ERP integration is lure for IT chiefs

Hello!

Salesforce.com integrates to get ahead
Register - Nov 27, 2006
com is today expected to take its latest step towards improving integration with third-parties' software, including business rival Oracle. The hosted CRM pioneer will announce an extension to its recently launched Apex platform and language called ConnectOut, which enables other applications to be notified of business events in Salesforce. ConnectOut – part of Salesforce. com’s new ApexConnect family of services - is scheduled for release with the Winter 07 edition of Salesforce... com claimed dozens of customers are in production on ConnectSAP. com also provides integration with Microsoft Office, Outlook and Lotus Notes. According to Salesforce. com, it is helping reduce the cost of integration associated with installing applications. "Prior to ConnectSAP and ConnectOracle a lot of that connection was developed with Salesforce.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/11/27/salesforce_oracle_integration/

ERP integration is lure for IT chiefs
ComputerWeekly.com - Nov 24, 2006
The idea of using Office as an interface onto back-end enterprise systems, such as SAP and Oracle, is already beginning to find favour among IT chiefs. One IT director of a global company said, "People are familiar with the Office interface and they find it difficult to adapt to interfaces for enterprise resource planning applications. So integrating ERP or CRM with Office should make it easier for users and save on training. " ADVERTISEMENT... "I see no benefit having enterprise integration defined by Microsoft - its track record is not one to be proud of in this area," said one IT manager. Many users are looking at integrating the Sharepoint 2007 groupware platform into ­Office 2007 to allow staff to share information from within Office applications. Kevin Kincaid, IS development manager at property services firm Telereal, said that of all the Vista releases "upgrading to Office 2007 is probably the easiest case to make". "Office 2007 also removes certain limitations found in the current version of, for example, Excel.
http://www.computerweekly.com/Articles/2006/11/24/220170/ERP+integration+is+lure+for+IT+chiefs.htm

Sage Leads The Pack In London
Forbes - Nov 29, 2006
-based supplier of accounting, customer relationship management (CRM) and business management software to small and midsized businesses, is the only technology company listed on the FTSE 100 share index, a roll call of the 100 most highly capitalized companies listed on the London Stock Exchange. It was the sole member of another select group today, being the top blue chip riser on the market. The Newcastle-based company added 17.
http://www.forbes.com/enterprisetech/2006/11/29/sage-group-crm-markets-equity-cx_cn_1129markets07.html?partner=rss

Small firms thinking big
VNUNet.com - Nov 23, 2006
Relationship-building is a constant challenge – particularly because JGB hasa smaller margin of error than many of its competitors. If a business that JGBinvests in experiences problems that are not identified early, that investmentcould potentially be in jeopardy. To help address the issue, JGB recently invested in a hosted CRM applicationfrom. Since installing the software, JGB estimates that it has saved more than£20,000 through better security, greater reliability, improved visibility andspeed of response, and through faster communication. This experience of CRM is pretty typical of medium-sized companies, saysThompson – Gartner’s research shows that smaller companies often see moredramatic benefits from CRM technology than larger organisations.
http://www.vnunet.com/articles/print/2169263

NewsFactor Network | Xbox 360 Live Overwhelmed by Demand
NewsFactor Network - Nov 24, 2006
On Wednesday, Microsoft launched a new Xbox service that lets users of Xbox 360 Live download TV shows and films, many in high definition. The service boasts content from Warner Brothers, Ultimate Fighting Championship, Turner Broadcasting, Paramount, MTV, and CBS, with more content to be released weekly. But the new service tanked when users reported widespread problems with the downloads, complaining of wait times in excess of four hours or downloads that stopped cold in the middle of transmission. What's more, their accounts were charged as if the downloads went off without a hitch. On his blog at www.
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=12000DMAC33C

NewsFactor Network | Firefox 2 Browser Struck by Password Flaw
NewsFactor Network - Nov 24, 2006
us The Mozilla Foundation, which maintains code for the Firefox browser, has acknowledged that there is a problem with the Firefox Password Manager and has named it bug #360493. Microsoft has also admitted that the newly discovered password bug can affect Internet Explorer as well, but most reports indicate that Firefox is the more likely target because of the way it stores usernames and passwords. --> Related Topics.
http://www.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=12000CANNOOO

