Archive for May, 2025

QStudio 4.09 – NEW! Dive-into Nested kdb+ Results.

QStudio 4.09 introduces a number of new features to make exploring data easier than ever.

Column Stats

Allows getting a count of nulls, averages and how many distinct values a column contains by hovering the column header:

Transposed row(s)

Have a very wide table? Want to quickly see all the column?
Transpose from a row to column based layout for those rows. Allowing you to quickly see all values:

Dive-into Nested Results

Double-click on a nested array or kdb structure (table/dict) to pop-out a table showing only the nested item. You can repeat this to dig deeper and deeper into nested data. (Thanks to Oleg/QPad on pioneering this idea).

As well as these new features, a large number of bugs were fixed:

  • 4K Monitor support was significantly improved. You have the option to scale the full UI in preferences.
  • Apple Mac got a dedicated release and custom App download.
  • We upgraded kdb+ c/jdbc.java to allow SSL TLS.

 

Full Release Info:

All past release changes can be found here.

2025-05-12 – 4.09 – Improve Autocomplete suggestions
– Add namespace listing panel.
– Improve QDoc to add file level details.

2025-04-22 – 4.08 – Bugfix: Candlestick charts were wrong as receiving wrong timezone from kdb driver. Timezone now set to UTC.
– Bugfix: “Save as” to .sql was shrinking text. Now fixed.
– Bugfix: Show red X close on every document tab.

2025-04-06 – 4.07 – Add UI Scaling and Font size as separate options to help with 4K monitors
– Bugfix: Kdb+ Queries with errors could cause 30 second freezes.
– Bugfix: Switch back to MonoSpaced font. Variable width fonts cause wrong caret position.
– Improved high resolution QStudio icon.
– Mac: Bugfix: Prefences dialog fixed and allows choosing font.
– Mac: Fixed Menu shoing about/preferences/exit.
– Mac: Allow Command+Option+E to run current query.
– 4K handling improved sizing of dialogs.
– Bugfix: Improved duckdb init when folder is empty.

2025-03-13 – 4.06 – Add ability to transpose rows.
– DuckDB 1.2.1. Improve display of DuckDB arrays.
– Add comma separator for thousands option.

2025-02-23 – 4.05 – Upgrade kdb+ c/jdbc.java to allow SSL TLS.
– Add preference to allow hiding all tooltips.
– Double-click on kdb+ table with dictionary/table/list nested in cell will pop it out.

2025-01-23 – 4.04 – Show column info (avg/min/max) when column header is hovered.
– Remove watched expressions entirely.
– Improved UI threading for tree/chart display.

 

Kdb+ Acquired by Private Equity

2025-05-08 – Private equity firm TA announced an “All-Cash Offer to Acquire FD Technologies, Owner of Global Real-Time Analytics Leader KX”.

Most people are probably wondering how this came about:

  • 1996 – Brian established First Derivatives (FD) in 1996 from his mother’s spare bedroom (Newry, Northern Ireland) with a loan of £5,000 from the Credit Union.
  • 1993 – Arthur Whitney and Janet Lustgarten jointly form the company KX
  • 1998 – Kdb+ – In-memory column based database created by KX
  • KX and FD work in partnership to grow the business.
  • 2014-10 – First Derivatives acquires a controlling stake in Kx Systems.
  • 2018 – FD agrees to buy out minority Kx Systems shareholders (Arthur and Janet)
  • 2019 – First Derivatives completes acquisition of the minority shareholdings in Kx Systems, taking the company’s total stake in the business to 100 per cent for $53.8 million (€48m) in cash.
    “The deal marks an important milestone for the company”, chief executive Brian Conlon said.
  • 2019-07-28 – Brian Conlon, one of Northern Ireland’s most successful businessmen passes away. (link)
  • 2020-01 – Seamus Keating appointed as CEO
  • 2024-03 – FD Technologies broken into 3 separate firms:
    • MRP – Marketing (spun off into a merger)
    • First Derivative consulting arm.
    • FD Technologies owning the KX software business
  • 2024-12 – FD Technologies plc (LON:FDP) completes sale of First Derivative (consultancy) to EPAM Systems, Inc..
  • 2025-05-08 – Private equity firm TA announced an “All-Cash Offer to Acquire FD Technologies, Owner of Global Real-Time Analytics Leader KX”.