OmniVue Business Solutions' Pyden Advances to Next Round of Inc. Award

Jeff Pyden, founder and managing director of OmniVue Business Solutions which specializes in the implementation, hosting and support of financial and operational management software -- Microsoft Dynamics GP, SL and CRM -- was selected by Inc. Magazine to advance to the next round of the publication's 2007 Entrepreneur of the Year search. Pyden's entrepreneurial story has been posted on Inc.com and can be accessed at http://www.inc.com/entrepreneur/2007/profile/index.php?pyden249

Pyden was recently honored as a finalist for the AeA (formerly the American Electronics Association) Southeastern Spirit of Endeavor Award in the Technology Innovation category. He was recognized for his achievements in making enterprise-level business software more accessible to small and midsized businesses.

Founded in 2003, OmniVue leads the Southeast in hosted deployments of Microsoft Dynamics GP (formerly Great Plains), SL (formerly Solomon) and Microsoft CRM. By offering businesses a choice in how they deploy their business management software, either on-premise or on-demand, companies are able to tailor the solution that’s best for their business with the flexibility to change as needs dictate.

A Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, OmniVue is the provider of choice for businesses looking to automate and streamline financial and customer relationship management to help drive business success. , Please visit www.omnivue.net for more information about OmniVue Business Solutions.

Upgrading to Vista? Proceed with caution

Hi!

SAP looks to better serve information workers
InfoWorld - Jan 24, 2007
Moore expects that Microsoft will work on further integration between Office and its Dynamics ERP and CRM families. At present, he doesn't see much conflict between SAP's mySAP products and Dynamics. "We generally don't serve the same market," Moore said. "There is some overlap with Business One and All-in-One. "Business One is SAP's offering for small businesses, while All-in-One is aimed at the midmarket, both areas where Microsoft's Dynamics has an established presence.
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/article/07/01/24/HNsapinformationworkers_1.html

Upgrading to Vista? Proceed with caution
InfoWorld - Jan 22, 2007
“I’m a cautious guy, and typically, I’d be doing the server upgrades first, one at a time, and follow those with the desktop upgrades. But Microsoft releasing three new platforms at once doesn’t happen very often. That’s put us in a spot, plus we were moving to Microsoft CRM as well. ” So at the moment, Connelly has separated his server upgrades from his desktop upgrades, but he is forced to roll out several new desktop platforms simultaneously while still testing a new server back end. “So far, it’s working fine, but it’s definitely a worry. ” The cautious perspective to be sure, but that’s not to say it can’t be done. Justin Ainsworth, senior IT manager at Sierra Nevada Brewing, is in the same boat but is taking the Redmond product blitz in stride.
http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/01/22/04FEvista_6.html

Salesforce.com goes from sizzling to merely hot
iT News - Jan 22, 2007
Oracle last month reported that new license sales of business apps in its fiscal second quarter rose less than it had predicted. And new rivals are coming on. Microsoft just released a preview version of CRM software it says can be updated to all customers simultaneously using "multitenant" technology. By midyear, Microsoft plans to host the software from its own data centers, putting it in direct competition with Salesforce. Meanwhile, online accounting software company NetSuite - owned in part by Benioff's ex-boss, Oracle CEO Larry Ellison - is preparing to go public. All of which raises the question of whether Salesforce will need to dip into its US$4. 7 billion market cap for an acquisition that can help it expand.
http://www.itnews.com.au/newsstory.aspx?CIaNID=44651&src=site-marq

SmartCatalog™ Releases Powerful and Intuitive New Rule Manager
PR Web - PR Web (press release) - Jan 19, 2007
com), a best of breed guided selling and configuration solution for CRM and eCommerce, announced today the full version release of the new SmartCatalog™ 6. In order to provide an easy, intuitive experience during the rule building process, the Rule Manger has been re-architected to utilize a tree view, drag and drop GUI along with a simple, easy to use, rule dialog builder. The new version will allow users to create rules in four easy steps and requires no coding or programming... In order to provide an easy, intuitive experience during the rule building process, the Rule Manger has been re-architected to utilize a tree view, drag and drop GUI along with a simple, easy to use, rule dialog builder. The new version will allow users to create rules in four easy steps and requires no coding or programming. The Rule Manager has been completely designed in Microsoft. 0 Forms Application and is written in Microsoft's C# language. The Rule Manager connects directly to any Product Catalog or database in order to retrieve the necessary variables required to build and execute complex rules. SmartCatalog™ enables companies to increase revenues and profits by making the quote-to-order entry process fast, easy and 100% accurate.
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2007/1/prweb498713.htm

Salesforce ups the ante
InfoWorld - Jan 22, 2007
com delivered on its 2006 promise to give ISVs and corporate developers a new programming language called Apex with its. Apex will allow developers to build any kind of SaaS (Software as a Service) application on the Salesforce AppExchange platform... Because it is a fully hosted solution, Apex will also allow coders to create data models and automate business logic and user interfaces without needing to tune it to any specific hardware, database, or operating system. Denis Pombriant, principal at Beagle Research, called Apex part of the New Garage movement that is bringing innovation to the smaller ISVs and hit larger ISVs wedded to older architectures, Pombriant said. Like Siebel before them, Microsoft, Oracle, and SAP are trying to co-opt the innovation, engaging with customers only to convert them. “That is the state we are in with these big companies. They are trying to blunt the impact by making it a checklist,” Pombriant said. But there are still many IT professionals voicing objections to deploying a SaaS solution. Pitfalls still exist from storing critical data offline and from the possibility of downtime which requires ironclad SLAs with punitive provisions for lack of service, Pombriant said.
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/article/07/01/22/04NNwinter07_1.html

Tectura joins Serenic Navigator partner channel
Earthtimes.org - Jan 23, 2007
-based Tectura, Inc. has become a reselling partner for Serenic Navigator. Tectura is a leading Microsoft Dynamics partner and provider of Microsoft-based ERP, CRM, and technology solutions to mid-market companies, larger enterprises and their divisions. Tectura provides software, consulting, and IT implementation services to more than 5,000 clients in a multitude of industries, including not-for-profit. Through these services, Tectura delivers business process improvements, greater efficiency, and a clear competitive edge to clients in over 60 countries. Customers benefit from unmatched experience and a solid commitment from more than 1,750 dedicated Tectura employees with over 70 offices throughout 21 countries across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia Pacific. "We are thrilled to now represent Serenic Navigator, clearly one of the leading financial management products for nonprofit organizations," said Kathy Nohr, Dynamics NAV Practice Lead at Tectura.
http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/news_press_release,48570.shtml

CRM News: Government: SaaS App Growth Expected in Public Sector
CRM Buyer - Jan 19, 2007
CRM Buyer features CRM product information, reviews and comparisons. It is an independent source updated each day.
http://www.crmbuyer.com/story/dzW3jFKNq4px4R/SaaS-App-Growth-Expected-in-Public-Sector.xhtml

E-Commerce News: Portals & Search: Yahoo Earnings Beat Street
E-Commerce Times - Jan 24, 2007
1 million unique visitors per month in the quarter, the firm said. Sterling Market Intelligence analyst Greg Sterling noted that Yahoo CFO Sue Decker -- who will soon leave that post to head the company's advertising business -- sounded a fairly conservative tone in looking ahead for Google. Yahoo has areas to build on as it wars with Google and, to a lesser degree, Microsoft, including strong foundations in local search and mobile search, which could be a key to unlocking the value of local search, Sterling said. Yahoo scored a victory when Google shut down its live-answer service -- Yahoo Answers now garners more than 90 percent of open ended search query traffic, which may be important in social networking settings, he added.
http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/As8eIpAfCfAd3r/Yahoo-Earnings-Beat-Street.xhtml

NewsFactor Network | Belgian Newspapers Take On Yahoo
NewsFactor Network - Jan 19, 2007
According to Copiepresse, Microsoft has been working with the newspaper group on a compromise solution. Representatives from Copiepresse, Google, and Yahoo were not immediately available for comment.
http://www.newsfactor.com/news/Belgian-Newspapers-Take-On-Yahoo/story.xhtml?story_id=103009GRQQN6

Why Good Times Are the Most Dangerous
BusinessWeek - Jan 23, 2007
Times were indeed good, or so we thought. Then the bottom fell out. One February morning, our CEO handed me a letter from the Business Software Alliance (BSA), the organization empowered by major software companies like Microsoft (.
http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/jan2007/sb20070123_476563.htm?chan=smallbiz_smallbiz+index+page_keith+mcfarland

Good luck!

Automation With Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3.0

Nice meeting you!

123Together and Microsoft CRM, PacificNet and Jai Alai, Cognos Q3,...
TMCnet - Dec 29, 2006
biz

The news as of the first coffee this morning, and the music is Elton John's "Your Sister Can't Twist (But She Can Rock 'n' Roll):"

123Together. com, a vendor of Hosted Microsoft (.
http://news.tmcnet.com/news/it/-crm-bpo-call-center-/2006/12/29/2201615.htm

Automation With Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3.0
WebProNews - Dec 28, 2006
Automation with CRM (Customer Relationship Management) can be invaluable in such cases and provide very rapid return on investment. Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3. 0 in particular is eminently suited to a high degree of automation and allows employees to more easily and more effectively use existing customer and account data to integrate marketing and sales efforts. The automation tools provided by Microsoft CRM automate routine tasks such as direct e-mails, communication management and the management of a variety of sales processes. Such processes include account and contact management, qualification of leads and opportunity management and the maintenance of a database of customer and account information. This is available to sales personnel online or offline either in the office, at the customer premises or in transit through portable communications devices such as PDAs, palms, computers, mobile phones and laptops. Automation with CRM achieves this and brings the benefits of instant communication and information retrieval, which promote customer satisfaction and loyalty... Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3. 0 in particular is eminently suited to a high degree of automation and allows employees to more easily and more effectively use existing customer and account data to integrate marketing and sales efforts. The automation tools provided by Microsoft CRM automate routine tasks such as direct e-mails, communication management and the management of a variety of sales processes. Such processes include account and contact management, qualification of leads and opportunity management and the maintenance of a database of customer and account information. This is available to sales personnel online or offline either in the office, at the customer premises or in transit through portable communications devices such as PDAs, palms, computers, mobile phones and laptops. Automation with CRM achieves this and brings the benefits of instant communication and information retrieval, which promote customer satisfaction and loyalty. Automation with CRM can analyze factors such as the proportion of time spent by a sales force between administrative task and direct sales-related work and hence the effectiveness of the sales force and any remedial actions required to improve this.
http://www.webpronews.com/expertarticles/expertarticles/wpn-62-20061228AutomationWithMicrosoftDynamicsCRM30.html

