Data processing is transformed from an operational necessity into a strategic asset that yields faster response time, better service, and greater business intelligence. These are the foundations for more informed decision making, faster time to market, and the creation of greater market opportunities. These can include packaged applications, custom applications, and legacy applications, or any combination thereof. Often, costly and time-consuming manual processes are required before such applications can interface with the rest of the organization at all. Left isolated, they create blockages or bottlenecks to processing the data, not only negatively affecting response time but also compromising the data's security and value.
Organizations pursue two basic approaches to extend zero latency across multiple processes.
Most organizations actually require a combination of ODS and EAI to create a true zero latency enterprise. Compaq's Zero Latency Enterprise Solutions combine an ODS with EAI software to create an engine that acts as an integrator for all of the enterprise applications and collects all transaction data into a single, commonly accessible cache of data. Large queries against the ODS are performed with MicroStrategy's DSS Web tool. This environment enables the ODS to handle extremely high volumes of random inserts, as well as high levels of customer inquiries, batch extracts, large ad hoc queries, and online database management activities. The ODS transaction cache also feeds information downstream into the billing system and allows sophisticated data mining operations for business intelligence collection.