Computerworld - This year's winners of the Computerworld Innovative Technology awards realize their full potential in the hands of customers. The 30 vendors and their technologies are listed here in alphabetical order.
AmberPoint Inc.
URL: www.amberpoint.com
Location: Oakland, Calif.
Category: Application development
Technology: Service Level Manager
How it works: Provides predictability, visibility and control for Web services in production environments through a Web-based user interface. Offers end-to-end management for operational and business data interactions.
Customer sampling: Best Buy Co., BT Group PLC, Cole National Corp., Motorola Inc., TransCanada Corp.
Atomz Corp.
URL: www.atomz.com
Location: San Bruno, Calif.
Category: Application development
Technology: Atomz Enterprise
How it works: Combines site search and content management to improve online visitors' experience.
Customer sampling: H&R Block Inc., J. & W. Seligman & Co., PalmOne Inc.
BladeLogic Inc.
URL: www.bladelogic.com
Location: Waltham, Mass.
Category: Application development
Technology: BladeLogic Operations Manager
How it works: Data center automation software that helps companies provision, configure and manage large-scale, distributed server environments.
Customer sampling: Priceline.com Inc., USAA, Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc., HSBC Group, Wal-Mart.com USA LLC
BlueArc Corp.
URL: www.bluearc.com
Location: San Jose
Category: Storage
Technology: Titan SiliconServer
How it works: Consolidates and manages up to 256TB of data in a single network storage appliance.
Customer sampling: Altera Corp., BizRate.com, C.O.R.E. Feature Animation, Harvard University Life Sciences, Mainframe Entertainment Inc.
ClearSight Networks Inc.
URL: www.clearsightnet.com
Location: San Mateo, Calif.
Category: Networking
Technology: ClearSight Analyzer
How it works: Monitors and analyzes networks and network applications in real time or for postevent (forensic) analysis.
Customer sampling: Valparaiso Broadband Communication Systems, U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration, Electronic Arts Inc., Pine Mountain Group Inc., NTT Labs
Computas NA Inc.
URL: www.computas.com
Sammamish, Wash.
Category: Enterprise systems
Technology: Metis 3.4 Enterprise
How it works: Software for creating visual models of enterprise architectures and other systems to create comprehensive views of an operation for use in decision support and organizational governance.
Customer sampling: U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, The Boeing Co., NCR Corp.
EasyAsk Inc.
URL: www.easyask.com
Location: Marlboro, Mass.
Category: Application development
Technology: EasyAsk Enterprise 9
How it works: A search and information-retrieval platform that offers single-point access to different types of data, regardless of format or data location.
Customer sampling: Forbes.com Inc., Lands' End Inc., Ceridian Human Resource Solutions, E-Loan Inc.
EqualLogic Inc.
URL: www.equallogic.com
Location: Nashua, N.H.
Category: Storage
Technology: EqualLogic PeerStorage Array 100E
How it works: It connects SAN servers via Ethernet and automates administrative functions. It also provides a "virtualized" view of SAN capacity, so storage appears to reside on one drive even though it's spread over many drives. Each array can be a stand-alone unit, offering linear performance growth.
Customer sampling: Solucient LLC, Zenon Environmental Inc., Cypress Corp.
Expand Networks Inc.
URL: www.expand.com
Location: Roseland, N.J.
Category: Network management
Technology: Accelerator
How it works: Accelerator is designed to improve enterprise application performance over wide-area networks by using next-generation WAN compression. In addition to increasing WAN capacity, Expand's quality-of-service technology, known as Instant QoS, groups traffic types and eliminates the need to update and maintain the quality-of-service configuration each time a new application is rolled out. It also enables managers to prioritize bandwidth allocation among applications.
Customer sampling: Continental Airlines Inc., U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Federal Aviation Administration, U.S. Marine Corps
ForeSee Results Inc.
URL: www.foreseeresults.com
Location: Ann Arbor, Mich.
Category: Web site management
Technology: CS SiteManager
How it works: The pop-up online survey asks Web shoppers about general satisfaction with the site's functionality, whether they intend to return to the site and about its look and feel, pricing and value, says Larry Freed, CEO and president of ForeSee. With a typical customer-response rate of 6% to 12%, a company can gain critical information from users to increase sales and ROI, according to Freed. "We help diagnose the problem," he says. CS SiteManager uses statistical methodologies from the American Customer Satisfaction Index to create its data.
Customer sampling: Tower Records, Home Shopping Network, Cingular Wireless, Hallmark Flowers Inc., Forbes.com, the National Hockey League, DTE Energy Co.
