OpenBase SQL 8.0 delivers more innovation, flexibility and value

Auto-discovery and auto-configuration provide immediate access to network
database servers

New licensing offers no-cost entry to the latest OpenBase software

CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE, USA -December 5, 2003 – OpenBase International,
Ltd., released a major new version of its popular database software,
OpenBase SQL 8.0, with features that make it easier and more cost-effective
than ever to design, build, deploy and manage innovative and fault-tolerant
databases.

New 8.0 features include Rendezvous auto server discovery; automatic IP
configuration; improved security; increased performance; new OpenBase
Manager tools and Mac OS X 10.3 Panther compatibility. New plugins for
REALbasic, JDBC, ODBC, Perl, PHP, Omnis Studio, and Omnis 7 have also been
released.

Figg Engineering Group’s (FIGG) OpenBase powered website was recently
selected as one of the “Top 10 Intranets of 2003” by the Nielsen Norman
Group. “Using OpenBase helped us focus on the tools we were developing
instead of on the database,” says Brad Ruffkess, who manages development of
the award-winning intranet. “OpenBase 8.0 offers usability that just does
not exist in other database products.”

In addition to 8.0, OpenBase also unveiled a new licensing program, which
provides even greater flexibility and value, including a no-cost,
entry-level “Personal” license that never expires. Special upgrade pricing
is offered at http://www.openbase.com/upgrade until December 31, 2003.

Meeting the demand for simplicity and value
“OpenBase has a low cost-of-ownership because we have taken the time to
make it self-managing and easy-to-use,” said Scott Keith, CTO of OpenBase
International. “Our customers don’t have time to waste on half-baked
database technology, they want solutions for taking care of business. With
8.0, we’ve built new levels of intelligence and automation into the proven
OpenBase SQL database platform to make development faster, implementation
smoother and management simpler.”

New OpenBase 8.0 features include:

Rendezvous Automatic Server Discovery – Provides seamless and immediate
access to network OpenBase servers with absolutely no configuration.

Auto-Configuration for NAT/Firewall Access – Auto-configures the network
layer for seamless database access through open ports in the firewall.

New Application Alarms – Comes with new SQL commands to alert
administrators of error conditions through the OpenBase Manager alarm
system.

More Powerful Management – A complete rewrite of OpenBase Manager tools
includes a slick ‘Panther’ look-and-feel and significant new capabilities,
including: in-line database status progress bars; drag-n-drop database
groups; detachable database monitoring windows; color-coded databases;
expanded views of database descriptions and sizes; log files showing error
severity and alarms; and new action buttons and contextual menus giving
easy access to all database functions.

Stored Procedure Scheduling – Offers more flexible options for scheduling
and triggering stored procedures. A simple graphical interface makes it
easier than ever to schedule backups, cleanups or any stored business logic
to run daily, weekly, or whenever a specific database event occurs, such as
startup or shutdown.

Database-Stored Preferences – Stores preferences, such as localization
settings and sort orders, in the database instead of in global preferences.
This allows databases with different languages and encoding settings to
co-exist on the same server.

OpenScript Editor with Syntax Checking – Includes new editing tools, such
as a syntax checker and remote script viewing, editing and saving, to make
it easier than ever to build stored procedures.

Meeting the demand for more flexible licensing

The company also announced a simpler, more flexible OpenBase licensing
program, including a zero-cost “Personal” license, which can be used for
deployment and does not expire. In addition, all license levels now have
full access to Java Stored procedures, credit card payment processing,
triggers, and automated backup scheduling.

OpenBase 7.0 licenses can be upgraded via the www.openbase.com website.
Special upgrade offers are available until December 31, 2003. For more
information, please visit http://www.openbase.com.

About OpenBase SQL
OpenBase SQL relational database servers deliver the scalable performance
and fault-tolerant data protection e-business demands.

Proven in realworld applications since 1991, OpenBase SQL has become the
database of choice for innovative, business-critical applications on Mac OS
X and other popular computing platforms. In addition to database
performance and integrity, OpenBase SQL solutions come with
industry-leading features that are simply unavailable – or cost much more –
on other databases. These include built-in, server-based support for Java
stored procedures and e-commerce functions, such as credit card payment
processing and automated email correspondence.

OpenBase SQL databases run on all of today’s popular platforms: Mac OS X,
Sun Solaris, Linux and Microsoft Windows and support all of today’s open
standard and de facto tools and interfaces, with native support for
WebObjects 5, Java, SOAP, 4D, REALbasic, ODBC Support, PHP, Perl, Cocoa,
and more. OpenBase International also partners with other leading software
providers to deliver higher level solutions that further reduce time, cost
and risk.