IBM has released to the public <A HREF="http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,2148829,00.asp?kc=EWKNLNAV062107STR3">a beta version of DB2 Viper 2,</A> the newest incarnation of its data server.

Less than a year after releasing Viper, IBM is promising Viper 2 will expand on its predecessor by simplifying the development and administration of XML in DB2 with features such as a built-in SQL function that allows users to transform XML documents using an XML style sheet.