Business Software

Keep Your Blog Software Current

2008-04-27T00:23:00.000-07:00

Most bloggers are in the game to write about issues and share ideas that matter to them, so it’s no surprise that many self-hosted blogs are a version or three behind the officially released and supported versions. Upgrading blog software isn’t exactly fun, and it takes time time away from starting and contributing to discussions around the Web, but it is important to stay on top of changes to your blogging software, and it’s easier to do than ever. So, why should you stay up-to-date?
Security

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Most new releases include code to patch potential security holes in complex blogging software. The last thing you want is someone finding a chink in the armor, gaining access to all of your hard work and destroying or hijacking it. As someone who neglected the software and paid the price, I can tell you that cleaning up after a crazed hacker-kid is not a fun way to spend an evening.

Most point releases (2.0.1 or 1.3.9 etc.) are typically released to fix bugs, with security issues at the forefront. So, even if you aren’t willing to commit to a major new release, you should jump on new point releases quickly. Major releases often include security fixes as well, but it’s rare for a major release to include a security fix that isn’t also released for the previous version. For example, if version 2.5 is released by a software company, odds are good that 2.4.X will come out at the same time, solely comprised of security fixes.
Features

The other key reason to stay up-to-date are the new features bundled into a release. Often times the little features have a really large impact. For example, improvements to spam detection may not seem like much, but good software will let you focus on writing instead of weeding your comments, that can translate into a lot of time.

Every blogging platform has different ways for you to stay up to date. For example, there is a great plugin for WordPress that makes it easy to upgrade the software within your browser. A lot of Web hosts also provide built-in install and upgrade functionality, via services like Fantastico.

If you take a little bit of time now, you can save yourself some heartache later, and you may even find some fun new tools and toys that will make writing for your blog even more fun.

The platform paradox

2008-04-27T00:22:00.000-07:00

Six Apart is grappling with the inherent conflict in providing a platform (MovableType) and a service (TypePad). A most unhappy post from Suw Charman dissecting with a rusty scalpel SixApart marketing messages versus her experience with the company — and a defensive response from the company and a response, in turn, from its chief competitor — make this clear. And I think there are lessons in this for other platform companies — potentially even for the news industry as, I believe, journalism begins to look more like a platform .

I saw this conflict coming back in May 2004, when I wrote a post arguing:
You can’t be a software company and a service company under one roof, for you will inevitably end up competing with your customers. And that will not work. So I suggest that SixApart, the software company, divest TypePad, the service company, so that each can serve its customers optimally and so that each can become as profitable as possible.

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The issue then was the limitations Six Apart put on Movable Type, the platform software, so as not to enable others to compete with Typepad, its service company using that same software. The issue today, in Charman’s post, is distraction: Who is being served first and best, platform or hosting customers? Doesn’t matter how the problem erupts, the cause is the same. There is an essential channel conflict here when you want to provide a platform for all to use and then when you use it yourself.

I said all this back when then in my blog post and I said it again when I advised one of the VCs who invested in WordPress.com (without pay, sadly). They could have put the platform and the service in one company but I advised strongly — among others, obviously — that they should be separate. The platform now resides with the open-source WordPress.org and WordPress.com, the VC-backed and for-profit hosting service, is merely one of any number of companies that use that software. The fact that WordPress.org is open-source has the benefit of motivating a community of developers to contribute to the platform. Back in 2004, again, I wrote:
I’ve seen other companies go through this and the answer is either to drop one line of business or to divest. I suggest divesting. Then SixApart, the software business, will come up with licenses that serve its customers well and will sell as many as possible. Rather then having your entire customer base scream in protest — as they are now — they would beat a path to your door to pay for your mousetrap (whenever your customers are screaming in protest, you know you are doing something very wrong). Meanwhile, TypePad — a licensee of Movable Type software — would offer no-hassle and reasonably priced hosting and would compete with other licensees. Competition would lead to more business for the two companies and happier customers and probably market dominance for Movable Type and its standards (e.g., TypeKey and Trackbacks). . . .

There is another advantage to divesting: The management of each company will not be distracted as the management of this one company is. I’m not a VC, but I have seen this in many companies as a corporate investor, board member, and corporate customer: Startups always try to do too many things and that means they will end up doing nothing extremely well. SixApart started by developing a damned fine product in Movable Type but it has neglected that product (as I’ve whined) as it built its hosting business at TypePad; now it is handicapping the software company to advantage the hosting company; and when the protests get loud enough, it will surely neglect the hosting company in turn. The company is small with extremely limited resources and management focus and trying to run these two very different businesses is difficult unto impossible.

I’m not linking this to beat up on SixApart three years later but to see the larger lessons in this. Being a platform is a powerful position but it also means that you will find yourself necessarily serving rather than competing with those who use you. That, I believe, is why Google has been smart enough not to be a content site in any meaningful way — contrasted once again with Yahoo — and even its announcement today about distributing content companies’ video inside advertising units on a distributed network of sites is a stellar example of creative platform thinking.

As I noodle around with the notion of a new architecture of news, I wonder whether news organizations start to look more like platforms and less like closed content compaies, enabling news to be gathered and shared across a wide network of contributors, owners, and distributors rather. And so you start to ask whether you are a platform or a creator and you ask whether it’s possible to be both.

Just noodling.

: LATER: In email exchange, Fred Wilson responds:
Is youtube a platform or a media property?

Is flickr a platform or a media property?

Is feedburner a platform or a media property?

In my view, the best way to create value is to be both, but give away the platform to any and all takers and monetize the resulting media property that is created in the process.

He asks whether I agree and I say, uncharacteristically, I’m not sure. Perhaps media is different from technology: You get to use one to build the other. But still, you have to be careful not to fall into channel conflict. Yahoo created that conflict by becoming a media
destination using others’ stuff. YouTube became a media destination by enabling others to distribute their stuff, eh?

What Is Software Escrow?

2008-04-27T00:21:00.001-07:00

While the term Software Escrow, or Source Code Escrow, may be a little unfamiliar to many people who are reading this blog, it actually plays a vital role in the smooth running of many businesses around the world. In simple terms, Software Escrow it used when a company licence a particular software package from a licensee for an agreed fee, with various conditions attached.

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In normal circumstances a business might actually purchase the software outright, but for many ongoing software development projects it can prove more beneficial to licence the product rather than buy outright – thereby ensuring that you have access to the latest versions, updates and support. This is where the vast array of Software Escrow Agents on the market come into play, with a role similar to that of a third party holding payment until the goods are delivered, but with a slightly different twist.

The nightmare scenario for many licence holders would be the licensee going out of business and not being able to access the software which their whole business may depend on. Normally if this were the case then the business would be forced to look at a new package which offered maintenance, backup, etc, but at the very least this would disrupt their business operations. Nowadays the done thing is to engage the services of a Software Escrow Agent who will hold the original source code from the software package which is being licensed.

If certain conditions are breached, for example if the licensee was not carrying out their maintenance duties or errors were going unattended, this could invoke an action such as the release of the original source code to the licence holder. While it would take some time, the possession of the original code would allow problems to be fixed through other third parties if for some reason (e.g. bankruptcy) the originally software coder was not able to help.

This protects the future use of the system by the licence holder and ensures that the licensee would do their best to ensure that the original highly confidential source code was never made public.

