FWIW, I hope this works out better,,,
QUOTE.COM TEAMS WITH MICROSOFT AND THE POWER OF WINDOWS DNA
New System Delivers Improved Service, Speed of Web Delivery - is Featured As Case Study for Microsoft
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., July 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Quote.com, Inc. (http://www.quote.com ), the network for the investing revolution, today announced that it has been working closely with Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) and Microsoft Consulting Services to implement a high
performance solution based on the Windows Distributed interNet Applications (Windows DNA) architecture as Quote.com's web infrastructure. Quote.com evaluated several alternatives but selected Windows DNA because it provided vastly superior performance,
significantly lower development and maintenance costs and shorter time to market.
As the network for the investing revolution, Quote.com delivers more than 3 million page views to independent investors each day. The numbers are expected to grow rapidly as interest in the financial markets increase both domestically and abroad.
Quote.com recognized the need to implement a web serving architecture that was faster than their previous Netscape Enterprise Server on Sun Sparc running Solaris. Quote.com implemented a faster Windows NT-based web serving architecture that was more cost effectively scalable than their previous solution, which included 20 Sun Enterprise Servers
using a combination of Netscape Commerce Server and Netscape Enterprise Server. Their goals were to reduce development and hardware expenses, build a solution that would cost-effectively scale to match growth, and would be both reliable and easy to manage. After
an extensive evaluation of several alternatives available on the market, Quote.com decided on the Windows DNA solution.
With a team of developers from Microsoft Consulting Services and Quote.com, the two companies were able to deliver a new Quote.com solution, from concept development to the Beta launch of the new system, in just less than six months. Because of the rapid and
successful deployment of the new system, Microsoft decided to base its latest case study on Quote.com. "This is a classic example of the power of Windows DNA," said Jigish Avalani, group manager of Windows DNA Marketing at Microsoft Corp. "By enabling the rapid
development of scalable Web applications on commodity hardware, it gives our customers a huge price and performance advantage."
Quote.com based its decision to use Windows DNA on several key factors, including: * Great performance. The Windows DNA prototype attained a sustained hit rate of 30 pages per second for each machine, compared to a previous
6 pages per second with Quote.com's existing Sun system. * Rapid development. The Microsoft Windows DNA solution saved developers
from Quote.com and Microsoft at least two months of development by
allowing the use of existing code and "pre-fabricated" infrastructure
components. * Lower development costs. Because they were able to re-use existing code, the need to write new code and data-caching systems was eliminated, along with the need to hire a dedicated engineer to support that effort. * Lower maintenance and upgrade costs. Because the hardware and software
used in Windows DNA is Windows NT-based, the necessary equipment is
widely available from local vendors, and is more cost effective than
more specialized UNIX systems. "Windows DNA has allowed us to deploy the first phase of Quote.com's overall solution redesign ahead of schedule," said Kaj Pedersen, Vice President of Engineering at Quote.com. "We are already enjoying greatly enhanced delivery speeds and site performance. Once the second phase of our overall site redesign is complete, our system's performance will provide one of the fastest services available on the market."
Quote.com plans to launch a complete site and architecture redesign in the fall quarter of 1999, building off of the enhancements that the Windows DNA solution has already brought to the site. "Independent investors demand the highest quality of service from a financial
network," said Robert Honeycutt, President and CEO of Quote.com. "Quote.com already provides the best in market context, tools and transaction capabilities. Now, with the enhancements from the Windows DNA offering, we will have an even better ability to deliver faster and more reliable services, now and as we grow in the future."
The implementation of the Microsoft Windows DNA solution has been so successful for both organizations that Quote.com has been featured as a success story in a Microsoft "Solutions In Action" business review. The review has been released by Microsoft, and can be
found at microsoft.com.
About Windows DNA
Microsoft Windows Distributed interNet Applications (Windows DNA) architecture is Microsoft's developer offering for building next-generation Web applications that enable companies to fully exploit the benefits of Microsoft's platform technologies. Using the
Windows DNA offering, customers can build modern, scalable, n-tier business applications that can be delivered over any network. Windows DNA applications can improve the flow of information within and without the organization, are dynamic and flexible to change, as
business needs evolve, and can be easily integrated with existing systems and data. Because Windows DNA applications leverage deeply integrated Windows platform services that work
together, organizations can focus on delivering business solutions rather than on being systems integrators.
For more information on Windows DNA, please visit the Microsoft Web site: microsoft.com.
About Quote.com
Quote.com is the network for the investing revolution, bringing Wall Street-quality information, tools and transaction capabilities to independent investors. Quote.com was recently named one of UPSIDE magazine's Hot 100 Private Companies of 1999, and Barron's deemed Quote.com's web site one of the 20 best investment resources on the
Internet.
Quote.com is the Internet's largest provider of streaming quotes, reaching over 150,000 unique users per month. Over one million people use our free services, including LiveCharts and IPO Edge. Quote.com's active investors subscribe to premium content and tools such as
QCharts at prices ranging from $25-$100 per month. Many of the Internet's most popular financial and media sites depend on Quote.com's co-branded services, including Charles Schwab, Waterhouse Securities, Compaq Computer Corporation, NationsBank, SunAmerica
and AT&T Wireless. Quote.com is the financial content provider for InfoSpace.com, with an affiliate network of over 1,500 Web sites.
Quote.com is a privately held company venture funded by Sequoia Capital Corporation, Highland Capital Partners, BARRA, Inc. and Shawmut Capital. Quote.com is based in Mountain View, CA, and has offices in New York, NY. Their services can be accessed via the
World Wide Web at quote.com, by sending a blank e-mail to info@quote.com, or by calling 650-930-1000. SOURCE Quote.com, Inc.
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