October RuleFest 2009, May 18, 2009

The October RuleFest has been announced for 2009 and will be held in Dallas, TX for the second year. This three day meeting of rules engine professions features a unique technical forum for practitioners in the field of business rule management. The complete agenda and list of speakers is still being developed, but anyone with an interest in the technical aspects of business rule management or rule engine implementation should make plans to attend this truly unique event.

Dallas Rules Group, March 26, 2009

Lawrence Terrill, Sr. Partner, EBDX.COM™, will be kicking off a new series of presentations by the members of the Dallas Rules Group on April 2, 2009 at 7:00pm. The goal of these presentations is to arm the participants with enough business rule knowledge to allow them to create Proof-of-Concept implementations as a validation of the business rule approach. Mr. Terrill's presentation will cover the reasons business rule systems are superior to traditional implementations in many cases and the basic steps required to implement a rules-based POC to validate this approach. Samples are presented using JBoss Rules™ / Drools™. Subsequent meetings of the Dallas Rules Group will see presentations covering the details of each of the steps to empower attendees to advocate business rules in their own enterprise. For more information, see The Dallas Rules Group.

ILOG Announces JRules Certification, Sept 9, 2008

ILOG has announced a JRules™ Certification program. Certification testing is independently performed and is open to all. However it is unlikely that one could pass the examinations without extensive self-study or attendance in a class with specific JRules™ product training. The certification test material is also specific to version 6 of the JRules product. It is also unlikely that one could pass the examinations with only knowledge gained from previous versions of the JRules™ product due to the significant rules management changes made to JRules™ between versions 5 and 6. The higher level certification tests also require practical experience in all modules of the JRules™ BRMS system. We see this certification program as a positive development, allowing potential customers of independent JRules consulting services such as those offered by EBDX.COM™ an additional tool for determining the expertise of their consulting partners. If you are interested in customized training necessary to successfully complete the JRules certification examination, please contact EBDX.COM™.

IBM Announces Intention to Acquire ILOG, July 28, 2008

Today IBM announced its intention to acquire ILOG. IBM's offer was approved by ILOG's board of directors, pending regulatory approval. It is currently unclear how this might affect the sales and support of the ILOG JRules™ product in the future. However ILOG management did not expect any immediate changes in the day to day operations of the company. Review the ILOG press release for more information. While we at EBDX.COM™ do not expect any short-term changes in JRules or its support, we do expect this acquisition to provide Business Rule exposure to a wider audience of business domains and strengthen IBM's BPM offerings. There is also the possibility of a review of pricing tiers by IBM for the JRules™ product that may lessen entry barriers for smaller projects where the current licensing structure of JRules™ may remove it from consideration. All in all, we consider the acquisition to be a positive step for the JRules™ product and mainstream acceptance of a Business Rule approach in general.

Dallas Java MUG July Meeting, July 4, 2008

Lawrence Terrill, Sr. Partner, EBDX.COM™, will present an introduction to Business Rules at the Dallas Java MUG on Wednesday, July 9th, 2008 at 7:00pm. If you want a basic understanding of business rule engines and how they execute rules, this is an excellent opportunity to understand this technology. If you are interested in introductory business rule training such as contained in this presentation, please contact EBDX.COM™.

October RuleFest 2008, May 22, 2008

Lawrence Terrill, Sr. Partner, EBDX.COM™, will be presenting a tutorial on the role of Business Rules in developing business application development at the 2008 October RulesFest in Dallas, Tx. This talk will cover the differences between more traditional, procedural approaches and the benefits of a non-linear, rules approach in certain categories of applications. The October RulesFest will have something for everyone, from experienced Java and .Net programmers and managers interested in learning more about Business Rules to presentations by Rules and AI thought-leaders. For more information, see the 2008 October RulesFest.

Dallas Rules Group, Feb 7, 2008

The first meeting of the Dallas Rules Group will be held on Feb 7, 2008 at 7:00pm. If you have an interest in the use of Business Rules in corporate applications, please join us in supporting and attending this organization. Meetings will occur on the first Thursday of each month at 7:00om. For more information, see The Dallas Rules Group.