Ensemble: The only choice for Application and Technology Integration
July 21, 2017
Ensemble: The only choice for Application and Technology Integration
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Overall Satisfaction with Ensemble
Ensemble was chosen as the best of breed technologies for application and technology integration. It sits at the heart of our technological innovation for automated robotic pharmacy dispensing systems within large hospital pharmacies as well as robotic prescription dispensing using pharmacy robotics with ATM style pharmacy dispensing units that link patients via cloud technology to pharmacy call centre users who advise patients on the medications they are collecting and other questions or issues that the patients require assistance with.
Ensemble is based on Cache, Europe, Russia and other regions supporting security ISO standards.
The most important aspect for Right ePharmacy is that Cache/Ensemble just works 24/7. Its reliability is unsurpassed.
- Fast Development.
- Incredible performance especially in the realm of massive transactional based data systems.
- Extensive and customizable adapter technologies for integration with just about any system/technology current IT development has need for in this day and age of developing single user interfaces to multiple data sources and/or applications.
- One of the most secure database technologies available.
- Given that Ensemble and Cache are one of if not the only true fully object orientated database/development technologies for massive transactional data systems its customizability is extensive and it just comes down to the creativity of the developer to get the products to pretty much do whatever they want to do with it. However, this is not necessarily obvious to newcomers to the technology.
- The developer community could do with greater participation from the software developers/application specialists and engineers within InterSystems.
- More extensive documentation and greater access to proven working solutions particularly in the realm of some of the lesser known or new and upcoming technologies.
- I was able to develop a fully functional integration engine linking pharmacy systems with pharmacy robotics in less than three months in comparison with the year that the previous software development company had taken to develop a solution that was incomplete and did not work using Microsoft technology.
- The engine I developed was so stable and adaptable that it quickly replaced the equivalent engine supplied by the robot manufacturers own software development team.
- It has proven to be so effective that it is now the product of choice for future developments within the organization replacing Microsoft technologies which were the previous company standard.
There is just no comparison. Try it and see for yourself. Furthermore based on information from software houses I have interacted with over the years it far out paces products like WebSphere.
Evaluating Ensemble and Competitors
- Product Features
- Product Usability
- Product Reputation
- Prior Experience with the Product
- Vendor Reputation
- Existing Relationship with the Vendor
- Analyst Reports
- Third-party Reviews
I wouldn't
Ensemble Support
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Quick Resolution Good followup Knowledgeable team Problems get solved Kept well informed No escalation required Immediate help available Support understands my problem Support cares about my success Quick Initial Response | None |
No - InterSystems include 24/7 support for software houses and end users of products developed using InterSystems products as part of the annual maintenance fees.
Just in the last month I have raised three high priority issues with InterSystems WRC and not only did they quickly understand what the issues were that I raised but they even went so far as to write example code to assist me, point me to specific documentation that made the solutions even clearer and most exceptional they even took on board the software I had sent them to illustrate the issues and sent back informative and constructive suggestions on how to either solve the issues I was experiencing as well as suggestions as to how I could do some tasks more efficiently or alternative approaches to my solution designs.
Using Ensemble
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Like to use Relatively simple Easy to use Well integrated Consistent Convenient Feel confident using | Requires technical support |
- Class Definitions, Integration Services, Processes and Operations, multiple programming language support
- Rapid Application Development
- Deployment of applications across different hardware and O/S environments is remarkably easy. I can deploy and configure applications in about a quarter of the time it takes a Microsoft Developer to deploy ( and note, the restrictiveness of the platforms and hardware supported by Microsoft).
- None that I have come across unless it is a technology I have never worked with, a recent example being integration with a Java Gateway but even then within two weeks of working with my Java developer counterpart we had the solution nailed.
- Documentation can take some getting used to.
- Nothing else that come to mind. But then I have worked with these technologies for years so I have a certain bias.