CRM News: Blog News: Bloggers Debate Ethics After Microsoft Giveaway
CRM Buyer - Jan 2, 2007
CRM Buyer features CRM product information, reviews and comparisons. It is an independent source updated each day.
http://www.crmbuyer.com/story/De5e2Tmvj158SK/Bloggers-Debate-Ethics-After-Microsoft-Giveaway.xhtml

CRM News: Wireless: Ford 'Syncs' With Microsoft's Bluetoot...
CRM Buyer - Dec 29, 2006
CRM Buyer features CRM product information, reviews and comparisons. It is an independent source updated each day.
http://www.crmbuyer.com/story/9srgmPHAFQ4F4V/Ford-Syncs-With-Microsofts-Bluetooth-Based-System.xhtml

CRM News: RSS News: Microsoft's RSS Patent Application Raises...
CRM Buyer - Dec 28, 2006
CRM Buyer features CRM product information, reviews and comparisons. It is an independent source updated each day... Patent andTrademark Office could be interpreted to give the software giant broad rightsto RSS, or really simple syndication, technology. The possibility that Microsoft might wind up charging license fees forany RSS-type application has caused denizens of the blogosphere to take up arms against the Redmond, Wash. -based conglomerate.
http://www.crmbuyer.com/story/Q3kHTNQMsR4vtP/Microsofts-RSS-Patent-Application-Raises-Hackles.xhtml

TechWeb: The Business Technology Network
TechWeb - Jan 3, 2007
and Microsoft (CRM). The company is headquartered in Mt. and maintains branch offices for sales and support in Placentia and San Jose, Calif. , Chicago and Schaumburg, Ill. , Indianapolis and Mishawaka, Ind.
http://www.techweb.com/showPressRelease.jhtml?articleID=X567102

Tech: The Look Ahead to 2007
BusinessWeek - Dec 28, 2006
Both companies are releasing new versions of their main computing operating systems. Microsoft (MSFT) will release.
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/dec2006/tc20061228_363228.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_technology

Applications: SaaS breaks down the walls
InfoWorld - Jan 1, 2007
AppExchange itself, launched in 2005, is an application-sharing service that exposes Salesforce. com’s APIs to third-party application providers. If anyone has any doubts that SaaS will start to encroach on traditional enterprise software, one need only take note that holdouts SAP and Microsoft both announced SaaS versions of their CRM solutions this year. As with SaaS, most developments in the enterprise application arena were continuations of efforts started in 2005, such as the move to integrate BI (business intelligence) into ERP and CRM applications, efforts to extend the use of BI dashboards and score cards to the departmental level, and the push to create a single, enterprisewide view of all customer data, called master data and master customer management. In master data management, vendor approaches differed in unsurprising ways. SAP offered NetWeaver as a single consolidated solution to master data management, while IBM took the federated approach, demonstrating how data could remain in its unique silos but still be accessed through IBM’s WebSphere middleware. One of the more interesting developments in enterprise software came from the federal courts.
http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/01/01/01FEtoyapps_1.html

OmniVue Business Solutions Achieves 2006 Top 100 Pacesetter Designatio...
TechLINKS - TechLINKS (press release) - Jan 3, 2007
“We’ve been charting along an aggressive five-year plan and doing our best to stay on target. It’s really rewarding to see our efforts recognized by the very people we’re working so hard for, the CFO’s, Finance Managers and Controllers who are utilizing technology to streamline their operations,” explained Jeff Pyden, Managing Director, OmniVue Business Solutions. OmniVue is a Gold Certified Microsoft Business Solutions partner who specializes in implementing, hosting and managing best-of-breed Microsoft Dynamics GP, SL and CRM software. OmniVue partners to achieve long term success by maintaining their clients’ financial and operational systems, enabling them to focus on their business. For more information, visit... “We’ve been charting along an aggressive five-year plan and doing our best to stay on target. It’s really rewarding to see our efforts recognized by the very people we’re working so hard for, the CFO’s, Finance Managers and Controllers who are utilizing technology to streamline their operations,” explained Jeff Pyden, Managing Director, OmniVue Business Solutions. OmniVue is a Gold Certified Microsoft Business Solutions partner who specializes in implementing, hosting and managing best-of-breed Microsoft Dynamics GP, SL and CRM software. OmniVue partners to achieve long term success by maintaining their clients’ financial and operational systems, enabling them to focus on their business. For more information, visit.
http://www.techlinks.net/CommunityAnnouncements/tabid/55/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/177160/OmniVue-Business-Solutions-Achieves-2006-Top-100-Pacesetter-Designation.aspx

ITP.net {Features: Mr Vista}
عالم التقنية - Jan 3, 2007
jpg|~|Fakhoury believes Vista has got what it takes to help companies develop|~|The recent launch of Microsoft Vista represents the culmination of years of research and development effort costing billions of dollars. However, the launch timetable and process was not as smooth as it could have been. A lack of quality security solutions from third party vendors for Vista was cause for concern for CIOs throughout the Middle East. Today, the issue of IT security is one that must be taken seriously as the work of hackers intensifies and companies continually face a barrage of new and increasingly damaging viruses. There is at least one man, however, who feels Vista has got what it takes to help develop companies in a safe and secure manner and Charbel Fakhoury, Microsoft Gulf general manager, should know better than most... “First, people need to create a more conclusive environment for employees to work together internally, with their customers, with their partners externally. “So it’s not only about your internal group. How can we really extend this relationship to both your partners and your clients? Secondly, am I looking for better customer relationship management (CRM)? “Do I want to have communication with my customer base through the internet, through the web, through e-mail, through fax, and how do I build that relationship to go to a wider community? It doesn’t have to be, ‘today I’m getting my 10,000th customer’. It can be how can I get one million customers?“Third, is your company looking to have a compliant environment because today governments are putting pressure on companies to have more clarity about the content of their operations and how their business is run. So they even have to show e-mails, invoices - websites have to be compliant. Also, if you look at content management, how do companies manage their content that is driven internally, that is published on their website, that is sent to their customers? “What goes out, what goes in, any publication of the wrong information on the website can be used against you. Any wrong facts sent to customers can be detrimental to the business.
http://www.itp.net/features/details.php?id=5828&category=

Blog: Jill Dyche: December 2006 Archives
B-EYE-Network - Dec 30, 2006
(Yeah, we know, it's a mixed metaphor, but you'll get the point when you read the blog. ) Remember those old commercials where a boy on a bicycle eating a candy bar crashes into a cute girl licking her peanut butter sandwich? Bang! Then, reeling, they turn to one another and variously exclaim, “Hey, you put peanut butter in my chocolate!” and “Hey, you put chocolate in my peanut butter!” As a kid, I wondered whether bumping heads with a boy was worth the discovery of a peanut butter cup. As a grown-up, my answer is a hearty, “Yes! Especially with a glass of cold milk!”In another fateful combination, data quality vendors are pairing up with CRM vendors to create a veritable confection of functionality. While many IT executives have paid lip service to the importance of data quality to customer-focused programs, they’ve been flummoxed about how to link data standardization and cleansing processes with incumbent CRM systems.
http://www.b-eye-network.com/blogs/dyche/archives/2006/12/

ApplianceModule links plant floor and backroom systems., Online...
Industrial News Room - Jan 3, 2007
The xCoupler module with SQL Server 2005 can be setup in 60 minutes or less to configure specific plant floor devices with a database to develop commands, reports, alerts and other instructions. They provide a robust, simple and low cost way to support initiatives such as business intelligence, data warehousing, enterprise resource planning, customer relationship management, supply chain management and others. xCoupler modules are appliances that snap into a ControlLogix PAC (programmable automation controller) from Rockwell Automation and provide bi-directional data translation between plant floor devices and SQL Server 2005 databases connected to the module via Ethernet. They eliminate the security, virus and data integrity problems associated with complex PC-based multi-tier systems used to exchange plant floor data with business systems... To empower customers around the globe with fast product support, streamline transactions, and reduce procurement and product support costs, Online Development uses the latest Internet-based CRM (Customer Relationship Management) and help desk tools. Online Development is a Rockwell Automation Encompass Partner and an IBM Business Partner. Headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee, Online Development is privately owned and has offices in Cleveland, Ohio, Cincinnati, Ohio and Barcelona, Spain. Online Development, Inc.
http://news.thomasnet.com/fullstory/502533

2007: The Year Customer Churn Reshapes Industries
CRM Buyer - Dec 29, 2006
This is just one of several industries that will be reordered by churn. Energy and utilities will find churn changing their industries, as well. Changing Your CustomersThe challenge for many companies with CRM systems already in place is how to respond to churn when it happens, without resorting to plummeting pricing or product bundles that appear very attractive to customers yet don't make long-term financial sense. Many CRM systems aren't agile enough to create strategies on the fly for responding to customer defection; they are built with the implicit assumption customers will always be there. There are literally dozens of metrics to measure the upward progression of prospects to customers through pipeline analysis and customer lifetime value once they start buying, yet many old-school CRM systems do not take into account customer churn. This inflexibility of legacy CRM systems fails to support business strategies aimed at fighting to retain customers first. The revolution that will happen in 2007 as it relates to CRM is the further integration of analytics, sales force analytics and customer data management, all applicable to selling, service and marketing.
http://www.crmbuyer.com/story/planning/54906.html

The PlayStation 2 Still Rocks
BusinessWeek - Dec 28, 2006
The PS2, meanwhile, long ago turned profitable as component prices have plunged and development costs have been written off. Even at $130 a pop, Sony earns about $8 on each PS2 it sells, compared with an estimated loss of $250 per PS3. (Nintendo is believed to break even on the Wii, while Microsoft takes a loss on the Xbox 360. ) And Sony will rake in some $1. 4 billion this year from license fees paid by game makers and sales of its own game titles for the PS2 and its predecessor, the PSOne, Goldman, Sachs & Co.
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/dec2006/gb20061228_090512.htm?chan=tc&chan=technology_technology+index+page_more+of+today's+top+stories

