Maya is a high end 3D computer graphics and 3D modeling software package originally developed by Alias Systems Corporation, but now owned by Autodesk as part of the Media and Entertainment division. Autodesk acquired the software in October 2005 upon purchasing Alias. Maya is used in the film and TV industry, as well as for computer and video games.
In 2003, Maya (then owned by AliasWavefront) won an Academy Award "for scientific and technical achievement", citing use "on nearly every feature using 3-D computer-generated images."
The core of Maya itself is written in C++.
Project files, including all geometry and animation data, are stored as sequences of MEL operations which can be optionally saved as a 'human readable' file (.ma, for Maya ASCII), editable in any text editor outside of the Maya environment which allows for a tremendous level of flexibility when working with external tools.
A marking menu is built into larger menu system called Hotbox that provides instant access to a majority of features in Maya at the press of a key.
An important feature of Maya is its openness to third-party software, which can strip the software completely of its standard appearance and, using only the kernel, can transform it into a highly customized version of the software. Apart from its intrinsic power and flexibility, this feature in itself made Maya appealing to large studios which tend to write custom code for their productions using the provided software development kit.
Proprietary software
Proprietary software is computer software with restrictions on copying and modifying placed on it by the creator or distributor. These restrictions are enforced by either legal or technical means, and sometimes by both. The most common form of technical enforcement is by releasing only machine-readable programs to users and withholding the human-readable source code. Means of legal enforcement can involve software licensing, copyright protection, and patent protection.
Closed source is a term for software whose license does not meet the definition of open source software. Generally, it means only the binaries of a computer program are distributed and the license provides no access to the program's source code, rendering modifications to the software technically impossible for practical purposes. The source code of such programs is usually regarded as a trade secret of the company. Access to source code by third parties commonly requires the party to sign a non-disclosure agreement.
If the proprietor of a software package should cease to exist, or decide to cease or limit production or support for a proprietary software package, recipients and users of the package can be left at a disadvantage and have no recourse if problems are found with the software. Proprietors can fail to improve and support software because of business problems. Companies also end their support for a product for business and organizational planning purposes. The consequence is also tied to enticing more to upgrade and pay for newer versions.
The practice is legal in most countries unless restricted by copyright or license. Some proponents of free software consider the practice immoral, and it was the impetus for the creation of "copyleft" licenses.
Closed source is a term for software whose license does not meet the definition of open source software. Generally, it means only the binaries of a computer program are distributed and the license provides no access to the program's source code, rendering modifications to the software technically impossible for practical purposes. The source code of such programs is usually regarded as a trade secret of the company. Access to source code by third parties commonly requires the party to sign a non-disclosure agreement.
If the proprietor of a software package should cease to exist, or decide to cease or limit production or support for a proprietary software package, recipients and users of the package can be left at a disadvantage and have no recourse if problems are found with the software. Proprietors can fail to improve and support software because of business problems. Companies also end their support for a product for business and organizational planning purposes. The consequence is also tied to enticing more to upgrade and pay for newer versions.
The practice is legal in most countries unless restricted by copyright or license. Some proponents of free software consider the practice immoral, and it was the impetus for the creation of "copyleft" licenses.
Microsoft SQL Server
Microsoft SQL Server is a relational database management system (RDBMS) produced by Microsoft. Its primary query language is Transact-SQL, an implementation of the ANSI/ISO standard Structured Query Language (SQL) used by both Microsoft and Sybase.
The architecture of Microsoft SQL Server is broadly divided into three components: SQLOS which implements the basic services required by SQL Server, including thread scheduling, memory management and I/O management; the Relational Engine, which implements the relational database components including support for databases, tables, queries and stored procedures as well as implementing the type system; and the Protocol Layer which exposes the SQL Server functionality.
The Relational engine is the component, which implements the relational data store, using the capabilities provided by SQLOS, which is exposed to this layer via the private SQLOS API. It implements the type system, to define the types of the data that can be stored in the tables, as well as the different types of data items (such as tables, indexes, logs etc) that can be stored. It includes the Storage Engine, which handles the way data is stored on persistent storage devices, as well as implement methods for fast access to the data. The storage engine implements log-based transaction so as to ensure that any changes to the data are ACID compliant. It also includes the query processor, which is the component that allows data to be retrieved. The specification of what needs to be retrieved is provided in the form of a SQL query, which it optimizes and translates into the sequence of operations needed to retrieve the data. The operations are then scheduled on to the worker threads, which are scheduled for execution by SQLOS.