Meeting the challenge - vnunet.com
VNUNet.com - Nov 23, 2006
Sixty per cent of the time that I am called in to help small businesses is todiscuss how to improve sales. What we learn from large firms, such as customerrelationship management (CRM) systems, can be adapted to SMEs to provide focusand direction. CRM systems can add real volume – on average, sales growth of between 30 and50 per cent is not uncommon. And another area is innovation through teamwork. How can you use technologyto share wisdom, to share problems, particularly when people are spreadgeographically?Collaboration products such as... CRM systems can add real volume – on average, sales growth of between 30 and50 per cent is not uncommon. And another area is innovation through teamwork. How can you use technologyto share wisdom, to share problems, particularly when people are spreadgeographically?Collaboration products such as. You can link up your entrepreneurs and they can come forward withinnovations. But for me, the key is to ask the question: what do I really needto do to move this organisation forward, and then turn to the IT guys and say,how can you help me to do that?Watch the web seminar online.
http://www.vnunet.com/computing/analysis/2169293/meeting-challenge

Technology News: Security: Firefox, IE Vulnerable to Password Theft
TechNewsWorld - Nov 24, 2006
Both Mozilla and Microsoft have acknowledged the problem and are working on fixes. Compliments of ATG,.
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/54413.html

What does the future hold for Cisco? - vnunet.com
VNUNet.com - Nov 27, 2006
Those watching the companywill have noticed a succession of product launches starting with the release ofthe Digital Media System at the end of September, followed by the release of theUnified Communications (UC) for SMEs and the Telepresence ‘Meeting Solution’ inOctober. As recently as 1 November, Cisco also launched its CRM Connector, whichplugs into Microsoft Dynamics software. What people might not have noticed though is that Cisco has changed its logo,even though it is noticeably different. They may also have missed last month’sreport that the company has announced its intent to acquire Orative, a smallCalifornian-based mobile telephony software specialist. However, Wall Streetcertainly noticed because the company’s stock, which for some time has beengoing nowhere in particular, started to rise sharply again. This is not just because the markets like the way that Cisco’s new logolooks.
http://www.vnunet.com/crn/analysis/2169494/does-future-hold-cisco

Our Challenge Is Change, Not Globalization
Forbes - Nov 27, 2006
Consider that Google's revenue per employee is around $1. 3 million, on a forward basis. Shockingly, that's more than twice as high as the revenue-per-employee figures at Microsoft (nasdaq:.
http://www.forbes.com/execpicks/columnists/global/2006/1127/016.html

RealMoney.com: Software Gurus Like the Other Software Giant
thestreet.com - Nov 24, 2006
This is used by corporations to integrate back-office functions such as distribution, accounting, human resources and manufacturing. The software is popular because it helps companies become more productive and efficient, which reduces costs. SAP's position with corporations has enabled it to grow by moving into other business-related software fields, including supply chain and customer relationship management, usually referred by its initials, CRM. SAP continues to grow at a nice pace. Its most recent financials, as of Sept. 30, showed that for the first nine months of this year, its revenue was up 13%, while earnings per share rose 16%.
http://www.thestreet.com/p/_yahoo/rmoney/software/10323873.html

Mistakes Made On The Road To Innovation
BusinessWeek - Nov 27, 2006
They must reinvent the company. Even at healthy companies, business model innovations are essential to retaining their competitive positions. Microsoft (MSFT)Chief Executive Steve Ballmer says he no longer thinks of his competition as individual companies. Instead, "it's alternative business models that we'll have to compete with or embrace," he says. His two biggest threats are the open-source phenomenon and advertising-supported software. There's no better example than Kodak of the importance of coming up with new ways of doing business -- and the difficulties of succeeding. At its peak, Kodak was an icon of American technology innovation... A watershed moment came when Siebel competed against upstart Salesforce. com for the business of tech giant Cisco Systems (CSCO). Even though Cisco was tilting toward Salesforce. com, (CRM) Seibel's sales people pushed traditional product software because they'd get richer commissions that way. Siebel lost the deal, and its business was forced to sell out to Oracle (ORCL). "There were groups of disbelievers in the organization, which is a recipe for disaster," says Bruce Cleveland, who ran the software-as-a-service initiative. GIVE YOUR NEW INITIATIVES ROOM TO BREATHEA company's core business and its new initiatives are typically at odds with one another.
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_48/b4011421.htm?chan=rss_topEmailedStories_ssi_5

Good luck!

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!

Hitting on a Point, but not quite

How do you do!