Web Business Building Software

2008-04-27T00:19:00.000-07:00

Creating a successful website that generates a sizable amount of money is hard, even more so if you don’t have all the necessary tools at your disposal. This used to be the case but now there is a simple way to overcome this obstacle by using the remarkable Portal Feeder system.

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The Portal Feed system will help you build that amazing lucrative website you always wanted. Now you can get access to some of the finest and highly acclaimed web business building software, site promotion tools, intensive training, article syndication and Link exchange tools that all the internet gurus have always had at their disposal.

With these exiting insider secrets you too can become an internet professional and enjoy all the money that comes with the profession. When using the tools provided, you will not only maximize the lucrative potentialities of your site but also learn how to drive much needed visitors to your pages. Only then can a website truly deliver the lucrative results we so desperately long for.

Don’t wait any longer, take advantage of this offer and unleash the power of the internet and make a living Via Site Salary.

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A map of business models in the software industry

2008-04-27T00:16:00.000-07:00

Recently I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about the different business models available in the software industry. While software companies sometimes assert that they have a unique model used by nobody else, all of them ultimately boil down to four basic ones: services, product centered services, products, and products distributed as services. All four of these are perfectly valid models with unique opportunities. The best way of showing the relationship between these models is what I call the Software Industry Model Map. Version 1.0 is seen below:

(Software Industry Model Map, version 1.0., license)

Here is a brief description of each model, including advantages and disadvantages:
Services

This is the simplest business model and has the fewest barriers to entry. You build custom code for clients to do whatever they need. So long as you know how to code and have basic computer equipment, you can be in business. Many boutique web development firms operate this way.

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This model is on cash basis: you do the work, tally the hours, then invoice the client. Barring cash flow issues (and deadbeat clients), you usually get paid a few weeks after sending the bill. While the simplicity of this model is appealing, there are several drawbacks:
Code reuse tends to be lower than other models.
You tend to get maintenance work, which may dictate the tools you have to use.
When clients request unpleasant or time-consuming work, you either have to do it or convince them to accept an alternative.
Cash flows can be irregular, unless you have retainer agreements in place.
Product centered services

This model is usually the logical successor to services (if it isn’t used from the beginning). While it tends to take more planning and investment than pure services, the revenue streams are greater. You also have a specific product you’re familiar with and can reuse to a degree. You can develop this product in house, or you can learn how to extend an existing product. Code reuse and standards are more easily found here than in pure services.

Although the most obvious implementation of this model is with “enterprise solution” businesses, some boutique firms create products to narrow in on niche markets. This model frequently employs significant numbers of non-programmers because the software itself may not represent the bulk of the value added. Despite high revenues, this model has some pitfalls:
Expenses tend to be high due to the wider array of expertise needed.
The complexity of services offered can lead to scope creep and unrealistic expectations.
Clients can still request unpleasant work.
Unless you’re developing your own product (which is more expensive), the whims of external software authors may hamper plans. Crucial features may disappear along with support for older versions.
Products

Rather than doing custom work for specific clients, it’s far more profitable to build a product and sell it over and over again. The incremental costs of selling more copies of the product are negligible. Aside from providing support, maintenance costs are also close to nil. This results in an extremely high profit margin. When the product is marketed appropriately, the revenue potential is also great. Microsoft, Adobe, and Intuit are companies that have roots in software products. While financial rewards of this model are obvious, it also presents the highest barriers to entry:
Startup costs are staggering. Millions of dollars can easily be sunk into building a software product before the first sale is ever made.
Although you do not answer to the daily wishes of individual clients, the features you offer must be flexible enough for the majority of your users to accomplish their tasks.
Completing a software product does not guarantee that it will sell.
Software products are environment dependent: it can be difficult to test software under all of the configurations customers will have.
Bug fixes are distributed slowly and may not be applied correctly.
Products distributed as services

Developing a product is very expensive, but this can be offset early on if you offer the product as a service. The big advantage to using this method is that your customers receive the benefits of code updates instantly; code reuse and profits are inherently high. This method is also the most efficient at leveraging network effects: when people can easily connect through your service, your software becomes more valuable with little extra effort on your part.

Your customers usually don’t need any special environment to use your service, aside from a live connection to it. You have complete control over the code environment. Services also tend to have simpler interfaces or ones that are user defined. Data storage typically occurs on your end, making it trivial for users to change hardware on their end. Google, 37signals, and many other Internet-based services released over the past 5 to 10 years fit this model. Products distributed as services may appear to be very attractive, but they are not without downsides:
You must maintain the hardware where the code resides as well as network connections. When any of this fails, customers cannot use your service.
Your code has little or no access to the client’s hardware. Personal computers can easily handle an advanced calculation or data operation for one user, but the same action on your server multiplied by tens of thousands of users at once is not cost effective.
Revenue levels are lower than those of a pure software product. In exchange for reduced functionality, customers expect your service to be low-cost or advertising supported.
Although storing data on your server makes it easy for users to change their hardware, they lose control over the data. This is a problem for businesses in sensitive industries or users with security needs.
Users cannot keep old versions of your software. If you take away or change a feature they rely on, they must wait for you to either add it back or provide an acceptable alternative.

Top 10 Advances in Software Development

2008-04-27T00:14:00.000-07:00

I started my professional programming career over 20 years ago on the Commodore Amiga. The Amiga was a state-of-the-art personal computer, with a proprietary operating system, windowed GUI, and dedicated sound and graphics chips when the IBM PC was still saying, "C:\DOS RUN."

The Amiga computer was fast for its time, but maddeningly slow in hindsight: 5-10 minutes to compile a typical development project. Hard drives were still external, bulky and expensive at $500 for 30MB. The Amiga system APIs were plentiful, massive and complex, like the Win32 APIs that followed. I wrote software in C, using a programmable text editor and the "Make" tool to build projects.

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A lot has changed in two decades. As with most things in this business, software development tools and systems are now better, faster, and sometimes cheaper. But what are the most important changes?

In the spirit of David Letterman, following are my "Top 10 Advances in Software Development." These are the things–from my perspective, in increasing order of importance–that have most improved software development and entrepreneurship over the past 20 years. I encourage you to reply with your own Top 10 list.

10. Modeling Tools
Of all the items on this list, modeling tools still have the farthest to go before they become the essential and dominant part of the software development process that they should be. There are some promising candidates, but most modeling tools are still too "heavy," expensive, and disconnected from the code and overall development process. And while the tools are getting better at modeling classes and use-cases, when it comes to writing logic and the "guts" to most functions, code is still the way to go.

9. Automated Build Tools
The C "Make" tool in 1985 was quite powerful for its day, doing much of what the automated build tools can do today. However, today's tools are graphical, making it far easier to create complex and logic-driven build routines. Modern tools are also better at handling errors, and can restart the build process in the middle, automatically determine project dependencies, interface with source control systems, and manage the work of a virtual team across the Web.

8. IDEs
Integrated Development Environments (IDEs) combine all of your programming tools together in one application, with a consistent user interface, macro language and documentation system. IDEs make good on the promise of windowed GUIs, enabling developers to create a comprehensive "dashboard" for the software development process.

