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Smart Space Gadgets Leverage Windows Vista Capabilities to Deliver
Consumer-Friendly BI to Every Desktop

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — November 30, 2006 — Hyperion (Nasdaq Global Select: HYSL) today announced plans to release Hyperion System 9 Smart Space, featuring gadgets that work with Windows Vista, to provide every knowledge worker with easy access to “always-on” business intelligence (BI). Smart Space will transform the way BI is accessed and shared by all potential users by combining the familiarity and ease of use of the Windows desktop with the power of Hyperion System 9.

Hyperion supports Microsoft Corp.’s Find, Use and Share Information scenario with gadgets that give end users more control over the information they need, when they need it. Smart Space presents subsets of Hyperion System 9 functionality to Windows Vista users in the form of gadgets, which can be instantly accessed with the Windows Sidebar feature in Windows Vista to enhance productivity. The ability to customize these gadgets enables users to personalize the way they find and use information, and the instant collaboration capabilities allow for shared BI decision making. Smart Space takes advantage of the enhanced visualization capabilities of the Windows Aero interface in Windows Vista, which enables animated navigation among Smart Space gadgets and a visually enriched user experience.

“Anytime you make it easier for people to get the information they need at the click of a button, it is of tremendous benefit,” said Bart Klein, vice president and manager of applications development for UMB Bank. “Enabling our associates to use the same methods as Windows to access BI information will make it that much easier for them to get their jobs done. It’s all about productivity, accuracy and simplicity. Smart Space delivers on all three counts.”

Hyperion is a Microsoft Business Value Launch Partner and supports Microsoft’s People-Ready vision and commitment to the Windows Vista platform. In addition, Hyperion is one of 12 Platinum Sponsors participating in Microsoft’s “A New Day for Business” multi-city U.S. tour.

“By utilizing Windows Vista enhancements, Hyperion is simplifying and transforming the way business users find and use information, ultimately leading to higher efficiencies and productivity,” said Brad Goldberg, general manager for Windows Client Product Management Group. “Just as Windows Vista is adapting to how people work, Hyperion is adapting its solutions to fit the familiar and easy-to-use Windows Vista environment. Easy access to relevant information empowers business users to make better decisions.”

“Hyperion is the market leader in creating new and innovative technologies that make BI more pervasive,” said John Kopcke, chief technology officer at Hyperion. “Working together with Microsoft, we can now leverage the latest advancements in Windows Vista to proactively deliver personalized business intelligence directly to every user, giving them easy access to the specific information they need to be successful.”

Hyperion formally announced Hyperion System 9 Smart Space in a separate announcement issued today.

The timing of any product release, including any features or functionality, is subject to change at Hyperion’s discretion.

About Hyperion

Hyperion Solutions Corporation (Nasdaq Global Select: HYSL) is the global leader in Business Performance Management software. More than 12,000 customers in 90 countries rely on Hyperion both for insight into current business performance and to drive performance improvement. With Hyperion software, businesses collect, analyze and share data across the organization, linking strategies to plans and monitoring execution against goals. Hyperion integrates financial management applications with a business intelligence platform into a single management system for the global enterprise . For more information, contact us .

“Hyperion” and Hyperion’s product names are trademarks of Hyperion. References to other companies and their products use trademarks owned by the respective companies and are for reference purpose only.

Safe Harbor Statement

Statements in this press release other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, statements concerning the potential success of anticipated product features, the anticipated product offerings and the potential market opportunities for business performance management software. Such statements constitute anticipated outcomes and do not assure results. Actual results may differ materially from those anticipated by the forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors, including, but not limited to the company's ability to retain and attract key employees, the successful and timely development of new products, the impact of competitive products and pricing, customer demand, and technological shifts. For a more detailed discussion of factors that could affect the company's performance and cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements, interested parties should review the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Report on Form 10-K filed on September 1, 2006 and the Report on Form 10-Q filed on November 8, 2006. The company does not undertake an obligation to update its forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances.

This post first appeared here on 17/11/06:

http://objecttowers.typepad.com/the_new_view_from_object_/
2006/11/computer_indust.html

Computer industry "in crisis" - we need a PR makeover: British Computer Society

This story has been the most popular and most emailed at the BBC News site since around 8am this morning.

The key point is that, whichever way you look at it, the numbers of students studying computer science in the UK is in decline. From a peak in 2002/03, numbers of full time undergrads and first year computer science students have been falling year on year. Indeed, UCAS applications for the subject have been falling as well - the applications for 05/06 are down on the previous period, so there is no chance of a reverse of the trend anytime soon.

And according to Professor Nigel Shadbolt, president of the British Computer Society, this means the industry faces a skills crisis.

Unless steps are taken now there will not be enough qualified graduates to meet the demands of UK industry he warns.

"If we're not careful, the UK is going to lose its pre-eminent position as a knowledge-based economy,"

So how have we ended up in this sorry state?

According to Professor Shadbolt, there are two key issues. First, its partly due to poor teaching - and he calls for a thorough review of the way in which computer science is taught in schools. And he may have a point. Anecdotal evidence does suggest that what students are taught doesn't map on to what industry needs.

However, his second reason caught my eye. Apparently, the industry has an image problem, with computer scientists often portrayed on TV and in films as "geeky", says the Prof.

Ah ha! PR to the rescue. It's all the fault of the media for continuing to portray a stereotyped image of IT types.

But can you really blame perceived "geekiness" as a key reason for people not wanting to study computer science? And I thought geek was cool? Silicon Valley doesn't have a problem with it.