Office Live Goes Live on November 15
PC World - Oct 31, 2006
The service also will be available in beta versions in France, Germany, Japan and the UK on November 15. New Online Ad Service Microsoft will also introduce a beta of a new service at that time, Office Live adManager, which lets users purchase online advertising for Microsoft's MSN. And in the next six months, the company also plans to add the ability to let users purchase ads for search engines from Google, Yahoo, Ask... But on its most recent quarterly earnings call last week, Chris Liddell, Microsoft's chief financial officer, said the company was seeing progress in this area, though he was not clear on exactly what metrics the company is using to track that progress. Office Live Details Office Live will be available in three versions: Office Live Basics, which is a stripped-down, free version; Office Live Essentials, which costs $20 per month and can support up to 10 users; and Office Live Premium, which costs $40 per month and can support up to 20 users. All three versions will include adManager, as well as another new service called Office Live Business Contact Manager, a CRM service, Cetinok said. Another change to the full version of Office Live will be a simplified Web-site design tool, Cetinok said. The new tool made it easier for users to bring custom HTML to their Web sites, something beta users requested, he said. More than 160,000 businesses have tested Office Live so far.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,127715-page,1-c,enterprisetechnology/article.html

Hitting on a Point, but not quite
CNET News.com - Oct 26, 2006
Microsoft just might have enough bright minds in all their offices combined to pump out a seriously good operating system. If you have 1 good mind in charge of parts of IE security but 10 other guys working on the part, your weakest link is going to hurt you. This seems to be across the board for Microsoft IMO. Looking at your comment about using the right tools in Firefox for the right job, Microsoft should take that advice and realize that people who do use Windows are often using it for it's ease of use... Microsoft just might have enough bright minds in all their offices combined to pump out a seriously good operating system. If you have 1 good mind in charge of parts of IE security but 10 other guys working on the part, your weakest link is going to hurt you. This seems to be across the board for Microsoft IMO. Looking at your comment about using the right tools in Firefox for the right job, Microsoft should take that advice and realize that people who do use Windows are often using it for it's ease of use. (For those using Windows, it's somewhat of a dumb reason, but some people pick their cars based only on looks too.
http://news.com.com/5208-1002-0.html?forumID=1&threadID=22308&messageID=197105&start=-167

Cisco teams up with Microsoft on CRM
VNUNet.com - Nov 1, 2006
0 customer relationship management product on theformer’s Unified Communications software for IP-based environments. Aimed at UK small and medium-sized companies or branch offices, the effortwill link Microsoft’s software to Cisco’s Unified CallManager infrastructure viathe free CRM Communications Connector computer-telephony integration software tooffer basic services such as in-bound screen pop-ups with caller details, callerservice history and click-to-dial capabilities. The service will also offerintegration with Cisco’s 7960 and 7970 IP screen-phones. “We’re aiming this at companies rather than call-centres and we think thesweet spot is companies with about 50 users,” said Steve Frost, Cisco UnifiedCommunications marketing manager.
http://www.vnunet.com/itweek/news/2167712/cisco-teams-microsoft-crm

Gaming for the Broadband Era
BusinessWeek - Oct 26, 2006
So the challenges in this next generation of gaming are not only about dealing with the scalability issues and process tools through it, but also how do you deploy these games online. We have architected from a system level a modular system that allows you to go from the day you start production to prototyping to the day you deploy. … It’s hosting, e-commerce, CRM [customer relationship management], the whole ball of wax. ”Selzer added, “The way we’re looking at it is we’re probably the only company out there external to say Microsoft or Sony that is looking at the direction of the industry and creating solutions starting at a systems architecture basis. ”A beautiful friendship?Buttler and Selzer are clearly ambitious executives and it remains to be seen whether or not their plans will take with consumers. If Trion’s games coupled with Emergent’s tools can deliver an online experience that gamers crave, we could see truly “dynamic online content” and “large-scale” TV programming-like experiences in online games. For now, though, both Trion and Emergent share a common vision... We have architected from a system level a modular system that allows you to go from the day you start production to prototyping to the day you deploy. … It’s hosting, e-commerce, CRM [customer relationship management], the whole ball of wax. ”Selzer added, “The way we’re looking at it is we’re probably the only company out there external to say Microsoft or Sony that is looking at the direction of the industry and creating solutions starting at a systems architecture basis. ”A beautiful friendship?Buttler and Selzer are clearly ambitious executives and it remains to be seen whether or not their plans will take with consumers. If Trion’s games coupled with Emergent’s tools can deliver an online experience that gamers crave, we could see truly “dynamic online content” and “large-scale” TV programming-like experiences in online games. For now, though, both Trion and Emergent share a common vision. "Our visions are so closely aligned that we are attempting to make our roadmaps and product roll outs tie together, and to the extent they do we will be working together.
http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/oct2006/id20061026_124883_page_2.htm

