diff --git a/functions/uodbc.xml b/functions/uodbc.xml
index 6fecf72871..d01213f1df 100644
--- a/functions/uodbc.xml
+++ b/functions/uodbc.xml
@@ -1,6 +1,36 @@
  <reference id="ref.odbc">
   <title>ODBC functions</title>
   <titleabbrev>ODBC</titleabbrev>
+  <partintro>
+   <simpara>
+   	In addition to normal ODBC support, the Unified ODBC functions
+   	in PHP allow you to access several databases that have
+   	borrowed the semantics of the ODBC API to implement their own
+   	API.  Instead of maintaining multiple database drivers that were 
+   	all nearly identical, these drivers have been unified into a 
+   	single set of ODBC functions.
+   </simpara>
+   <simpara>
+   	The following databases are supported by the Unified ODBC 
+   	functions: <ulink url="&url.adabas;">Adabas D</ulink>, 
+   	<ulink url="&url.ibmdb2;">IBM DB2</ulink>, <ulink url="&url.iodbc;">
+   	iODBC</ulink>, <ulink url="&url.solid;">Solid</ulink>, and <ulink 
+   	url="&url.sybase;">Sybase SQL Anywhere</ulink>.
+   </simpara>
+   <simpara>
+    Please see the <link linkend="database-support-options">Installation 
+    on Unix Systems</link> chapter for more information about configuring 
+    PHP with these databases.
+   </simpara>
+   <note>
+	  <simpara>
+     There is no ODBC involved when connecting to the above 
+     databases. The functions that you use to speak natively 
+     to them just happen to share the same names and syntax 
+     as the ODBC functions.
+	  </simpara>
+	 </note>
+  </partintro>
 
   <refentry id="function.odbc-autocommit">
    <refnamediv>