So although it may be seen as a need for an image remake, methinks the real reasons are different, deeper rooted and more complex - and thus its going to take much more than a PR campaign to reverse the decline....

(Declare interest - we handle PR for Hyperion - but I'd welcome any comments on the following):

Hyperion System 9 Smart Space Innovation Broadens Reach of BI and
Represents New Catalyst for BI Standardization

SANTA CLARA, Calif., November 30, 2006 – Hyperion (Nasdaq Global Select: HYSL), the global leader in Business Performance Management (BPM) software, today announced plans to release Hyperion System 9 Smart Space, the industry’s first composite application environment that will deliver “always-on” business intelligence (BI) to every user in the enterprise, utilizing Microsoft Windows XP and Vista. Smart Space will democratize BI and lead to increased adoption and usage by translating BI from a specialized tool used mainly by analysts to a consumer-friendly application that can be accessed by all knowledge workers. With Smart Space, users in every corner of the enterprise will have access to timely and relevant insights and instant collaboration for shared BI decision making.

According to TDWI Research conducted in 20051, only 18 percent of all potential BI users in an organization use BI tools on a regular basis to do their jobs. Other vendors have traditionally focused on serving the needs of the 18 percent who use BI, rather than identifying and creating solutions for the remaining 80 percent. Smart Space transforms the way BI is accessed and deployed to all potential users by combining the familiarity and ease of use of Windows XP and Vista with the power of the service- oriented architecture of Hyperion System 9.

“Smart Space does for BI in the new millennium what the mouse and graphical user interface (GUI) did for personal computing in the late 70s and early 80s: it changes the way people work,” said Rich Clayton, vice president of product marketing at Hyperion. “While the invention of the mouse and GUI ushered in the era of personal computing for both home and business use, Smart Space will foster the era of information democracy for every knowledge worker.”

Conventional BI tools possess an extensive feature set designed for the trained user. Smart Space broadens the reach of BI by adapting to the way all users work. From the moment users log on to Windows, the exact, personalized information they need is there waiting for them in their everyday work environment. When collaborative action is needed, they can instantly connect live to colleagues and share, discuss, decide, and act in real-time.

Smart Space provides capabilities for the following:

· “Always-On” BI brings active insights to the desktop. Once the user has logged on to Windows, information transparently flows to gadgets from Hyperion System 9 services. Users have all KPIs and key documents at their fingertips.

· User Assembled Applications using gadgets. Smart Space presents subsets of functionality from Hyperion System 9 to users in the form of gadgets. The ability to customize these gadgets enables users to personalize the way they find and use information based on their business needs. For example, the briefing book gadget allows users to assemble a collection of reports from content in Hyperion System 9, and the ticker gadget lets users display Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in a ticker format on their desktop.

· Instant Collaboration enables users to work dynamically with peers and easily share business intelligence about the state of the business. This shared decision making environment is powered by an auditable instant messaging service that securely operates behind the firewall. Conversations can be saved and associated with different decisions, enabling faster and more effective decision management.

Smart Space is based on the latest innovations in Windows XP and Vista operating systems. With Smart Space, Hyperion System 9 now offers a complete set of BI interfaces that span the Web, Windows desktop, Microsoft Office, search and dashboards.

"A huge component of our success with Hyperion is the flexibility we've had in designing the BI interface as a seamless component of our deployments,” said Mike Burkes, senior data technology manager at Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc. “Hyperion's innovative approach to making BI access tightly integrated with the desktop experience eradicates the need for custom development. Smart Space will increase ROI from both sides of the equation, resulting in reduced development and training costs with a higher user adoption rate and greater BI analyst efficiency."

“We are pleased to collaborate with Hyperion to provide our enterprise customers with actionable insight via Hyperion’s Smart Space technology,” said Rob Bernard, general manager, Worldwide ISV Group at Microsoft. “Hyperion and Microsoft share the goal of delivering improved access to information and we’re excited with the benefits Smart Space will provide our mutual customers.”

The timing of any product release, including any features or functionality, is subject to change at Hyperion’s discretion.

About Hyperion
Hyperion Solutions Corporation (Nasdaq Global Select: HYSL) is the global leader in Business Performance Management software. More than 12,000 customers in 90 countries rely on Hyperion both for insight into current business performance and to drive performance improvement. With Hyperion software, businesses collect, analyze and share data across the organization, linking strategies to plans and monitoring execution against goals. Hyperion integrates financial management applications with a business intelligence platform into a single management system for the global enterprise . For more information, contact us .

1See Wayne Eckerson and Cindi Howson, "Enterprise Business Intelligence: Strategies and Technologies for Deploying BI on an Enterprise Scale," TDWI Report Series, 2005, www.tdwi.org/research.

“Hyperion” and Hyperion’s product names are trademarks of Hyperion. References to other companies and their products use trademarks owned by the respective companies and are for reference purpose only.

Safe Harbor Statement
Statements in this press release other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, statements concerning the potential success of anticipated product features, the anticipated product offerings and the potential market opportunities for business performance management software. Such statements constitute anticipated outcomes and do not assure results. Actual results may differ materially from those anticipated by the forward-looking statements due to a variety of factors, including, but not limited to the company's ability to retain and attract key employees, the successful and timely development of new products, the impact of competitive products and pricing, customer demand, and technological shifts. For a more detailed discussion of factors that could affect the company's performance and cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements, interested parties should review the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Report on Form 10-K filed on September 1, 2006 and the Report on Form 10-Q filed on November 8, 2006. The company does not undertake an obligation to update its forward-looking statements to reflect future events or circumstances.