Salesforce prepares to build platform
VNUNet.com - Oct 30, 2006
This could be the biggest platform play by a business software company sinceMicrosoft corralled thousands of independent software vendors through Windows3. 0 and associated developer tools. In an updated version of what Microsoft didwith Visual Basic and other tools, Salesforce is making the Apex tools that itsdevelopers use available to end-user organisations to create so-calledmulti-tenancy online applications that run on shared datacentre infrastructure. Salesforce's approach dovetails with AppExchange so that applications createdthrough Apex tools can be made available for third-parties to try out andpurchase. The company is also providing facilities for startup ventures that commit toits platform. Customers will gain access to computing infrastructure and getsales, marketing and other help from Salesforce for about $20,000 per cubicleper year. Salesforce has acquired an office complex in San Mateo, California that wasformerly the home of Siebel Systems, the leader in traditional client-servercustomer relationship management (CRM) software... "However, client-server systems built up over the past 15 years are unlikelyto go away anytime soon, and Salesforce and others in the sector will need todemonstrate scale to continue their progress. Muj Harris, a marketing adviser for Shell Energy Europe, said the prospect ofSalesforce being acquired by a larger firm remained "one area of concern in thisworld of consolidation". Harris also noted that Salesforce's focus on CRM and salesforce automation,leaving most other applications to partners, could be another weakness becauseit made it easier for buyers to focus on suppliers with bigger estates. Like this story? Spread the news by clicking below:.
http://www.vnunet.com/itweek/analysis/2167545/salesforce-prepares-build

Software needs help to be born again
VNUNet.com - Oct 26, 2006
Until recently I would have thought this quixotic but by opening up the Apexdevelopment platform that underlies its core code, Salesforce declared itsserious intent. Nevertheless, Salesforce’s biggest challenges lie ahead. Salesforce’s smart, pluralist answer is to create a platform forcomplementary capabilities through Apex and the AppExchange marketplace forprograms. AppExchange is growing nicely but many of today’s transactions arefreebies, Salesforce-built, or add useful but not critical functionality. Itremains infant compared with the proven and adhesive – albeit pricey andsometimes clunky – apps on offer from giants. Second, Salesforce remains a minnow that is only beginning to compete inmarkets such as government, manufacturing and energy.
http://www.vnunet.com/itweek/comment/2167288/software-needs-help-born-again

Have a nice day!

S&P Cuts Microsoft to Hold

Hello!

SAVVIS gives CRM startups Google-style resources - Oct. 17, 2006
CNNMoney.com - Oct 17, 2006
-- to handle the massive number of servers needed to help the software company move more of its product line to the Web. (These centers, sometimes called "server farms" because of the rows and rows of computers housed therein, require factory-grade electrical switches and cooling systems, and can cost tens of millions of dollars to build. )What Google and Microsoft are doing to move applications from the desktop to the 'Net is just the start. In fact, the Internet is making it surprisingly easy for a bunch of new software companies to distribute their products -- and easily upgrade their applications -- without having to spend huge sums. How? By leasing space in data centers especially built to house the servers and other gear of companies that can't build their own Googleplexes. The big timeThis week, Entellium, a small, privately held maker of so-called CRM (customer relationship management) software is expected to announce a wide-ranging alliance with data center operator... In fact, the Internet is making it surprisingly easy for a bunch of new software companies to distribute their products -- and easily upgrade their applications -- without having to spend huge sums. How? By leasing space in data centers especially built to house the servers and other gear of companies that can't build their own Googleplexes. The big timeThis week, Entellium, a small, privately held maker of so-called CRM (customer relationship management) software is expected to announce a wide-ranging alliance with data center operator.
http://money.cnn.com/rssclick/2006/10/17/technology/pluggedin_mehta_savvis.fortune/index.htm?section=money_technology

S&P Cuts Microsoft to Hold
BusinessWeek - Oct 13, 2006
Plus opinions on Centex, American Tower, and La-Z Boy. Delivery of worldwide availability for volume license business customers.
http://www.businessweek.com/investor/content/oct2006/pi20061013_883598.htm

