International Informix Users Group (IIUG)
www.iiug.org
E-newsletter
Volume 4 - January, 2001

SUMMARY

You can update your IIUG information online at www.iiug.org/cgi-bin/update_member.cgi

I. LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT

Greetings!

This short E-newsletter will let you know what's new with IIUG so far in 2001. This year started fast when Fred Hubbard presented the IIUG at the Informix annual sales kick-off meeting!

The next IIUG board meeting will be held in February in the San Francisco bay area, near the headquarters for Informix Software. This will be the first board meeting of the year and the first one after the Informix User Conference (IUC) in Orlando. The meeting agenda will include the creation of a plan to improve our infrastructure (IIUG servers and services), formation of a nominating committee for 2001 elections, appointment of a committee for IUC 2001 as well as an analysis of some of the feedback we received from our members during the Orlando IUC. A busy agenda indeed!

The meeting location was strategically chosen so that we could meet with key members of the Informix management team. This will be a very important meeting that will help us outline and implement our plans for 2001. In our next E-newsletter I will update you on the outcome of the meetings and also give you an idea of our objectives for this quarter.

One of the IIUG Board's major tasks for the coming year is to seek more SIG and advocacy participation. For more details, see the IIUG Charter and Bylaws and the Advocacy page. For more information or to get involved, please write to promotions@iiug.org. In addition, I would like to encourage and seek your participation in local user groups. See Local Resources for more information.

I wish you a successful and prosperous 2001 and invite you to participate in IIUG activities that can make a big difference in future of the Informix community.

Yours truly,

Sudhir P. Nair
President, IIUG
president@iiug.org

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II. IIUG NEWS AND EVENTS

Survey for International User Conference (IUC) 2000 - Dawn McGuire

Please provide the IIUG with your feedback on IUC 2000 and help us make IUC 2001 the best it can be! Even if you did not attend the 2000 conference, we want your input. Complete your survey today by pointing your Web browser to the following link:

IIUG and Informix ask: "How can we help?" - Dawn McGuire

How can we help you do your job more effectively? Both Informix's marketing department and the IIUG's Board of Directors want to know, so we're working together to create a series of surveys designed to tell us. The first of these surveys asks you a few short questions about your development environment. You can access and complete this survey by clicking on the following link:

Please take just a few short moments to answer our survey questions. We'll report the results in an upcoming E-newsletter so you'll know how your colleagues answered the questions and we'll tell you what decisions we've made as a result of your feedback.

Please be assured that survey results will be used for research purposes only -- you will not be contacted by a salesperson unless you specifically request it. Many thanks for your help!

IUC News - Rob Vorbroker

Conferences canceled in Europe and Asia-Pac. Informix has canceled the plans for having three (3) international IUC-type conferences: The corporate-sponsored IUC events in Europe and Asia-Pac will not take place.

IUC 2001 in Las Vegas The IUC 2001 will be held in late October (dates to be finalized) at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada. Your new ideas or content for the user conferences are always welcome and appreciated. Please send them to ug@iiug.org.

Special Interest Groups - Fred Hubbard - SIG Chairperson

One of IIUG's best vehicles for learning, networking and influencing Informix Software is a Special Interest Group (SIG). Our Charter and Bylaws recognized this fact early on (See Charter). SIGs can be grouped around a product, an industry, a language, a geography, etc. Examples include 4GL/D4GL, Spanish users, data modeling, and European Presidents. Watch www.iiug.org for the latest information and for a list of current SIG email lists, go to IIUG Forums.

As Informix reinvigorates its product-marketing arm, they have reached out to IIUG for help in determining their product direction. We are responding in earnest by sponsoring groups for Red Brick, Universe/Unidata, and XPS. Other possibilities include IDS 7.x, Foundation.2000, classics (4GL/D4GL, ESQL/C, SQL, and Connectivity drivers). If you are interested, please contact me at fredh@iiug.org and check www.iiug.org for the latest information.

Local User Group News

Washington DC Area Local User Group - Training Days 2001 WAIUG will be having Training Days 2001 on March 21, 2001 at George Mason University in Fairfax, VA (just outside of Washington, DC). Cost is $25 and includes lunch. The training will be modeled after tutorials at the IUC. Content and registration information will be available soon on WAIUG's Web page at www.iiug.org/~waiug.

German Informix User Group - IUG Workshop in Stuttgart Theme: "Datenbanken und Tools fÆr e-business" to be held on February 21st, 2001. Check www.iug.de for other scheduled workshops in 2001.

