TECHNOLOGY REVIEW: 2004/05#16

SOPHTLOGIC intraGlobal Framework

Introduction

During 2004 we are launching our new intraGlobal Framework which is designed to provide a complete and integrated data, application and media services delivery environment. The framework provides a flexible and adaptive environment within which any combination of intraGlobal technology and service level specifications can be deployed and migrated between causing minimal ripple effects at the user interface.

The intraGlobal Framework centres on the concept of a spectrum of data, application and media channels which are made available to an organisation irrespective of the location of that organisation’s users. This latter feature we refer to as Location Independence. The eBroadcast channels can be made available via either the customer’s Intranet and/or Internet.

Why intraGlobal?

The technological core of the intraGlobal Framework is the adoption of eBroadcast as the architecture around which our products are built. The reason for this is to develop & prepare our technology map for the ever growing convergence of data, media and messaging services. The concepts behind the intraGlobal Framework are therefore focussed towards an information world where any personal device, be it a PC, Television, or mobile phone can access a set of heterogeneous information & services in the same way a TV receiver is able to capture any TV broadcast that it is capable of tuning to or a Satellite receiver that can capture any channel is enabled to subscribe to. The key attribute of these technologies is that they completely separate the subscriber/user from the data and transmission mechanisms required to deliver an information or media service to a subscriber.

In the future we see a global information environment where servers have ceased to exist and where information exists as a global network of knowledge and data that resides on any Internet capable location and which is capable of sharing that data with any other Internet capable location & one of our current technology developments is a concept we refer to as the ‘knowledge.net’ which is designed specifically to deliver the concept of sharing a distributed & global knowledge base that can be manipulated in a meaningful way. Those visions are parts of a possible future and our intraGlobal Framework is designed to position SOPHTLOGIC technology to capitalise on that vision of the future.

But technology frameworks must support not only the future but also the near future and most importantly the present. The intraGlobal Framework therefore fully accommodates our current & planned customer deployments but in a way that enables our customers to migrate and evolve their data & information services between the various delivery & functionality models supported by the Framework.

Through the Framework

So far this overview has discussed the Framework in terms of eBroadcast and other service related metaphors. But that may not be what you currently have and it may not be what you currently plan as part of your application & data services strategy. It is this frequent and often mandatory requirement that demonstrates the full power the Framework and the key design attribute which delivers this power is as follows:

The Framework is built of the concept of eBroadcast where each subscriber to the eBroadcast channel being used is completely unaware of how that channel signal reaches them. All they know is that they can receive and access the channel and how it gets to them is of little importance to them. Of often equal (and today growing) importance is also the facility to access a channel service regardless of location. For example, imagine a mobile phone that only worked in your car. Having access to data channels based upon fixed delivery locations, especially with the rising dominance of the Internet will become increasingly redundant. But at this point in time it is highly likely that Internet based and hosted solutions are not what you currently require.

What intraGlobal does is provide your organisations application & data subscribers with a single data and application ‘surface’ beneath which the data and application and delivery mechanism can take several forms but where those several forms all use a single, flexible and platform independent licensing structure. Therefore you can adopt intraGlobal using your organisations existing internal delivery and support mechanisms in the safe knowledge that you can evolve to fully location independent & Internet based models as and when your organisation’s requirements indicate the need to do so. We refer to the Framework ‘surface’ described above as the Broadcast Interface and within the Framework there are several variants of this but they all do the same thing, i.e. they present a single interface to multiple technologies via a single licensing metric. A simple schematic of this is as follows:

The illustration above demonstrates how the various technologies plug together and deliver a single solution surface/interface. All components and technologies that fall within the Framework can be utilised to deliver the solution surface regardless of their source and combination. This gives rise to a further Framework technology that we refer to a ‘Reintegration’. This is the process whereby seemingly unrelated components and technologies can be recombined & reconditioned to deliver what is in effect a new and Framework compliant solution. A typical example of this might be the reintegration of your existing hardware and networking infrastructure with other newly supplied Framework components to create an intraGlobal solution which then forms the foundation of your future exploitation strategy for the data and application services provided for your user population.

Framework Architecture

All intraGlobal technologies and licensing structures are interchangeable and adapt to both what you need and using the methods and technologies you prescribe. You can therefore step into a world that fully embraces what you do now but which also equips you for our technology vehicles of the future. The following figure sets out the broad perspective of the Framework’s architecture and inter-technology bindings:

The eBroadcast Architecture:

A Summary of the eBroadcast Options

To recap the 3 options that the customer has for the delivery of the intraGlobal Framework are as follows:

LOCAL.net – delivered from the customers own equipment and facilities that have been certified by SOPHTLOGIC as being suitable for eBroadcast.

SOPHT.net/eNucleus – delivered from our secure and resilient eBroadcast facility located at SOPHTLOGIC UKHQ.