Office Live to complement Office 2007 in SMBs
InfoWorld - Oct 13, 2006
However, collaboration features available in the Enterprise edition and some other versions of Office 2007 will not be offered in the Small Business version of Office 2007, Capossela said this week in Bangalore, India. Small businesses want the collaboration features that are available in the enterprise edition of Office 2007, but they don't want to have to install and run the servers for it, Capossela said. Instead Microsoft is developing Office Live services that complement the Office desktop for small business users. Office Live will for example host some of the capabilities of Microsoft's Office SharePoint collaboration server, that will enable small businesses to share documents with business associates, Capossela said. Office SharePoint Server 2007 helps organizations gain better control and insight over their content, streamline their business processes, and access and share information, according to Microsoft. The current focus of Office Live is on small businesses, the segment that is likely to find these services more valuable, but Microsoft is also adding Office Live services that will help students and home users share information with others, Capossela said. Microsoft will package Office 2007 with different features for different categories of users... It has announced on its Web site eight versions of Office 2007, including Office Small Business, Office Home & Student, and Office Enterprise. The small business version of the product has a contact management system that is not available on the enterprise or home versions. Small businesses are not likely to buy a separate, stand-alone CRM (customer relationship management) system, but they want contact management capabilities, Capossela said. "The contacts module in Outlook has been beefed up, and it is almost like a CRM lite," he added. There are some other business capabilities in the enterprise version of Office 2007 that will not be available in a version for students and home users, he said. Home users will not, for example, be able to digitally protect documents they send to others. Now will they be able to use workflow tools to automatically route a document to other people for approval or comments.
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/article/06/10/13/HNofficeliveinsmbs_1.html

Long: Oracle; Short: Salesforce.com
Forbes - Oct 20, 2006
We believe that Oracle is well positioned to benefit from increased corporate spending on new technology. In the past two years, the company has been on an acquisition spree, acquiring PeopleSoft, Siebel Systems and 20-plus other companies to boost its presence in the market for application software used to help automate and manage business processes. Oracle's diverse suite of products, combined with its database management software, will surely enable the company to gain greater ground and compete directly with Microsoft (nasdaq:... While we do not doubt its near-term potential, we do not believe that the company can maintain this kind growth rate for long, as competitors and increased pricing pressure bear down on its growth and bottom line. Disclaimer: Maltbie's firm is currently long ORCL and short CRM. Robert Maltbie is a principal of California-based Millennium Asset Management. More On This TopicCompanies:.
http://www.forbes.com/columnists/2006/10/20/maltbies-mix-oracle-salesforce-oped-cx_rm_1020maltbie.html?partner=netscapetix

Intelligence quotient
VNUNet.com - Oct 12, 2006
But thefirst is how the term is regarded by most organisations, and until recently muchof the vendor community. Collectively we have bounded our understanding and expectations of BI, and ifwe wish our businesses to become more productive and competitive, with BItechnologies as supporting tools, that has to change. At its most basic, within this bounded view, BI is considered to be theanalysis of operational data extracted from transactional systems such asenterprise resource planning (ERP) and customer relationship management (CRM),and reported through numerical or graphical analysis. The tools from specialists such as... informationbuilders. With the launch of its Office 2007 products. Open source BI tools such as those from Pentaho and JReport are establishingthemselves as credible, lower-cost alternatives to products from the mainstreamvendors, offering organisations much of the standard functionality out of thebox without large deployment and training overheads. Consequently these attract attention from smaller firms.
http://www.vnunet.com/computing/analysis/2166240/intelligence-quotient

PlayStation 3's Tough Transition Game
BusinessWeek - Oct 17, 2006
But serious rivals await, from Nintendo and Microsoft—and other platforms. The PlayStation 2 was a game machine that could play DVD movies and would eventually be able to offer online gaming,.
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/oct2006/gb20061017_210482.htm?chan=innovation_innovation+%2B+design_insight

Sybase: All Mobile, All the Time
Motley Fool - Oct 23, 2006
Besides providing mobile messaging technology (such as through SMS or instant messages), Mobile 365 has more than 700 carrier relationships. In addition, Mobile 365's technology is delivered as a hosted application. This is becoming much more popular in enterprise markets, as seen with the success of Salesforce.
http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2006/10/23/sybase-all-mobile-all-the-time.aspx

Take care.

Salesforce ups developer tools

How's things?

