Marc L. Songini

SAP AG said it plans to hand off lead development of its SAP DB database software to MySQL AB and work with MySQL to deliver an enterprise-class version of that company's namesake open source database.

Business applications vendor SAP AG is putting increased muscle behind the open-source movement, which could ultimately allow enterprise resource application customers to more easily deploy Linux and similar technology as the flavour of choice for their databases.

IBM Corp. has detailed a series of changes coming to its flagship DB2 database, including an upgrade of the mainframe version of the software that will support 64-bit addressing capabilities.

Rival vendors of supply chain management software are racing to develop tools that give users additional collaboration capabilities and real-time visibility of product inventory and demand levels.

Attendees at i2 Technologies Inc.'s recent annual user conference said the struggling software vendor has made noticeable improvements during the past year in how it treats customers. But a half-dozen users expressed misgivings about the myriad financial and legal challenges facing i2.

Facing gloomy market conditions, large airplane makers like Raytheon Aircraft Co. and The Boeing Co. are rolling out CRM applications in a bid to boost sales and improve their customer service capabilities.

Business intelligence software vendor Hyperion Solutions Inc. has released a version of its financial management applications with features designed to help companies improve their internal accountability and comply with new financial reporting laws.

For the second time in three years, business applications vendor Baan Co. is on the auction block, a development that has drawn mixed reactions from users and analysts.