The architecture of Microsoft SQL Server is broadly divided into three components: SQLOS which implements the basic services required by SQL Server, including thread scheduling, memory management and I/O management; the Relational Engine, which implements the relational database components including support for databases, tables, queries and stored procedures as well as implementing the type system; and the Protocol Layer which exposes the SQL Server functionality.
The Relational engine is the component, which implements the relational data store, using the capabilities provided by SQLOS, which is exposed to this layer via the private SQLOS API. It implements the type system, to define the types of the data that can be stored in the tables, as well as the different types of data items (such as tables, indexes, logs etc) that can be stored. It includes the Storage Engine, which handles the way data is stored on persistent storage devices, as well as implement methods for fast access to the data. The storage engine implements log-based transaction so as to ensure that any changes to the data are ACID compliant. It also includes the query processor, which is the component that allows data to be retrieved. The specification of what needs to be retrieved is provided in the form of a SQL query, which it optimizes and translates into the sequence of operations needed to retrieve the data. The operations are then scheduled on to the worker threads, which are scheduled for execution by SQLOS.
Java
Java is a programming language originally developed by Sun Microsystems and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun's Java platform. The language derives much of its syntax from C and C++ but has a simpler object model and fewer low-level facilities. Java applications are typically compiled to bytecode which can run on any Java virtual machine (JVM) regardless of computer architecture.
Java's design, industry backing and portability have made Java one of the fastest-growing and most widely used programming languages in the modern computing industry.
The original and reference implementation Java compilers, virtual machines, and class libraries were developed by Sun from 1995. As of May 2007, in compliance with the specifications of the Java Community Process, Sun made available most of their Java technologies as free software under the GNU General Public License. Others have also developed alternative implementations of these Sun technologies, such as the GNU Compiler for Java and GNU Classpath.
On 13 November 2006, Sun released much of Java as free software under the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL). On 8 May 2007 Sun finished the process, making all of Java's core code open source, aside from a small portion of code to which Sun did not hold the copyright.
Java's design, industry backing and portability have made Java one of the fastest-growing and most widely used programming languages in the modern computing industry.
The original and reference implementation Java compilers, virtual machines, and class libraries were developed by Sun from 1995. As of May 2007, in compliance with the specifications of the Java Community Process, Sun made available most of their Java technologies as free software under the GNU General Public License. Others have also developed alternative implementations of these Sun technologies, such as the GNU Compiler for Java and GNU Classpath.
On 13 November 2006, Sun released much of Java as free software under the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL). On 8 May 2007 Sun finished the process, making all of Java's core code open source, aside from a small portion of code to which Sun did not hold the copyright.
Borland Delphi
Borland Delphi (now a product of Borland's subsidiary, CodeGear) is a software development package created by Borland. The eleventh and latest version, Delphi 2007 supports the Delphi programming language (Object Pascal) and C++ for the 32 bit Microsoft Windows platform, as well as Delphi and C# for the Microsoft .NET platform.
Delphi's most popular use is the development of desktop and enterprise database applications, but as a general-purpose development tool it is capable of, and is used for, most types of development projects.
The Delphi product is distributed as various suites: Personal, Professional, Enterprise (formerly Client/Server) and Architect.
Delphi was one of the first of what came to be known as RAD tools, for Rapid Application Development, when released in 1995 for the 16-bit Windows 3.1. Delphi 2, released a year later, supported 32-bit Windows environments, and a C++ variant, C++ Builder, followed a few years after.
Anders Hejlsberg, the main architect of Delphi and Turbo Pascal, was hired by Microsoft in 1996, where he has since led the design of both the Java dialect J++ and C#. Chuck Jazdzewski, who was chief scientist and architect of Borland's Delphi technology, left Borland and joined Microsoft in 2004. Danny Thorpe, Chief Scientist at that time, likewise left Borland and joined Google in 2005 only to later join Microsoft in 2006.
Delphi for PHP is an IDE for PHP. It provides true RAD functionality. It features Delphi or Visual Basic like form designer, integrated debugger (based on Apache web server). It also includes VCL library ported to PHP. Support for Web 2.0 features like AJAX, makes it a unique IDE.
Delphi's most popular use is the development of desktop and enterprise database applications, but as a general-purpose development tool it is capable of, and is used for, most types of development projects.
The Delphi product is distributed as various suites: Personal, Professional, Enterprise (formerly Client/Server) and Architect.
