From [email protected] Thu Aug  4 15:37:13 1994
Path: uunet!bounce-back
From: [email protected] (Daniel Druker)
Newsgroups: news.announce.newgroups,news.groups,comp.databases,comp.databases.theory,comp.databases.oracle,comp.databases.sybase,comp.databases.informix,comp.databases.rdb
Subject: RFD: comp.databases.olap
Followup-To: news.groups
Date: 4 Aug 1994 15:16:29 -0400
Organization: The Anderson School at UCLA
Lines: 212
Sender: [email protected]
Approved: [email protected]
Message-ID: <[email protected]>
NNTP-Posting-Host: rodan.uu.net
Xref: uunet news.announce.newgroups:5446 news.groups:111282 comp.databases:37365 comp.databases.theory:2693 comp.databases.oracle:17234 comp.databases.sybase:9571 comp.databases.informix:11345 comp.databases.rdb:1182

This is a formal Request For Discussion (RFD) regarding the formation of 
the group comp.databases.olap. This usenet newsgroup will discuss 
the issues encompassing On-Line Analytical Processing, as defined by E.F. 
Codd of Codd and Date Inc. in his recent white paper entitled "Providing 
OLAP (On-line Analytical Processing) to User-Analysts: an IT Mandate". 

Topics which could be discussed in this newsgroup include 
multidimensional databases, multidimensional analysis tools and 
techniques, decision support systems (DSS), executive information systems 
(EIS), data warehousing, data marting, and a host of other related 
topics. In general, OLAP is about getting data out of transaction 
procesing systems and turning it into information. A more complete 
description of the Codd paper on OLAP is given below, along with 
additional references that I have found to be helpful on this topic. 

This is ***NOT*** a Call For Votes (CFV).

A CFV will be issued to the newsgroups that this RFD had been posted to 
21 to 30 days from the date that this message first appears. This assumes 
that no serious problems with the newsgroup proposal are noted. Voting 
will be recorded by a neutral third party at the CFV stage.

This message will be reposted weekly until the CFV is issued. 

Any follow-up to this RFD should be directed to news.groups.

Name           : comp.databases.olap
Description    : On-Line Analytical Processing, MDDBMS, DSS, EIS
Status         : Unmoderated
Distribution   : Worldwide
Proposed by    : Daniel Druker ([email protected])
Important Note : I work for Arbor Software, which distributes a product, 
                 Essbase, that will probably be discussed in this      
                 group.  My intent is NOT to use this group as a           
                 marketing tool for Essbase, but rather to provide a      
                 forum for discussion about all OLAP products and      
                 concepts, including competing products and   
                 technologies.


BACKGROUND:
===========

In August 1993, Codd and Date announced a major breakthrough in business 
computing with 12 rules for On-Line Analytial Processing (OLAP).  
Developed by Dr. E.F. Codd, with colleagues Clynch Salley and Sharon 
Codd, OLAP is defined as the dynamic synthesis, analysis, and 
consolidation of large volumes of multidimensional data.  Dr. Codd is the 
founder of Codd and Date, Inc, and is the inventor of the abstract model 
and the 12 rules for relational technology. 

With OLAP, Codd and Date has established and clarified a significant area 
of business data processing and a new product category for 
"multidimensional analysis" -- which are not adequately addressed by the 
current combination of relational systems, spreadsheets, and query tools.  
OLAP involves the dynamic and extensive manipulation of unlimited 
variables of data, and complements On-Line Transaction Processing (OLTP) 
applications.  OLAP applications include rapid consolidations and 
multiple scenarios of forecasts, budgets, product plans, capital asset 
plans, sales analyses, and performance reports.  OLAP products make 
multidimensional analysis easier and more efficient for business users. 


RELEVANCE:
==========

There has recently been an explosion in industry interest in OLAP 
concepts, techniques, and products.  This is reflected both in an 
increase in trade press articles and commercial products which serve this 
segment.  In the comp.databases hierarchy there has been a similar 
increase in postings relating to the issues that would be covered by this 
newsgroup.

It is my belief that the increasing interest has been largely driven by 
the realization that now that we have figured out how to stuff 1000 TPS 
into a database, we need better tools and techniques to get the data out 
in a form that analysts can use to solve business problems.  The intent 
is for this newsgroup to provide a place to centralize issues, expertise, 
and information relating to OLAP. 


CHARTER:
========

The purpose of this group is to discuss all aspects of On-Line Analytical 
Processing. 

This newsgroup will be an unmoderated group.

Topics appropriate to this newsgroup include but are not limited to:

     - Decision Support Systems
     - Executive Information Systems
     - Multidimensional Database Systems
     - Data Warehousing
     - Data Marting
     - Very Large Read-Only Databases
     - Multidimensional Front-End Tools
     - Sparse Data Models and Optimization Techniques
     - Multidimensional Analysis using Relational Systems
     - Limitations of SQL for business analysis
     - Parallelization and other methods to speed processing.
     - End User Query Tools
     - Ad-Hoc Query Tools
     - Business Reporting and Financial Analysis Tools


Commercial products which would probably be discussed in this newsgroup 
include but are not limited to:

Multidimensional / Psuedo-Multidimensional Servers
--------------------------------------------------
Vendor                      Product
Arbor Software              Essbase
Comshare                    FDC, Commander EIS
Dimensional Insight         CrossTarget
IMRS                        Hyperion
IRI                         Express
Kenan Technologies          Acumate, Multiway
Pilot                       Lightship Server