7. XML
Sometimes the greatest solutions are the most simple. XML represents data in a human-readable and generally-universal plain text format. Years ago this wasn't possible with limited storage space and computing power. But now most modern software uses XML to store and exchange data. As a result, we are seeing an increase in mashups, where software is combined in new ways to provide more powerful solutions.

6. Faster Processors
When I first started programming professionally, building an average-size development project would take 5-10 minutes. I'd spend an hour or three coding, then start the build and go grab a Coke. Now I can make a change, build the project in seconds, and almost instantly see the results and debug any problems. Not only does this save time by not having to wait around for the project to build, but the rapid-feedback cycle results in faster solutions while debugging.

5. Microsoft Windows
Say what you will about Microsoft, but kudos to M$ for delivering a world-dominant computing platform, offering software entrepreneurs such as myself a market pool 600 million strong and expected to hit a billion by 2010. When you have that much attention and opportunity focused in one place, you are going to see the incredible advances that continue to fuel Moore's Law and drive our information society.

4. Code Outlining
Code outlining is using XML tags to organize source code into collapsible sections and hierarchies. Arguably the most controversial item on this list, this is also where you'll find the most personal bias. With my cubital tunnel, every mouse click and key press can be a literal pain. Code outlining can collapse a 50-page code file into a single screen and save hundreds of clicks and endless scrolling.

3. Code Sharing and Google
In the old days, if I ran into a programming roadblock, I had to rely on the vendor's limited documentation or hope that one of my programming buddies had encountered a similar problem. It wasn't uncommon to search for a solution over weeks and even months. Now with Google, other search engines and code-sharing sites, millions of "buddies" are accessible in seconds. If someone somewhere has encountered a similar problem, chances are they've shared their solution on the Web, and Google will find it.

2. Managed Code
Write the code and it just works. That's what I love about managed programming languages and C# in particular. Sure, my code may have logic errors that I need to debug. But I am no longer spending hours needlessly chasing pointer-to-pointer bugs and memory leaks found in C++, for example. With managed code, the focus is on business processes and logic, not programming language behavior and side-effects.

1. World Wide Web
It's interesting that the greatest advance in software development isn't development-specific. The Web has transformed nearly every aspect of a software development company, greatly simplifying many tasks and making it possible for small companies to thrive in the global marketplace. For just a few dollars a month, a software entrepreneur can market, sell and support his products and services from anywhere to anywhere the Web will go. This improves productivity, spurs innovation, and raises the overall global economy.

Slysoft Commercializes Next-Gen DVD Circumvention

2008-04-27T00:12:00.000-07:00

We’ve been following, off and on, the steady meltdown of AACS, the encryption scheme used in HD-DVD and Blu-ray, the next-generation DVD systems. By this point, Hollywood has released four generations of AACS-encoded discs, each encrypted with different secret keys; and the popular circumvention tools can still decrypt them all. The industry is stuck on a treadmill: they change keys every ninety days, and attackers promptly reverse-engineer the new keys and carry on decrypting discs.

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One thing that has changed is the nature of the attackers. In the early days, the most effective reverse engineers were individuals, communicating by email and pseudonymous form posts. Their efforts resulted in rough but workable circumvention tools. In recent months, though, circumvention has gone commercial, with Slysoft, an Antigua-based maker of DVD-reader software, taking the lead and offering more polished tools for reading and ripping AACS discs.

You might wonder how a company that makes software for playing DVDs got into the circumvention business. The answer has to do with AACS’s pickiness about which equipment it will work with. My lab, for example, has an HD-DVD drive and some discs, which we have used for research purposes. But as far as I know, none of the computer monitors we own are AACS-approved, so we have no way to watch our lawfully purchased HD-DVDs on our lawfully purchased equipment. Many customers face similar problems.

If you’re selling HD-DVD player software, you can tell those customers that your product is incompatible with their equipment. Or you can solve their problem and make their legitimately purchased discs play on their legitimately purchased equipment. Of course, this will make you persona non grata in Hollywood, so you had better hire a few reverse engineers and get to work on some unauthorized decryption software — which seems to be what Slysoft did.

Now Slysoft faces the same reverse engineering challenges that Hollywood did. If Slysoft’s products contain the secrets to AACS decryption, then independent analysts can extract those secrets and clone Slysoft’s AACS decryption capability. Will those who live by reverse engineering die by reverse engineering?

Business Model as Evidence of Intent

2008-04-27T00:10:00.000-07:00

One interesting aspect of Justice Souter’s majority opinion in Grokster is the criticism of the business models of StreamCast and Grokster (pp. 22-23):

Third, there is a further complement to the direct evidence of unlawful objective. It is useful to recall that StreamCast and Grokster make money by selling advertising space, by directing ads to the screens of computers employing their software. As the record shows, the more the software is used, the more ads are sent out and the greater the advertising revenue becomes. Since the extent of the software’s use determines the gain to the distributors, the commercial sense of their enterprise turns on high-volume use, which the record shows is infringing. This evidence alone would not justify an inference of unlawful intent, but viewed in the context of the entire record its import is clear.

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It’s hard to think of any conceivable business model for a software company under which an increase in use of the product does not lead to an increase in revenue. If you sell software, greater use allows you to increase the price, or to sell more units. Likewise if you sell software by subscription. If you give away the software and make money on auxiliary products or services, you’ll still benefit from increased usage.

Certainly Sony’s profits would have increased the more people used Betamaxes. The same is true for iPods, TiVos, photocopiers, and many other legitimate products. Profiting from use seems like pretty poor evidence of intent to cause infringement.

Considering Open Source Software For Your E-Business?

2008-04-27T00:08:00.000-07:00

So, you want to have your own online store. Is it going to be expensive to get started? Will you need web designers or an expensive solution to create that store? How big is the job?

If you don’t want to spend a small fortune on the software to create your online store and you do like to experiment with your own web development you might consider doing it yourself with open source shopping cart software. This can create an entire online solution for your online store and can even be integrated with other programs like your shipping software. It can manage multiple currencies, it can be multilingual, it works with many payment programs and new features and functions are added all the time because there’s a community that collectively and separately works to improve this evolving program.

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There are several options here. You may choose to buy a solution, use a turnkey open source e-commerce solution or you can start from scratch yourself with something like OSCommerce. Many novice internet online entrepreneurs get started with free tools that they build up to service their needs. Open source software can be a great solution for three reasons.

1. It’s free. Got no money for startup costs? This can be a good DIY solution

2. It’s customizable so it can be tweaked to meet your specific needs

3. There’s a huge online community that supports other users of this tool.

The downside to open source solutions

You generally don’t get free 24/7/365 support when you have problems in the open source world. You are at the mercy of the community and the knowledge base. Unless you want to pay for expertise, it can take time to navigate through the information available on the software and trouble shooting your store can be a bit labor intensive.

There are turnkey open source solutions that you can jump into and begin using and then add on your own modules and there are an abundance of online sources and tutorials as well as community forums where you can pose questions and share your expertise as you build it. You may find that your problems are minor and easily fixable. This will depend on many factors including what version of the software you are using, how many different modules you have, outside factors and how complex your store is.

Do you know enough about technology to get started? Anyone can do some dabbling but if you are anxious, you might want to buy a turnkey solution and going it alone might not be the right choice for you.

