SQL Everywhere Introduced
Microsoft formally announced SQL Server Everywhere Edition as part of its vision for data storage moving forward.
Microsoft is pitching it as part of the solution to the "Occasionally Connected" scenario where an application needs to function even when it doesn't have connectivity to network resources. Typical occasionally connected scenarios include sales force automation (sales rep visiting customer) and field force automation (delivery drivers, maintenance workers). The OCS app most of us are familar with is Outlook 2003.
SQL Everywhere is part of the SQL Server family and represents the next incarnation of SQL Mobile, which traces its own roots back to SQL CE. The plan for SQL Everywhere is to provide a compact, fully functional and easily deployable database familar to SQL Server developers. In addition, new releases of Visual Studio will provide tools to easily control the synchronization of data between the mobile application and central server.
The CTP of SQL Everywhere is expected this summer, with the full release coming by the end of the year.