Data Warehouses / Relational Systems
------------------------------------
Vendor                      Product
Digital                     rdb
IBI                         Focus
IBM                         DB2
Informix                    Informix Database
NCR/Terradata               Terradata Enterprise Server
Oracle                      Oracle7
Red Brick                   Warehouse     
Sybase                      System 10
Tandem                      Non-Stop, Himalaya
Unify                       Unify/Uniface


Front Ends providing DSS, EIS, or Multidimensional Analysis
-----------------------------------------------------------
Vendor                      Product
Andyne                      Pablo
Brio                        DataPivot, DataPrism
Business Objects            Business Objects
CA                          Compete, Supercalc
Cognos                      PowerPlay
Information Advantage       Decision Support Suite
IntelligenceWare            Corporate Vision
Lighten                     Advance 
Lotus                       Improv
Metaphor                    DIS 
Pilot                       Lightship
Power Thinking Tools        FreeThink
Sinper                      TM/1 Perspectives


This list was taken from DBMS magazine, and augmented by me wherever 
possible. If there are other products that you think should be added, 
feel free to send me an email and I will add them to the list the next 
time this RFD is posted. 


REQUEST FOR DISCUSSION (RFD) DISTRIBUTION
=========================================

This RFD will be sent to the following newsgroups:
          news.announce.newgroups
          news.groups
          comp.databases
          comp.databases.informix
          comp.databases.oracle
          comp.databases.rdb
          comp.databases.sybase
          comp.databases.theory

This RFD has been proposed in accordance with the guidelines in
"How to Create a Usenet Newsgroup". A large portion of the 
procedural text in this note was taken from a previous RFD written by 
Paul N. Hayton.


BIBLIOGRAPHY AND RECOMMENDED FURTHER READINGS
=============================================

Codd, E.F., "Providing OLAP (On-line Analytical Processing) to User-
     Analysts: An IT Mandate", E.F. Codd and Associates, 1993
     This white paper defined OLAP, and presents business cases for its
     need and usefullness. 

Finkelstein, Richard, "Understanding the need for On-Line Analytical 
     Servers" Performance Computing Inc., 1994
     This white paper discusses the need for a seperate class of servers
     for analytical processing. 

Kimball, Ralph, "What's wrong with SQL", Datamation, June 1994. 
     This article discusses the limitations of SQL for business analysis. 
     It proposes a number of extensions to SQL. There is an associated 
     article which discusses modelling multidimensional data in 
     relational databases, but I couldn't remember its title off the top 
     of my head. 

Kimball, Ralph, Interview in DBMS Magazine, June 1994.
     Ralph discusses his experiences at Red Brick and Metaphor, two of 
     the seminal vendors in the DSS industry. 

Survey of Multidimensional Analysis Tools", DBMS Magazine, June 1994.
     This is a survey of multidimensional servers and products on the 
     market today. 
-- 

                                          Daniel Druker
                                          Arbor Software Corporation
                                          [email protected]

From [email protected] (RonDippold) Wed Aug 31 12:47:18 1994
Path: uunet!bounce-back
From: [email protected] (Ron "Asbestos" Dippold)
Newsgroups: news.announce.newgroups,news.groups,comp.databases,comp.databases.theory,comp.databases.oracle,comp.databases.sybase,comp.databases.informix,comp.databases.rdb,comp.databases.ingres,comp.client-server
Subject: CFV: comp.databases.olap
Followup-To: poster
Date: 30 Aug 1994 15:18:58 -0400
Organization: Usenet Volunteer Votetakers
Lines: 211
Sender: [email protected]
Approved: [email protected]
Expires: 21 Sep 1994 00:00:00 GMT
Message-ID: 
References: 
Reply-To: [email protected] (Ron Dippold Voting Alias)
NNTP-Posting-Host: rodan.uu.net
Xref: uunet news.announce.newgroups:5554 news.groups:114441 comp.databases:38128 comp.databases.theory:2822 comp.databases.oracle:18406 comp.databases.sybase:10323 comp.databases.informix:11932 comp.databases.rdb:1350 comp.databases.ingres:8536 comp.client-server:5404

                          FIRST CALL FOR VOTES (of 2)
                    unmoderated group comp.databases.olap

Newsgroups line:
comp.databases.olap	Analytical Processing, Multidimensional DBMS, EIS, DSS


Votes must be received by 23:59:59 UTC, 20 September 1994.

This vote is being conducted by a neutral third party.  For voting
questions only contact [email protected].  For questions about the
proposed group contact Daniel Druker 

CHARTER

This usenet newsgroup will discuss the issues encompassing On-Line
Analytical Processing, as defined by E.F. Codd of Codd and Date Inc.
in his recent white paper entitled "Providing OLAP (On-line Analytical
Processing) to User-Analysts: an IT Mandate".

Topics appropriate to this newsgroup include but are not limited to:
     - Decision Support Systems
     - Executive Information Systems
     - Multidimensional Database Systems
     - Data Warehousing
     - Data Marting
     - Very Large Read-Only Databases
     - Multidimensional Front-End Tools
     - Sparse Data Models and Optimization Techniques
     - Multidimensional Analysis using Relational Systems
     - Limitations of SQL for business analysis
     - Parallelization and other methods to speed processing.
     - End User Query Tools
     - Ad-Hoc Query Tools
     - Business Reporting and Financial Analysis Tools

Topics which could be discussed in this newsgroup include
multidimensional databases, multidimensional analysis tools and
techniques, decision support systems (DSS), executive information
systems (EIS), data warehousing, data marting, and a host of other
related topics. In general, OLAP is about getting data out of
transaction procesing systems and turning it into information. A more
complete description of the Codd paper on OLAP is given below, along
with additional references that I have found to be helpful on this
topic.