There are also products out there with the open source mindset but designed to be easier as a point and click solution. Products like Zen Cart claim to be easier to work with for the novice and there are many resources that work with OS Commerce but that allow you the best of both worlds: to dabble on your own and to have support.

In summary, if you want a low cost or free solution and are willing to put time and effort into learning the tool and contributing to the open source community, you can use this to your advantage. Do your homework and look at your technical abilities, your requirements for your online store and your time constraints for troubleshooting, trial and error. It’s a great idea to lurk on some OSCommerce forums before taking the plunge. This can help you determine whether you have the knowledge and desire to use this e-commerce tool.

Business Model Misdirection

2008-04-27T00:03:00.000-07:00

Somewhere Jeff Nolan has an interesting post where he talks about his preference for business models that keep the onus of paying off the end user of the service. (NB: I find Lijit search wanting.) This is an extension of the traditional media model we’ve served up creative and editorial content with for years. What’s interesting is that Jeff is relocating and extending that idea into enterprise software & suggesting that it is apropos for many kinds of online services.

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Not too long after he wrote that post, Newsgator made all their consumer client apps free. Hey, this merits a closer look: the early mover in RSS, which had spent time & money acquiring the very best desktop clients (NNW forevah), decided to give them away. Whaa? You could say, sure, Google Reader is getting traction & they need to do something about that. Or, more likely, they realized the tremendous opportunity cost of charging a minimal amount for software and dampening the total number of users and data flow that might run through their systems. Absolute dollars aside, it also hampers listening to the edge and finding new opportunities for value. The ‘pay me for this software license’ approach was deeply limiting for Newsgator’s creative potential. I’m guessing.

Or, let’s look at Webkinz. You buy a stuffed animal for anywhere from $8 to $14 or so, and you get a ‘free’ Web service with an avatar of that little critter. You can add up to 10 Webkinz on this account. So far, my family has spent about $80 on this free Web service. And no one would think twice about doing something they do routinely: buy stuffed animals for the kids. Genius. (Check out Mike Kuniavsky’s discussion of Webkinz as a form of information shadow.)

This is creative marketing that has nothing to do with messaging. (Which, again, is why the ruse about marketing being only necessary for unremarkable companies is annoying to me.) A lot of the creative firepower now trained on incremental feature tweaking needs to go into rethinking how you create & extract value in a world of interlinked services where better experiences win. It’s coming. Start thinking.

Take this excellent piece by Simon Phipps, on what he calls ‘the adoption-led market’. (hat tip: Michael Sippey) Phipps:

In this approach, developers select from available Free software and try the software that fits best in their proposed application. They develop prototypes, switch packages as they find benefits and problems and finally create a deployable solution to their business problem. At that final point, assuming the application is sufficiently critical to the business to make it worthwhile to do so, they seek out vendors to provide support, services (like defect resolution) and more. Adoption-led users are not all customers; they only become so when they find a vendor with value to offer.

Even more interesting are the consequences of this model, which, as Simon notes, impact how you staff, set up your products, price, etc.

Though you can’t tell from the current discussion, the reason WordPress is eating Moveable Type’s lunch isn’t because of some geeky feature differences. At a critical time in the category lifecycle, they chose a more efficient, more plastic mode of creating, extending and distributing blogging software. Any momentary product parity from Six Apart is going to be rapidly undone. I think you’ll see 6A churn off all the consumer-facing businesses, and some large enterprise software shop will absorb the platform. That well-earned enterprise success may be more durable. Probably still a great result for founders & investors, but the loss of MT market dominance is not merely because of product failures.

Let’s look at another service. WordPress.com is creating value Google-style. While there are millions of free blogs hosted there, tons of traffic making it one of the top sites on the Web, Automattic continues to leave money on the table while they think it through. They charge a bit for a la carte things like domain mapping or custom CSS. They are doing select experimentation with ads. Meanwhile, the network keeps growing and accruing potential energy. They are learning a ton about how people actually use the system. And they are slowly adding to their team to deal with the growth. At any point, they could turn on dumb revenue streams and start to gin real money, but I think they’ll hold off till they think they’ve got it right. That’s why they got a big round of funding even though it feels like blogging tools are played out. I should probably write a whole post about Akismet, a service which doesn’t get nearly enough attention. Other firms, having developed the best spam blocking system out there, would be screaming from the roof tops and taking g-string tips from every user to pay for this remarkable service. Instead, commercial licenses make a bit of money while ‘free’ use from rank & file bloggers makes the system exponentially more valuable. Again, the technology is great, but the business model keeps it viable and creates potential value. Sphere is doing the same thing.

Microsoft Embeds Sleeper in Business Software

2008-04-15T14:49:00.000-07:00

When the Miami-Dade County Public Schools set out to build a way for its teachers, students and parents to collaborate online, it was surprised to discover it already had Microsoft Corp. software that could help do the job.

Included with software the school district had previously bought was something called SharePoint Services, which Miami-Dade used as the first step in creating a system for planning school programs and classes, posting notices, and handling other tasks that require its teachers and students to collaborate.

“We kind of unintentionally fell into it,” says Deborah Karcher, executive officer at Miami-Dade’s information-technology group. The school system considered an alternative from International Business Machines Corp., but with the Microsoft software already in place, “it just seemed like a very low risk.”

What Miami-Dade wanted to do is part of a broad trend in how corporations and institutions are beginning to use their computers. Historically, using most PC programs has been a solitary thing — workers used ad hoc methods to work together, say by emailing a spreadsheet among different team members, one by one. Now a host of new “collaboration” software is letting them use corporate networks to more easily work on the same documents at the same time and accomplish any number of tasks that groups or teams do together. Workers using collaboration software, for instance, could have a particular document like a spreadsheet on their respective screens simultaneously, with all having access to the material while talking to one another over a videoconference.

To do that, companies need to install a mix of software running behind the scenes that ties together PCs, databases, email systems and other programs businesses use. Many businesses, to their surprise, are finding that Microsoft anticipated that demand and has already sold them SharePoint before they even knew they needed it.

SharePoint is now Microsoft’s contender in an emerging battle over collaboration software with companies from a cross section of the technology industry including Oracle Corp., Adobe Systems Inc., IBM, EMC Corp., Cisco Systems Inc., Google Inc. and lesser-known players such as Zimbra Inc., Alfresco Software Inc., the Plone Foundation and Socialtext Inc. Each company has its own approach to collaborative software market, but “all want to be central to it,” says Peter O’Kelly, an analyst at researcher Burton Group.

For Microsoft, SharePoint is a critical engine to increase sales of a broad array of its other software. In 2003 the company made a basic form of SharePoint available as a free download with Windows Server, a version of Windows for the large corporate computers of customers like Miami-Dade schools. The hope was that the customers would seek — and pay for — a newer version of the program with more collaboration features and would then go on to buy other Microsoft software.

To date, largely unheralded, Microsoft has sold 85 million licenses to the enhanced version of SharePoint across 17,000 companies. No marketing campaigns are in the works. “When we get SharePoint in there, it sells itself,” says Jeff Teper, vice president of Microsoft’s SharePoint Server group.

The free version of SharePoint is a separate download because including extra software with versions of Windows is a touchy subject with regulators. Bundling got Microsoft into trouble when it used Windows to boost its Web browser and crush rival browser maker Netscape, which prompted the company’s landmark antitrust battle with the U.S. government. In the case of SharePoint, Windows Server customers have to make the decision to buy SharePoint Server, which is the full-blown collaboration software. The government has routinely monitored Microsoft’s compliance with the antitrust settlement, while Microsoft has internal controls to keep its products within bounds of the settlement.

