Info portal keeps projects humming

Hummingbird's Enterprise Portal Suite

Government agencies interested in using a portal to share information and

collaborate on projects have a new option in Hummingbird Ltd.'s Enterprise

Information Portal 4.

An enterprise information portal offers a simple Web-based front end

to locate information and online services. EIPs combine several technologies

to cut through immense amounts of data and provide employees, partners and

citizens with customized access to the most pertinent information.

Hummingbird's EIP 4 features an enhanced user interface that makes the

system easier to navigate for beginners as well as for expert users, said

Peter Auditore, the company's vice president of U.S. marketing.

EIP 4's other features include:

* A platform-independent Java-based engine that supports numerous Unix

platforms including Sun Microsystems Inc.'s Solaris 2.6 and 7, as well as

Linux and HP-UX.

* Application collaboration, which enables legacy applications to integrate

with the portal.

* Hummingbird's WebUpdate for easier upgrades and additional plug-ins.

"Bringing Solaris to the team was huge for the government for enterprise

scalability," Auditore said.

Hummingbird already has a number of federal customers, including the

Navy, the General Services Administration and the Internal Revenue Service.

The company expects the first government customer to begin using Version

4 next month, Auditore said.

The product was announced in late October and began shipping Dec. 15.