Hyperion Solutions Corp.
URL: www.hyperion.com
Location: Sunnyvale, Calif.
Category: Enterprise systems
Technology: Hyperion Performance Suite
How it works: Provides query, analysis and reporting capabilities within a Web-based dashboard interface. Lets users access, analyze and distribute business data.
Customer sampling: City of San Jose, Direct Energy Essential Home Services, U.S. Army Recruiting, BAX Global Inc.
Infowave Software Inc.
URL: www.infowave.com
Location: Burnaby, British Columbia
Category: Mobile/wireless
Technology: Telispark Mobile Enterprise
How it works: This packaged mobile application suite draws data from multiple back-end systems using either the customer's enterprise application integration architecture or Infowave's own APIs to deliver data to mobile devices, including laptops and handhelds. Data is communicated back to the enterprise via a wireless connection or a "link and sync" cradle. Infowave supports data systems such as Oracle, SAP, Siebel, MRO Software Inc.'s Maximo and Indus Corp.'s Empac.
Customer sampling: Hydro One Inc., Shell Oil Co., Unilever, the U.S. Navy
Interwise Inc.
URL: www.interwise.com
Location: Santa Clara, Calif.
Category: Enterprise systems
Technology: ECP Connect
How it works: Delivers an unlimited number of Web meetings, audio conferences, e-learning courses and Web seminars for a fixed price. A distributed-server architecture and a multimedia conferencing bridge provide scalable and secure integrated conferencing. Windows or Java-based clients can connect to geographically distributed communication servers that route synchronized real-time or recorded audio, video and data streams.
Customer sampling: QAD Inc., Halliburton Co., Documentum, Nestle SA and RWD Technologies Inc.
iPhrase Technologies Inc.
URL: www.iphrase.com
Location: Bedford, Mass.
Category: CRM
Technology: OneStep
How it works: This advanced search tool seeks to improve Web-site responses to customer queries. Its analytics compiles data on what language customers are using and what products or services they're examining. That information is then used to fine-tune the search engine, increase self-service and provide a profile that can be used to upsell and cross-sell.
Customer sampling: Dell Inc., Netegrity Inc., Bank One Corp., Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts Inc.
What's in Store: Analyst David Daniels of Jupiter Research says that in the next three years, he says, products like iPhrase will replace today's basic site-search model "with the subtler and more effective methodology of discovery and managed dialogue."
Kalido Ltd.
URL: www.kalido.com
Location: London and Burlington, Mass.
Category: Data Management
Technology: Kalido Dynamic Information Warehouse
How it works: This data warehouse life-cycle management software uses technology patented in the U.K. (patent pending in the U.S.). All data warehouses embed information in tables that express relationships, but Kalido has dramatically reduced the number of tables required and cut the time needed to update tables for a new business model.
Customer sampling: BP PLC, Cadbury Schweppes PLC, Georgia-Pacific Corp., Labatt Breweries of Canada
LeanLogistics Inc.
URL: www.leanlogistics.com
Location: Holland, Mich.
Category: Supply chain/ERP
Technology: On-Demand TMS
How it works: Provides capacity procurement, shipment optimization, execution management and freight settlement.
Customer sampling: Orange Glo International, PepsiAmericas Inc., Barilla America Inc., Chiquita Brands International Inc.
LogicLibrary Inc.
URL: www.logiclibrary.com
Location: Pittsburgh
Category: Application development
Technology: Logidex
How it works: Maps relationships among software development assets and the business processes they support, letting customers manage and reuse assets.
Customer sampling: TelCove, CNA Insurance Group, Charles Schwab & Co., The Thomson Corp., CommunityAmerica Credit Union
Lumeta Corp.
URL: www.lumeta.com
Location: Somerset, N.J.
Category: Security
Technology: IPsonar
How it works: Collects, analyzes and reports on the operational state of a network and its perimeter, giving IT management visibility into security measures within IP networks.
Customer sampling: AT&T Wireless Services Inc., Artel Inc., Lucent Technologies Inc., Tyco International Ltd., Wachovia Corp., PricewaterhouseCoopers, Microsoft Corp., Ashland Inc., Pitney Bowes Inc.
nCircle Network Security Inc.
URL: www.ncircle.com
Location: San Francisco
Category: Security
Technology: IP360
How it works: The nCircle IP360 Vulnerability Management System uses a highly scalable, secure, appliance-based architecture that consists of two components. The IP360 VnE Manager is a hardened appliance that serves as the central data repository and management platform, and the IP360 Device Profiler is a hardened, diskless appliance that profiles devices and securely reports its findings to the VnE Manager.