On the Record: Marc Benioff
San Francisco Chronicle - Oct 8, 2006
" That's a big change from the model we're talking about. They are preparing to release their most anticipated piece of software ever next year, called Vista. What they just said was all the Microsoft CRM customers are going to have to upgrade and change all their software if they want to run with Vista. Well, that is just a game that I think all of us are tired of playing. Every time Microsoft upgrades one thing, you have to change everything else, and you have to pay for the update fee. That's not how it is with Google. That's not how it is with Yahoo.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/10/08/BUG2QLICVV1.DTL

Salesforce ups developer tools
Register - Oct 9, 2006
Early next year the company will make developer tools and code available. Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff will detail the announcement later today at the firm's user conference... CRM rival NetSuite is offering defecting Salesforce customers a discount for switching to its product. ® Track this type of story as a. Related storiesSalesforce. com targets Wall Street with wealth creation plan (27 February 2007).
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/10/09/salesforce_dev_tools/

Salesforce.com CEO: Customization is king
CNET News.com - Oct 9, 2006
Hosted CRM competitors include. Apex is in a closed beta test now and will enter open beta in the first quarter of 2007, Benioff said. The production version will be available in the second quarter. The service will run on hundreds of Dell servers, Chairman Michael Dell said in a video appearance. The systems are Intel processor-based models, the PowerEdge 1850 and 1950, according to a presentation by Parker Harris, Salesforce.
http://news.com.com/2100-1012_3-6124153.html

Salesforce.com CEO: Customization is king
USA Today - Oct 10, 2006
com offers an online version of customer relationship management (CRM) software, which tracks details such as customers' purchasing history, sales force quotas, or supervisors' approvals of discounted product prices. Hosted CRM competitors include NetSuite and RightNow Technologies, while traditional software companies including Oracle, SAP and Microsoft also are in the market. Apex is in a closed beta test now and will enter open beta in the first quarter of 2007, Benioff said. The production version will be available in the second quarter. The service will run on hundreds of Dell servers, Chairman Michael Dell said in a video appearance. The systems are Intel processor-based models, the PowerEdge 1950 and 2950, according to a presentation by Parker Harris, Salesforce.
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/products/cnet/2006-10-10-apex_x.htm?csp=34

EMC, Microsoft sing Duet
InfoWorld - Oct 9, 2006
"This is the culmination of a vision we've been working on for a number of years," Bernard said. "It's about unifying the front end with the back end that the casual user needs to interact with in ECM, ERP, and CRM. "And EMC and SAP won't be the only vendors to get hooks into Office, Bernard said. "Overall, we are seeing all of the major ECM vendors actively building tight links into desktop tools like Outlook and partnering aggressively with Microsoft," said Melissa Webster, program director, content and digital media technologies at IDC. Vendors of all stripes are beginning to collaborate to make it much easier for users to have full, unimpeded access to enterprise applications from their familiar desktop productivity software, she said.
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/article/06/10/09/41NNecmduet_1.html

Enterprise Content Management Systems
VNUNet.com - Oct 5, 2006
“This trend will accelerate with both Microsoft and. ” Needless to say,OpenText is working with those two named players on development projects... ”As Oracle sees it, there is a significant shift underway in how ECMapplications are perceived. Organisations have realised that content no longerneeds to be merely stored: it needs to be proactively managed and shared toenable companies to drive efficiency. “Many organisations are trying to drive increased process efficiencies byintegrating their knowledge workers with their process workers, whompredominantly use customer relationship management (CRM), enterprise resourceplanning (ERP) and human resource management systems (HRMS) administrativeapplications,” says Elsham. Pete Atkinson, MD for European operations at Percussion, agrees there isgrowing realisation that CM is more than merely consolidation of infrastructure. “For the first time since the web bubble burst, business units are again incharge of budgets and purchases of CM solutions,” he says. “They desireapplications that let them utilise content more effectively to achieve theirline-of-business objectives. ”So, while traditional ECM vendors have been grappling with developing anaccommodation with the big infrastructure suppliers, mainly for scalabilityreasons, there has also been a seismic shift in consciousness about how theirapplications are marketed within enterprise business units.
http://www.vnunet.com/information-world-review/features/2165805/enterprise-content-management