Oracle sees an on-demand world
ARNnet - Dec 29, 2006
IDG News Service talked to the man who heads up Oracle's on-demand operations, Juergen Rottler, the company's executive vice president of Oracle Customer Services. An edited transcript of that conversation follows. What's Oracle's take on on-demand software?
There's a lot of interest and hype in the marketplace around on-demand, particularly in the salesforce automation space, whether it's RightNow [Technologies] or Salesforce. com or our Siebel CRM On Demand. Oracle is the only company that can offer an overarching on-demand platform for all applications and for all business processes and for different technologies -- database and middleware -- it doesn't have to just be applications. At last month's OpenWorld conference, Oracle Chief Executive Officer Larry Ellison described the company's on-demand business as the same size as Salesforce. com's; is that correct?
It's very hard to compare our businesses; it's a bit like an apples-to-oranges comparison... Who do you see as your primary competition both now and in future?
Ultimately, it will be the same people we compete against today. SAP has been a bit unfocused and haphazard and it'll take them some years to come up to scratch. We're waiting to see if Microsoft can successfully enter the market. The rest of the competition are niche players. The challenge for them is can they broaden their products and be relevant in a broader context? We're a huge company that can provide an individual on-demand service or a multitenant solution securely; others don't have those options. Some players won't be around in future. Oracle has yet to really talk up its on-demand business, is that likely to change?
You will see us continue to raise the noise level a little.
http://www.arnnet.com.au/index.php/id;2116203840;fp;2;fpid;4

Netage Introduces Dynamo Enterprise 5.1 with New Features for Deal,...
PR Web - PR Web (press release) - Dec 30, 2006
""Our client base has dramatically increased in both size and scope," continues Draganov. "Now we are in over 130 alternative asset management firms worldwide, with several key deployments of over 50 users and a few over 100 users across multiple offices worldwide. Dynamo is now a mature application, trusted by industry leaders enough to take on and replace generic CRM vendors like Siebel. "Summarizing the key Dynamo Enterprise 5. 1 features and benefits:... About the Dynamo Enterprise PlatformDynamo™ Enterprise is a relationship management software platform for alternative asset investment firms, such as hedge funds, private equity firms, real estate funds, and institutional investors and funds of funds. Built on the Microsoft. NET platform and SQL Server, it centralizes knowledge about contacts, investors, deals, and third parties in an Outlook® interface integrated with email, calendar, tasks and activities. About Netage SolutionsNetage Solutions, Inc. has been a global provider of software for the alternative investments community - private equity and hedge funds, funds of funds, venture capital and institutional investors - since 1998. Intuitive and industry-specific, our solutions improve the productivity of deal and investor relations teams worldwide. Our clients manage funds with over $200 billion, report their results to over 10,000 investors, and employ over 1,000 professionals.
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/12/prweb493708.htm

See you later.

GreenHomes America Goes Live with Microsoft Dynamics CRM from...

How are you?

BEST OF ECT NEWS Sage CRM's Dave Batt on New Migration Products
CRM Buyer - Dec 24, 2006
Our first product was for Goldmine. We planon delivering two other competitive migration productsin the upcoming quarter. CRM Buyer: For which vendors?Batt: Two vendors we are considering are Salesforce. comand Microsoft CRM. CRM Buyer: It's not likely that Salesforce. com -- and certainly not MicrosoftCRM -- will be acquired. So, what case can you make for customers to jump to Sage?Batt: We will target areas that their customers don'tfeel comfortable with.
http://www.crmbuyer.com/story/54868.html

GreenHomes America Goes Live with Microsoft Dynamics CRM from...
PR Web - PR Web (press release) - Dec 21, 2006
As energy conservation continues to be a top priority across the country, GreenHomes America is meeting customer's needs by delivering solutions to help customers improve the indoor comfort, health and safety of their homes while at the same time reducing energy usage by at least 25%, guaranteed. The heightened demand for their services lead them to quickly consolidate their disparate customer management databases for a single repository that easily integrates with their existing business and financial management systems. By implementing Microsoft Dynamics CRM, GreenHomes America now has a scalable solution that provides real-time visibility into their daily operations. All departments within the organization now enjoy the benefits of an integrated solution that enables them to be proactive in their customer service efforts and helps improve efficiencies throughout the company. Microsoft Dynamics CRM enables them to easily access and manage their customer communication, quickly schedule home energy advisors, manage lead generation programs, capture sales pipeline information and trend customer data. By leveraging technology in all facets of their business GreenHomes America is able to consistently deliver the highest level of service to their customers. Brett Knox, President of GreenHomes America explains, "We selected Iteration2 because they have a strong track record for successful implementations and an exceptional service delivery team.
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/12/prweb493457.htm

123Together.com First to Offer Free Microsoft Outlook 2007 with Their...
PR Web - PR Web (press release) - Dec 27, 2006
com First to Offer Free Microsoft Outlook 2007 with Their Exchange Hosting Service. com, the leading provider of Hosted Microsoft Exchange, Sharepoint and CRM services is now offering a free license of the new Microsoft Outlook 2007 E-mail client to every user of their Exchange Hosting service. (PRWeb) December 29, 2006 -- 123Together.
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/12/prweb494056.htm

CRM News: Must Read: Solid-State PCs: Computing's Next Horizon
CRM Buyer - Dec 21, 2006
CRM Buyer features CRM product information, reviews and comparisons. It is an independent source updated each day... This will be the next new horizon in computing," he predicted. No Microsoft KillerEven if Linux were to become the primary OS for solid-state PCs, the new technology probably would not destroy Microsoft's dominance in any so-called operating system war. Hoffer does not think a solid-state PC would destroy Microsoft. "The notion of shifting architecture of the PC won't impact on Microsoft," he surmised. "Developers won't abandon Macs or Windows computers. We will still need a viable desktop workstation. When Microsoft is confronted with new technology, it is infamous for developing its own brand and continuing to control the market, said Partridge.
http://www.crmbuyer.com/story/must-read/54830.html

Victoria Murphy Barret On IT
Forbes - Dec 24, 2006
His vision is quickly becoming reality. Young companies aren’t buying traditional software. Older companies are trying out the new stuff where possible, and could switch big time when Oracle (nasdaq:... Many Web software firms targeting classic business problems like inventory management and spending patterns will go public in 2007. Others will be bought or merge. The big question: Will there be a Microsoft of Web software? Benioff, of course, has one answer. More On This TopicCompanies:.
http://www.forbes.com/2006/12/09/information-2007-predictions-sneakpeek_sp07_19_victoriabarret_information.html

Gears of Success
BusinessWeek - Dec 26, 2006
He then teased us about downloadable content, saying, "Without getting into lots of details, the teams at Epic and Microsoft Game Studios have a robust plan for downloadable content in the coming weeks and months. Let's just say that the already ardent Gears fan base will not be disappointed. Geared Up for Sequels?In trying to make Gears of War a success, Microsoft spared no expense in its ad campaign. The game had its own elaborate microsite which provided back-story on the game's protagonist Marcus Fenix and set the stage for the situation on planet Sera. Finally, the marketing campaign was punctuated by a TV ad that features a surprisingly lugubrious music choice in Mad World, but it's hard to argue with the result. "One of the great things about the Gears effort was that it was a fully integrated marketing effort," explained Subramoni. "Advertising, PR, Promotions, CRM, sponsorships, etc... Finally, the marketing campaign was punctuated by a TV ad that features a surprisingly lugubrious music choice in Mad World, but it's hard to argue with the result. "One of the great things about the Gears effort was that it was a fully integrated marketing effort," explained Subramoni. "Advertising, PR, Promotions, CRM, sponsorships, etc. were all carefully orchestrated over the past two years on a global basis by John Dongelmans, the Global Product Manager. It's hard to pinpoint the specific contribution of any one area of the marketing mix, but in totality, they all contributed immensely to the success that the title has achieved to date. Specific to advertising, the two areas that stand out are the online efforts and the television ad. "The former, specifically the microsite which was developed by AKQA Interactive, was in many ways a breakthrough piece of work, providing an immersive experience into the world of Sera (through the eyes of Marcus Phoenix) without actually being the game.
http://www.businessweek.com/@@fE4QImUQjOOu8wUA/innovate/content/dec2006/id20061226_534118_page_2.htm

Epicor Places Sixth On RIS Software LeaderBoard
TMCnet - Dec 27, 2006
In October Epicor and Microsoft jointly announced the introduction of Epicor Information Worker, a new desktop productivity product that delivers Epicor's enterprise resource planning (ERP) applications on the 2007 Microsoft Office system, providing information workers improved access to business data. Scott Smith, senior manager, product marketing for Epicor, said that using Microsoft technology, "we're offering service-oriented architecture and Web services-based solutions like Epicor Information Worker. "

Rob Bernard, general manager, Worldwide ISV group at Microsoft, noted that Epicor "continues to be an early adopter of the latest technology from Microsoft, participating in numerous technical adoption programs like Windows Vista, the 2007 Office system, Office Project 2007, Windows Workflow and more. "

David Sims is contributing editor for TMCnet. For more articles please visit David Sims’ columnist page.
http://news.tmcnet.com/news/-epicor-crm-/2006/12/27/2199285.htm

CRM News: Global: Vodafone Shares Stumble on India Expansion Reports
CRM Buyer - Dec 21, 2006
CRM Buyer features CRM product information, reviews and comparisons. It is an independent source updated each day.
http://www.crmbuyer.com/story/RB9qIWvhRRQjM6/Vodafone-Shares-Stumble-on-India-Expansion-Reports.xhtml

FinanceVisor - Markets > News > News Detail
FinanceVisor.com - Dec 23, 2006
Clients are now experiencing a five-time performance increase with this version. ” A new version of the SmartCatalog™ Rule Manager is scheduled for October. The Rule Manager will be completely overhauled in Microsoft. 0 Forms Application that is written in Microsoft’s C# language. The Rule Manager connects directly to any Product Catalog in order to retrieve the necessary product information required to build complex rules.
http://www.financevisor.com/market/news_detail.aspx?rid=45023

Sci-Tech Today | Windows Vista Flaw Not Cause for Major Concern
Sci-Tech Today - Dec 27, 2006
The Linux operating system, which is fast becoming Windows' chief rival for control of laptops, desktops, and servers, tends to curtail the user's power to install software, leaving those permissions in the hands of system administrators. Five More Flaws


Security firm Determina reported five more flaws in Vista, including one that would let hackers install rogue software through Microsoft's Internet Explorer 7, the Redmond firm's latest Web browser. Microsoft has touted IE7 as a "sandbox" that won't give hackers access to a user's system even if the browser itself has been compromised. Determina's discovery appears to negate Microsoft's claim. Mike Reavy of Microsoft's Security Response Center downplayed the problem on Microsoft's Web site, according to the Times. "Currently we have not observed any public exploitation or attack activity regarding this issue," he wrote. "While I know this is a vulnerability that impacts Windows Vista, I still have every confidence that Windows Vista is our most secure platform to date.
http://www.sci-tech-today.com/story.xhtml?story_id=12300CLQ3SLU

Innovative Technologies in Unified Communications Applications and...
CRM Directory (press release) - Dec 21, 2006
LiteScape’s applications uniquely connect solutions from disparate vendors to enable users to link business applications to any IP device. Founded in 2004, the company is privately held and primarily funded by SOFTBANK Capital, Telesoft Partners and Blumberg Capital. In additional to being a certified WebEx and Microsoft partner, LiteScape has strong global relationships with Cisco, Avaya and many resellers including AT&T and Bell Canada. For additional information, please visit.
http://www.crmdirectory.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=609&Itemid=56

See you soon.

