Preview of Version 8.60 Empress Software will release V8.60, the newest version of the Empress RDBMS, later this year. In addition to performance enhancements, V8.60 features replication, the process of creating and managing duplicate versions of a database in a system.     V8.60 users will benefit from even faster, more efficient access to data. Via replication, alternate data access sources exist to retrieve the same piece of data. Such reduction of network traffic results in an overall speed up in data retrieval.     Replication also protects a company's data. Continuous access to data is ensured by providing back-up in case a primary database server fails. Because database replicas are read-only, multiple users can access data without corrupting data integrity.     For database applications with a wide geographic distribution of users, replication is an efficient method of database access.     For more information about the new features and availability of Empress RDBMS V8.60, contact your Empress representative.

WirePoint.com features daily news, favorite search engines and more New Portal to Cyberspace Hopping from website to web site is a daily ritual for Internet surfers around the world. The myriad destinations are seemingly endless when you have a site for E-mail, backing up your data, chatting, another few for your favorite search engines, and others.     To simplify the process, the folks at WirePoint provide Internet surfers with an all encompassing Internet portal of services via one integrated site, WirePoint.com.     WirePoint offers its users a distinct, clearly organized Internet portal to a wealth of information, convenient services and a useful array of resources. Users get the latest technology, business, sports and other headline news. Services include free web-based email, web page hosting and an auctioning forum. WirePoint also connects its users to multiple travel, shopping, social, and entertainment resources.     The search engine software fueling WirePoint.com, was created using the Empress RDBMS. WirePoint.com allows users to conduct a search using multiple engines simultaneously. These engines include AltaVista, Excite, Lycos, Yahoo, WebCrawler and a few more. The search engine stores information about various websites, number and criteria of searches performed, and administrative data. continue in page 4.

For information on the products or companies covered in this newsletter, please contact Empress Software by telephone, fax, or e-mail, using any of the numbers listed below:

Empress Software Inc. 6401 Golden Triangle Drive Greenbelt, Maryland USA 20770 Tel: (301) 220-1919 Fax: (301) 220-1997 E-mail: sales@empress.com

Empress Software Inc. 3100 Steeles Avenue East Markham, Ontario Canada L3R 8T3 Tel: (905) 513-8888 Fax: (905) 513-1668 E-mail: sales@empress.com