SOA finds its VoIP | InfoWorld | Test Center | October 09, 2006 | By...
InfoWorld - Oct 9, 2006
But PBX vendors Siemens and Avaya, as well as data upstarts BlueNote Networks and Ubiquity Software, are laying the groundwork today. Back-office service and application providers such as Salesforce. com and SAP are also jumping on the bandwagon, communications-enabling CRM and ERP applications, along with enterprise integrators such as IBM Global Services and Accenture. SOA-enabled unified communications are not just another form of CTI (computer-telephony integration), more of the click-to-call and customer screen pops you’ve seen in the call center for years. Applications will no longer have to access these functions directly through the specialized CTI protocols, such as TAPI, JTAPI, and CSTA, of yore. Business developers will no longer need to learn the intricacies of SIP... Siemens has worked with Salesforce. com and Siebel to integrate its unified communications Web services with CRM applications, and it is working with IBM and SAP to embed its communications software components into IBM’s WebSphere Everyplace Service Delivery platform as well as SAP’s NetWeaver. OpenScape runs on top of Microsoft Live Communications Server, which federates with other LCS servers and public IM service providers to share presence information. BlueNote’s SessionSuite line provides a number of distributable software-based telephony services that, rather than using its own separate PBX provisioning and management system, run on typical datacenter servers and integrate with Microsoft’s Active Directory and Radius. “Our business model is not about PBXes and $200 desktop phones,” says BlueNote’s Bament. “We don’t provide reworked CTI APIs. We’re a software solution.
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/infoworld/article/06/10/09/41FEsoavoip_2.html

Google's Video-Search Challenge
BusinessWeek - Oct 10, 2006
"Some of Google's competitors in video search are very close to that future, if not already there. And many are sharing their technology with Google's biggest rivals. Microsoft (MSFT) has struck a deal to use Blinkx video-search technology. Similarly, search engine Lycos is also using Blinkx to find videos on its user-generated video site. PodZinger has agreements with leading video blog Rocketboom and other video sites. There are also YouTube competitors that have been steadily improving their video-search capabilities (see BusinessWeek.
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/oct2006/tc20061010_914750.htm?chan=rss_topStories_ssi_5

Bye.

The shift toward hardware independence | Tech News on ZDNet

How's things?

Bugs and Fixes: Critical Fixes for Windows, IE, Office
PC World - Sep 22, 2006
The company just shipped 12 bug patches--9 of them critical--affecting everything from Windows to Internet Explorer to Office apps. And unfortunately, things have not gone smoothly. In keeping with what is now a regrettably familiar pattern, hackers launched a zero-day attack on a hole that one of the fixes addressed, before the patch could be released. This exploit was designed to target the Windows "Server service," which handles file and printer sharing in Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 through Windows Server 2003 as well as in Windows XP SP1 and SP2... A Broken IE Fix Shortly after releasing a cumulative update for Internet Explorer 6. 0 SP1 that patched six critical holes, Microsoft discovered a problem. The new patch introduced a bug that crashed IE under certain circumstances--such as when running CRM (customer relationship management) applications like PeopleSoft and Siebel. At about the same time, eEye Digital Security, a security research firm, discovered that an attacker could take advantage of the crashes to commandeer a computer running Windows 2000 SP4 or XP SP1 (though not SP2). Two weeks later, Redmond released an updated patch. Grab the fixed fix, which includes the cumulative updates of the previous patch, over Automatic Updates or from Microsoft Security Bulletin MS06-042 (".
http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,127065-c,virusesworms/article.html

The shift toward hardware independence | Tech News on ZDNet
ZDNet - Sep 21, 2006
The growing number of mobile employees that work in a "virtual office" need, and are demanding, access to their files and data without being restricted to an individual PC or intranet. This evolution is the driving force behind the Software as a Service revolution. Functionality and flexibility without the costs
Software as a Service (SaaS) is a model of software delivery where the software company provides applications--such as CRM and sales force automation solutions, e-mail and collaboration software--which customers access through JavaScript enabled Web browsers. Users log in to specified Web pages for immediate and up-to-date access to their business application(s). These applications do not require desktop clients or downloads, freeing up device memory and increasing accessibility. Their potential often exceeds that of traditional boxed software by integrating the application with the Internet's communication capabilities, making it easy to instantly share data, such as customer information, calendars and other files. With a cost structure that fits the small business budget and services that meet their needs, smaller companies are finally reaping the benefits of applications that have typically been available only to big businesses that could afford to make large investments in hardware, software and IT staff.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9584_22-6118152.html