Customer sampling: Patelco Credit Union, U.S. Agency for International Development, Office of Naval Intelligence
NetBotz Inc.
URL: www.netbotz.com
Location: Austin
Category: Security
Technology: WallBotz 500
How it works: Monitors and protects IT assets, network equipment, critical spaces and personnel from physical threats.
Customer sampling: NASA Ames Research Center, Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Chicago Stock Exchange
NetLi Inc.
URL: www.netli.com
Location: Palo Alto, Calif.
Category: Application development
Technology: Application Delivery Network
How it works: Specialized servers and protocols deployed as a global network eliminate the Internet's performance limitations. It optimizes Web page loading with a protocol that overcomes problems with TCP and HTTP to exchange information without multiple round trips. The company couples that technology with its own points of presence in Asia and Europe.
Customer sampling: Millipore, NetRatings Inc., Hewlett-Packard Co., Thomson Financial, Tektronix Inc.
Panasas Inc.
URL: www.panasas.com
Location: Fremont, Calif.
Category: Storage
Technology: Panasas ActiveScale Storage Cluster
How it works: Boosts storage performance for scalable Linux clusters and enhances manageability in a shared-file system.
Customer sampling: NuTec Energy Services Inc., Los Alamos National Laboratory, Rockefeller University
Qovia Inc.
URL: www.qovia.com
Location: Frederick, Md.
Category: Networking
Technology: Qovia VoIP Monitoring and Management System
How it works: Offers hardware and software modules to monitor and manage voice-over-IP telephony systems to ensure voice quality and network reliability.
Customer sampling: Banks Engineering Inc., Ventura (Calif.) Unified School District, County of Nevada (Calif.), Computer Associates International Inc., Financial Computer Support Inc., People's Bank
Seclarity Inc.
URL: www.seclarity.com
Location: Albuquerque
Category: Security
Technology: SiNic
How it works: Provides centrally managed, hardware-enforced endpoint firewalls, peer-to-peer encryption and auditing across a network, with continuous, transparent authentication required for data access.
Customer sampling: National Institutes of Health, U.S. Army
Sygate Technologies Inc.
URL: www.sygate.com
Location: Fremont, Calif.
Category: Security
Technology: Sygate
How it works: Combines a security agent that runs on each client, one or more policy management servers distributed across the enterprise, and enforcement on servers in the network and on endpoints.
Customer sampling: PartnerRe Ltd., Diebold Inc., Prudential Financial Inc., Wells' Dairy Inc., Time Inc.
Vericept Corp.
URL: www.vericept.com
Location: Englewood, Colo.
Category: Security
Technology: Vericept
How it works: Performs numerous complex linguistic and mathematical analyses to determine the nature of all forms of inbound and outbound Internet traffic, enabling companies to flag insider security threats.
Customer sampling: McData Corp., Nevada State Office of Energy, Community Hospitals of Indiana Inc., Kansas City Chiefs, Houston Texans
Vieo Inc.
URL: www.vieo.com
Location: Austin
Category: Hardware
Technology: Vieo 1000
How it works: The appliance plugs into a corporate network and detects, analyzes and controls service-delivery problems on databases, Web servers and application servers. The device presents its findings in a single dashboard-style interface.
Customer sampling: Burlington Coat Factory Warehouse Corp., the Santa Clara County (Calif.)
Vontu
URL: www.vontu.com
Location: San Francisco
Category: Security
Technology: Vontu Protect
How it works: Monitors for sensitive information leaving a company by e-mail, Web posts, instant messages, FTP and other means; reports who is violating specific security policies; and helps stop inappropriate disclosure before it happens.
Customer sampling: Prudential Financial, Charles Schwab
Vormetric Inc.
URL: www.vormetric.com
Location: Santa Clara, Calif.
Category: Security
Technology: CoreGuard Data Security System
How it works: Policy-driven, server-deployed security system that protects information by integrating access control, host and application protection, and data encryption.
Customer sampling: Ocwen Financial Corp., University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
Westbridge Technology Inc.
URL: www.westbridgetech.com
Location: Mountain View, Calif.
Category: Security
Technology: XML Message Server
How it works: Provides scalable, accelerated infrastructure software for securing XML Web Services and enabling service-oriented architectures.
Customer sampling: Federal Trade Commission, Sun Microsystems Inc., Danish Immigration Service, Travelers Property Casualty Corp.
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