The Proximity distribution includes the Proximity client and the required Monet database system (MonetDB). The Proximity client is implemented in Java and can be run on any platform that supports Java 2 Platform, Standard Edition v1.5 (J2SE) or later. The distribution includes both binaries and source files for the Proximity client. MonetDB binaries are available for Mac OS X (10.2 or higher), Linux i86 (glib 2.3), and Windows (Windows 2000 Professional or later). Proximity 4.3 operates with MonetDB 4.6.2 and selected later versions.

We recommend that new users download and install MonetDB 4.20 (Linux and Mac OS X) or MonetDB 4.18.2 (Windows), collectively known as the “Mars” versions. Proximity 4.3 is not yet fully compatible with the latest release of MonetDB 5.

Current Proximity users upgrading to Proximity 4.3 can continue to use MonetDB 4.6.2 (provided with the current release) or update to MonetDB Mars and recreate their databases. Proximity databases can be easily recreated for use with later versions of MonetDB by exporting existing databases as plain text or XML, then importing the data into the new database. See “Updating MonetDB Databases” later in this appendix for instructions on converting MonetDB 4.6.2 databases for use with MonetDB Mars.

Users updating from Proximity 3.1 or earlier must update both the Proximity client and MonetDB installation, including updating the database schema (a step not covered in this appendix). Please contact technical support at proximity-support@kdl.cs.mass.edu for assistance if you are updating from Proximity 3.1 or earlier.