Note from Daniel Druker ([email protected]): I work for Arbor
Software, which distributes a product, Essbase, that will probably be
discussed in this group.  My intent is NOT to use this group as a
marketing tool for Essbase, but rather to provide a forum for
discussion about all OLAP products and concepts, including competing
products and technologies.


BACKGROUND:
===========
In August 1993, Codd and Date announced a major breakthrough in business 
computing with 12 rules for On-Line Analytial Processing (OLAP).  
Developed by Dr. E.F. Codd, with colleagues Clynch Salley and Sharon 
Codd, OLAP is defined as the dynamic synthesis, analysis, and 
consolidation of large volumes of multidimensional data.  Dr. Codd is the 
founder of Codd and Date, Inc, and is the inventor of the abstract model 
and the 12 rules for relational technology. 

With OLAP, Codd and Date has established and clarified a significant area 
of business data processing and a new product category for 
"multidimensional analysis" -- which are not adequately addressed by the 
current combination of relational systems, spreadsheets, and query tools.  

OLAP involves the dynamic and extensive manipulation of unlimited 
variables of data, and complements On-Line Transaction Processing (OLTP) 
applications.  OLAP applications include rapid consolidations and 
multiple scenarios of forecasts, budgets, product plans, capital asset 
plans, sales analyses, and performance reports.  OLAP products make 
multidimensional analysis easier and more efficient for business users. 


RELEVANCE:
==========
There has recently been an explosion in industry interest in OLAP 
concepts, techniques, and products.  This is reflected both in an 
increase in trade press articles and commercial products which serve this 
segment.  In the comp.databases hierarchy there has been a similar 
increase in postings relating to the issues that would be covered by this 
newsgroup.

It is my belief that the increasing interest has been largely driven by 
the realization that now that we have figured out how to stuff 1000 TPS 
into a database, we need better tools and techniques to get the data out 
in a form that analysts can use to solve business problems.  The intent 
is for this newsgroup to provide a place to centralize issues, expertise, 
and information relating to OLAP. 


Commercial products which would probably be discussed in this newsgroup 
include but are not limited to:

Multidimensional / Psuedo-Multidimensional Servers
--------------------------------------------------
Vendor                      Product
Arbor Software              Essbase
Comshare                    FDC, Commander EIS
Dimensional Insight         CrossTarget
IMRS                        Hyperion
IRI                         Express
Kenan Technologies          Acumate, Multiway
Pilot                       Lightship Server

Data Warehouses / Relational Systems
------------------------------------
Vendor                      Product
Digital                     rdb
IBI                         Focus
IBM                         DB2
Informix                    Informix Database
NCR/Terradata               Terradata Enterprise Server
Oracle                      Oracle7
Red Brick                   Warehouse     
Sybase                      System 10
Tandem                      Non-Stop, Himalaya
Unify                       Unify/Uniface

Front Ends providing DSS, EIS, or Multidimensional Analysis
-----------------------------------------------------------
Vendor                      Product
Ambit Research              Ark
Andyne                      Pablo
Brio                        DataPivot, DataPrism
Business Objects            Business Objects
CA                          Compete, Supercalc
Cognos                      PowerPlay
Information Advantage       Decision Support Suite
IntelligenceWare            Corporate Vision
Lighten                     Advance 
Lotus                       Improv
Metaphor                    DIS 
Pilot                       Lightship
Power Thinking Tools        FreeThink
SAS Institute               SAS
Sinper                      TM/1 Perspectives
Sycomp Pty Ltd              CorVu


This list was taken from DBMS magazine, and augmented by me wherever 
possible. If there are other products that you think should be added, 
feel free to send me an email and I will add them to the list.


BIBLIOGRAPHY AND RECOMMENDED FURTHER READINGS
=============================================
Codd, E.F., "Providing OLAP (On-line Analytical Processing) to User-
     Analysts: An IT Mandate", E.F. Codd and Associates, 1993
     This white paper defined OLAP, and presents business cases for its
     need and usefullness. 

Finkelstein, Richard, "Understanding the need for On-Line Analytical 
     Servers" Performance Computing Inc., 1994
     This white paper discusses the need for a seperate class of servers
     for analytical processing. 

Kimball, Ralph, and Strehlo, Kevin "What's wrong with SQL", Datamation, 
     June 1994. 
     This article discusses the limitations of SQL for business analysis. 
     It proposes a number of extensions to SQL

Kimball, Ralph and Strehlo, Kevin "Why Decision Support fails and how
     to fix it." Datamation, June 1994. 
     This article discusses modelling multidimensional data in 
     relational databases.

DBMS Magazine Interview "The Doctor of DSS", DBMS Magazine, July 1994.
     Ralph Kimball discusses his experiences at Red Brick and Metaphor,
     two of the seminal vendors in the DSS industry. 

Frank, Maurice, "A drill down analysis of Multidimensional Databases,"
     DBMS Magazine, July  1994.
     This is a survey of multidimensional servers and products on the 
     market today. 

McGill, "Multidimensionality - An alternative database format,"
     April 1994. 
     A detailed theoretical comparison of relational vs. multidimensional
     databases.

