Thanks to the growth of the Internet as a means for conducting electronic commerce, there is a growing demand for an inexpensive and simple Internet database solution. Currently only 12% of the 30 million Internet surfers are actually purchasing products through the Internet, but over 80% of this sky rocketing market is using the World Wide Web (WWW) to research and collect information. For small businesses that want to tap into this 30 million customer base on the Internet super highway, R:WEB is the simplest and least expensive option available for Internet commerce.
What is R:WEB?
R:WEB gives businesses a simple and inexpensive Internet database solution with the backend power of R:BASE. R:WEB directly connects their WWW home page and their database management system for Internet business. With R:WEB, a business can collect, process and provide real-time or "live" data globally to Internet customers using a single database solution-no more static information through complicated and expensive programs.
With R:BASE and R:WEB, all the business user needs to know is what information he/she wants to display and collect from customers and then let R:WEB do the work-no complicated programming is necessary. R:WEB provides a fast and easy way to design an Internet database solution without having to learn, or pay for, complicated and tedious programming.
To use R:WEB, users simply create R:WEB-compatible databases and forms using R:BASE 5.5 for Windows-which is included for free in the R:WEB package as a point-and-click database and forms design tool. Install R:WEB, the R:BASE forms, and the associated database on the Web Server and R:WEB does the rest!
The R:WEB database application can include R:BASE forms for querying, viewing, editing and entering data directly from the Internet. Internet customers can browse through real-time data such as inventory quantities, enter their own information, and easily request information directly from an R:BASE or ODBC-compliant database through a company's WWW home page.
When an Internet user surfs by a company's WWW home page and chooses an R:WEB-based Web page, R:WEB generates a connection to the associated database and forms residing on the Web server, displays the form as a Web page to the Web browser, and dynamically translates real-time information between the R:BASE database application and the Web page viewed by the Internet customer.
New Approach to Web Development
Microrim's Internet database solution was created as a true database solution for Internet commerce. After researching the market, we were unable to find anyone that provides such a simple and inexpensive database software solution with the backend power of a relational database, like R:BASE.
R:WEB does not require programming knowledge like other Internet database solutions on the market today. Other software solutions require programming in a language such as Perl, C++, Visual Basic (VB), Hyper text Markup Language (HTML) or Common Gateway Interface (CGI) scripts, which means either spending time learning one of these languages or spending money hiring someone to do the programming. These lengthy and cumbersome programmed solutions tend to be error-prone, frustrating, and tend to require more time and effort to develop, enhance, and maintain.
New Approach to Web Development (cont)
Instead, with R:WEB, a business can create dynamic database applications with an easy to use graphical development environment. With R:WEB, developing an Internet database application is faster, easier, more robust and more flexible than first or second generation, code-intensive tools:
Simplicity. R:BASE 5.5 has end-user design tools that simplify the process and dramatically speed up the development time of applications because there is no programming required.
Power. R:WEB applications are also very powerful and robust because R:WEB uses the R:BASE fourth-generation language (4GL) with embedded SQL for data management and manipulation. Even power-users have access to the database functionality they need to further customize R:WEB applications.
Flexibility. R:WEB applications are very flexible and easy to maintain and update with the easy to use graphical design tool set. If users need to change the wording in the form's title or add another column, they simply open the form in R:BASE, place the new object or update it, save it and R:WEB does the rest-no need to edit or re-compile complicated source code.
Live data. R:WEB dynamically supports and interprets up-to-date information between the database and the customer-no more time is wasted trying to update and maintain static or out-of-date information.
Affordable. R:WEB is affordably priced at $995, which is a fraction of the cost of competing products, and includes a free copy of R:BASE 5.5 for Windows as a development tool. Users simply won't find a better all-around value than R:WEB.
Market and Product Backgrounder
"The number of people using the Internet is doubling every year", according to John S. Quarterman, Editor, Matrix News, at mids@tic.com. If this growth rate continues, "by the year 2003 everyone on the planet will be connected to the Internet." There is no reason to believe growth will continue at this rate, but it could easily be sustained for the next couple of years.
As of October 1995, there is an estimated 30 million people using the Internet. These people are using the Internet to collect information, for entertainment purposes and even 12% are now purchasing products and services.
There are over 135,000 domain names registered with InterNic as of October 1995, which means there are around 50,000 potential organizations providing information, entertainment, products and services to Internet customers today. If the Internet keeps on growing at rates even close to those projected, more and more companies will have to provide a way to offer their products and services through the Internet. Medium to small businesses are going to demand an easier, faster, less expensive way for developing Internet database applications capable of processing data directly from the WWW.
