Gupta, Hewlett-Packard enter pact to market new ODBC interface.

Gupta Technologies and Hewlett-Packard Co. have entered into a strategic alliance to develop and market an ODBC interface to HP ALLBASE/SQL and TurboIMAGE databases. With the new interface, HP users will be able to use any ODBC-compliant Windows application on their PCs to transparently access HP ALLBASE/SQL and HP TurboIMAGE data on HP 3000 and HP 9000 business computers.

HP says the announcement furthers its strategy to provide PC client-server solutions for its customers. It swiftly follows announcement that Gupta will provide an ODBC application program interface (API) for its own SQLBase server.

"This move is consistent with our strategy of making HP business systems and servers the cornerstone of client-server computing for our customers," says Richard Sevcik of HP's Systems and Servers Group. "Our customers gain the ability to access and process data in their existing application systems from the popular Windows environment on PCs. They also gain the ability to build a new generation of client-server applications while preserving their investments in HP hardware and software."

The new jointly developed ODBC driver for HP is expected to become available in the fall of 1993. Gupta SQLWindows applications currently access HP ALLBASE/SQL and HP TurboIMAGE data via the HP ALLBASE/SQL PC API, a connectivity product developed by the two companies that HP currently markets. The ODBC interface will give Gupta customers another option for making the connection.

Gupta says it will enhance its SQLWindows and Quest products to support ODBC in 1993. Gupta will also ship an ODBC client driver for Windows as a standard feature of all versions of its SQLBase Server (MS-DOS, OS/2, NLM and UNIX) in the first half of 1993.