Lots of people have emailed asking how to get the Codd and Date and the
Finkelstein Papers. Arbor Software is providing them at no charge. TO
get a copy call 1-800-858-1666 or internationally +44-734-566749. Some
of the other vendors also offer the Codd paper, and numerous other
documents about OLAP. Contact them directly for more information. There
are efforts underway to make the white papers at least available on the
net, but this will take some time. 



HOW TO VOTE

Send MAIL to:   [email protected]
Just Replying should work if you are not reading this on a mailing list.

Your mail message should contain one of the following statements:
      I vote YES on comp.databases.olap
      I vote NO on comp.databases.olap

You may also ABSTAIN in place of YES/NO - this will not affect the outcome.
Anything else may be rejected by the automatic vote counting program.  The
votetaker will respond to your received ballots with a personal acknowledge-
ment by mail - if you do not receive one within several days, try again.
It's your responsibility to make sure your vote is registered correctly.

One vote counted per person, no more than one per account. Addresses
and votes of all voters will be published in the final voting results list.

From [email protected] (RonDippold) Wed Sep  7 16:29:23 1994
Path: uunet!bounce-back
From: [email protected] (Ron "Asbestos" Dippold)
Newsgroups: news.announce.newgroups,news.groups,comp.databases,comp.databases.theory,comp.databases.oracle,comp.databases.sybase,comp.databases.informix,comp.databases.rdb,comp.databases.ingres,comp.client-server
Subject: 2nd CFV: comp.databases.olap
Supersedes: 
Followup-To: poster
Date: 7 Sep 1994 16:12:26 -0400
Organization: Usenet Volunteer Votetakers
Lines: 218
Sender: [email protected]
Approved: [email protected]
Expires: 21 Sep 1994 00:00:00 GMT
Message-ID: 
References:  
Reply-To: [email protected] (Ron Dippold Voting Alias)
NNTP-Posting-Host: rodan.uu.net
Xref: uunet news.announce.newgroups:5598 news.groups:115277 comp.databases:38368 comp.databases.theory:2851 comp.databases.oracle:18757 comp.databases.sybase:10520 comp.databases.informix:12079 comp.databases.rdb:1432 comp.databases.ingres:8657 comp.client-server:5545

                          LAST CALL FOR VOTES (of 2)
                    unmoderated group comp.databases.olap

Newsgroups line:
comp.databases.olap	Analytical Processing, Multidimensional DBMS, EIS, DSS


Votes must be received by 23:59:59 UTC, 20 September 1994.

This vote is being conducted by a neutral third party.  For voting
questions only contact [email protected].  For questions about the
proposed group contact Daniel Druker 

CHARTER

This usenet newsgroup will discuss the issues encompassing On-Line
Analytical Processing, as defined by E.F. Codd of Codd and Date Inc.
in his recent white paper entitled "Providing OLAP (On-line Analytical
Processing) to User-Analysts: an IT Mandate".

Topics appropriate to this newsgroup include but are not limited to:
     - Decision Support Systems
     - Executive Information Systems
     - Multidimensional Database Systems
     - Data Warehousing
     - Data Marting
     - Very Large Read-Only Databases
     - Multidimensional Front-End Tools
     - Sparse Data Models and Optimization Techniques
     - Multidimensional Analysis using Relational Systems
     - Limitations of SQL for business analysis
     - Parallelization and other methods to speed processing.
     - End User Query Tools
     - Ad-Hoc Query Tools
     - Business Reporting and Financial Analysis Tools

Topics which could be discussed in this newsgroup include
multidimensional databases, multidimensional analysis tools and
techniques, decision support systems (DSS), executive information
systems (EIS), data warehousing, data marting, and a host of other
related topics. In general, OLAP is about getting data out of
transaction procesing systems and turning it into information. A more
complete description of the Codd paper on OLAP is given below, along
with additional references that I have found to be helpful on this
topic.

Note from Daniel Druker ([email protected]): I work for Arbor
Software, which distributes a product, Essbase, that will probably be
discussed in this group.  My intent is NOT to use this group as a
marketing tool for Essbase, but rather to provide a forum for
discussion about all OLAP products and concepts, including competing
products and technologies.


BACKGROUND:
===========
In August 1993, Codd and Date announced a major breakthrough in business 
computing with 12 rules for On-Line Analytial Processing (OLAP).  
Developed by Dr. E.F. Codd, with colleagues Clynch Salley and Sharon 
Codd, OLAP is defined as the dynamic synthesis, analysis, and 
consolidation of large volumes of multidimensional data.  Dr. Codd is the 
founder of Codd and Date, Inc, and is the inventor of the abstract model 
and the 12 rules for relational technology. 

With OLAP, Codd and Date has established and clarified a significant area 
of business data processing and a new product category for 
"multidimensional analysis" -- which are not adequately addressed by the 
current combination of relational systems, spreadsheets, and query tools.  

OLAP involves the dynamic and extensive manipulation of unlimited 
variables of data, and complements On-Line Transaction Processing (OLTP) 
applications.  OLAP applications include rapid consolidations and 
multiple scenarios of forecasts, budgets, product plans, capital asset 
plans, sales analyses, and performance reports.  OLAP products make 
multidimensional analysis easier and more efficient for business users. 