Internet Commerce Today
The Internet has become the fastest growing information delivery vehicle. Companies are currently using the WWW for uses such as customer support, advertising, electronic shopping, and online publishing. Here's an example of how a typical company we interviewed is currently collecting and processing customer orders and requests from the WWW:
When an Internet user visits this company's Internet home page and wants to request information or order products online, the user enters his/her name and information into a provided Web page. Behind the scenes, this Web page is an HTML-document that's connected to complicated Perl or CGI scripts. Once the customer submits the completed Web page back to the company's Web Server, the connected Perl scripts convert the information into text and send it back to the company as an electronic mail message. To process the information, the company then must open the mail message and pick out the customer's information from the text file and have someone manually re-enter the data into the company's enterprise database application for data processing.
The process is expensive to set-up and maintain, and costs the company response time and resources by manually re-entering the data for processing.
The R:WEB Solution
R:WEB gives the company in the situation described above a less expensive and time-saving option. Just think, if the company listed above used R:WEB, the Internet customer could enter their information and submit their order directly into the company's enterprise database application and the order could be processed immediately, with no lag time or manual data processing required.
To use R:WEB, users simply create R:WEB-compatible forms using R:BASE version 5.5, save the forms and run them on the Web Server using R:WEB and the associated database. R:WEB-compatible forms can be associated with any R:BASE database or ODBC-compliant database without the need to make any changes to the data structure.
To use R:WEB forms in your WWW home page, all you do is install a copy of R:WEB, your new collection of R:WEB forms and the associated database referenced by those forms onto the Web Server where your home page resides and you're done. R:WEB does the rest for you!
R:WEB converts and saves R:BASE 5.5 forms as R:WEB forms and displays the forms as Web pages on the WWW. R:WEB dynamically interprets and supports real-time information between the database and the Internet HTML form displayed on the end-user's Web browser.
The R:WEB Solution (cont.)
Real Time Information over the Internet
R:WEB lives on the Web server and dynamically interprets real-time data between an R:BASE database and the Internet HTML form it generates and displays on the end-user's Web browser.
True Internet Database Solution for Conducting Business on the World Wide Web
R:WEB-compatible R:BASE forms can be designed for querying, viewing, editing and entering data between your database or business application and your Internet business home page. Internet customers can browse through real-time data such as inventory quantities, enter their own shipping and billing information, and easily request information directly from an R:BASE or ODBC-compliant database connected through your Internet business home page.
Powerful Database Design Tool Set
R:BASE 5.5 and R:WEB provide a time-tested, powerful fourth generation (4GL) programming language with embedded SQL, and all the graphical interface design tools needed to design a truly powerful Internet database solution.
R:WEB-compatible forms created in R:BASE 5.5 can use the following sub-set of objects available in the R:BASE 5.5 Form Designer: column fields, variable fields, text objects, page titles, custom push buttons, images, horizontal lines, non-editable combo boxes, check boxes, radio buttons, field passwords, hyperlinks to other HTML documents, and background wallpaper.
Backend Power of R:BASE
As the sophistication and complexity of Web applications increase, a direct connection to a Relational Database Management System (RDBMS) like R:BASE will be essential. Any complex search engine requirements or online order processing will require the power and flexibility provided by direct relational database connectivity. All of the information a business wants to have immediately accessible to customers or employees can be without any change to the structure or format of your existing relational database. R:WEB and R:BASE give businesses increased speed of inquiries, ability to store gigabytes of data, use of complex data types, and the flexibility of queries within their WWW applications.
Ease of Use
R:BASE 5.5 provides an easy graphical user interface to help step companies through the process of creating R:WEB-compatible forms. R:WEB provides samples and online documentation to help users learn how to generate R:WEB-compatible forms. Basic telephone technical support is also available for FREE to R:BASE 5.5 and R:WEB registered users.
Application Security
With R:BASE's data integrity rules, constraints and password security, companies have complete control of what information an Internet user can or cannot access at the database level.
R:WEB is an inexpensive Internet database solution that is simple to implement and maintain for small to medium sized businesses. There are other products available that can provide a similar solution, but those packages that were competitive to R:WEB were too expensive, more time-consuming, and too complicated for small to medium sized businesses to invest in.
R:WEB Customer
R:WEB is a mandatory tool for companies who want to conduct business on the Internet. Virtually every type of business can benefit by using R:WEB to streamline their operations online:
Organizations (medium to small) that are looking for a relatively simple and inexpensive solution for connecting their ODBC-compliant database applications and their WWW home page for real-time data processing.
Organizations that currently use R:BASE business applications and want to enhance those applications to collect and process data directly from their WWW home page on the Internet.