Hawaiian Airlines wants to add collaboration features to its Web site to allow, say, frequent-flier customers to share travel tips and stories, says David Osborne, chief information officer at the airline. Already standardized on Microsoft products, the airline decided to license the enhanced SharePoint software, which it has been using since last month. “It wasn’t particularly difficult,” Mr. Osborne says. “The thing was already part of your infrastructure.”

Salespeople at American Bible Society use SharePoint from the field when they sell Bibles, take donations or sell financial instruments. If a salesperson sells a retirement package, he or she can use SharePoint to securely enter customer information that then can be accessed by American Bible Society workers who process the order. Outside partners such as financial institutions can also securely access the data, says Nick Garbidakis, chief information officer at American Bible Society.

In the past, salespeople might use a fax and/or email to submit the information, methods that were insecure and slow, says Mr. Garbidakis. “It would take days or weeks to exchange the data,” he says. The society upgraded to the enhanced version of SharePoint and is now rolling it out more broadly in the organization, he said.

Microsoft’s rivals, too, are profiting from collaboration software of their own. IBM’s Notes software is the pioneer product in the collaboration market and despite years of losing market share, is now resurgent as IBM rolls out related products, including new software for sharing content called Quickr, that help it compete better with SharePoint, says Mr. O’Kelly, the Burton Group analyst.

Oracle, meanwhile, has built collaboration products around its core database products, most recently rolling out WebCenter Suite, a SharePoint competitor.

The collaboration battle could have long-term strategic benefits for the companies. Once a given software maker’s collaboration programs are in place, a company using them will start filling them with valuable company data, from documents to videos.

After all that company data is in the system, it’s hard to move to a competing system, say some industry executives, who compare the emerging collaboration battle to an earlier era when Oracle became the market leader in databases after a mass of companies committed their information to Oracle databases. Once companies were on an Oracle database it became easier for the software maker to sell upgrades and other software — and harder for competitors to woo away the customer.

“Owning the data is owning the customer in perpetuity,” says Matt Asay, vice president at Alfresco, which makes software for managing content.

“Our vision, much like Office, was to build an integrated set of compatibility that is relative low cost and easy to use,” says Microsoft’s Mr. Teper.

The catch: To squeeze all of the functionality out of SharePoint, Microsoft customers need to buy extra software from the company if they don’t already have it. For instance, features in the latest version of SharePoint will work only with Microsoft’s Office 2007, the newest version of the business software suite. That could be a beneficial connection for Office, as Microsoft struggles to convince some business to upgrade to Office 2007 when their current Office setup works fine.

SharePoint is also starting to lift weaker Microsoft products. Alan Kahn, chief executive of InterDyn AKA, a company that resells Microsoft products, says that SharePoint is helping to spur sales of Microsoft Dynamics software, which has been a perennial laggard. That strategy extends to the range of already-strong Microsoft products that work with SharePoint, from its SQL Server database to corporate search technologies.

Within two months of rolling out the basic version of SharePoint last summer, Miami-Dade was surprised to find over 50,000 students accessed the system, prompting the school system to upgrade to the enhanced version of SharePoint. Those licenses, combined with security software and other Microsoft software and services cost it an additional $2.2 million, says Ms. Karcher, the executive officer.

Uses of SharePoint contemplated by Miami-Dade teachers include sharing research materials, posting and discussing assignments, and creating a homework “drop-off” box for students to submit their assignments.

Yesterday, Miami-Dade opened the system to 30,000 school administrators. By the end of this summer, Ms. Karcher says, SharePoint will be available to one million students and their families, teachers and employees in the school district.

Linux for Business: 50 Apps to Get your Office on Open Source

2008-04-15T14:44:00.000-07:00

Open source software has a lot to offer the business world. Aside from the fact that they’re generally free, many open source programs are more secure, reliable and customizable than their proprietary counterparts. In fact, many large companies, including big names like Amazon, Google, and Yahoo, run their servers with Linux rather than Windows. Open source software is often some of the best software for the job, even when cost is no consideration. So how can you make open source software work for your business? Here are 50 apps that can help your office get on track to join the growing numbers of businesses that have made the switch to open source.

Desktop and Server Distributions
Ubuntu Ubuntu is a free, Linux-based operating system that can be used for both desktop systems and servers. It contains everything you need for the office, including a web browser, software for presentation, document and spreadsheets, as well as instant messaging. It has regular updates, new releases, and a reputation for being user friendly and easy to install.
Linspire Unlike Ubuntu, Linspire is not free, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t check it out as an option for desktop systems. Linspire focuses on making open source software easy to use for even the technically un-savvy with its Click’n'Run software. It comes complete with applications for multimedia, office productivity, browsers and instant messaging.
Fedora Fedora is another free Linux-based OS, though it’s not designed with the novice user in mind, and accordingly, is better suited to current Linux users that want to stay on the cutting edge. The system comes with OpenOffice, Firefox, Thunderbird and a number of other open source applications pre-loaded, giving you access to just about anything you need to get work done.
SUSE Linux Suse Linux is enterprise-focused software created and sponsored by Novell. It is designed to be especially stable and reliable as well as meet the special needs of business owners. It comes in both desktop and server versions, which come complete with office suites, desktop search, and virus protection. While not free, it does have the benefit of a dedicated support team if you ever have any problems.
Debian Debian is a free Linux-based OS known for its abundance of software options. There are currently almost 18,000 software packages for eleven different computer architectures, making it highly versatile and customizable to your needs. Software available for the OS includes everything from standard web browsers to language interpreters and tools for scientific work.
RedHat Redhat offers some of the most popular enterprise Linux software. Available for both servers and desktops, the software offers a comprehensive suite of productivity software as well as easy-to-use and reliable options for managing multiple servers and mainframes for a price considerably lower than that of proprietary software.
GNOME GNOME is another free Linux-based desktop environment. Business owners can benefit not only from its cost, but also from its dedication to accessibility for the disabled, large amount of available software, and extensive development platform for building new applications.

Email and Instant Messaging
Evolution Evolution, designed as an open source alternative to Microsoft Outlook, gives users integrated email, an address book, and calendar functionality, among many other features.
KDE Kontact KDE Kontact is another freeware alternative to using Outlook. KDE Kontact provides many of the same features, plus some additional ones, which include email management, groupware, calendar and organization tools, sticky notes and even Google synchronization.
Thunderbird Thunderbird is Mozilla’s open source answer to a desktop email client. Thunderbird allows users to customize their inbox, easily search, and enjoy enhanced security and privacy measures that help protect your information.
Jabber Jabber is an open source instant messaging program. It has standard instant messaging chat features, but also gives users the ability to have VoIP conversations and transfer files.