SOPHT.net/eSAT – delivered from a SOPHTLOGIC wholly owned, maintained and supported facility based at a location chosen by the customer (assuming that location is certified for the purpose by SOPHTLOGIC).

SOPHT.net/eNucleus vs. SOPHT.net/eSAT

The differences between the eNucleus and eSAT SOPHT.net signals are minimal and both are fully optimised for both Internet and Intranet use. The choice between eSAT and eNucleus is based upon customer preference and both options have advantages. eSAT provides the customer with a localised eBroadcast facility designed for that customer’s particular needs where the whole installation is working for that customer alone. The eSAT customer also has the option of using our eNucleus as a secure gateway out onto the Internet therefore giving the customer the best of both worlds. eNucleus provides the customer with a completely off-site solution where no issues arise from the deployment of significant & key hardware installations on customer premises. eNucleus is also highly effective as an Internet based solution as it’s primary eBroadcast signal is originated within the eNucleus installation whereas an eSAT signal arrives via a remote link for repeater broadcast over the Internet.

The choice between eSAT and eNucleus is therefore not straightforward but SOPHTLOGIC can assist with this decision by discussing the customers needs and requirements and helping to select the most appropriate eBroadcast solution.

Relating eBroadcast, pharOS & other intraGlobal Channels

So far this document has outlined the technology platform & architecture we use for the delivery eBroadcast and now we will give an overview of how that relates to data, application and our new class of solution media-services. Both LOCAL.net and SOPHT.net delivery a spectrum of eBroadcast channels and the key member of that spectrum is our flagship application product pharOS. As part of the intraGlobal Framework, pharOS is transitioning from the existing pharOS/8 and pharOS/9 product marks to pharOS/10, pharOS/10e and pharOS/10i.

pharOS/10 is the product edition broadcast via LOCAL.net, whilst pharOS/10e & pharOS/10i are the versions optimised for the SOPHT.net/eSAT and SOPHT.net eNucleus eBroadcast signals respectively.

LOCAL.net vs. SOPHT.net

The key difference between LOCAL.net and SOPHT.net is that SOPHT.net originates from specifically designed & optimised SOPHTLOGIC owned, maintained and supported eBroadcast facilities. This means that SOPHT.net is able to support a wider range of secondary eBroadcast channels. However, the primary eBroadcast channel pharOS is equally well integrated with both SOPHT.net and LOCAL.net. During 2004 we will be launching additional eBroadcast channels one of which is a key eLearning product called the knowledge.net which presents a new & multi-dimensional approach to eLearning especially. This technology will also see the launch of our new media channel which will enable the delivery not just of eLearning administration and management but also the media & material that forms the bulk component of eLearning course content. Additional information for the knowledge.net and our media channel is available upon request but full details will be published during the earlier part of 2004.

Licensing the intraGlobal Framework

The Framework fully recognises that for any technology architecture a flexible and cost effective licensing mechanism is required. Therefore, as part of the intraGlobal initiative we have further developed our Best Value Licensing Architecture (BVLA) so that it can work across the whole intraGlobal Framework architecture and products. This means that the customer can transfer between and adopt components from the intraGlobal Framework using a consistent and scalable mechanism. The intraGlobal Framework uses a consistent and scalable set of metrics as follows:

The intraGlobal Framework treats all deliverable facilities as being channels of the eBroadcast spectrum which are subscribed to by a user population which belongs to an organisation. The BVLA therefore provides licensing metrics for the Framework dependant upon the type of broadcast required as well as the range of channels to be subscribed to by each member of the user population. The final component of the intraGlobal Framework licensing is a range of service packs designed to compliment the broadcast channels being subscribed to.

The licensing metric for eBroadcast is therefore very simple. An organisation must first decide which channels it wishes to subscribe to and then decide which of its members require access to those channels. The final component is specifying the service pack which best suites the day to day needs of the subscriber organisation.

Each eBroadcast channel outputs its signal at what we refer to as a Datapoint (similar in concept to an ATM or Cashpoint machine). A Datapoint can only be used by one person at any one time so the organisation should ideally stipulate the minimum number of Datapoints necessary to satisfy simultaneous demand. This sets the value of the eBroadcast Channel License. The organisation then specifies each individual or group who requires access to those Datapoints. Each Subscriber ID (SID) carries its own set of access credentials and these are bound to the Windows login credentials of the person using the particular access device. For locations where a large & occasional population is accessing a single Datapoint, the subscriber organisation may allocate any number of PIN numbers so that each individual’s access can be logged. However, each person accessing via a single Subscriber ID using a PIN is subject to access control that is identical to all other PIN numbers allocated to that SID.

Therefore a typical license fee is calculated as the number of Datapoints required for each channel multiplied by the channel rates PLUS the number of Subscriber IDs required. The required service packs are then added to this to give the final channel, subscriber and service level agreement. This is designed to deliver a metered and cost effective eBroadcast service that is tailored to the organisation’s particular technological and functional needs and that demonstrates best value in terms of both licensing and technological architecture.