Microrim R:BASE VARs who want to enhance their products and their client's applications to run across the WWW.
Organizations that are just getting started and need a complete solution for creating an Internet database application, and may not currently have a database processing system setup can use R:WEB with R:BASE.
R:WEB Real-Life Uses
A business could use R:WEB applications to perform order processing and tracking, catalog lookups, ad hoc queries, subscriber registration, event selection, and other data driven applications. You can use R:WEB to provide the information you need to those who need it, immediately, with no lag time. R:WEB can be used for all kinds of essential business application such as the following:
Ordering products and services online over the Internet
Registering event participants
Providing inventory quantities to vendors
Searching catalog and directory listings
Using the Internet as an enterprise wide network or wide area network for Internal use using R:WEB and the WWW
Doing market research surveys and receiving quick customer feedback
Providing online technical support
Tracking numbers for shipping
Servicing a wide variety of information publishing applications
R:WEB Competition
Microrim believes that R:WEB has something significant and unique to offer the Internet community, particularly with the power of a proven RDBMS like R:BASE. R:WEB is an inexpensive Internet database solution that is simple to implement and maintain for small to medium sized businesses. There are other products available that can provide a similar solution, but those packages that are competitive to R:WEB are too expensive, more time-consuming, and too complicated for small to medium sized businesses to invest in. R:WEB also is unique in that it provides a complete database solution in the package, the majority of the other tools available do not provide a native relational database engine like R:WEB does with R:BASE.
Based on information printed in major publications such as DataBased Advisor Magazine and InfoWorld and information collected from the WWW, there are a number of different companies working on Internet tools for their products, including the big guys like IBM, Lotus, Microsoft, Novell and Oracle.
DB2 WWW Connection is a product announced by IBM that gives a DB2 customer the ability to develop a standard HTML connection to DB2 data. You have to use your current HTML editor and SQL query tool with this connection capability to program access to a DB2 data. Pricing was undetermined when this document was last edited. To use this solution you would have to invest in an HTML editor and learn HTML.
Lotus' SmartSuite will continue to add Internet Web features. Among those Web features will be a Save As HTML option for Freelance presentations and Internet connectivity for Approach databases. Lotus plans to deliver a custom-built internally developed WWW browser for Notes' clients, and has recently released a product known as InterNotes Web Publisher which works with Notes to translate Notes documents into a series of Web pages (or HTML). InterNotes is available for an estimated price of $6,589. Notes is not a database package and should not be compared to the power or functionality available in a true relational database management system, like R:BASE.
R:WEB Competition (cont.)
Internet Assistant, published by Microsoft Corp., is a free add-on to Microsoft Word that turns the application into an HTML editor as well as a fully functional Web browser. Other Microsoft Office applications will include Internet connectivity in the future, but for now Internet Assistant is their only such product, and it's exclusively for Microsoft Word, a word processor not a database.
Internet Publisher is published by Novell and offers a free HTML editor add-on to Word Perfect for Windows, though the product doesn't yet offer browsing capabilities. This product is strictly a tool for publishing Word Perfect documents.
Oracle WebSystem is an Oracle solution available for $4,995. It includes a Web server and client products that enable the development of Web-based client/server applications that could be integrated into existing Oracle databases. Oracle may provide similar solutions as R:WEB, but they are extremely expensive and require an Oracle consultant to program and customize these heavy-duty and expensive database solutions.
Informix, Progress and Sybase currently are only providing Unix-based solutions that experienced Sybase, Progress, or Informix developers can use. They and their developers are providing tools or libraries for building SQL, C or 4GL programs that will work through the common gateway interface (CGI). These solutions require complicated programming, customization, and the separate purchase of expensive database products to accomplish what R:WEB can provide for under $1,000.
Speedware Autobaun is published by Speedware and requires extensive knowledge of VB, C or COBOL programming. It is a custom control that can be plugged into a programmed solution using VB, C or COBOL. The cost of the product is approximately $680 per user license, which adds up quickly. This product is not a comparable solution to R:WEB because it requires complicated programming with many different tools and does not provide the functionality of a powerful RDBMS like R:WEB provides in the base package.
SoftQuad Panorama PRO costs $139 and is published by SoftQuad and Synex as a companion product to Mosaic. This product is strictly a front-end tool for publishing Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML)-which is a step above HTML. SoftQuad Panorama PRO allows publishers to make available longer and more complex documents than are currently available on the Web, so it is an extension for editing HTML code and requires programming in HTML or CGI scripts to accomplish only a part of what R:WEB can do.
