Conclusion
My experience on the Simbex HIT System project has reinforced my conviction that central administration of the database synchronization process is critically important, simply because there will never be enough database administrators for all the remote sites where databases are deployed. This will remain true even though the HIT System is emerging from its R&D origins as a commercial product, and is being marketed by sports equipment giant Riddell as the "Riddell Sideline Response System".
Synchronization at the database row level, rather than application message level, is very helpful in reducing application complexity and the errors that result. Nevertheless, stuff happens, even in production, and features which support centralized control over diagnosis and repair are invaluable.
Breck Carter is principal consultant at RisingRoad Professional Services, providing consulting and support for SQL Anywhere databases and MobiLink synchronization with Oracle, DB2, SQL Server, and SQL Anywhere. He is author of SQL Anywhere Studio 9 Developer's Guide, now available in English, Japanese and Chinese. Breck can be reached at [email protected].