CRM News: iPod: iPod, Rivals Fight for Position on Holiday Wish Lists

Give me five!

Websites: get online or get left behind
VNUNet.com - Nov 16, 2006
Of course, many donot. But as businesses of all shapes and sizes embrace the internet to promotetheir services and sell their goods, why would they want an accountant orbusiness adviser who is obviously living in the dark ages?Many businesses today are grappling with the challenges and opportunities ofhaving an effective web presence. They are creating online stores withintegration into the accounting and stock system, and some form of CRM system. Who is going to give them the best business advice: the accountant whounderstands it all, or the accountant who won’t even use the internet to promotetheir practice?The answer is obvious and those accountants too busy to do any marketing, orable to rely on referrals, should take a look at the quality and type of workthey are gaining. Some firms are increasingly becoming interested in the‘business advice’ market, where recovery rates of 120% to 140% are the norm. By relying on referrals for business, you are actually – probably unwittingly– allowing them to decide how your business develops. Bank managers are likelyto refer business to the most appropriate accountancy firm... Your website should communicate basic information about your firm – who youare, what you do, where you are located. If you are a sole trader and specialisein a particular type of work, include case studies on the site and be preparedto keep it up to date. So, how much will all this cost? Well, Microsoft will soon launch a freeservice, but you will need to do much of the work yourself. The IAAITC offers aservice for members, which costs about £200 per year for both the email and webservices and provides a library of content for the firm to work with. David Reynolds is chief executive of the.
http://www.vnunet.com/articles/print/2169176

CRM News: iPod: iPod, Rivals Fight for Position on Holiday Wish Lists
CRM Buyer - Nov 20, 2006
CRM Buyer features CRM product information, reviews and comparisons. It is an independent source updated each day.
http://www.crmbuyer.com/story/Ls9blY5lMQtgA4/iPod-Rivals-Fight-for-Position-on-Holiday-Wish-Lists.xhtml

SugarCRM supports full open-source stack
InfoWorld - Nov 16, 2006
But should any customer support issue require escalation, the vendor has strong relationships in place with MySQL and with BitRock S, which provides installation technology and second-tier support for both Apache and PHP. Oram also noted that SugarCRM has been supporting Red Hat Inc. 's Linux, Apache, MySQL and PHP in its Sugar Appliance, a dedicated device that runs its CRM applications, for the past two years. SugarCRM intends to extend FastStack to support the other major Web server it supports, Microsoft Corp. 's Internet Information Server (IIS), and the two other databases the CRM applications run on -- Microsoft's SQL Server and Oracle Corp. 's eponymous offering -- within the next six months, according to Oram. FastStack is available for download from SugarCRM's Web site for a one-time fee of US$499 for customers who are also purchasing either Sugar Professional On-Site or Sugar Enterprise On-Site.
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/article/06/11/16/HNsugarcrmopensource_1.html

Bidding for Software's Hall of Fame
Motley Fool - Nov 17, 2006
" In fact, there is no other software firm its size -- about $500 million in annual revenues -- growing as fast. It's certainly a testament to the company's unique approach to selling and delivering business software. In the third quarter, revenues surged 57% to $130 million. Net income was $339,000, or breakeven on a per-share basis, which compares to a net profit of $13... For next year, the company expects revenues of $700 million to $710 million. Despite all the good news, the big concern is: Can Salesforce. com continue to grow over the long term? Well, keep in mind that the company is much more than just a CRM player. It's building a highly scalable on-demand platform, with major deployments from companies like Cisco (Nasdaq:.
http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2006/11/17/bidding-for-softwares-hall-of-fame.aspx

Accounting Firms Grow By Needs, Regions & Mergers
Accountingweb.com - Nov 20, 2006
Microsoft� Forecaster is an affordable way to customize your budgeting and planning to give you the control you need to manage your business' performance. As soon as you enter a number, it's available for analysis, allowing you to see how it impacts revenue and costs. This streamlined budgeting and planning solution helps decrease the chance for errors and miscommunication. And with Microsoft Forecaster, changes are easy to make. Even last-minute ones... Valerie Kozikowski told SearchCRM. com, �The new link and application from SugarCRM will be our mechanism to create a communication platform. In no way is it intended to be a full CRM system for alliance members to track customers. We are not handing them a full CRM solution and saying use that for your internal CRM purposes. � Kozikowski continued in SearchCRM. com, �We were looking for something with a very clean and simple user interface we could tailor without making a lot of changes. Because some of our needs are unique in that we�re connecting people who can be customers or referral sources, we needed a lot of flexibility.
http://www.accountingweb.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=102819&d=815&h=817&f=816&dateformat=%25B%20%25e,%20%25Y

Opportunity knocks for SMEs
VNUNet.com - Nov 22, 2006
The availability of hosted services is also making a difference to SMEs,bringing traditionally expensive enterprise-level applications within the reachof the smaller business. com has enjoyed a lot of success with its hosted customerrelationship management (CRM) offering, many other companies offering purelyhosted services have disappeared, says Ovum’s Masood. It is the traditional software companies, such as Microsoft, Oracle and SAP,that are now making an impact by offering some of their services on a hostedbasis. These tend to be generic, rather than heavily customised. ‘People are becoming willing to sacrifice customisation to get somethinguseful,’ says Alastair McAulay, managing consultant at PA Consulting. A new development in hosted services is the entrance into the SME market ofnon-traditional players such as Amazon, which is offering an ecommerce platform,and Google, which is offering basic office functionality... com has enjoyed a lot of success with its hosted customerrelationship management (CRM) offering, many other companies offering purelyhosted services have disappeared, says Ovum’s Masood. It is the traditional software companies, such as Microsoft, Oracle and SAP,that are now making an impact by offering some of their services on a hostedbasis. These tend to be generic, rather than heavily customised. ‘People are becoming willing to sacrifice customisation to get somethinguseful,’ says Alastair McAulay, managing consultant at PA Consulting. A new development in hosted services is the entrance into the SME market ofnon-traditional players such as Amazon, which is offering an ecommerce platform,and Google, which is offering basic office functionality. ‘Amazon is making ecommerce very accessible and easy,’ says McAulay.
http://www.vnunet.com/computing/analysis/2169296/opportunity-knocks-smes

Good luck!

Customer demands, Novell the best partner

Nice meeting you!

Microsoft tailors Dynamics CRM for Office and Vista
InfoWorld - Nov 7, 2006
4 to the same price list as its Dynamics Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software suite. The move will simplify how customers order CRM and other products in the Dynamics line, Microsoft said. Dynamics CRM will still be available through volume licensing channels. The company's Dynamics product group is responsible for a range of back-end business applications, including supply chain and financial applications... That version will be hosted by Microsoft. CRM is offered as a hosted service by its partners and as on-premise software. This week, Microsoft is also adding the Dynamics ERP suite to its Subscription Licensing Model. Dynamics ERP includes the applications Dynamics AX (Axapta), Dynamics GP (Great Plains), Dynamics NAV (Navision) and Dynamics SL (Solomon). Through its partners, Microsoft will let customers either license the applications or subscribe to .
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/article/06/11/07/HNmsdynamicscrm_1.html&source=searchresult

Customer demands, Novell the best partner
CNET News.com - Nov 3, 2006
It is now quite common for a customer to choose Windows to run a CRM or production management system, and choose Linux to run a print server, file server, or a rapidly changing environment. What has changed is that now customers are using virtualization to better utilize their servers, and they now want to run Windows and Linux on the same server. Customers also wanted assurances that they would not be caught in the crossfire of patent infringement lawsuits between the vendors. These customer requests caused Microsoft to look for a Linux partner who would work cooperatively to make interoperability successful, and recognize the IP rights of both companies. Novell has a long history as a commercial software company and has significant ownership and patents in the Unix and Linux space... What has changed is that now customers are using virtualization to better utilize their servers, and they now want to run Windows and Linux on the same server. Customers also wanted assurances that they would not be caught in the crossfire of patent infringement lawsuits between the vendors. These customer requests caused Microsoft to look for a Linux partner who would work cooperatively to make interoperability successful, and recognize the IP rights of both companies. Novell has a long history as a commercial software company and has significant ownership and patents in the Unix and Linux space. Novell was a great fit for Microsoft, and vice versa. I wrote a blog about more of the details here.
http://news.com.com/5208-1016_3-0.html?forumID=1&threadID=22583&messageID=199404&start=-1

Showtime for the Xbox 360
BusinessWeek - Nov 7, 2006
But to Microsoft (MSFT), it's always been seen as that—and a whole lot more. Microsoft wants the machine to be the digital entertainment hub in your home; a way for customers to consume all.
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/nov2006/tc20061107_374903.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_technology

Microsoft Plays a New Zune
BusinessWeek - Nov 8, 2006
That might not be enough. Zune’s large display and wireless capability.
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/nov2006/tc20061108_782680.htm?sub=techmaven