Can Web-based applications outwit, outplay, outlast the desktop?
InfoWorld - Oct 2, 2006
“It’ll be fun,” he says. No access to my Microsoft Office apps, just the Web 2. 0 equivalents that seem to be popping up like gaffes at a Bush press conference. The point of this little exercise was to see whether anyone would seriously contemplate replacing desktop with Web-based productivity apps. And if not, how close are we? After all, whenever Google waves its hands in this direction, the pundits swoon. Not to mention that enterprises would save gazillions in licensing and desktop maintenance... I’ll be looking at additional applications on the. And before the flame mails start, let me be clear that my selection of apps for my WINO (Week of INternet Office) project are … personal. Which apps appealed to my particular style of working is partially based on features and partially on ease of use in the user interface -- I’m a creature of Office, and I don’t feel like spending the week staring at a Help menu.
http://www.infoworld.com/archives/emailPrint.jsp?R=printThis&A=/article/06/10/02/40FEbrowseapp_1.html

Second third-party fix out for Windows bug | CNET News.com
CNET News.com - Oct 1, 2006
The group, calling itself the Zeroday Emergency Response Team, or ZERT, created. People have a choice of third-party fixes. Security company Determina on Friday.
http://news.com.com/Second+third-party+fix+out+for+Windows+bug/2100-1002_3-6121630.html

With Online Friends Like These…
BusinessWeek - Sep 27, 2006
Microsoft's (MSFT) Internet Explorer, the most widely used Web browser, had the most attacks against it and accounted for 47% of all Web browser attacks. Symantec saw 38 new vulnerabilities in its software, a 52% increase over the past six months. Microsoft has addressed the problems as Symantec reported them and developed downloadable patches to shore up its systems. Mozilla, maker of the popular Firefox open source browser, had 47 vulnerabilities, an increase of 276%. Even Apple Computer's (AAPL) Safari browser, which is typically immune to many weaknesses shared by other more popular browsers, had 12 vulnerabilities. Most of those vulnerabilities were discovered by testers whose purpose is not to exploit them, but to help the companies protect their applications.
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/sep2006/tc20060927_746300.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_technology

Fool on the Street: Akamai Access [Fool.com] October 02, 2006
Motley Fool - Oct 2, 2006
Broadband, dude, broadbandAkamai is there, too, but its recent sales growth has approached 50%. Some of that surely owes to its early-2005... And Microsoft, a big customer in software downloads -- Akamai's network has delivered millions of beta copies of the Vista operating system -- seems likely to turn to Akamai when its. No wonder media is Akamai's largest segment, accounting for 38% of revenue, according to chief financial officer J.
http://www.fool.com/news/commentary/2006/commentary06100223.htm

SAP Eyes "Third Way" Software
BusinessWeek - Sep 29, 2006
How many of them understand their differentiators? According to Agassi: "About 10 per cent. As an example, he pointed to the way Apple was able to roll out its iTunes music store in just three months, based on an SAP backbone, whereas one-time digital music leader Napster took a year and was left behind. On a flying visit to Europe - he is normally based on the US west coast - the executive talked positively about the company's partnership with Microsoft and didn't miss the chance to disparage arch-rival Oracle. In recent years Oracle bought PeopleSoft and Siebel, both major players in business software, traditionally around HR and CRM respectively. SAP will continue to look for smaller acquisition targets - once upon a time that's how Agassi came into the fold - but he added: "We don't believe in buying customers. We want to see benefit the day after [any acquisition], not the day before," with a nod towards Oracle's approach. He also said Oracle customers must be "confused" about where the former PeopleSoft and Siebel products are being taken, saying "there is no real road-map"... As an example, he pointed to the way Apple was able to roll out its iTunes music store in just three months, based on an SAP backbone, whereas one-time digital music leader Napster took a year and was left behind. On a flying visit to Europe - he is normally based on the US west coast - the executive talked positively about the company's partnership with Microsoft and didn't miss the chance to disparage arch-rival Oracle. In recent years Oracle bought PeopleSoft and Siebel, both major players in business software, traditionally around HR and CRM respectively. SAP will continue to look for smaller acquisition targets - once upon a time that's how Agassi came into the fold - but he added: "We don't believe in buying customers. We want to see benefit the day after [any acquisition], not the day before," with a nod towards Oracle's approach. He also said Oracle customers must be "confused" about where the former PeopleSoft and Siebel products are being taken, saying "there is no real road-map". Oracle declined to respond to these comments when contacted.
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/sep2006/gb20060929_100437.htm?chan=top+news_top+news+index_global+business

See you later.