Mac OS X Gains Reporting

Sybase Inc. is bringing graphical reporting capabilities to the Mac OS X platform, announcing last week that it has integrated Quadbase Systems Inc.s graphic reporting software with its Adaptive Server Enterprise database.

EspressReport 3.0.2 is a Java reporting tool that takes real-time data across any platform and turns it into reports on such things as Web site click-through rates or customer demographics.

Sybases push into enterprise-level reporting capabilities for Mac OS X is the latest move to make the platform enterprise-class, according to Steve Bertges, vice president of Macintosh business for Sybase, in Dublin, Calif. The first move came when Sybase rolled out ASE 12.5 for Mac OS X last fall. Sybase is intent on the Mac OS market because the computational power of Apple Computer Inc.s G3 and G4 chips lends them to use in clusters or large workgroups, Bertges said.

K.R. Prasad, president of PowerEasy Corp., in San Jose, Calif., said the real-time reports provided by EspressReport are critical to an effective ERP (enterprise resource planning) system. PowerEasy is developing two software packages, PowerEasy ERP and eCommerce, for Mac OS X. The company opted to use Quadbases reporting software because it is easy and cost-effective, Prasad said—a big boon to the small businesses to which PowerEasy caters. “Cost is an important factor to them,” he said.