RELEVANCE:
==========
There has recently been an explosion in industry interest in OLAP 
concepts, techniques, and products.  This is reflected both in an 
increase in trade press articles and commercial products which serve this 
segment.  In the comp.databases hierarchy there has been a similar 
increase in postings relating to the issues that would be covered by this 
newsgroup.

It is my belief that the increasing interest has been largely driven by 
the realization that now that we have figured out how to stuff 1000 TPS 
into a database, we need better tools and techniques to get the data out 
in a form that analysts can use to solve business problems.  The intent 
is for this newsgroup to provide a place to centralize issues, expertise, 
and information relating to OLAP. 


Commercial products which would probably be discussed in this newsgroup 
include but are not limited to:

Multidimensional / Psuedo-Multidimensional Servers
--------------------------------------------------
Vendor                      Product
Arbor Software              Essbase
Comshare                    FDC, Commander EIS
Dimensional Insight         CrossTarget
IMRS                        Hyperion
IRI                         Express
Kenan Technologies          Acumate, Multiway
Pilot                       Lightship Server

Data Warehouses / Relational Systems
------------------------------------
Vendor                      Product
Digital                     rdb
IBI                         Focus
IBM                         DB2
Informix                    Informix Database
NCR/Terradata               Terradata Enterprise Server
Oracle                      Oracle7
Red Brick                   Warehouse     
Sybase                      System 10
Tandem                      Non-Stop, Himalaya
Unify                       Unify/Uniface

Front Ends providing DSS, EIS, or Multidimensional Analysis
-----------------------------------------------------------
Vendor                      Product
Ambit Research              Ark
Andyne                      Pablo
Brio                        DataPivot, DataPrism
Business Objects            Business Objects
CA                          Compete, Supercalc
Cognos                      PowerPlay
Information Advantage       Decision Support Suite
IntelligenceWare            Corporate Vision
Lighten                     Advance 
Lotus                       Improv
Metaphor                    DIS 
Pilot                       Lightship
Power Thinking Tools        FreeThink
SAS Institute               SAS
Sinper                      TM/1 Perspectives
Sycomp Pty Ltd              CorVu


This list was taken from DBMS magazine, and augmented by me wherever 
possible. If there are other products that you think should be added, 
feel free to send me an email and I will add them to the list.


BIBLIOGRAPHY AND RECOMMENDED FURTHER READINGS
=============================================
Codd, E.F., "Providing OLAP (On-line Analytical Processing) to User-
     Analysts: An IT Mandate", E.F. Codd and Associates, 1993
     This white paper defined OLAP, and presents business cases for its
     need and usefullness. 

Finkelstein, Richard, "Understanding the need for On-Line Analytical 
     Servers" Performance Computing Inc., 1994
     This white paper discusses the need for a seperate class of servers
     for analytical processing. 

Kimball, Ralph, and Strehlo, Kevin "What's wrong with SQL", Datamation, 
     June 1994. 
     This article discusses the limitations of SQL for business analysis. 
     It proposes a number of extensions to SQL

Kimball, Ralph and Strehlo, Kevin "Why Decision Support fails and how
     to fix it." Datamation, June 1994. 
     This article discusses modelling multidimensional data in 
     relational databases.

DBMS Magazine Interview "The Doctor of DSS", DBMS Magazine, July 1994.
     Ralph Kimball discusses his experiences at Red Brick and Metaphor,
     two of the seminal vendors in the DSS industry. 

Frank, Maurice, "A drill down analysis of Multidimensional Databases,"
     DBMS Magazine, July  1994.
     This is a survey of multidimensional servers and products on the 
     market today. 

McGill, "Multidimensionality - An alternative database format,"
     April 1994. 
     A detailed theoretical comparison of relational vs. multidimensional
     databases.

Lots of people have emailed asking how to get the Codd and Date and the
Finkelstein Papers. Arbor Software is providing them at no charge. TO
get a copy call 1-800-858-1666 or internationally +44-734-566749. Some
of the other vendors also offer the Codd paper, and numerous other
documents about OLAP. Contact them directly for more information. There
are efforts underway to make the white papers at least available on the
net, but this will take some time. 



HOW TO VOTE

Send MAIL to:   [email protected]
Just Replying should work if you are not reading this on a mailing list.

Your mail message should contain one of the following statements:
      I vote YES on comp.databases.olap
      I vote NO on comp.databases.olap

You may also ABSTAIN in place of YES/NO - this will not affect the outcome.
Anything else may be rejected by the automatic vote counting program.  The
votetaker will respond to your received ballots with a personal acknowledge-
ment by mail - if you do not receive one within several days, try again.
It's your responsibility to make sure your vote is registered correctly.

One vote counted per person, no more than one per account. Addresses
and votes of all voters will be published in the final voting results list.



comp.databases.olap Bounce List - No need to revote
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
linus%zythera.UUCP                                        Robert 'linus' Thona
[email protected]                        R. Michael Williams

From [email protected] (RonDippold) Thu Sep 22 22:49:33 1994
Path: uunet!bounce-back
From: [email protected] (Ron "Asbestos" Dippold)
Newsgroups: news.announce.newgroups,news.groups,comp.databases,comp.databases.theory,comp.databases.oracle,comp.databases.sybase,comp.databases.informix,comp.databases.rdb,comp.databases.ingres,comp.client-server
Subject: RESULT: comp.databases.olap passes 175:25
Supersedes: 
Followup-To: news.groups
Date: 22 Sep 1994 21:29:38 -0400
Organization: Usenet Volunteer Votetakers
Lines: 415
Sender: [email protected]
Approved: [email protected]
Message-ID: 
References:   
NNTP-Posting-Host: rodan.uu.net
Xref: uunet news.announce.newgroups:5672 news.groups:117315 comp.databases:38774 comp.databases.theory:2930 comp.databases.oracle:19474 comp.databases.sybase:11104 comp.databases.informix:12504 comp.databases.rdb:1546 comp.databases.ingres:8959 comp.client-server:5804

                                    RESULT
	 unmoderated group comp.databases.olap passes 175:25

There were 175 YES votes and 25 NO votes, for a total of 200 valid votes. 
There was 200 invalid ballot.

