The many questions you may have about Horeb and our business processing product, Horeb Transaction Processor, are answered here. If you have any questions that are not fully answered here, or interested in knowing more, please don't hesitate to contact us.

What is Horeb Transaction Processor? 

HorebTP is a open transaction processor which enables development and administration of applications on a open system. Horeb commissions applications in servers and enables them to be open transaction processing servers.

What is transaction processing? 

Horeb is a message (or data) driven system as opposed to the conventional process driven systems. These messages are known as transactions. Each transaction comprises input or output data fields. These transactions move from place to place, system to system and network to network (IP) and in the process, they update the databases, get some users to enter data, collect some data from devices, log some information for accounting, provide security for access and so forth. In summary, this is business processing. The faster it happens, the longer the availability (24 hrs, 7 days) and secure as it can be, to near perfection, that is Horeb. 
The modus-operandi of the transaction processing (or business processing) can be explained by the following key points. 

• The client workstation collects the data from the user and devices and encapsulates them into a message, which is also known as a transaction. At this time for uniqueness’ sake, a transaction unique identifier is also issued.
• Each transaction is connected to a collection of server programs based on the functions (eg. verify, reject, approve, delegate etc.,). The Administrators establish the connection rules.
• The server programs can run on any server on IP, and can issue any APIs to achieve the business tasks.
• Security, message queuing or redistribution, device access, database access and open access are all handled by Horeb components called managers.

For whom is HorebTP useful for? 

Horeb Transaction Processor is useful for any business, or person who manages their own accounts. HorebTP is a business processing system. Most large businesses currently use IBM mainframes for their business processing. However, mainframes are very expensive to maintain and use. Horeb provides businesses of today more capabilities in business processing at a higher performance, less expensive, maintainable manner. Since mainframes are so expensive to use and maintain, many businesses cannot afford them and at the same time are restricted in their growth. Horeb is affordable and allows them to grow. Even home users can use Horeb for mananging finances through our soon to come subscription service for business processing for home users and small businesses.

Why do we need to replace mainframes? 

To reduce system, maintenance and development cost, to go open system, to enhance the business processing with the currently available technology.

How HorebTP aids the replacement? 

HorebTP provides the same features enjoyed by mainframe; it provides security, performance and reliability. HorebTP applications are scalable as it dissects applications into transactions. The replaced application enjoys feature that are not possible under mainframe. They are open and hence they can be distributed through the IP network.

What are the monetary benefits in terms of development? 

Development can be done using PCs where the debugging and problem determination tools are plenty compared to mainframe. The development cycle is much simpler and hence more cost effective.

What are the monetary benefits in terms of maintenance? 

For one thing, the change control offered under HorebTP is more universal and have the repository of all previous releases and hence backing out is much simpler. Quality assurance is more automated by the use of different test environment and databases.

How all of mainframe features and more are achieved through HorebTP? 

HorebTP has components called Managers. There is a manager for each service. 

• Transaction Manager – handles all online and batch transactions
• Security Manager – handles all user and object security and administration
• Admin Manager – handles system, network, application and data center administrations
• Communication Manager – transports transactions throughout the IP network
• Device Manager – handles all devices and enables the data acquisition and distribution
• Object Manager – handles all transaction object definitions
• Database Manager – provides all database services
• Utility Manager – provides tools, utilities and translators

How is HorebTP secure? 

HorebTP security manager offers security profiles based on users and objects. It provides the following functions to ensure the security. 
Provide security for the system inline with RACF (level D1). 

• Users, user groups
• Classes for resources
• Certificates for messages (transactions)
• Each transaction object can be secured, meaning a field in a screen can be secured or a field in a database table can be secured.
• Resources are calculated for each user and sent for accounting
• Logs all security violations and warnings
• Any resource or facility can be secured
• Data always encrypted (using SSL)
• Special processing for signature fields, seal and envelopes

How is HorebTP reliable? 

