Oracle Applications Users Discuss 11i Upgrades

Business Wire, Oct 25, 2000

Business Editors

HONOLULU--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 25, 2000

OAUG Conference Attendees Share Experiences With Oracle(R)

Corporation's New 11i Release

Oracle Applications users attending the 21st Annual Oracle Applications Users Group (OAUG)(R) Conference in Honolulu, Hawaii, today met to discuss issues associated with upgrading to Oracle Corporation's 11i e-business suite software.

This was one of the many educational and networking opportunities OAUG's Fall 2000 Conference offers.

More than 300 OAUG Fall 2000 Conference attendees gathered for a session entitled "Upgrading to Release 11i - Lessons Learned," featuring independent consultant John Stouffer and Computer Systems Authority's (CSA) Alicia Hoekstra. The session outlined the necessary steps for a successful 11i upgrade project.

Key among the information presented by Stouffer and Hoekstra were the minimum hardware requirements for upgrading to 11i, the significance of stabilizing the system before beginning the upgrade process, the importance of timely user training and the consequences of not recognizing the risk associated with upgrading to a version of a release that contains new modules.

Some comments from the session included:

          --  "If you have the time and the money, go ahead and go with
            11i."

          --  "Upgrades from 10.7 to 11i can take between 9 hours and 3
            to 4 days."

The event concluded with a Q&A session where Oracle Applications users had the opportunity to ask Stouffer and Hoekstra, and other experienced user experts in attendance, questions regarding specific technology issues. Topics covered in the Q&A included: Appropriate platforms for an 11i upgrade, debugging and trouble shooting, and the pros and cons of re-implementing versus upgrading to 11i.

"Presentations are an important part of the OAUG Conference attendee experience," said OAUG president Jeremy Young. "Sessions like `Upgrading to Release 11i - Lessons Learned' provide OAUG members and attendees to OAUG conferences with invaluable information, education and support that they receive through the largest independent Oracle Applications users community, the OAUG."

About the Oracle Applications Users Group (OAUG)(R)

Oracle Applications Users Group (OAUG) was formed in the San Francisco Bay Area in May 1990 when 32 Oracle(R) Applications users gathered to create an independent forum for the exchange and expression of information concerning the effectiveness of Oracle Applications. At that time, members agreed that the OAUG would remain an independent voice, promoting education, networking, communications and information sharing and opened a dialogue with Oracle representatives about product development, quality and support.

With a wide range of activities such as conferences, publications, affiliated group events, and a variety of member services, OAUG works to increase the members' knowledge and understanding of Oracle Applications and to communicate their issues and needs to Oracle Corporation.

Today, OAUG has 2,200 corporate members who represent tens of thousands of individual users worldwide, including representatives from more than 25 of the Fortune 100 companies, and represents diverse backgrounds, industries and geographic locations. Members include end users, service providers, hardware vendors, and third-party software solution providers, and represent 71 affiliated geographic and special interest groups from around the world.

The OAUG holds semi-annual conferences in North America each Spring and Fall and annual European and Asia/Pacific conferences. Over the past ten years, conference attendance has increased dramatically with the 1999 Spring Conference attracting more than 8,200 attendees.

For more information on the OAUG, visit their Web site at www.oaug.org.