New demo video: Mapping Excel 2007 / OOXML

We've just put the finishing touches on the latest Altova product demo video. This new module demonstrates the recently added support for mapping Excel 2007 data in MapForce.

The video walks you through two data mapping scenarios, one where Excel 2007 data is filtered and then mapped into a relational database, and another where XML data is converted to Excel 2007. Other supported data formats for mapping are EDI, flat files, and even Web services.

Please check out the video and let us know what you think! You can also try this new functionality for yourself with a free, fully functional 30-day trial of MapForce.

Diff / Merge Tools and Dog Food

Since its release in 2005, the Altova marketing team has been actively using the DiffDog diff / merge tool to compare and merge changes on our Web pages (something Product Marketing Manager David McGahey likes to call "eating our own dog food." Get it? Dog food? Anyway...).

We create and edit our content directly in XML using the XMLSpy XML editor and use WinCVS as our version control client. This way, we [not-so-technical marketing folks] can easily view and revert changes to any files in our CVS repository. When we need to compare changes made in two versions of a given file, we simply highlight the versions and launch DiffDog directly from WinCVS. It's a lightning-fast way to see exactly what has been changed.

Our Web Development team also makes good use of DiffDog's directory comparison functionality to diff and merge between our test and live Web servers.

Using DiffDog with Team Foundation Server

Jeff Levinson, Microsoft MVP and Application Lifecycle Management practice lead at Northwest Cadence, also recently shared his DiffDog story in an online article for Visual Studio Magazine, "Performing Comparisons with Team Foundation Server." He details how you can replace the default merge tool in TFS with DiffDog.

Do you have any stories to share about how you use our tools? Let us know!

Service Pack 2 Now Available

Just a quick note to let you know that Service Pack 2 of Altova Software Version 2008 Release 2 (2008r2 SP2) is now available... This service pack includes bug fixes and other enhancements and is a free update for all 2008r2 customers, as well as any customer with an active Altova Support and Maintenance Package.

If you've not yet upgraded to v2008r2, check out all the new features or download a free trial.