Folio's Infobase Web Server costs $6,995 and converts Folio Views Infobase data to HTML. Folio Views Infobase data is Unix-based and requires complicated programming to accomplish the same tasks can be done in R:BASE and R:WEB.
Tango CGI & Editor is published by Everyware. It requires the understanding of CGI scripts. Tango requires Butler SQL (relational database client/server package for Macintoshes) to supply the database engine for applications and is strictly for the PowerMac or Macintosh-based server software market. Tango is simply SQL extensions to CGI and does not include ODBC connectivity to other database formats, it only works with Butler SQL. This product should not be considered competition for R:WEB. Tango is included for free in with Butler SQL which is limited by concurrent user licenses and the price ranges between $495 for 2-users and $2,295 for unlimited users.
WebDBC is published by Nomad Development Corp. It is a front-end development tool which is a CGI-compliant gateway program enabling the creation of links between the Web and an ODBC-compatible database. WebDBC uses an extended HTML marker set similar to that found in word processing software, allowing for mailmerge operations. To make direct requests of the database, it requires Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) to be created with CGI scripts to pass along information to WebDBC, which is still a non-dynamic or static exchange of data. To provide dynamic data exchange like R:WEB does, you would have to develop a form using HTML. Unlike R:WEB it doesn't provide a backend database engine, but does provide ODBC connectivity to backend databases. This product could be a partial solution if a lot of additional programming along with this front-end tool, but it does not come close to what R:WEB provides. WebDBC costs $395 for a single-user package and $995 for an unlimited user package.
Cold Fusion is published by Allaire and also requires programming in HTML or CGI scripts to create a partial solution. It does have ODBC connectivity to other ODBC databases, but Cold Fusion is not a database product. It is strictly another front-end development tool and can be purchased for $495.
R:WEB Competition (cont.)
dbWeb is published by Aspect Software Engineering for Windows NT Web Servers and costs $495. It does provide the ability to setup forms for hyper-text style navigation inside any ODBC data source without having to program in HTML or CGI. So it is
comparable to R:WEB in that it provides a graphical development environment that doesn't require programming. dbWeb's downfall is that it doesn't have its own programming language, it is dependent upon an ODBC SQL backend database to build
the database schema before it can even begin to build forms. It doesn't provide the backend power of a relational database like R:WEB does with R:BASE.
WebBuilder is published by VPE, Inc. It is a front-end development tool for building forms-based HTML applications, and requires complicated programming. WebBuilder does provide database access to most mainframe-level relational databases. It is priced at $2,500.
Spider is published by Spider Technologies Inc. and starts at $5,000 for a five-user license. Spider is a visual development environment for Unix that reduces the time required to build a Web database solution. It does provide a drag-and-drop graphical design environment like R:WEB, but it is just the front-end development tool. Spider does not provide the backend power of a relational database engine in the base package and it is five times more expensive for just the front-end development of a Web database solution.
The key to R:WEB is that is one of the least expensive and simplest solutions on the market, yet provides the same power and flexibility that the more expensive and complicated solutions can provide.
Compatibility and System Requirements
The first release of R:WEB is designed to run on an Intel-based Windows NT Server running HTTP 1.0 compatible Web server software. It is compatible with any HTML 2.0 compatible WEB browser software.
R:WEB requires R:BASE version 5.5 (included in the package) for forms and database design. R:WEB is estimated to require a minimum of 6 MB of space as a runtime executable file on the server. The R:BASE database and R:WEB compatible forms will require a varied amount of space based on the size of the respective files.
Pricing and Availability
R:WEB will be available in November, 1995. A copy of R:BASE 5.5 for Windows is included for free as a graphical design tool for creating R:WEB forms and databases.
R:WEB is priced at $995 per single server installation for an unlimited number of concurrent users.
R:WEB may be purchased direct from Microrim's Sales Department at 800-628-6990 or 206-649-9500. By the beginning of 1996, R:WEB will be distributed through Merisel to local retail stores and authorized resellers.
A free R:BASE sampler version is available through Microrim's Sales Department or on our Internet Home Page at http:\\www.microrim.com. A self-running demonstration and detailed product information is also available at the same locations.
Shape of the Future
R:WEB opens the door to the Internet for businesses that can't afford to spend enormous amounts of time and money on complicated programming solutions for Internet commerce. While R:WEB 1.0 runs on Windows NT, future releases will provide the ability to run across multiple platforms, including Unix and OS/2. Version 2.0 of R:WEB will continue to add in new functionality that is supported by newer releases of HTML, such as HTML version 3.0 features. R:WEB will also continue to add in more robust database functionality and forms enhancements. Version 2.0 is scheduled to be released in March of 1996.