Productivity
Tomboy Tomboy makes taking and keeping track of notes easy. Busy employees can save time looking for websites, emails, or ideas they jotted down by using Tomboy notes that are available at the push of a button anytime they’re needed.
Beagle Beagle is a desktop search application that can make it easy to find documents, emails, notes, calendar appointments, music and more. Any information that can be extracted from these and other types of data is available for you to search, making even the most disorganized desktop easy to manage.
F-Spot F-Spot can help you easily sort and manage your photos. It even comes complete with a basic photo editing system. Whether you’re using photos for design or just in your personal time, F-Spot can be a valuable tool for keeping track of your images.
Planner Planner is a great free open source tool for project management. Businesses can set up projects and use the program to track, monitor, plan, schedule, and even assign tasks to individual employees, making working together and managing a project easier than ever.
iFolder iFolder is also a valuable tool for those who need to work together on a project. Users simply save files to their system as they normally would, and iFolder enables them to be shared on any computer within your office by putting them on your network server. It can also be a great way to back up important information and documents.
K3B K3B provides businesses with an easy and free way to burn CDs and DVDs. The program allows users to compile data, music, video, and mixed media CDs, as well as the ability to create DVD projects. It’s a great way to quickly share and backup information.
RDesktop RDesktop is a remote desktop client. It can make it easy to share information remotely, or to access your own workstation away from the office. It can also be used to help interface Linux with desktops that are still running Windows.
Ekiga Ekiga, formerly known as GNOMEMeeting, is VoIP and videoconferencing software. It has numerous features and can be a practical way to meet with clients when you can’t meet face-to-face.
OpenOffice OpenOffice is the virtual holy grail of free business software. OpenOffice comes complete with everything you’ll need to do including word processing, spreadsheets, presentation, databases, vector drawing, and even edit mathematical formulas.
Horde Horde isn’t just one program, but a framework upon which a number of programs are built. This framework supports a number of applications that can be useful to businesses, including webmail, file managers, calendars, and managers for bookmarks and calendars.
Evince Acrobat Reader is a key application for any business, but the program isn’t always the best solution for reading documents. Evince provides an open source alternative, allowing users to view documents in a wide variety of formats with a much lighter and quicker program.
Automatix For those delaying the move to open source due to fears about the difficulty of installing new applications, Automatix may be the solution you are looking for. The program is designed to automate the installation of everything you could need, including fonts, applications, and codecs, making installation easy and painless.

Imaging and Design
GIMP GIMP is image editing software and can act as a slightly less full featured alternative to Photoshop for businesses looking to save. While it lacks some of the more advanced productivity tools found in Photoshop, many if not most of the basic features are the same and it can be a great open source alternative for businesses that need image editing software without the frills or the price tag of Photoshop.
Subversion Subversion was designed as version control system that can act as an open source alternative to CVS, giving business owners a free program to manage servers and edit code.
Inkscape For businesses that need an open source program for vector drawing, Inkscape can be a great choice, with capabilities that are similar to those of Illustrator or CorelDraw.
Scribus Scribus brings desktop publishing into the open source realm. Users can design and format page layouts and typesetting much in the same way as Adobe InDesign, making the creation of brochures, posters and books easy and much less costly.

Content Management
Joomla! Joomla! is an open source content management program, that allows businesses to easily upload and create a variety of different types of web pages. Features include page caching, RSS feeds, news flashes, blogs, polls, and website searching, making it a valuable tool for entrepreneurs doing business on the web.
PostNuke PostNuke is another option for businesses that want a content management system. PostNuke makes it easy to create and upload websites and can be customized by installing additional themes, modules and blocks to the existing program.
Xoops Xoops is a program that allows users to easily create web content and can be used to develop anything from large community portals to business weblogs. It has advanced features, including the ability to send email and instant messages within the program.
Exponent Even the less technologically inclined can make great websites using Exponent. Users don’t directly code web pages or manage site navigation, and instead create the page as they would see it on the web by typing, editing and rearranging in one simple window. It can be a better solution than more complicated programs for those who don’t know much coding but still need content management software for their business.
Smarty For users that will need more in-depth web editing abilities, Smarty can help you easily manage and edit the templates for your sites. It provides tools that can help automate tasks associated with the programming of the presentation level of webpages.
MySQL The most popular open source database management program, MySQL can provide businesses with a platform to create useful web applications. It’s often used in conjunction with popular content management systems such as WordPress. MySQL can also act as the database component for LAMP, MAMP, and WAMP style platforms. The company offers a version of the software created especially for businesses.
KompoZer KompoZer is an HTML editor based on the Nvu system that can provide web editing abilities similar to that of DreamWeaver. While aimed towards more advanced users, it can be a valuable tool when designing and publishing material for the web.
Eclipse For those working on developing software or web apps, Eclipse is a great open source program to try out. Eclipse is a software framework written and designed primarily for Java, but plugins can be added to make the software useful to other programming languages.

Web Tools
Firefox Firefox is popular even among businesses that haven’t gone completely open source because it’s packed with features and simply works well. Businesses may find Firefox’s numerous plugins and extensions useful.
ZenCart Businesses that want to sell products on the web can benefit from open source software like ZenCart. ZenCart is free software for creating an online shopping cart system. Unlike many shopping cart applications, ZenCart is easy to install and use, making life easier for both customers and merchants.
phpCollab For businesses that need to work and collaborate on projects over the internet, phpCollab is a possible solution. This fully featured program comes with tools to create team or client sites, assign tasks, keep track of workflow, discuss projects, create invoices, and send out notifications.
OpenAds OpenAds is used by millions of business and personal websites to sell, manage and serve ads. The interface doesn’t require any advanced knowledge of coding and can help you easily and simply create and sell advertising for your business.
Skype For businesses that make a lot of international and long distance calls, Skype can be a valuable and money-saving tool. It allows users to make calls through the Internet using peer-to-peer technology. The program is free and provides international calls at a greatly discounted rate. The program can also be used to set up a call center for customer support complete with links that can easily be placed on a business website.
phpESP phpESP is a great tool for non-technical users of php-based web applications to administer surveys, gather the results from them, and easily view the statistics. Businesses can use it as a tool to monitor customer service experiences, or gather input and advice on how to make their products and services better.

Network and Server Management
Asterisk Asterisk is PBX (Private Branch eXchange) software that can allow you to easily and cheaply control the telephone system in your office. Asterisk works with both VoIP telephony as well as old-fashioned telephone systems with the addition of some inexpensive hardware. It even comes complete with features usually only found in high end and high price PBX systems.
Zabbix Zabbix is designed to allow users to easily monitor and track the status of network services, servers, and other network based hardware. Businesses looking for a way to track and report status on network systems will find Zabbix’s easy-to-use mapping and graphing visualizations very useful.
Apache Apache provides some of the most widely used and stable HTTP servers available, open source or otherwise. Apache supports a variety of features including virtual hosting, SSL and TSL support, custom log files, and a proxy module, among many others. It can be used as a secure server for web pages or as a way to safely share files over the Internet.

Finances
GnuCash GnuCash can make keeping track of business finances easy and less costly. This free program allows users to track bank accounts, stocks, income and expenses with features to create reports, do financial calculations, and schedule transactions.
SureInvoice SureInvoice provides an easy system for creating and managing invoices. Businesses will find it useful in time entry, automated invoice generation, and customer self-service, as well as many other areas, helping them make sure they are paid fairly and on time for work.
EzyBiz EzyBiz is business sales chain management software for small to medium size businesses. It is highly customizable and allows businesses to track finances, including taxes with easy-to-use custom forms and magic menus.