For group passage, YES votes must be at least 2/3 of all valid (YES and NO)
votes.   There also must be at least 100 more YES votes than NO votes. 

There is a five day discussion period after these results are posted.  If no
serious allegations of voting irregularities are raised, the moderator of
news.announce.newgroups will create the group shortly thereafter.


Newsgroups line:
comp.databases.olap	Analytical Processing, Multidimensional DBMS, EIS, DSS


This vote is being conducted by a neutral third party.  For voting
questions only contact [email protected].  For questions about the
proposed group contact Daniel Druker 

CHARTER

This usenet newsgroup will discuss the issues encompassing On-Line
Analytical Processing, as defined by E.F. Codd of Codd and Date Inc.
in his recent white paper entitled "Providing OLAP (On-line Analytical
Processing) to User-Analysts: an IT Mandate".

Topics appropriate to this newsgroup include but are not limited to:
     - Decision Support Systems
     - Executive Information Systems
     - Multidimensional Database Systems
     - Data Warehousing
     - Data Marting
     - Very Large Read-Only Databases
     - Multidimensional Front-End Tools
     - Sparse Data Models and Optimization Techniques
     - Multidimensional Analysis using Relational Systems
     - Limitations of SQL for business analysis
     - Parallelization and other methods to speed processing.
     - End User Query Tools
     - Ad-Hoc Query Tools
     - Business Reporting and Financial Analysis Tools

Topics which could be discussed in this newsgroup include
multidimensional databases, multidimensional analysis tools and
techniques, decision support systems (DSS), executive information
systems (EIS), data warehousing, data marting, and a host of other
related topics. In general, OLAP is about getting data out of
transaction procesing systems and turning it into information. A more
complete description of the Codd paper on OLAP is given below, along
with additional references that I have found to be helpful on this
topic.

Note from Daniel Druker ([email protected]): I work for Arbor
Software, which distributes a product, Essbase, that will probably be
discussed in this group.  My intent is NOT to use this group as a
marketing tool for Essbase, but rather to provide a forum for
discussion about all OLAP products and concepts, including competing
products and technologies.


BACKGROUND:
===========
In August 1993, Codd and Date announced a major breakthrough in business 
computing with 12 rules for On-Line Analytial Processing (OLAP).  
Developed by Dr. E.F. Codd, with colleagues Clynch Salley and Sharon 
Codd, OLAP is defined as the dynamic synthesis, analysis, and 
consolidation of large volumes of multidimensional data.  Dr. Codd is the 
founder of Codd and Date, Inc, and is the inventor of the abstract model 
and the 12 rules for relational technology. 

With OLAP, Codd and Date has established and clarified a significant area 
of business data processing and a new product category for 
"multidimensional analysis" -- which are not adequately addressed by the 
current combination of relational systems, spreadsheets, and query tools.  

OLAP involves the dynamic and extensive manipulation of unlimited 
variables of data, and complements On-Line Transaction Processing (OLTP) 
applications.  OLAP applications include rapid consolidations and 
multiple scenarios of forecasts, budgets, product plans, capital asset 
plans, sales analyses, and performance reports.  OLAP products make 
multidimensional analysis easier and more efficient for business users. 


RELEVANCE:
==========
There has recently been an explosion in industry interest in OLAP 
concepts, techniques, and products.  This is reflected both in an 
increase in trade press articles and commercial products which serve this 
segment.  In the comp.databases hierarchy there has been a similar 
increase in postings relating to the issues that would be covered by this 
newsgroup.

It is my belief that the increasing interest has been largely driven by 
the realization that now that we have figured out how to stuff 1000 TPS 
into a database, we need better tools and techniques to get the data out 
in a form that analysts can use to solve business problems.  The intent 
is for this newsgroup to provide a place to centralize issues, expertise, 
and information relating to OLAP. 


Commercial products which would probably be discussed in this newsgroup 
include but are not limited to:

Multidimensional / Psuedo-Multidimensional Servers
--------------------------------------------------
Vendor                      Product
Arbor Software              Essbase
Comshare                    FDC, Commander EIS
Dimensional Insight         CrossTarget
IMRS                        Hyperion
IRI                         Express
Kenan Technologies          Acumate, Multiway
Pilot                       Lightship Server

Data Warehouses / Relational Systems
------------------------------------
Vendor                      Product
Digital                     rdb
IBI                         Focus
IBM                         DB2
Informix                    Informix Database
NCR/Terradata               Terradata Enterprise Server
Oracle                      Oracle7
Red Brick                   Warehouse     
Sybase                      System 10
Tandem                      Non-Stop, Himalaya
Unify                       Unify/Uniface

Front Ends providing DSS, EIS, or Multidimensional Analysis
-----------------------------------------------------------
Vendor                      Product
Ambit Research              Ark
Andyne                      Pablo
Brio                        DataPivot, DataPrism
Business Objects            Business Objects
CA                          Compete, Supercalc
Cognos                      PowerPlay
Information Advantage       Decision Support Suite
IntelligenceWare            Corporate Vision
Lighten                     Advance 
Lotus                       Improv
Metaphor                    DIS 
Pilot                       Lightship
Power Thinking Tools        FreeThink
SAS Institute               SAS
Sinper                      TM/1 Perspectives
Sycomp Pty Ltd              CorVu


This list was taken from DBMS magazine, and augmented by me wherever 
possible. If there are other products that you think should be added, 
feel free to send me an email and I will add them to the list.


