Oracle9i handles records, documents, XML, multimedia, spatial geometries, gene sequences, molecular structures, and more. This session overviews the architecture and platform capabilities of the Oracle9i database management system.

Steve Clark has worked in the information technology industry for over twenty years and has been with Oracle since 1994.  Mr. Clark specializes in the Oracle9i product family, with a focus on the use of Oracle9i within the Oracle 11i E-Business Suite.  Mr. Clark lives in Pittsburgh and holds a bachelor's degree in Information Science from the University of Pittsburgh.

This session will cover the history of SQL Server, the recreation of the brand in Version 7 (circa 1998), where the existing platform resides in terms of marketplace, feature sets, strengths, and weaknesses. The speaker will discuss where Microsoft is moving with the SQL Server platform and how it relates to the overall .net strategy.

Sam Batterman (samb@microsoft.com) has been involved in Business Intelligence and database technology for 11 years. Prior to joining Microsoft, Sam was project leader for eight years on all aspects of Merck & Company's US sales force CRM/SFA. He spent his last two years at Merck investigating and researching various business intelligence technologies for achieving strategic and competitive advantage in database technology. Some of these technologies were OLAP, Data/Information Visualization, Data Mining, Bayesian Inference (Reasoning under Uncertainty), and Rule Based Induction.

This presentation will feature an overview of the IBM database family, including DB2 and Informix. Topics will include DB2's key strategic initiatives and the new features that have been shipped in the latest edition of DB2.

When one compares DB2, Oracle, and SQL Server, you get many opinions. The functionality of all three DBMS products is similar with new features and functions coming out so rapidly that it is hard to say just what features each currently supports. All three are useful. All three provide benefit. You just need to match your need to the DBMS. This presentation will focus on the state of these DBMS technologies, describing the benefits, industries, and strategic direction of each product.

Gary Scott began his career as a Database Administrator at the Central Electricity Generating Board, and the Bowater-Scott Paper Company. Gary subsequently joined Oracle Corporation (UK) in 1984, and assisted several clients in implementations of Oracle RDBMS. Gary has performed strategic consulting engagements for many fortune 500 companies, assisting clients to align IT strategies with business strategies, Activity-Based Costing, technology product selections as well as feasibility studies and implementation roadmaps for Corporate Data Warehouse strategies.

Bill Sheleg has over 20 years of experience, including developing information systems & technology strategies for global firms. He has been involved in the selection, integration and implementation of best in breed technologies. He is experienced assessing emerging technologies to support business objectives. More recently he has focused on leveraging knowledge to improve performance. He has led numerous KM initiatives, delivering technology and process change to reduce time to market, increase sales, reduce costs, and improve quality.