authorized independent software developer. The attention of IBM was drawn by Grindery Grabber - the product DataX/Florin - instrumental means for developers and the system integrators working on big and average projects and also for specialists of the IT departments which are engaged in service of large information systems and databases.

Grindery Grabber represents technology software of intermediate level, intended for reengineering of databases, their visualization in the form of different data models, transfer of bases from one DBMS in another and automatic generation of applications in the Informix-4GL, NewEra and SuperNova languages. The possibility of use of this product together with different CASE means is provided.

Grindery Grabber in Russia is not really known. For the beginning of 1999 about 70 licenses for this product, from them about two thirds - to foreign customers are sold. Mikhail Serebryany, the CEO of DataX/Florin, considers that it is quite natural as the western market is more ready to perception of this quite "heavy" product, than domestic. It is remarkable that the lion share (about 20) licenses sold within the country belongs to the Central Bank of the Russian Federation. From big customers also the Menatep bank^[2] was called].

Sergey Bugrin, the head of marketing and sale of IBM in countries of Eastern Europe, said that the corporation intends to advance Grindery Grabber together with DB2 DBMS and instrumental circles of the VisualAge family. According to the agreement signed on February 22, 1999, IBM will sell Grindery Grabber in our country and also abroad. Thus IBM hopes to provide to developers more complete gamma of products for work with DB2 and to strengthen the market position of industrial DBMS not only in Russia, but also beyond its limits.

For DataX/Florin the new agreement also promises much. Earlier this company was not able to afford to work with a great number of small customers. Now care of broader promotion of Grindery Grabber will be undertaken by IBM. However, to stimulate new "dealer" on more active actions, DataX/Florin should be strengthened considerably in the product support of technologies of IBM, in particular DB2 and VisualAge and also implemented by IBM of "dialects" of programming languages C ++, Smalltalk and Java. By February, 1999 support of the DB2 Universal Database database server is in full implemented. In the next version of Grindery Grabber 3.0 which release is planned for summer of this year also integration with VisualAge will appear. By the way, also the first clients with whom IBM and DataX/Florin will work jointly thanks to Grindery Grabber are already known is a British Petroleum company and the ZIL plant. Perhaps, soon the Orlenok hotel complex also will join them.

2000

According to in 2000 media, DataX/FLORIN was better known as integrator, but also program developments it are very interesting two-three years ago^[3].

Software development for VNIINS and the MSVS platform

A few years ago became interested in DataX/FLORIN company in works which are conducted in VNIINS as those developments which were already available by this time in DataX/FLORIN could be postponed rather without serious consequences and for the platform "Mobile System of Armed Forces" (MSAF). DataX/FLORIN had contacts with VNIINS — they delivered in WinFrame institute of software for access to Windows NT. The institute showed interest in solutions of DataX/FLORIN, and works on creation of a convenient environment for work under MSAF began.

As for office applications, the customer proceeded from the principle: on a desktop there has to be all that any user of Windows has. DataX/FLORIN developed for them the text editor and the tabular editor, but their functionality, of course, was poorer, than at Word and Excel. But the main appointment of "office", unlike usual to us MS Office — office suites is work benches of rapid application development on Tcl, including code generation of the applications interacting with Linter-VS DBMS. On test stands the operability of "office" was shown, and it was transferred in source codes in VNIINS. Now VNIINS is the owner of this program and can use it in the projects or projects of the customers.

Developments for public market of Linux

Grindery Grabber

Unlike "office", Grindery Grabber, FloX and Vidi RealTime — commercial products of DataX/FLORIN. As Grindery Grabber is a cross-platform development tool, on the one hand, Linux can be used as the platform of development, and to generate the code under any other platform, and on the other hand — Grindery Grabber, working at other platform, can generate the code for Linux. Grindery Grabber on functionality approximately corresponds to a product line of Embarcadero company.

Grindery Grabber under Linux is actively used by DataX/FLORIN in the projects focused on available funds of development, and such projects a little and among them there is a project in about tens of thousands of jobs. In this huge Grindery Grabber project will generate the Tcl/Tk code.

Vidi RealTime

One of large projects of DataX/FLORIN uses Vidi RealTime. Actually it is GIS plus a dispatching system. Her heart — the middleware Data manager who integrates the application software of a client part, the interface of the database, software of work with communication channels (including GPS controllers). He monitors that in memory of the server the difficult complete picture which elements in the form of fragments of cards, objects attributes were available from jobs formed. All this is called Vidi RealTime and works under Linux.

FloX X-terminal

FloX is one of sales of the X-terminal. Now DataX/FLORIN uses it practically in all the projects under Linux. FloX exists as a hardware and software system and as purely program. Both in that and in other case the computer is loaded on network and further ICA works as the X-terminal or Windows terminal as supports, except X11 protocol, also. (If MetaFrame over Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server Edition is used, communication happens on ICA, but it is possible to set on the server also WinCenter PRO, and then the terminal will communicate on "native" X11). If in network Linux works, FloX loads a kernel of this OS and application, ensuring functioning of the X-terminal. Distinguishes it from other X-terminals the fact that he mounts disk resources on network including Swap. Therefore FloX can be put on old machines with a small amount of memory. Architecture at FloX? and modular, and in principle to it all the same what to load on network. Therefore FloX can serve as the platform for the networked PC.

FloX is an inexpensive product: the license costs, depending on sales terms, from tens to one and a half hundred dollars. In comparison with commercial western terminals it is cheaper several times. If to take hardware implementation, then in the NCD H-terminal only one "box" without monitor costs 850-950 dollars.

According to preliminary data, DataX/FLORIN in 2000 has the most large-scale projects constructed on Linux. In one of them which is at a stage of preproject preparation there will be tens of thousands of jobs.

Notes