BIBLIOGRAPHY AND RECOMMENDED FURTHER READINGS
=============================================
Codd, E.F., "Providing OLAP (On-line Analytical Processing) to User-
     Analysts: An IT Mandate", E.F. Codd and Associates, 1993
     This white paper defined OLAP, and presents business cases for its
     need and usefullness. 

Finkelstein, Richard, "Understanding the need for On-Line Analytical 
     Servers" Performance Computing Inc., 1994
     This white paper discusses the need for a seperate class of servers
     for analytical processing. 

Kimball, Ralph, and Strehlo, Kevin "What's wrong with SQL", Datamation, 
     June 1994. 
     This article discusses the limitations of SQL for business analysis. 
     It proposes a number of extensions to SQL

Kimball, Ralph and Strehlo, Kevin "Why Decision Support fails and how
     to fix it." Datamation, June 1994. 
     This article discusses modelling multidimensional data in 
     relational databases.

DBMS Magazine Interview "The Doctor of DSS", DBMS Magazine, July 1994.
     Ralph Kimball discusses his experiences at Red Brick and Metaphor,
     two of the seminal vendors in the DSS industry. 

Frank, Maurice, "A drill down analysis of Multidimensional Databases,"
     DBMS Magazine, July  1994.
     This is a survey of multidimensional servers and products on the 
     market today. 

McGill, "Multidimensionality - An alternative database format,"
     April 1994. 
     A detailed theoretical comparison of relational vs. multidimensional
     databases.

Lots of people have emailed asking how to get the Codd and Date and the
Finkelstein Papers. Arbor Software is providing them at no charge. TO
get a copy call 1-800-858-1666 or internationally +44-734-566749. Some
of the other vendors also offer the Codd paper, and numerous other
documents about OLAP. Contact them directly for more information. There
are efforts underway to make the white papers at least available on the
net, but this will take some time. 