Programs and databases are configured with alternative and back-up servers, while being protected by Horeb's Security Manager, enhancing the reliability by several folds, reducing the system outages to a bare minimum.

How are the databases and data handled in HorebTP? 

All data is migrated to database tables, and are taken care of by Horeb's Database Manager.

What is HorebTP's Client Manager? 

The Client Manager is the user interface of at the transactions received and sent by the client processor or device, and also has the abiliity of creating new transactions and applications to process those transactions. Client Manager is used by anyone to achieve their daily business processing functions. The user an be anyone like a bank teller, a doctor, a solicitor, a vendor, a hotel manager and so forth. By definition they are not computer science specialist and may not have any clue of programming. However, they are highly skilled in their business and know the commerce thoroughly well. 

Horeb lets them: 

• to customize their application user interfaces according to their preferences
• to hook a new devices or change a model in order to effectively capture and process the application fields
• to port application data to other tools like MS-Office, Lotus Notes and so forth
• to record a macro to programmatically cut and paste or get authorization from the supervisor and so forth.

What performance is expected after switching over to HorebTP? 

HorebTP performs the batch and transaction processing, collectively called as business processing, by distributing the programs and databases throughout the network servers and hence providing performance better than mainframe systems.

What are the languages supported? 

All languages with compilers are supported. Cobol, C, Fortran, Java etc., HorebTP does not put any restriction on any language environment. The existing compilers can be used.

How does HorebTP provide a rapid development? 

• HorebTP relieves the burden of application programming by a huge margin of 60%, since HorebTP supports these functions internally. For example, the help facility, error handling, GUI handling, device support etc., are processed internal to HorebTP.
• This leaves the application programming to deal only with the business rules specific to the client.
• The above features enable HorebTP to be a rapid application development system.
• The applications are developed at a rapid pace and meticulous details, since HorebTP provides all the necessary guidelines, rules and checklists that are mandatory for developing an application at a rapid speed as well as with reliable and useful facilities.
• Rapid and reliable development facility offered by HorebTP is achieved through a set of well thought and innovative processes that carefully governs the development cycle from the initial design phase to the final implementation.
• Detailed database modeling, quality assurance, information products, user training, system support are all the part of the HorebTP technology.

Does HorebTP use any script or 4th generation language, or generate code to accomplish it's abjectives? 

No. Such methods decreases system performance, and have failed in the past. HorebTP enhances business systems performance.S

Is HorebTP scalable? 

Yes. Each manager of HorebTP has sub-components, which can be upgraded optionally.

What kind of application that can be developed under HorebTP? 

All applications can be developed under HorebTP. Horeb's Client Manager also allows the user develop applications very easily.

Is HorebTP a overhead over operating systems? 

No, since HorebTP is a open transaction processing system, like FTP, SMTP, and SNMP it uses TCP/IP for communication.

Is HorebTP web-based? 

HorebTP is not web-based but web-enabled. The difference is that HorebTP is not developed using web programming but on native TCP/IP. This makes HorebTP much more efficient having a high performance than other web-based systems such as IBM WebSphere.

How long will it take for a person to get trained to develop under HorebTP? 

2-3 weeks to be a developer and 1-2 week for an administrator.

What is the difference between developing in HorebTP and Java programming/IBM WebSphere(IBM's futile attempt at application development)? 

Java programming needs a JVM (Java Virtual Machine). HorebTP does not force any virtual system; it is a plain IP based open system. HorebTP does not have a programming restriction. Since HorebTP's communication is based on TCP/IP, applications can be developed under any language, while HorebTP's in-built TCP/IP communication handles all the communication.

How does HorebTP compare with other tools like com+, ASP, Delphi, IBM WebSphere and so forth? 

All these tools are scoped with limitations. Large applications can not be handled by them. HorebTP has no such limitation.

What is the support plan for HorebTP? 

HorebTP product will be released every 6-12 months. All HorebTP related problems will be handled by HorebTP Level-3 support. Onsite support is provided.

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