Over the last four years, ReliaSoft has invested more in R&D (in terms of both effort and capital) than for all other versions and all other products combined to date. These efforts have been focused primarily on designing and delivering a new generation of ReliaSoft software tools built around a whole new paradigm and platform. The guiding principle of this monumental effort has been to both enhance the individuality, power and ease of use for each product in our portfolio, while also delivering seamless integration, data reuse and advanced "reliability knowledge management" capabilities at the enterprise level. This multi-year project had to overcome the fundamental limitation of tool integration, namely that of sacrificing individual product power and flexibility for the sake of integration. To put it differently, the ultimate deliverable of our recent development efforts will be a suite of integrated products in which each individual product is the most accomplished soloist in its genre, while at the same time a vital member of a cohesive ensemble delivering unparalleled performance. It has been a very long road, and while traversing this road we had to develop new methods, concepts and infrastructure. We also were challenged to rethink and streamline the way reliability engineering tasks and processes that have been virtually unchanged since the 60s and 70s should be adapted to take full advantage of today’s computer technology. As we near the end of this road (with completed products currently undergoing testing for a final release later this year), I wanted to be the first to publicly announce our upcoming Version 8 family of products built on the new "Synthesis Platform." As we get closer to the planned release date, we will be sequentially unveiling some of these technologies and capabilities, as well as preparing preview versions of these products. While I can’t share more specifics with you in this column, I am sure that the first time you see the coherent integration, power and methodologies in these new releases, you will crack a smile a mile wide, knowing full well that a new era has arrived!
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