PeopleSoft co-founder launches his ERP Workday
InfoWorld - Nov 6, 2006
At the same time, the company will "deepen and broaden" its HCM offering, Duffield said. Workday also announced four key partnerships, and the most significant is with Microsoft Corp. The software giant to date has limited presence in the on-demand applications market, with the focus on hosted CRM (customer relationship management) software, not ERP. Workday and Microsoft are hoping to provide integration between Workday software and Microsoft's Outlook, SharePoint Server and Exchange Server products some time next year. Turning to the other partnerships, systems integrator Accenture Ltd. is building a practice around Workday technology. Payroll specialist Automatic Data Processing Inc... Workday also announced four key partnerships, and the most significant is with Microsoft Corp. The software giant to date has limited presence in the on-demand applications market, with the focus on hosted CRM (customer relationship management) software, not ERP. Workday and Microsoft are hoping to provide integration between Workday software and Microsoft's Outlook, SharePoint Server and Exchange Server products some time next year. Turning to the other partnerships, systems integrator Accenture Ltd. is building a practice around Workday technology. Payroll specialist Automatic Data Processing Inc. (ADP) is integrating its PayForce product with Workday's offerings.
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/article/06/11/06/HNerpworkday_1.html&source=searchresult

Q&A: Salesforce.com to be on-demand computing platform
InfoWorld - Nov 2, 2006
IDGNS: Talking about Salesforce. com being a platform begs the question: Will you ever stop selling CRM software?Benioff: We're in two businesses today. We're the leading independent CRM vendor and also the leading on-demand platform. We'll always be in CRM. Our largest user Cisco has 7,500 users on Salesforce. Before they had Siebel. Merrill Lynch has more than 5,000 Salesforce users... IDGNS: What do you think Oracle will do about on-demand applications?Benioff: Oracle's got to be there. They aren't there and they're doing a terrible job. Microsoft is in the same spot, they've got nothing. Lots of companies would like to do on-demand, but they've not figured out how to crack the code. With our AppExchange Incubator, we're giving companies physical space in San Mateo, California at the former Siebel headquarters. It's US$20,000 per cube per year. We're looking to offer incubators in Singapore, Bangalore, London and Tokyo.
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/article/06/11/02/HNsfplatform_1.html

Have a nice day!

Why Google Loves The Little Guys

Nice meeting you!

Microsoft Dynamics leader named
Register - Sep 14, 2006
News of the appointment came in the week SAP, the world's largest provider of business applications, laid out its vision and roadmap for ERP and CRM at its annual TechEd conference in Las Vegas, Nevada. MBS vice president Doug Burgum announced he was stepping down last year, since which time Microsoft has since been conducting the search for a leader. Burgum, who joined in 2001 as chief executive of the acquired Great Plains Software, is leaving Microsoft. The focus on someone with a strong technology background is significant, as Microsoft wants to integrate MBS applications' functionality and workflows with new versions of Office.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/09/14/microsoft_dynamics_leader/

Why Google Loves The Little Guys
Forbes - Sep 18, 2006
Yahoo! has been slower to let developers profit, but a new delivery advertising platform will probably change that. It better, since now mashups with Yahoo! software often sport Google-driven ads and not Yahoo!'s own ad service, called the Publisher Network. Microsoft officials say it will leverage its existing developer network, plus the mashup newbies, with its forthcoming Windows Live product. Already, it boasts mashups from Microsoft's Virtual Earth map service on Marriot's Web site. As the Web moguls see it, the Internet has evolved from a method of transmitting information to its own computing platform, as novel as the personal computer was in the late 1970s, or client-server networks were in the '80s. And when you have a new platform, you win by getting people to work for you for free. The big winner in PCs was Microsoft, which spent millions on developer conferences and Visual Basic, its software toolkit for developers.
http://www.forbes.com/technology/2006/09/17/mashup-search-google-tech-cz_qh_0918google.html

Google, Intuit Pair Up Against a Foe
BusinessWeek - Sep 14, 2006
"Beyond desktop software, Google is also integrating its services into online business software. In August, Salesforce. com (CRM) and NetSuite said they will incorporate AdWords into online customer-management applications. But Schmidt was quick to distinguish those arrangements from the Intuit deal because the QuickBooks desktop software will give millions of small businesses who have not yet ventured onto the Internet the ability to do so—and in the process, he hopes, bring Google millions of new customers.
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/sep2006/tc20060914_725426.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_technology

Murdoch to Bid Satellite Goodbye
BusinessWeek - Sep 18, 2006
2 billion last year, which could be a basis for setting a price for the DirecTV stake. "It's hard to imagine that they could command a price higher than one-and-a-half times revenue," says Susan Kalla, an independent media and telecom analyst. The negotiations are being handled for the most part by Liberty CEO Greg Maffei, a former Microsoft (MSFT) and Oracle (ORCL) executive, and News Corp. Chief Financial Officer David DeVoe, one person familiar with the talks said. Murdoch is said to be keeping tabs on the talks, although he is believed to have been on vacation in Italy and Greece. That same source said other deals, including the sale of News Corp. TV stations, have been on the table.
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/sep2006/tc20060918_564376.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_businessweek+exclusives

The Business Mash
Forbes - Sep 18, 2006
"We want 300,000 applications to work off of Salesforce," he says. It is no knock on him to say that he has 210 so far. Each application is a novel use of Salesforce's (nyse:.
http://www.forbes.com/2006/09/17/google-mashup-salesforce-tech-cz_qh_0918googlecorp.html?partner=rss

Eclipse: The billion-dollar baby?
InfoWorld - Sep 18, 2006
, in early September, with foundation executives touting the success of the open source application development project in attracting developer interest and support from big-name players such as IBM. InfoWorld Editor at Large Paul Krill caught up with The foundation’s Executive Director Mike Milinkovich to talk about the organization’s accomplishments, competition with Microsoft and Sun, respecting Java and the road ahead. InfoWorld: How much money would you estimate is being generated by Eclipse-based software, or is the main attraction to Eclipse still that it’s all free?Mike Milinkovich: I wish we actually had good numbers on trying to estimate the size of the Eclipse ecosystem. I’m quite confident that it’s in the billion-dollar range and probably more, but we just don’t have the hard numbers. But what you said about the attraction to Eclipse being free -- the economics of the Eclipse model is a little bit different than that, because the Eclipse community as a whole is almost uniquely focused on enabling a commercially profitable ecosystem around the free platform. So yes, we do provide open source tools and frameworks from Eclipse, and those are provided for free... Do you see that as a trend where software companies, particularly open source software companies, don’t have salespeople because they don’t see the need?MM: Historically enterprise software has been sold through [a] direct salesforce channel. I do believe over time, we’re starting to see success in open source software products in areas which have been traditionally the realm of the direct sales force. I’m thinking of things like Sugar CRM and Compiere  [ERP] and open source products like this. Those environments or those products have very, very low cost of sales, so as customers get more used to that, I think that over time, yeah, there are going to be fewer and fewer software salesmen. IW: Is anything going on as far as Sun joining Eclipse or merging NetBeans and Eclipse?MM: Nope, absolutely not. They’ve made it pretty clear that they’re not really interested in doing anything other than continuing to push their NetBean strategy. IW: What do you think of their being two kind of rival camps? Is it good for competition?MM: Well we’re certainly not shy of competition, and frankly we’re winning.
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/article/06/09/18/38NMmain_1.html

Comments on ‘Groping your way around the mobile device maze’
Register - Sep 19, 2006
Talk about project creep. And it wasn't just the users, it was their managers, the board. Firstly they needed access to mail and CRM, then they needed GPRS too, (ouch) then they definately needed MP3 - because someone had the smart idea of recording post sales notes on the device and uploading them into the CRM system so that sales could subsequently listen to the notes as they drove to the follow-up meeting. We almost got close to a stanard too - but then it broke down once again when we came to finding appropriate hands-free kits, and headsets. I think my overall point is that finding devices is bad enough but once you get into the true requirements for every user in your orgaisation it's not just the devices that you have to care about - it's all the peripherals too, which turn the whole thing into such an incredible pain. I beleive this points to a number of shortfalls in th emobile market altogether - there's no one that can provied the full range of services - we need one of the big boys Mobile firms to buy garmin, sony, B&O, IBM and plenty more before this becomes a soltuion you can take off the shelf... And my users don't need "push" email for the enviroment they work in they just need "always available" email which this solution provides. Finally I can change the phones without changing the PDA anytime. One option I did look at was Dataviz, Roadsync which gives Microsoft Exchange email to Smartphones, if reading email and a quick reply is all thats needed maybe just some software will fit the bill. My advice is answer the questions :-How often do i need my email?How big a phone am i willing to carry?How important are email attachments?How much money have i got?How much money have i investe in what i have? (carkits, cables, etc)What do i do with the email when i get it?RegardsAll I want! By Nicholas WrightPosted Tuesday 19th September 2006 13:41 GMTGimme an XDA II equivalent that will actually fit in my pocket, won't behave like it's running on an 8088 processor, can actually be turned off to save power, doesn't have a camera button that you press everytime you come in contact with the device, not a huge screen but one big enough to surf the web now and then without squinting, and is actually integrated with the hardware. A life saving website is one that takes people's requirements and tells them their ideal phone!It's for business By Greg MortimerPosted Tuesday 19th September 2006 13:49 GMTAssuming we're talking here about business mobile email devices, if an organisation is seriously considering MP3 playing functionality or camera spec that points to something very wrong in their policy making process (unless they're niche markets that actually use that technology for business reasons, maybe estate agents snapping flat interiors or music biz peeps). You want your organisation to buy you a "cool" device? Go buy one yourself, why should the rest of the organisation fund your vanity?So moving swiftly on, looking at sensible options, I recently evaluated an O2 XDA Exec as an alternative to our Blackberry fleet. We've had berrys every since they arrived in the UK and there's no real imperative to move from that platform (apart from the recent patent litigation scare), but the talk about Windows mobile 5 "push email" had me interested.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/09/19/mobile_devices_maze/comments/