comp.databases.olap Final Vote Ack

Voted Yes
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[email protected]                                                  Zach Shoher
[email protected]                                                   David Ackerman
[email protected]                                       Ambit Research
[email protected]                                             Andre van Winssen
[email protected]                            Miss Angela Koh
[email protected]                                           Arun Shah
[email protected]                                             Ashley Furman
[email protected]                                           Ashutosh Joglekar
[email protected]                              Alexander Tuzhilin
[email protected]                                                    Jim Ault
[email protected]                                    Felix Baumgardner
[email protected]                                           Bruce Horrocks
[email protected]                                         Brian Henk
[email protected]                                          Bill Standefer
[email protected]                                                William Hails
[email protected]                                     Bill Piwonka
[email protected]                                            Frank Bonk
[email protected]                                                     bumidev
[email protected]                                  Colin Tattersall
[email protected]                                     Carol Sherrard
[email protected]                                                  
[email protected]                                  Ramon Bueno
[email protected]                                      CELLER.US.ORACLE.COM
[email protected]                                     Sheau-Yen Chen
[email protected]                                              e.keung
[email protected]                                          Cimarron Taylor
[email protected]                                                   Andy Lau
[email protected]                                           Colin Mcgrath
[email protected]                                              Chuck Powley
[email protected]                                          Hank Robinson
[email protected]                                      Cynthia Leong
[email protected]                                        N Daniel Bonesana
[email protected]                                                     Databases
[email protected]                                               Daniel Druker
[email protected]                                                    
[email protected]                                                              
[email protected]                                                          
[email protected]                                     Rebecca Drayer
[email protected]                                               Dan McQuay
[email protected]                                             Ellie Druker
[email protected]                                                  Essaim oy
[email protected]                                                  Chris Janton
[email protected]                         Dr. Frada Burstein
[email protected]                                          David Shackelford
[email protected]                                                  fsammet
[email protected]            Supachai Kanchanapokin - SCCS - 3737121
[email protected]                                    George Scriban
[email protected]                                               Graeme Sargent
[email protected]                                             Peter Grant
[email protected]                                            Seth Grimes
[email protected]                                              Marc Handelman
[email protected]                                  Hans Mueller
[email protected]                                          K. Eric Harper
[email protected]                                           Henry Harrison
[email protected]                                                         
[email protected]                                         James Cone
[email protected]                                                  Jan Diesel
[email protected]                                                    John Anest
[email protected]                             Mr. Jason Watson
[email protected]                            Josephine Cheung
[email protected]                                      Joseph G Davis
[email protected]                    COURBON Jean-Claude
[email protected]                                         Jeff C. Glover
[email protected]                                          Joseph_Fortt
[email protected]                                     John Galloway
[email protected]                                             Jeff Graves
[email protected]                                          John H. Caldwell
[email protected]                                        John Hobson
[email protected]                                           Jim Franklin
[email protected]                                              John Lambert
[email protected]                                                         JP Lee
[email protected]                                                         Jason May
[email protected]                                                              
[email protected]                                            John Hadjioannou
[email protected]                                         John Dobson
[email protected]                                     Jonathan Leffler
[email protected]                                               
[email protected]                                            Kevin Smith
[email protected]                 Keith "Justified And Ancient" Cochran
[email protected]                                                     
[email protected]                                  james g. keegan jr.
[email protected]                                                  Ken Kiefer
[email protected]                                   Scott Kirkwood
[email protected]                                     Giannis Kosmas
[email protected]                                        Martin Schroeder
[email protected]                                                Lantz Rowland
[email protected]                                                         Ken Brown
[email protected]                                 Richard A. Lehn
linus%zythera.UUCP                                        Robert 'linus' Thona
[email protected]                                        Laurel Neustadter
[email protected]                                             Leo Mannhart
[email protected]                          Manote Nuangchamnong
[email protected]                                      maraya altuwaijri
[email protected]                                           Manolis Marazakis
[email protected]                                          Mark Butler
[email protected]                   Mark Agulnick-FirstCall R&D-TFS-Boston-MA
[email protected]                                                     
[email protected]                                          Malcolm Mladenovic
[email protected]                                                Mark Citron
MCKENNA%[email protected]                                          
[email protected]                                            Malcolm Colton
[email protected]                                         Marc Giezen
[email protected]                                Michael Grice
[email protected]                                                   Mike Kranzdorf
[email protected]                                                            
[email protected]                                         Michael Kimber
[email protected]                                          Maxime Taksar KC6ZPS
[email protected]                                        Marc Picard
[email protected]          RICHARDSON Marv (SHINET01)
[email protected]                                        Mark Taylor (Fin)
[email protected]                                  Marko Milisavljevic
[email protected]                                       Norm Neuman
[email protected]                                                          
[email protected]                                                 Dexter Smith
[email protected]                                            Pam Arnold
[email protected]                                                   Paul Ananth
[email protected]                                                             
[email protected]                                            Patrick Perrin
[email protected]                                                        
[email protected]                                Mr. Peter O'Donnell
[email protected]                          Prabhakar Kandashamy [e]
[email protected]                                      Pradeep Ramakrishnan
[email protected]                                                            
[email protected]                                                             Ke Qiu
[email protected]                                   Ratnadeep Damle
[email protected]                                                   Tony Black
[email protected]                                             Roy Hann
[email protected]                                    Ria Vandenberghe
[email protected]                                         
[email protected]                                   Richard Wegener
[email protected]                                      Richard Leyton
[email protected]                        R. Michael Williams
[email protected]                         Risto Jesoi, tel. +358-0-5027343
[email protected]                                                    Robert
[email protected]                                                Robert Garvey
Robinson_George/[email protected]                               
[email protected]                                                Ross Hagglund
[email protected]                              David Harrington
[email protected]                                                    Scott Cary
[email protected]                                       Jeffrey Rufinus
[email protected]                                              SAM KUMAR
[email protected]                                                        
[email protected]                                                                
[email protected]                                Tony Scandora 708-252-7541
[email protected]                          
[email protected]                                       Sean O'Sullivan
[email protected]                                                Susan Kranzdorf
[email protected]    Seth GRIMES, DCC/SDD           (Tel (33-1) 
[email protected]                                                             
[email protected]                                  Swee Lan See
[email protected]                               Sean Maynard
Smith_Avery/[email protected]                              
[email protected]                                      Scott San Filippo 
[email protected]                                             Steve Gordon
[email protected]                                  
[email protected]                                       Sudhir Rao
[email protected]                                               Chun Tao
[email protected]                                                  Thomas B. Cox
[email protected]                                                     Thomas F Lee
[email protected]                                      Thomas M Gorman
[email protected]                                                  
[email protected]                                               Tim Holmes
[email protected]                                McLean, Thomas K
[email protected]                                                                 
[email protected]                                                               
[email protected]                                  Vincent Edward DiBernardo
[email protected]                                                         
[email protected]                                WandaJane Phillips
[email protected]                                                         
[email protected]                                                     Weiqi Gao
[email protected]                     Dave Shariff Yadallee
[email protected]                                                  Yulin Yao
[email protected]                                                      Yue Ji
[email protected]                                Yuri Korostyshevskiy
[email protected]                                             Yves Noel

Voted No
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[email protected]                                         Neil Andrew Brench
[email protected]                                              Mark Kupferman
[email protected]                         dionisopoulos panagiotis
[email protected]                              Kenneth P Crouch
[email protected]                                               Christopher Ward
[email protected]                                                          
[email protected]                                     David Boothroyd
[email protected]                                                             drew
[email protected]                                           Eric W Burger
[email protected]                                                   Emery Lapinski
[email protected]                                   Pete 'Happy' Thomas
[email protected]                                                      
[email protected]                                       Jeremy Dixon
[email protected]                                               Joe Hellerstein
[email protected]                                     John R. MacWilliamson
[email protected]                                 L. Carl Pedersen
[email protected]                                        Marc Andre Kura
[email protected]                                                   Michael Grubb
[email protected]                                     J. Porter Clark
[email protected]                                             Richard H. Miller
[email protected]                                      Ralph Waters
[email protected]                                         Smarasderagd
[email protected]                                           Steve Rogers
[email protected]                                                  Dwight Brown
[email protected]                                             David Veal


Votes in error
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[email protected]                                                Super-User
   ! Invalid address