South African decision makers will be able to realise dramatic productivity gains following the release of Commander Decision 2.1 by Comshare and Dimension Data subsidiary SPL. Gavin Steinberg, business manager of Comshare applications for SPL^1s Enterprise Systems Division (ESD), says the new version of Comshare`s highly successful software for client/server performance measurement applications features extensive advancements in visualisation and proactive agent technology. "Both Comshare and SPL have large customer bases with performance measurement applications," he says. "With our years of experience in these types of applications, we continually investigate new ways to make our customers more productive." State-of-the-Art Performance Measurement An important aspect of Commander Decision 2.1 is Comshare`s Guided Analysis technology. According to Steinberg, Guided Analysis removes the inherent problems of increasingly larger and more complex databases by "leading" users to areas of opportunity or problems. Rather than searching databases for potential problems using ad-hoc analysis, Guided Analysis leads users to the problems first, allowing ad-hoc investigation from that point. "Using this technology, the problems of routine database surveillance, determining the context of a problem, and discovering problems in extremely large hierarchies are all removed," Steinberg points out. Guided Analysis incorporates several technologies that solve specific problems, including Detect and Alert, OverView, Advanced Exceptions and the Question and Answer interface. "With Guided Analysis, Comshare has set the standard for performance measurement applications that provide easier decision making for our customers," he says. OverView Brings Advanced Visualisation to Users Dave King, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer for Comshare, comments: "OverView is a very different way to look at performance. It gives users a way to easily cull relevant information for analysis from what would otherwise be an overwhelming amount of data. It takes the visual understanding of large volumes of data to a whole new level for our customers." This technology overcomes the limitations of ordinary graphical user interfaces (GUIs) by allowing users to see hundreds or even thousands of data points at a glance. Using OverView, users can instantaneously shift from overviews that establish context and perspective, to detailed close-ups that focus on specific information. With a clear picture of the information and how elements relate to one another, users can make better decisions. Agent Technology Built into the Application In addition to the leap forward in visualisation capabilities, Commander Decision 2.1 provides innovative software agent capabilities. Detect and Alert, used for routine surveillance of information, proactively monitors trends in customer databases, looking for anomalies. When a problem occurs, Decision notifies users about the existence of the anomaly, and presents the information for further analysis. Similarly, Comshare`s advanced exception technology combines visual cues with agent technology, surfacing hidden exceptions in multidimensional data at every level of the application`s hierarchy. As a result, users viewing a hierarchy`s highest level members are immediately aware that problems exist at lower levels. Support for Mixed Web and Client/Server Environment By definition, performance measurement applications need broad distribution to everyone who can impact the company`s performance. Comshare`s three-tier application architecture incorporates best-of-breed database technology by packaging the leading OLAP engines (Arbor`s Essbase, Oracle`s Express, Applix`s TM1 and Microsofts OLE DB for OLAP) with delivery to Web browsers or traditional client/server desktops. Comshare customers can select which of these databases most suits their needs as well as determine the best way to deliver the application. "With Comshare`s software, performance measurement can be delivered to a mixed environment of client/server and Web desktops, without redeveloping the entire application," Steinberg says. The Enterprise Systems Division of SPL is the exclusive South African distributor of the Comshare range of performance measurement, budgeting, consolidation and retail merchandise management software applications. Comshare develops, markets and supports complete client-server and Web-based decision support software applications.
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