Business 2.0...Big Innovations: Coghead - Sep. 18, 2006
CNNMoney.com - Sep 18, 2006
wjw -->The Disrupted: Initially, custom-software developers, but potentially almost all software-tool makersWhat if the next time you longed for a piece of software to help you do your job, you didn't have to grovel before IT or shell out big bucks to outside consultants? What if you could simply create the software yourself, in a few easy steps? That's the promise of Coghead, an online tool due out this month that promises a hassle-free world of roll-your-own apps. Using Coghead requires only basic computer literacy. The company says anyone who can code a simple Excel macro should have little trouble using Coghead to create even sophisticated enterprise apps like logistics trackers, CRM programs, or project management systems. A user logs on to Coghead's Web site and drags and drops a few buttons and labels onto a form, indicates relationships between the form's drop-down menus and text boxes, groups appropriate elements by drawing boxes around them -- and then launches the apps. "From my experience so far, the product is incredibly easy to use," says Liz Amaral, product management vice president at InsideTrack, a San Francisco firm that offers coaching services to college students and has been beta-testing Coghead. Coghead boasts an impressive entrepreneurial pedigree. Chief executive Paul McNamara is a former exec at computer graphics pioneer SGI and at open-source software leader Red Hat; CTO Greg Olsen co-founded Extricity, a business-integration software firm that Peregrine Systems bought for $227 million in 2001... Chief executive Paul McNamara is a former exec at computer graphics pioneer SGI and at open-source software leader Red Hat; CTO Greg Olsen co-founded Extricity, a business-integration software firm that Peregrine Systems bought for $227 million in 2001. They believe that they'll initially take business from software consultants and outsourcing firms that specialize in small, customized-software projects. But ultimately, Coghead could undermine much bigger markets and much bigger names, including the likes of.
http://money.cnn.com/2006/09/15/technology/disruptors_coghead.biz2/index.htm

A Needy Napster Searches for Takers
BusinessWeek - Sep 19, 2006
Napster (NAPS) lags far behind market leader Apple (AAPL), with its iPod-iTunes combination, and RealNetworks (RNWK), owner of the Rhapsody service. Microsoft (MSFT) plans its own music player, called Zune, and download service later this year (see BusinessWeek. Napster has appeared ripe for a buyout since wireless phone giant Nokia (NOK) acquired Loudeye (LOUD) in August (see BusinessWeek.
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/sep2006/tc20060919_053475.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_technology

Adobe Snoozes Toward Excellence
Motley Fool - Sep 15, 2006
Sure, the Macromedia acquisition was exciting, and there are still potential threats from Microsoft (Nasdaq:. Softy pushes its own platforms to rival Adobe's Flash and PDF formats in its new Vista operating system... With its software on 500 million PCs and Flash on 700 million PCs, mobile phones, and other devices, the company seems to be off to a good start. Adobe's collaboration with Salesforce.
http://www.fool.com/investing/value/2006/09/15/adobe-snoozes-toward-excellence.aspx

Siebel to aid Oracle push against SAP
Seattle Times - Sep 15, 2006
"Oracle was behind the curve so it needed to buy some big headline-making companies and feed off their technology," Williams said. "They really didn't have much choice, unless they wanted to see their stock price cut in half. They needed to keep their sales growing, and to do that, they need to cannibalize smaller companies. "

The big question is whether Oracle has bitten off more than it can chew, said Octavio Marenzi, chief executive of Celent, a technology consultancy... Siebel Systems is run by Tom Siebel, who has occasionally sniped at his former boss since leaving Oracle and starting his own company in 1993. But Siebel, who is his company's chairman and largest individual shareholder, welcomed Oracle's takeover offer, calling it a "wonderful, exciting event. "

Siebel Systems has been shrinking since 2001 amid weakening demand for its main product — customer-relationship-management, or CRM, software that helps companies analyze their sales patterns and market their products. The niche accounts for about $3. 5 billion in new software sales annually, according to technology-research company Gartner. But Siebel Systems has been losing market share to SAP, Oracle and Internet startup.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2002490625_oracle13.html

Bye.

Microsoft has missed boat, says Benioff

Hi!

Microsoft Live CRM lashed
Inquirer - Jul 14, 2006
This time the butt of the groundlings' cabbages and turnips is its Live CRM service. Although a lot of the negative reactions the company has been receiving recently have mostly been the Anybody ButMicrosoft obsessive types, the announcement of Live CRM arguably merited its mauling. Microsoft's on-premises CRM has had challenging early years with Redmond forced to pull a release and changemanagement of the group. A slow-ish start wouldn't have been so bad if it hadn't been for Redmond being on the wrong end of comparisons withthe likes of Salesforce. com and others in the on-demand movement that have been growing at high-double-digit and eventriple-figure percentage rates not seen in business software since the last century. After expending lots of wind playing down the importance of the software-as-a-service movement, Microsoft then wenton a backtracking expedition insisting it "got it" about online business apps as well as consumer services... In one of his staff memos that, as ever, was leaked immediately to press, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff reached forhis black cap and software-as-a-service Bible and asked, "Is it the end of software as we know it?"Benioff noted that Ray Ozzie's big power move was no coincidence as Ozzie is Microsoft's biggest booster for changein software delivery. He perhaps weakened his argument by then suggesting that the huge field of Ajax-based online productivity apps backup his thesis, but that's another story. Those partners that were offering hosted versions of Microsoft CRM did not appear too happy. Others noted that Microsoft was "the new IBM" and not in a positive way either.
http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=33043

Microsoft has missed boat, says Benioff
Australian IT - Jul 18, 2006
module-subheader --> SALESFORCE. COM founder and chief executive Marc Benioff has hammered Microsoft's attempt to launch itself into the software-as-a-service market with a hosted version of its customer relationship management product, saying the software giant had been "left behind". Microsoft announced last week it would launch Microsoft CRM Live, an online adaptation of its existing Microsoft Dynamics CRM, and integrate it with Windows and Office Live. Mr Benioff, whose company has been banging the online application drum for years, said Microsoft was doing too little, too late. Internet companies such as Google and Yahoo were leaving traditional software vendors behind in the field of hosted applications, he said. Mr Benioff is a well-known evangelist for Web 2. 0, a term used to refer to internet-based applications that run without client software.
http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,19822432%5E15316%5E%5Enbv%5E15306,00.html

Microsoft's Vista, Office delays complicate partner plans
InfoWorld - Jul 17, 2006
com, Siebel, and others. Ballmer said his company would release the product in the second quarter of 2007 and “won’t be outhustled by anybody” in the fast-growing SaaS (software as a service) market. Partners will play a role by integrating CRM Live with Windows and Office Live, as well as other Microsoft products, said Brad Wilson, general manager of Microsoft CRM. With new enterprise search, security, and SaaS products on tap, Microsoft also signaled that it is willing to use its deep pockets to break into areas that established companies now dominate. For example, SSA (Security Software Advisor) is a new program that provides considerable cash incentives to partners that deploy Microsoft security products such as the Forefront family of client and server security products, ISA Server, and Antigen messaging security products. To promote its security wares, Microsoft is promising to “skill up” existing partners on security and is permitting certifications from organizations such as ISC2 and ISACA to satisfy its Security Partner Competency, said Steve Brown, director of product management for security, access, and solutions at Microsoft. Microsoft is also dangling cash, offering partners bonuses of as much as 20 percent of the total sales of its security products, and 30 percent in the next seven months, Brown said.
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/article/06/07/17/29NNmsftpartnercon_1.html

Microsoft discovers secret to impressing Wall Street
Register - Jul 19, 2006
it's on target with vision and earnings. Microsoft already relies on client and server and tools - along with Office - for more than half of its business. Earlier this year, Microsoft said it expects its ERP and CRM business to hit profitability in 2007 and become its next $1bn business. By combining ERP and CRM with Office, though, it will be impossible to say for sure how they are performing. With revenue from new business unproven, Wall St. will be looking for positive growth in Microsoft's bread and butter businesses of Windows and Office. Microsoft is due to report its fourth quarter and fiscal 2006 on Thursday.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/07/19/microsoft_financial_reporting/

Salesforce introduces partner management
InfoWorld - Jul 17, 2006
com’s summer release is typically an opportunity to hype minor upgrades. Up to now, Salesforce has thrived in a market that Microsoft ignored. Those days may be over. Due in mid-2007, Microsoft’s Dynamics CRM Live reportedly will be based on multi­tenancy architecture, pioneered by Salesforce. com, in which one instance of the software is shared by all customer accounts... Up to now, Salesforce has thrived in a market that Microsoft ignored. Those days may be over. Due in mid-2007, Microsoft’s Dynamics CRM Live reportedly will be based on multi­tenancy architecture, pioneered by Salesforce. com, in which one instance of the software is shared by all customer accounts. CRM Live will be designed to make SaaS applications vastly easier to scale, manage, upgrade, and provision. In his keynote address at Microsoft’s annual Worldwide Partner Conference in Boston, CEO Steve Ballmer singled out Dynamics CRM Live as a major opportunity for the company’s huge network of business partners to make money through customizations, add-ons, referrals, and hosting.
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/article/06/07/17/29NNsalesforcenews_1.html

SAP suffers peer pressure
Register - Jul 13, 2006
Shares in SAP subsequently fell by seven per cent in afternoon trading. SAP is facing competition from both Microsoft and Oracle. While Microsoft is seeing growth from its own ERP and CRM applications, it is still very much in the midst of developing a coherent business applications strategy. That makes Oracle the bigger threat, and Larry Ellison’s company has been gunning for SAP on the back of a string of acquisitions, including Siebel. Announcing results earlier this year, Oracle was quick to point out 100 per cent year-on-year license revenue growth in Europe, SAP's strongest geographical region and home base. "It's very satisfying to be doing well right in SAP's backyard," Oracle president Charles Phillips said in a statement at the time.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/07/13/sap_second_quarter_preliminary_results/

Microsoft Bets on Integrators For Hosted Services
ITworld.com - Jul 19, 2006
But like so many other areas in which it has lagged behind, when the giant wakes up, it can bring considerable resources to the table. So it is with hosted services. One initiative we'll be seeing is a partner-based customization model for Microsoft's CRM Live. What Ballmer says is that Microsoft expects its partners to grow its business in the so-called software-as-a-service segment. The partner revenue model for this is a long way from the time-honored practice of delivering and installing software to a customer and then charging an annual maintenance fee. With software-as-a-service, partners should expect to see significant revenue from advertising. In addition, there are commissions associated with selling the Windows Live and Office Live services.
http://www.itworld.com/Man/3917/nls_solutions_msbet060720/