Security and Tracking
Mantis Mantis is a popular bug tracking application that works in conjunction with the MySQL database system. It has a simple interface that allows users to monitor and track any issues with a color coded issue list, providing all the information needed to address and resolve an issue.
Snort Protecting computer systems is incredibly important, especially for businesses. Snort can be a valuable part of securing your systems. The program acts as a network intrusion detector and prevention system, helping you detect and deter a wide variety of network probes and attacks.
Firestarter When sensitive client and business information hangs in the balance, security is of the utmost importance. Businesses can make use of Firestarter to help protect their information and safeguard their data. Firestarter is a firewall application with features including real-time monitoring, whitelists and blacklists, and controlled access policies.

Most popular business software

2008-04-15T14:36:00.000-07:00

There are tons of business software out there, but you can’t install everything. We decided to help you to choose the best software for your business. We will give you our point of view and hope it will be useful for you.

Microsoft Excell
This program allows you to create professional spreadsheets and charts. It can perform numerous functions and formulas to help you in your projects. I use this program every day and it helps me in my business.

Skype
This program allows you to talk, listen, watch, read, write to your business partners, anywhere in the world without worying about cost, distance or time. I use it every day to communicate with and it helps me a lot to make successful business.

ICQ
Everybody knows this program. ICQ is the largest community, people search and meeting service. I have more than 2000 business contacts in my ICQ program.

Microsoft Word
This is one of the most famous and useful busines software. It allows you to write and read different documents. It has lots of useful features, you can even create html pages with this software.

The Bat
Sending emails is still one of the most popular ways to communicate with business partners. The Bat is dedicated to help you to write, read, send and get email messages.

Treepad
Treepad is a personal information manager, information organaser and word processor. It’s very easy to use and it helps me to save any business notes.

SBA backs “big business” by neglecting open source

2008-04-15T14:31:00.000-07:00

It’s not often that you’ll catch ScrappyUntechie looking at politics instead of entrepreneurship. In this case, it’s one and the same.

I was a bit stunned by a press release emailed to me yesterday by the US Small Business Administration (SBA). Here’s a link to the PDF version - U.S. Small Business Administration and Business Software Alliance Join Forces to Educate Small Businesses on Proper Software Management.

(For starters, I want to disclose that my consulting business - with my client, the Government of the District of Columbia - has worked with many exceptionally qualified and committed SBA staffers. Together, we planned and launched the Enhanced Business Information Center (e-BIC), which was the first program of its type in the nation combining a Business Information Center with the business resources of a local public library.)

Yesterday’s press release is not SBA’s finest moment, in my opinion. You don’t need to read much of the press release to see what it’s all about. The Business Software Alliance (BSA) is mostly the who’s who list of companies that want you to pay for software. What’s the problem with that? Well, I am 100 percent AGAINST software piracy. I do not believe that we have the right to steal software or services to advance our own interests. So, in a sense, I support what the BSA stands for - pay for software, don’t steal it.

What I am missing is why the SBA is going out of its way to promote licensing expensive software, when many small businesses are unaware of the benefits and value of open source (FREE) software. In my opinion, the SBA’s initiative with the BSA to help companies ensure they are properly licensing software misses the point. Ultimately, the SBA is supposed to help entrepreneurs and small businesses be scrappy… do more with less. Many types of open source software offer comparable, if not superior, value as compared to the traditional fee-based rivals.

If you decide to audit your company’s software use and cut down on piracy, take a look at replacing pirated software with open source alternatives. You’ll feel better and save money. Many would say that you’ll even end up with better software.

It would be ideal if the SBA could reach out to the various open source communities, who do not have the same deep pockets as the companies behind the BSA. Today’s ScrappyUntechie is a reminder to take a look at open source alternatives when starting a business or selecting new software. I’m just trying to give “equal time” to the open source community.

Open Source Associations:
» Free Software Foundation
» Open Source.org

Open Source Applications (small sampling):
» Mozilla - email, web browser, calendar
» OpenOffice - office applications
» Miranda - instant messaging client
» WordPress - blog
» Songbird - media player
» TrueCrypt - encryption

All is well.

How to kill a car (or a business) with bad UI

2008-04-15T14:30:00.000-07:00

I needed a car for a few days in Denver earlier this week. I heard Chrysler is becoming American again, so I wanted to tool around in a Dodge Charger.

The car only had 5,000 miles and looked pretty sharp, but when I got to the checkout booth, I heard horrible valve tap (a good sign the engine is in trouble). The guard not only heard it too, he noticed it on a different new Charger last week.

The rental agency quickly hooked me up with a different car and I was on my way. I had the car up to a whiny 25 mph before I realized I was stuck in first gear. Turns out the car has Tiptronic-type shifting (automatic, but you have to wiggle the gear shift to change gears). Unfortunately, the designer didn’t make this obvious to the user (build one position for normal and one position for Tiptronic).

All it takes is a nudge on the gear shift and you’re locked in first. Pretty natural for a manual driver or just about anyone with a right arm.

Mystery solved. The previous driver was distracted by kids in the backseat or finding his way in a new town. He didn’t notice the plague-of-angry-wasps sound, so he redlined on the highway for five minutes before catching on.

Note to Detroit: don’t make it easy for drivers to accidentally wreck expensive machinery.

Which brings us to software.

Everyone has used software designed to enrage humans. We bankers have suffered worse than anyone - I shudder when I remember working with one particular core processing system.

User interface is often an afterthought. But good user interface is more than having a pleasant day at work. Good user interface makes it harder to get bad results.

Interface becomes more important in complex business domains, like deposit pricing. There are just a heck of a lot of intricacies when the job is done properly. Bootstrapped forward curves, activity-based costing, maximized economic values, data cleansing, nonlinear predictive analytics, and so on.

A crisp interface is all that stands between the user and information overload. Some of the basics:
Stick to familiar ground. Make the application work like it came from Microsoft. In fact, if you need to present complex data, use Excel for building reports and editing data.
Stay consistent. If you refer to a “rate scheme” in one place and a “rate outlook” in another, users will spend more time thinking about trivia and less about their business issues.
Organize, organize. Make sure the software is lined up with the user’s internal model for how the underlying problem works. Precise organization allows people to look deeply into complexity when needed, but not worry about most concepts most of the time.
Take the time to refine. Even a great designer will not create a perfect interface from the outset. Great ui comes from removing a thousand tiny snags.
Watch for user “mistakes”. User errors are maps to better ui. What cues misled the user? How can the software subtly nudge the user in the right direction next time?

UI is much more than pretty graphics (also good, but the equivalent of the Charger’s beautifully aggressive styling). UI is the combination of a thousand subtle design choices that keep the user in control. UI refinement may be difficult to notice during a sales demo, but is critical in real usage.

Business software is never going to reach the heights of iPod-level design. Bad software design is unlikely to leave a family stranded on the shoulder of I-70 with a seized engine. But the goal of our software is also important: make the bank millions in extra profits through price optimization.

It’s worth making sure ui doesn’t stand in the way of results.

