RJS Goes Cross-Platform with Report Delivery Tool

Published: May 5, 2009

by Alex Woodie

Companies that are looking to consolidate their report delivery mechanisms for multiple operating systems may want to check out DeliverNow, a new cross-platform tool released by RJS Software last week at the COMMON tradeshow in Reno, Nevada. With the capability to monitor, convert, and distribute reports from System i, Linux, AIX, and Windows servers, DeliverNow gives customers a powerful tool for automating processes in the data center, and saving money along the way.

RJS has been working for the last four years to overhaul and streamline its diverse collection of document output management tools. Instead of building and maintaining separate code bases for its i5/OS, Windows, and Unix products, the Burnsville, Minnesota, software vendor has been re-developing its products in platform-neutral technologies, such as JavaScript and HTML, and releasing single products that previously did the work of many.

The trend continues with DeliverNow, which has been in development for years and consolidates much of the functionality previously offered in RJS' old WinSpool product line, according to Richard Schoen, who held a press conference at COMMON to announce the general availability of the product.

"This is a game-changer for us," Schoen says. "By extending DeliverNow to all platforms we can accommodate companies running ERP systems such as JD Edwards World or OneWorld [now EnterpriseOne], which run on multiple platforms, and provide them with the kind of automated enterprise-wide report delivery that makes their businesses function much more efficiently."

DeliverNow automates the delivery of reports across multiple platforms. The product, which runs on Windows, monitors the output queues of i5/OS, Windows, Linux, and AIX servers; converts the platform-specific output to the desired format (PDF, HTML, CSV, RTF, Excel, and others); and then delivers the report using the desired mechanism (e-mail, FTP, fax, print, or the Web). The product can work with any Unix operating system that uses the Samba file sharing service. Fax capability is offered through integration with external fax servers and services.

DeliverNow replaces a dozen or more individual products that previously were offered under the WinSpool banner, including WinSpool Email Report Server, WinSpool Batch Report Server, WinSpool HTML Forms, and so forth.

But DeliverNow isn't just WinSpool delivered under a new name. The new product delivers new functionality, including support for AIX and Linux (any Unix, really), compliance with Microsoft .NET, and a brand-new Web console that should make it easier for people to use the software.

RJS will continue to support the old WinSpool products, Schoen says. But they won't be developed any further. Instead, the bulk of RJS' efforts in report automation will go toward DeliverNow. Customers who have invested in WinSpool will be given an upgrade path to DeliverNow consisting of converters and services, says Jerry Olson, RJS' vice president of sales and marketing.

Schoen hopes DeliverNow out delivers other popular reporting tools, such as SAP's CrystalReports, which can grab output from multiple platforms and convert it to formats like PDF. But CrystalReports lacks key features, such as the capability to automatically convert and distribute reports to a Web-based repository, such as RJS WebDocs.

DeliverNow is available now. Pricing starts at about $5,000, and goes up with the addition of extra features, such as PDF conversion and SharePoint integration. For more information, visit www.rjssoftware.com.

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