Putting a price on a virtual computer
CNET News.com - Jul 17, 2006
The company may not even run the software itself, instead buying it or renting it from a third-party hosting service. Microsoft, for one, has been ahead of the curve when it comes to virtual machines and dual-core chip licensing practices, but somewhat behind when it comes to hosted software, said Ovum Summit analyst Dwight Davis. The company just this week finally committed to offering a hosted version of its CRM (customer relationship management) software, for example. "Microsoft is finally starting to bite that bullet," Davis said. "It has to be a player, but it does so with some trepidation about what the impact will be on its bottom line. "


Software makers are also trying to figure out how many new licensing options to introduce and when. Although some leading-edge customers are using virtualization as a mainstay throughout their company, many have yet to even try out the technology.
http://news.com.com/2100-7339-6094502.html

Salesforce.com syncs into SAP R/3
InfoWorld - Jul 17, 2006
" The vendor plans to weigh what integration capabilities its partners have built and currently offer via its AppExchange network. The other leading ERP vendor is Oracle Corp. Both Oracle and SAP offer their own hosted CRM products. showed itself more serious about on-demand CRM, recently announcing .
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/article/06/07/17/HNsalesforcetwenty_1.html&source=searchresult

Microsoft to Google: get your tanks off our lawn
Register - Jul 14, 2006
Microsoft used its conference to demonstrate a strangely familiar capability of exporting customer names and addresses from these business applications for mapping and display using Windows Live Virtual Earth - either a re-branded Windows Live Local, previously MSN Virtual Earth, or just a presentational slip. com already enables integration between customers' CRM data and Google Maps through the AppExchange service launched in January. Microsoft demonstrated the ability to combine search of data with information about people who may be relevant to searches. SharePoint Server will achieve this by crawling through information about people in emails, Microsoft's ActiveDirectory, and links to SharePoint MySites. The combination led chief Ballmer to enthusiastically comment that search and SharePoint Server 2007 are "kind of like a MySpace for real business use. Kind of, Steve, but not really.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/07/14/microsoft_search_google/

IT gets drafted to babysit the blogs
InfoWorld - Jul 14, 2006
” These best practices include workflow, single-source content repositories, security and permissions, and content auditing and analytics. But on another level, I wonder whether there’s a bigger picture that IT should be thinking about. Will blogs get woven into products and services as a two-way customer-facing communication channel? Should they therefore be integrated with CRM systems? Where do podcasts fit into this? Will there be a battle for control of the blog-o-structure among the PR, market research, product management, and legal departments? And does IT really want to get in the middle of that fight, or just outsource it and get out of the way?Upgrade Cycles Revisited: A couple weeks ago I wrote a. An alert reader in Pennsylvania (I’ll call him Bob) challenged me on this by e-mail, basically saying that four-year cycles suit him just fine. “With resources stretched thin, can most IT shops afford to upgrade software every year or less?” Bob asked... Will blogs get woven into products and services as a two-way customer-facing communication channel? Should they therefore be integrated with CRM systems? Where do podcasts fit into this? Will there be a battle for control of the blog-o-structure among the PR, market research, product management, and legal departments? And does IT really want to get in the middle of that fight, or just outsource it and get out of the way?Upgrade Cycles Revisited: A couple weeks ago I wrote a. An alert reader in Pennsylvania (I’ll call him Bob) challenged me on this by e-mail, basically saying that four-year cycles suit him just fine. “With resources stretched thin, can most IT shops afford to upgrade software every year or less?” Bob asked. “We have a hard enough time keeping up with patches, let alone upgrades. I still have the bulk of my enterprise on Office 2000, and we’re only now looking at upgrading to 2003.
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/article/06/07/14/29OPanalysts_1.html

Nokia eyes business apps, VoIP integration
ITworld.com - Jul 19, 2006
General manager of Nokia's enterprise solutions, Vaughn Madeley, said the availability of Intellisync will allow local enterprises to integrate many types of back-end applications, including those developed in-house, and make them available in the field. "With Intellisync we can provide an enterprise with push e-mail, [but] the IT managers' issues were about how to manage these devices and operating systems which Intellisync allows them to do," Vaughn said, adding the software also allows devices to be erased over the air. "The next question was about being able to take back-office CRM (customer relationship management) systems and bringing them out on the road to devices. Vaughn said part of Nokia's Intellisync acquisition was to allow for application extendibility. Nokia's new E series "business optimized" devices ship with the client software pre-installed and the Intellisync server is purchased separately. "IT managers say 'that's great, but I want to consolidate devices from a management perspective' and that's why we brought out the E series which are 3G (third generation) and wireless," Vaughn said. "As a dual-mode device, if you are running a VoIP environment at the end of this year you will be able to get a client that will allow you to step from a GSM to VoIP by switching manually and seamlessly, in the future... "As a dual-mode device, if you are running a VoIP environment at the end of this year you will be able to get a client that will allow you to step from a GSM to VoIP by switching manually and seamlessly, in the future. Nokia has also released the Nokia E50, which aims to bridge the gap between and personal and business phone. The E60 comes with the business connectivity options pre-installed, can integrate with existing PABXs, Microsoft Office file viewers, and a full Web browser based on the open source KHTML project. Enterprises using Avaya's Communication Manager can connect the Nokia E50 directly to their phone networks, using Avaya's one-X Mobile Edition client. The Cisco SIP client is scheduled for 2007. Managing director of telecommunications research firm Telsyte, Warren Chaisatien said businesses need to be prudent with how they approach mobile applications. "Now that companies have deployed mobility solutions [other] than just e-mail and voice communications to things like CRM and workforce automation, they need to understand their business processes to identify where mobility fits," Chaisatien said.
http://www.itworld.com/Net/3303/060719nokiavoip/

Hummingbird in limbo as it mulls takeover bids
VNUNet.com - Jul 17, 2006
“Both vendors are of a size where they are vulnerable to takeover,” Clarkewrote in a research note. “[Open Text and Hummingbird] are clearly not of thesame size as [rivals] such as IBM and EMC. With [Oracle and] Microsoft alsoentering the fray, it will become increasingly difficult for vendors such asOpen Text and Hummingbird to survive on their own. ”Separately,.
http://www.vnunet.com/itweek/news/2160507/hummingbird-limbo-takeover-bids

See you later.

Oracle plots integration and support for Siebel

How's it going?

SAP vs Salesforce.com
BusinessWeek - Feb 2, 2006
After months of warming up, SAP is finally expected to announce an on-demand CRM product this week. Europe's most influential technology company is helping us make on-demand the global standard. Is SAP on the defensive? Are they worried that with few customers actually using their CRM software, and salesforce. com making significant inroads in their customer base, their entire business model may be at risk? For starters, they had better hope that their on-demand offering will win more fans than their on-premise solution has. While SAP claims leadership in CRM, experience suggests a different story. I have often wondered, “If SAP’s CRM software is any good, then why doesn’t SAP use it to manage their own customer relationships?” I have interviewed hundreds of salespeople and executives from SAP from around the world, and each has told me the only CRM system at SAP is an executive system based on Microsoft Excel. I’m not surprised since I have never met a salesperson anywhere in the world who uses SAP CRM... com making significant inroads in their customer base, their entire business model may be at risk? For starters, they had better hope that their on-demand offering will win more fans than their on-premise solution has. While SAP claims leadership in CRM, experience suggests a different story. I have often wondered, “If SAP’s CRM software is any good, then why doesn’t SAP use it to manage their own customer relationships?” I have interviewed hundreds of salespeople and executives from SAP from around the world, and each has told me the only CRM system at SAP is an executive system based on Microsoft Excel. I’m not surprised since I have never met a salesperson anywhere in the world who uses SAP CRM. Indeed, Gartner noted at a recent conference that only 19 percent of SAP CRM customers actually use it. If fewer than a fifth of our customers used our service, we’d consider that a failure. At SAP, they call it a business plan.
http://www.businessweek.com/the_thread/techbeat/archives/2006/02/sap_vs_salesfor.html?campaign_id=rss_blog_techbeat

Oracle plots integration and support for Siebel
VNUNet.com - Feb 6, 2006
In an open letter, Oracle president Charles Phillips wrote, “We plan toprovide end-to-end integrated business processes by combining the leadingfront-office, back-office, and industry solutions from Oracle and Siebel. Integration work has begun with a focus on developing and enhancing businessprocesses for over two dozen industries. ”Phillips added that Oracle intends to combine Siebel CRM analytics, OracleERP analytics, and industry-specific content to provide a holistic view ofenterprise performance. The company also plans to continue to offer Siebelprograms on both a piecemeal and integrated basis. In a separate FAQ, Oracle said it would continue support for currentprogrammes and would maintain current phone numbers and web links. Support forIBM and Microsoft databases will remain. Oracle’s promises are lent weight by the experience of PeopleSoft customers,the vast majority of whom have stayed with Oracle and given approval to progressso far, despite rivals’ earlier suggestions that the database giant would take aruthless approach to the acquired business... The company also plans to continue to offer Siebelprograms on both a piecemeal and integrated basis. In a separate FAQ, Oracle said it would continue support for currentprogrammes and would maintain current phone numbers and web links. Support forIBM and Microsoft databases will remain. Oracle’s promises are lent weight by the experience of PeopleSoft customers,the vast majority of whom have stayed with Oracle and given approval to progressso far, despite rivals’ earlier suggestions that the database giant would take aruthless approach to the acquired business. “My feeling is positive that the Siebel product is going to go forward,” saidNigel Montgomery of analyst firm AMR Research. “Before Oracle, Siebel wasdropping and the challenge was how to get to a service-oriented architecture. They now have the heft to do that.
http://www.vnunet.com/itweek/news/2149790/oracle-plots-integration

Top 10 IT New Stories of the Week - CIO News Alerts - News - CIO
CIO - Feb 3, 2006
Sticking with Massachusetts, the state has named a permanent replacement for former chief information officer Peter Quinn who recently resigned citing political pressure. After proposing plans to migrate off Microsoft’s software in favor of the OpenDocument file format, Quinn found himself under intense local and international scrutiny. The new CIO, Louis Gutierrez, is set to continue Quinn’s plans of beginning the move over to OpenDocument in Jan. However, the state’s current governor is stepping down at the end of this year and the next incumbent would have the option to name a new CIO in 2007.
http://www.cio.com/blog_view.html?CID=17453