Please the IIUG Events web page at: www.iiug.org

To list your local event in this newsletter or on the IIUG web site, please send your event information to ug@iiug.org

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III. BOARD NEWS

Board of Directors Meeting - February 2001

As mentioned in the letter from the president, the IIUG Board of Directors will be meeting in Palo Alto from February 18th-20th, 2001. We plan to have meetings with key Informix personnel to review how the IIUG and Informix can work together as a bi- directional conduit of information. We also plan to review IUC 2000 in Orlando and start planning IUC 2001 in Las Vegas. The Board meeting will also include the initial meetings of the Nominations and Elections Committee for next-term board members.

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IV. INFORMIX NEWS

NewCo has a New Name

It's official! Informix's "NewCo" or Business Solutions division announced its new name today: Ascential Software. For more details, visit www.ascentialsoftware.com. Ascential and Informix will now begin operating as two separate companies.

Informix Worldwide Sales Kick-off

On January 17th through the 19th, Informix held its annual sales kick-off in Las Vegas, Nevada, and the IIUG was there to continue raising its visibility within Informix's worldwide sales force.

Over 700 attendees listened as IIUG board member Fred Hubbard promoted the organization and solicited support for its local user group affiliates, special interest groups and advocacy programs. A special thank you goes to Kevin Bishop and Dennis Ippolito, members of Informix's sales team, for their enthusiastic testimonials that endorsed the IIUG's efforts.

New Site for Product Downloads

Informix has created a new site that can be used for downloads and evaluations of Informix products. The site effectively replaces Intraware's Informix site. Please find it at:

www.informix.com/evaluate

Informix customer testimonials

To help the world realize that Informix Software provides the world's best database software, Informix has created a Web site that includes customer success stories and testimonials. You can find it at:

Informix Certified Red Brick Administrator Testing to begin in Mid-December

This FREE, Web-based certification beta exam will be open for a limited time to all worldwide Informix employees, partners, or end users with Red Brick Decision Server system administration experience.

To participate in the beta program, please send your name and contact information to certification@informix.com. Mention that you'd like to participate in the Red Brick certification beta program.

Enriched functionality and enhancements for the Informix Developer Network (IDN) at www.informix.com/idn

The Informix Developers Network (IDN) was specifically created to provide users and developers of Informix products and / or programs a place where they can interact with their peers, get answers to questions, pass along information and expertise, and stay current with new development trends, strategies, and products that are released from Informix Software and the Informix user community. IDN is developer-friendly and loaded with information. It is a fantastic portal for technical information, Informix-related Web sites, and developer forums. IDN is quickly becoming one of the most popular destinations on the Informix web site for technical content. Some of the new changes to the IDN include:

• A non-password protected portal to Informix technical information and related informative web sites.
• A consortium with IIUG (you can jump to www.iiug.org any time and see their technical information as well!).
• An opt-in e-mail feature which allows visitors to identify what information they would like to receive from the IDN (and a great way to capture who uses the IDN as well).
• The free IDN Knowledge Exchange - Another avenue in which developers can exchange information with each other and share thoughts, ideas, insights, and answers to technical questions.
• Global scope: The IDN is a global program and thus all global Web sites are now listed on the IDN homepage.

There are plans in the works presently to have additional product corners on the IDN, guest columnists, and featured "showcase" corners - stay tuned.

Come visit the IDN today: www.informix.com/idn. If you would like to get involved in the IDN, please contact idn@informix.com.

Informix Certified System Administrator continues

The Certified System Administrator for Informix Dynamic Server Version 7 Certification will continue to be offered to candidates worldwide. To learn more about the exam requirements and training available to assist with the preparation of an exam, visit the Certification News page at:

www.informix.com/informix/training/courses/certific/welcome.htm

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V. CLOSING AND CREDITS

The International Informix Users Group (IIUG) is an international organization that is designed to enhance communications between Informix and its worldwide user community. The IIUG now has over 10,000 members and receives major support from Informix. We also help local user groups get started and to grow.

Sources: IIUG Board of Directors

Editor: Rob Vorbroker, Vorbroker Consulting and IIUG Board Member

Assistant Editors: Ron Flannery, One Point Solutions, lead author of Informix Handbook and IIUG Board Member, Fred Hubbard, UPnAbove and IIUG Board Member

Contact: ug@iiug.org or Dawn McGuire at 650.926.6762

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