Business Information Server Features

Decision Support

Business Information Server brings you a full range of decision support capabilities, including:

• Casual report browsing
• Complex data analysis
• Data mining
• Database querying
• Graphing and charting
• "What if" analysis
• Trend analysis

The Business Information Server software enables you to accomplish interactive decision-support tasks using more than 145 Business Information Server functions.  The functions allow you to search, display, analyze and update your business information, as well as to manipulate and manage data reports or results.  You’ll find it very easy to access and manipulate the data to suit your purposes, including quickly focusing and refocusing data to find the information you need. You can also "drill down" through successive layers of data to obtain precise information conveniently formatted.

Application Development

The Business Information Server system allows application developers to create applications efficiently using specifically-designed BIS scripting language or industry-leading JavaScript. With these development tools, developers can design and control database applications that range from analyzing daily financial transactions to mining huge volumes of transaction data to find relevant trends for strategic planning. The development tools make it easy for you to develop workstation-based solutions right at the desktop. Additional development tools include Business Information Server Personal Edition for Microsoft Windows (formerly MAPPER System for Windows), and Graphical Interface for Business Information Server (formerly MAPPER Presentation Client, MPC).

Open Systems Portability

The Business Information Server is an open system that runs on Microsoft Windows, SUSE Linux, Red Hat Linux, and Sun Solaris platforms—the most popular platforms in modern computing environments..

Networking Features

Business Information Server systems communicate with each other and with other systems and data using TCP/IP. They also give the applications a rich set of features for building robust client/server applications that allow both data and processing to reside where they are most effective. Business Information Server software operates on all tiers of an enterprise network-desktop/laptop PCs, departmental servers from many different vendors, and Unisys ClearPath enterprise servers.

Support for Popular Relational Databases

The Business Information Server features its own data warehouse as well as access to information in a variety of relational database management systems, including Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, Sybase, IBM DB2, Informix, and Unisys database products, to name a few. In reality, Business Information Server software can access and update any data source that has an ODBC or OLE DB interface.

Relational Database

The built-in ODBC Server permits access to BIS data and resources through a standard ODBC interface using tools such as Microsoft Query, Excel, and Visual Studio. With the ODBC Server, an administrator can create table definitions, allowing users to view or manipulate Business Information Server data as a relational table. Users can employ readily available, ODBC-compliant tools to answer queries based on the contents of one or more reports, or to import data into composite reports. The ODBC Server provides an industry-standard open gateway to any data managed by applications built using Business Information Server software.

Graphical Interface

The Graphical Interface for Business Information Server (formerly yMAPPER Presentation Client, MPC) is a simple, non-technical, graphical interface to your mission-critical Business Information Server data and applications.
 
Designed to improve the productivity of novice to intermediate end users, this point and click interface is also convenient for sophisticated system coordinators. It supports either local (on the same host as the Business Information Server software) or remote access and allows you to create and execute graphical Business Information Server applications.
 
The point and click environment makes possible common administration for all Business Information Server platforms, including user registration, and maintenance, application registration (scripts) and maintenance, and database creation and maintenance. You can also configure your network and other devices from a single point. By placing emphasis on common tasks and transforming "micro" tasks into "macros," the interface greatly reduces system complexity and training time.
 
The Graphical Interface for Business Information Server is included at no extra charge with the Business Information Server Systems and supports a maximum of ten (16 for ClearPath OS 2200) concurrent sessions on a single workstation.

World Wide Web Access

Web-enabled applications are a new way and attractive way to extend your Business Information Server systems to customers, partners and employees.

Supports rapid development of Web-based applications with Unisys Internet Commerce Enabler technology.  Using any information accessible by your Business Information Server built applications developers can create dynamic applications for Web browsers, wireless devices, XML messaging, and COM interfaces The built-in iceDrill option allows not only the display of any Business Information Server application resource, but also the analysis and manipulation of the information to any authorized user with a Web browser.