A leading Chicago-based private securities trading firm that trades in multiple markets contracted with Object Computing Inc. (OCI) of St. Louis to develop a high performance software library to support desktop trading.
Object Computing, Inc.
A leading Chicago-based private securities trading firm that trades in multiple markets contracted with Object Computing Inc. (OCI) of St. Louis to develop a high performance software library to support desktop trading.
The innovative architecture called for a shared information source with features – such as support for transactions and multi-user access – typically found in embedded database management systems. Performance and reliability were paramount for this component.
Only a RAM database could meet both the performance and reliability requirements for the project. Traditional databases with disk I/O, caching and related functions entailed too much processing overhead. In earlier projects, OCI implemented its own persistent in-memory data management, using a simple synchronized file system with logging to ensure recoverability.
However, for the new trading system, OCI sought to shorten its development cycle and enhance performance by adopting a proven commercial, off-the-shelf (COTS) in-memory database system (IMDS).
During its design investigation for its real-time financial application, OCI learned about McObject’s eXtremeDB in-memory database. eXtremeDB has been adopted for its exceptionally fast performance and reliability in applications ranging from telecommunications call routing to industrial process control. This track record, along with thorough testing, led OCI to select the eXtremeDB embedded database for the desktop trading system.
“We were not disappointed. The eXtremeDB real-time database exceeded our expectations and we recommend it,” said Kevin Heifner, principal software engineer for OCI.
“eXtremeDB was selected because of its high throughput and transactional support,” Heifner added. In particular, eXtremeDB’s new transaction logging support, which improves database durability in the event of hardware or software failure, improved greatly on OCI’s earlier logging implementation and sealed the decision to move to McObject’s database. Initial testing by OCI shows eXtremeDB's non-buffered transaction logging provides a 10x performance increase over the firm’s previous synchronized file-based approach, the OCI official said.
“McObject's support has been outstanding. They have answered email questions quickly and completely and followed up with phone calls to ensure complete understanding,” Heifner said.
About Object Computing
Object Computing Inc. (OCI) is a privately held software engineering company. OCI was founded in 1993 with a commitment to object oriented technology. Today OCI provides software systems consulting, product development, and educational services to progressive corporations across the United States in the Aerospace, Finance, Healthcare and Telecommunication market segments. The St. Louis-based OCI Education Center has one of the most extensive object technology and Java training curricula in the Mid West. OCI has a significant presence in Phoenix as well as St. Louis, where its corporate headquarters are located. OCI is a Sun Authorized Java Center and member of the OMG. For more information see our web site www.ociweb.com
Originally published at: http://www.mcobject.com/casestudy_obj.shtml