Securing SAAS
eWeek - Feb 6, 2006
Roberts, Peter Coffee and Ryan Naraine. With everyone from Salesforce. com to SAP to Microsoft to Google joining in, on-demand applications are unquestionably the way that most software will be delivered in the coming years. Yet there will be few products or services on display at next week's RSA Security Conference that focus on securing those very applications. The paucity of third-party on-demand security solutions is only part of the problem. Malicious hackers will always be one step ahead of the patch unless developers make applications more secure from the ground up. Microsoft and Oracle, for instance, have been trying this, but they will control only a few of the many on-demand applications coming on the horizon... The paucity of third-party on-demand security solutions is only part of the problem. Malicious hackers will always be one step ahead of the patch unless developers make applications more secure from the ground up. Microsoft and Oracle, for instance, have been trying this, but they will control only a few of the many on-demand applications coming on the horizon. In addition, most current service applications are merely "Web enabled" (remember that one?) for on-demand use and not designed with the on-demand model in mind. This does not mean you should scrap your on-demand initiatives. IT managers should be putting all their software-as-a-service projects through the same security screens as everything else. The business model of on demand makes too much sense to fail, but only when vendors start solving their own uptime and security issues can we truly say that on demand is here to stay.
http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,1918820,00.asp

Bloomberg.com: Investment Tools
Bloomberg - Feb 8, 2006
" The company plans to report preliminary earnings estimates for thefourth quarter of 2006 by early February. About CDC Software CDC Software, The Customer-Driven Company(TM), is a provider ofenterprise software applications designed to help organizationsdeliver a superior customer experience while increasing efficienciesand profitability. CDC Software's product suite includes the PivotalCRM (customer relationship management), c360 CRM add-on products,industry solutions and development tools for the Microsoft DynamicsCRM platform, Ross Enterprise - ERP (enterprise resource planning) andSCM (supply chain management), MVI real-time performance management,IMI warehouse management and order management, Platinum China HR(human resource) and business analytics solutions. These industry-specific solutions are used by more than 5,000customers worldwide within the manufacturing, financial services,health care, home building, real estate, and wholesale and retaildistribution industries. The company completes its offerings with afull continuum of services that span the life cycle of technology andsoftware applications, including implementation, project consulting,outsourced business services, application management and offshoredevelopment. CDC Software is the enterprise software unit of CDCCorporation (NASDAQ: CHINA) and is ranked number 18 on theManufacturing Business Technology 2006 Global 100 List of Enterpriseand Supply Chain Management Application vendors. For more information,please visit www.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=conewsstory&refer=conews&tkr=AGN:US&sid=aU4SlW6yCyxY

CRM News: Scribe Software, CoreTrac, Universal Computer Systems
TMCnet - Feb 4, 2006
Click here to learn more. 0 customers to Scribe Insight and how it increases the return on their CRM investments," said Lou Antonucci, Scribe's Director, Channel Sales. "By making it simple and straightforward to bring enterprise data together into Dynamics CRM 3. 0 to create one view of the customer, sales teams are increasing revenue and serving customers better. "
…
CoreTrac, Inc.
http://news.tmcnet.com/news/-crm-customer-relationship-management-/2006/02/04/1342533.htm

SAP and Microsoft Introduce Duet Software; Bringing Together the...
noticias.info - Feb 5, 2006
� May 2, 2006 � Twelve months after first unveiling plans to create �Project Mendocino� � a joint product that enables people to interact quickly and easily with SAP business processes and data through Microsoft� Office applications � SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) and Microsoft Corp. today announced that the two companies are scheduled to ship the product on time in June, 2006. The product is officially named Duet software for Microsoft Office and SAP. Nearly 100 joint customers and industry partners � including Atmel and Infosys � have been exploring the software�s benefits in early release versions since late 2005. SAP and Microsoft also announced plans to enhance the capabilities of Duet this year and to release additional business scenarios in the second half of 2006. Duet allows information workers to use their familiar Microsoft Office environment to access selected SAP business processes and data. This improved and flexible access to dedicated SAP application functionality will help companies who use Duet to save time and money, increase process compliance, and improve decision making... � Organization management: Allows employees and managers to access organization information and HR-related tasks in the familiar Outlook environment. Expanded Product Roadmap In the second half of 2006, SAP and Microsoft plan to offer two value packs for Duet, providing additional business scenario support, enhanced platform capabilities and language support. These value packs will expose five additional scenarios in the Microsoft Office system coming from mySAP ERP and mySAP Business Suite applications for customer relationship management (CRM) and supplier relationship management (SRM). The scenarios are: recruitment management, travel management, analytics, purchasing management, and sales activity management. With these value packs, capabilities of Duet will go beyond self-service for employees and managers to enable line-of-business operational efficiencies and cost savings. The value packs are designed for compatibility with the next release of mySAP ERP and the 2007 release of the Microsoft Office system and will expand language support to include English, French, German, Portuguese, Spanish and Japanese. �With Duet, SAP and Microsoft are delivering a people-ready solution for our joint customers, which gives decision-makers improved access to the information they need to be effective,� said Jeff Raikes, president of the Microsoft Business Division.
http://www.noticias.info/asp/aspComunicados.asp?nid=173382&src=0

… Corporate News - Picis implementeert FastTrack BI van...
Netherlands Corporate News - Netherlands Corporate News (persbericht) - Feb 5, 2006
nl -->( BW)(CLEARPEAKS) Picis Implements ClearPeaks' FastTrack BI(TM) forSiebel CRM; Real-Time Analysis for Better Customer Insight Business Editors BARCELONA, Spain--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 2, 2006--Picis, the leadingworldwide provider of information systems for surgery, emergencydepartment and intensive care units across the hospital enterprise,recently implemented ClearPeaks' FastTrack Business Intelligence (BI)for Siebel Customer Relationship Management (CRM). FastTrack BI is acomprehensive end-user reporting environment based on the BusinessObjects platform, which allows Picis to easily tap into the wealth ofcustomer information stored in their CRM system from Siebel. "We have recently implemented a best-of-class CRM system allowingus to track all customer interactions with the objective to betterserve our customers with an even more focused approach," says KevinPettet, executive vice president of client operations, Picis. "WithClearPeaks' FastTrack BI solution we are now able to better analyzeour data, segment our customers, measure the ROI of our marketinginitiatives and provide an automated and rolled-up sales forecast. This capability will allow us to be more competitive, offer betterservice to our customers and provide a faster response to changingmarket conditions. By providing FastTrack BI for Siebel CRM, ClearPeaks enables itscustomers to effortlessly extract the vital information contained intheir CRM systems by using a ClearPeaks developed Business ObjectsUniverse. FastTrack BI is easy to deploy, flexible, user-friendly andallows business users to report and analyze Siebel Systems CRM data ina language they can easily understand in real-time and without theneed for a costly data warehouse... com About Picis Picis is the leading, worldwide provider of information systemsthat deliver proven best-in-cluster patient care transformation forthe highest-acuity care areas of the hospital. Headquartered inWakefield, Massachusetts, Picis has installed systems in more than 900hospital worldwide, automating more surgical procedures, emergencyvisits and intensive care stays than any other company in the world. Picis has received numerous awards, including those from Microsoft,Ernst & Young, HCIT Research, Healthcare Informatics and Frost andSullivan. Picis was recently named to both the Deloitte & Touche Fast500 and the Inc. Magazine 500 lists (105th overall) of the fastestgrowing private companies in the U.
http://www.netherlandscorporatenews.com/archive/en/2006/05/02/f022.htm

IT Weekly Roundup, Feb. 3
Microsoft Certified Professional - Feb 3, 2006
0 securely stores all e-mails and attachments, provides
secure access to indexed e-mail for CRM systems and Web portals such as Microsoft
SharePoint, and offers single-instance storage and compression technology to
control data volume. Pricing starts at $40 per managed mailbox.
http://www.mcpmag.com/news/article.asp?EditorialsID=879

Dear Subscriber to TheStreet.com Stocks Under $10,
thestreet.com - Feb 3, 2006
Now let's take a look at the portfolio and some of the
moves we made this week. One quick note: Ones are stocks we would buy now, while
Twos are stocks we would buy only on a pullback from
current levels. And as a reminder:
-- A Game Breaker is going to change the landscape of an
industry, as Intel, Microsoft and Wal-Mart did in their
sectors. Investors can make big money in these stocks by
getting in before the crowd. -- Inflection Point stocks have a broken business model
that's on the mend but has yet to be recognized by the
market. Investors who recognize a turnaround early can
pocket strong returns. -- Stealth Stocks are often unknown names to the general
public, but can be hugely profitable investments,
especially when they score well in the Alpha component of
our proprietary rating system... We are moving Wireless
Facilities to a Two rating this week as 2006 capital
expenditures guidance from the large wireless providers
appears to be for only mid-single-digit percentage growth
over 2005 levels. While Wireless Facilities has
historically been able to grow its top line by a higher
percentage rate than the capital spending budgets of its
customers, a report from research firm Jefferies this week
says the wireless portion of capital budgets will grow by
less than 2% in 2006. Even so, the company is a prime
candidate to benefit from the rollout of digital video to
wireless devices in the coming years, so we will continue
to hold our small position and monitor the company for
signs of stabilization in the wireless business before
recommending shares. Trade closer to $6 a share would
likely prompt a sale from the model portfolio.
http://www.thestreet.com/k/su/_googlen/archives/200602031706.html?cm_ven=GOOGLEN&cm_cat=SU&cm_ite=003966

CIO - Dial VoIP for Vulnerability
CIO Australia - Feb 3, 2006
If we didn't have all that, I'd be scared. " Here's what a number of early VoIP adopters have done to realize the cost savings of VoIP and to save their companies from a potential disaster. Full VoIP Ahead
With VoIP, PBXs - the backbone of the traditional phone system - are replaced by IP voice servers that usually run on Microsoft or Linux operating systems. These "call management boxes" deliver VoIP services and log call information - and they are susceptible to virus attacks and hackers. VoIP is even more sensitive than data when it comes to disruption and packet loss. Yet many security measures that are applied to data networks don't work well for VoIP. For example, traditional firewalls can result in delays or blocked calls, and encryption can cause "latency" and "jitter" (packet slowdowns that can disrupt calls).
http://www.cio.com.au/index.php/id;845465733;fp;16;fpid;0

Bye.