Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Micro Focus Acquired Borland Software...

While I've been busy preparing for my wedding day this Sunday, one recent acquisition captured my attention. I just received the information that Borland Software now acquired by Micro Focus. If you are developers groomed in the era of 90s, you should know or at least have heard  about this Borland Software. The company has been a major player in the Integrated Development Environment (IDE) software for popular languages at those times, such as TurboC, TurboC++, TurboPascal, TurboProlog, Borland Pascal, Delphi, and JBuilder series. For some time it also acquired the once famous dBase IV's Ashton Tate, and have its own Quattro database. The IDE business was later totally spinned off to a wholly owned subsidiary named CodeGear.

Borland also produced good quality JEE application server series: Borland Enterprise Server, which was used with some of former employer's clients.

Last 3-5 years, Borland Software had shifted its focus into Application Lifecycle Management (ALM), by acquiring companies such as Segue Software, Inc. I was sent by my employer that time for a training on their productsand sales knowledge of these ALM products (Borland SilkTest - automated testing tool, Borland SilkPerformer - load testing tool, Caliber) back to year 2006. These products compete with Mercury (now subsidiary of HP) Load Runner, IBM Rational Robot, etc.

Just recently this year we heard that Borland Software sold off CodeGear to Embarcadero Technologies. So, right now, Borland was left only with its ALM products and application servers/ORB brokers product, now sold to Micro Focus.