Delphi was one of the first of what came to be known as RAD tools, for Rapid Application Development, when released in 1995 for the 16-bit Windows 3.1. Delphi 2, released a year later, supported 32-bit Windows environments, and a C++ variant, C++ Builder, followed a few years after.
Anders Hejlsberg, the main architect of Delphi and Turbo Pascal, was hired by Microsoft in 1996, where he has since led the design of both the Java dialect J++ and C#. Chuck Jazdzewski, who was chief scientist and architect of Borland's Delphi technology, left Borland and joined Microsoft in 2004. Danny Thorpe, Chief Scientist at that time, likewise left Borland and joined Google in 2005 only to later join Microsoft in 2006.
Delphi for PHP is an IDE for PHP. It provides true RAD functionality. It features Delphi or Visual Basic like form designer, integrated debugger (based on Apache web server). It also includes VCL library ported to PHP. Support for Web 2.0 features like AJAX, makes it a unique IDE.
IBM Lotus Domino
Lotus Domino is an IBM server product that provides enterprise-grade e-mail, collaboration capabilities, and custom application platform. Domino began life as Lotus Notes Server, the server component of Lotus Development Corporation's client-server messaging technology. It can be used as an application server for Lotus Notes applications and/or as a web server. It also has a built-in database system in the format of NSF. From release 7, Domino server can use DB2 system as its backend database.
The Lotus Domino Email server is not well-regarded in the IMAP community because of its many violations of the IMAP specification. For example, when expunging a message, it first sends an EXISTS with a lower value than the current number of messages in the mailbox, and then it sends the EXPUNGE. This can cause clients to crash and/or remove more than one message. It also sends responses which violate IMAP syntax.
The Lotus Domino Email server is not well-regarded in the IMAP community because of its many violations of the IMAP specification. For example, when expunging a message, it first sends an EXISTS with a lower value than the current number of messages in the mailbox, and then it sends the EXPUNGE. This can cause clients to crash and/or remove more than one message. It also sends responses which violate IMAP syntax.
Adobe Systems
Adobe was founded in December 1982 by Andrew Sparks and Charles Geschke, who established the company after leaving Xerox PARC in order to develop and sell the PostScript page description language. In 1985, Apple Computer licensed PostScript for use in its LaserWriter printers, which helped spark the desktop publishing revolution. The company name Adobe comes from Adobe Creek, which ran behind the house of one of the company's founders. Adobe acquired its former competitor, Macromedia, in December 2005.
As of January 2007, Adobe Systems has 6,677 employees, about 40% of whom work in San Jose. Adobe also has major development operations in Seattle, Washington; San Francisco, California; Ottawa, Canada, Minneapolis, Minnesota; Newton, Massachusetts; San Luis Obispo, California and in Hamburg, Germany, Noida, India, and Bangalore, India.
Despite these missteps, licensing fees from the PostScript interpreter allowed Adobe to outlast or acquire many of its rivals in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In December 1991, Adobe released Adobe Premiere, which Adobe rebranded to Adobe Premiere Pro in 2003. Also in the same year (1991), Adobe released Adobe InCopy as a direct competitor to QuarkCopyDesk. In 1994, Adobe acquired Aldus and added Adobe PageMaker and Adobe After Effects to its production line later in the year; it also controls the TIFF file format. In 1995, Adobe added Adobe FrameMaker, the long-document DTP application, to its production line after Adobe acquired Frame Technology Corp.
As of January 2007, Adobe Systems has 6,677 employees, about 40% of whom work in San Jose. Adobe also has major development operations in Seattle, Washington; San Francisco, California; Ottawa, Canada, Minneapolis, Minnesota; Newton, Massachusetts; San Luis Obispo, California and in Hamburg, Germany, Noida, India, and Bangalore, India.
Despite these missteps, licensing fees from the PostScript interpreter allowed Adobe to outlast or acquire many of its rivals in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In December 1991, Adobe released Adobe Premiere, which Adobe rebranded to Adobe Premiere Pro in 2003. Also in the same year (1991), Adobe released Adobe InCopy as a direct competitor to QuarkCopyDesk. In 1994, Adobe acquired Aldus and added Adobe PageMaker and Adobe After Effects to its production line later in the year; it also controls the TIFF file format. In 1995, Adobe added Adobe FrameMaker, the long-document DTP application, to its production line after Adobe acquired Frame Technology Corp.
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