Enterprise Tyranny Of The Or

2008-04-15T14:25:00.000-07:00

There is an interesting battle going on between the Enterprise Irregulars vs. Robert Scoble and Nick Carr about the lack of sexiness in enterprise software. In Scoble's original post, he asks if anyone knows how to make business software sexy. Fellow Irregular, Michael Krigsman, responded in his blog:

Enterprise software is all about helping organizations conduct their basic business in a better, more cost-effective manner. In software jargon, it’s intended to “enable core business processes” with a high degree of reliability, security, scalability, and so on. These aren’t sexy, cool attributes, but are absolutely essential to the smooth running of businesses, organizations, and governments around the world.

Nick Carr then jumped in with his response:

I'm sorry, but I think Krigsman is the one who doesn't understand enterprise software - or at least doesn't understand what it could become. The distinction he draws between business and consumer applications is specious. Are we really to believe that making software engaging is somehow incompatible with making it reliable and secure? That's just baloney.

Besides the fact that I respect Krigsman and believe that he does indeed understand enterprise software very well, I actually agree with Mr. Carr on this one. Too many times people go down the dangerous path of the "Tyranny of the OR", which Jim Collins warns about in his book Built to Last. Just as Steve Jobs did with Apple, he didn't choose between form OR function or even form OVER function, he decided to embrace the "Genius of the AND" and strive to deliver both.

The enterprise question is not whether to choose between either process over people OR people over process. The answer is to be the genius that realizes that it can be both people AND process. Without this realization, you will see a change of heart in SAP's users of tomorrow that Dan talks about. If you leave people out of your priorities and omit them from your equation, they will find better tools to get their jobs done, even at the cost of your money saving, business process integration. If you want proof, go read my recent experiences with our new global procurement application or the pains of working with data in BI. This isn't a fantasy land, it's reality.

I actually believe some at SAP understand this and that's why you have initiatives like the SAP Developer's Network and SAP's Imagineering Group. You can also see this in new products such as Business by Design, where SAP is trying to make enterprise software accessible for small businesses. It's an internal struggle between the old school German engineering mentality vs. the new school Silicon Valley start up attitude. Only time will tell if they will find balance and harmony of both by embracing the "Genius of the AND".

ASR wins prestigious business software satisfaction award for their integrated HR & payroll software solution

2008-04-15T14:23:00.000-07:00

Press Release Summary: ASR have been announced winners of a prestigious business software satisfaction award for their integrated HR & payroll software solution

Press Release Body: ASR, supplier of innovative Human Resources Solutions, has been announced as the winner of a prestigious business software satisfaction award for their Integrated HR & Payroll Software Solution.

The award given to ASR as part of the 2007 Business Software Satisfaction Awards are based on an online survey of Sift Media’s professional online communities that are made up of over 250,000 members.

This Annual Award is given based on value for money, ease of use, reliability and functionality and is run in association with the Business Application Software Developers Association (BASDA).

The Software Satisfaction Awards are based on the views of genuine users of business applications, not those of a judging panel. As a result, the awards are a valuable guide to any business considering its HR & Payroll software options.

ASR was voted the winner in the category of Integrated HR & Payroll software, which is a major achievement considering there are over 70 suppliers in this sector of the market.

ASR’s Marketing Manager, Tony Flanagan put his company’s success in the HR & Payroll category down to listening to their customers.

“This prestigious award is a testament to our long-term partnerships with our customers. Our philosophy is based on a commitment to always exceed customer expectations, and the award is recognition of this fact. It’s been a massive effort from the whole team at ASR and I’d like to think we’ll be up here again next year.”

Tony continued, “We look forward to continuing to develop and deploy innovative HR & Payroll software solutions that gives HR departments the tools that they need to effectively and efficiently manage their company’s most valuable resource – its people, and helps the HR team to function as a more strategic, value enhancing part of the business.”

About ASR
ASR is a leading supplier of innovative Human Resources Solutions formed in 1987 to satisfy the need for a mid-range human resources software provider. It has now grown into one of the leading companies in its field in the UK.

With over 400 customers, ASR’s growth is continuing with the introduction of its new .NET HR Workflow module. Workflow can help to reduce costs, improve productivity, provide faster processing times and by using electronic forms, take organisations a step closer to a paperless office. This improves process visibility, which is key for tracking progress and improvement.

ASR has worked with many organisations, across a variety of industry sectors. From small innovative companies to the largest blue-chip enterprise, ASR has developed an impressive client portfolio.

Disruptive Software Solutions - Software as a Service

2008-04-15T14:19:00.000-07:00

It won’t be long before enterprise software pricing strategies are totally dead - as the market for Software as a Service (SaaS) continues to grow at twenty five percent per year, and this trend is anticipated to continue through 2010.

Bill McNee, Founder and CEO of Saugatuck predicts that by 2012 more than thirty five percent of all new business software that is deployed will be delivered as SaaS. McKinsey also reports that forty six percent of companies with sales of over $billion will adopt SaaS as their main business model by 2007.

One of the major growth SaaS segments to watch is the Enterprise Content Management (ECM) market which is growing currently at thirty percent annually according to Gartner Group. Currently only two to three percent of the overall ECM market ($1.2B) is spent on hosted SW solutions (about $23M currently).

An interesting web content SaaS software company to watch is Crown Peak. CrownPeak SaaS Solutions include: Web Content Management, Search, Web Hosting, and Intranet/Extranets. They were recently named to eContent’s 100 most influential companies list, has won Product of the Year from InfoWorld and eWeek’s Analyst’s Choice Award, and named as one of the top 25 ASP’s worldwide by ASPNews.com.

With the large market for improved enterprise content management solutions, and the rapid growth of this sector, business models like CrownPeak have tremendous opportunity to service clients globally as the continued focus on operational efficiency and productivity of knowledge workers intensifies in our Flat World Economy.

How to Create a Software Demo Presentation That Wows Prospects

2008-04-15T14:09:00.000-07:00

Whether you’re creating a demo to teach your sales force about a new product, or for their use in the field, most marketers fall into the pit of five worst practices that leave viewers snoring:

1. Presenting a linear demo from beginning to end
2. Failing to focus on customer needs
3. Showing feature after feature
4. The one-demo-fits-all practice
5. Death by corporate overview

So, how do you put together a demo that works? Here are some presentation notes from Peter Cohan, Founder and Principal of The Second Derivative, a company that helps organizations improve the success of their business software demos.

Move your corporate overview to the very end - the demo should begin with the sales situation, not the corporate overview. Save that for the end as icing on the cake. Once you have shown that you have capabilities that can help the customer address their business issues, then the customers will begin to ask questions about your company and the corporate overview slide will be relevant.

Start with a five-point intro slide by persona - Cohan recommends you research the end demographic (your most likely buyer) carefully, and then create a powerful slide that addresses that persona directly. The point of this slide is to quickly say, “We understand the specific pain you are in, and we can help you solve it.”

Show an actual result - Now that you’ve gained some interest in the demo, show the viewer what they stand to gain if they continue.

Keep clicks to a minimum - Once you’ve shown the end-deliverable, use the software to show, in as few clicks as possible, how you got there. Critical — with every single extra click you will lose some of your audience’s interest. So, once you’ve honed your demo to the minimum clicks, count them and rethink. Is there a click you could lose? Often you’ll find you can cut even more of them.

Make detailed Q&A 75-80% of your demo time - Now is the opportunity to show off all the features. If you’ve gotten to the key deliverable of the software within a short amount of time (five to 10 minutes), you will have excited your audience and they will be ready to ask questions.