Aug 08 2006

Autodesk Buzzsaw 7 released

One of Autodesk’s DWF bloggers (there don’t appear to be any official Buzzsaw bloggers), Scott Sheppard (Beyond the Paper) says Autodesk has released a Buzzsaw version 7 update. Mainly administration improvements by the look of things, plus an updated user interface.

Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2006/08/autodesk_buzzsa-2/

Aug 08 2006

Extolling the extranet ethos

The latest ITShowcase newsletter reports on the NCCTP market research, Proving Collaboration Pays (see previous post) – basically the text of the NCCTP news release, but at least the key messages are being disseminated.

Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2006/08/extolling_the_e/

Aug 08 2006

ASP, SaaS, On-demand or the “business web”?

At ASPstreet, an article – What do you call your ASP? – by Minda Zetlin usefully sums up some of the debate about terminology, and proposes a term that we may hear more of in the months ahead.

Zetlin points out that the term ‘ASP’ became discredited in some people’s eyes by its much-hyped associations with the dot.com boom. ‘Software-as-a-Service’ (SaaS), ‘on-demand’ or ‘hosted’ software have been touted as alternatives, and are often used interchangeably, but, according to one of Zetlin’s quoted experts (Marcus Sachs of SRI Computer Science Laboratory), there are subtle differences between them.

  • "‘Software as a Service’ is a technique for delivering customized software to a client….The software company has a contract with the client to provide updates, support, and maintenance of the code.
  • "‘On-demand software’ is a subscription service where you download the latest build of a software application when you need it. The version you get this afternoon might be a slight improvement over the version you got this morning. This option is good for small or medium-sized businesses but not for large enterprises. Software as a service might be a better choice due to the customization they might need."
  • "Hosted" software could refer to either model.
  • "ASP" .. .is sometimes associated with an older, and generally abandoned business model, in which ASPs merely offered hosted versions of traditional IT applications rather than today’s net-native applications. In a sense, those ASPs of old were simply an extension of the client-server model, in which software ran on a central server and users’ desktops merely functioned as terminals. … For many of today’s companies, the term Software as a Service allows them to differentiate from that old model.

I don’t think Sachs makes a valid distinction between Saas and on-demand. The only difference, he suggests, lies in the ability of the vendor to customise the software for a customer. Yet, some providers very consciously employ a multi-tenant model with a single version of the software serving multiple customers; apparent ‘customisation’ is achieved through configuration of the software (not customisation of the code) so that customers get an application that is very specific to their organisation, people and processes.

What alternatives might exist? Well, at the hugely influential Salesforce.com, executives generally refer to what the company does as "on-demand" software, but do not shy away from the term "ASP". On the other hand, they know that picking the right word for something can sometimes influence how it plays out. Thus, they’re encouraging use of a new term to describe some of the services the company provides: "the business Web."

Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2006/08/asp_saas_ondema/

Aug 01 2006

Top 10 SaaS myths

Phil Wainewright’s blog is an invaluable resource for commentary on new developments in the Software-as-a-Service sector. His latest post talks about an SaaS business (Crownpeak) confident enough to confront head-on the ten most frequently raised objections to the SaaS model:

The complete list of myths:

  1. Fewer features
  2. Customer loses control
  3. Security is a problem
  4. Difficult to integrate
  5. SaaS is Risky
  6. Hosted is only good for small businesses and projects
  7. Costs more over time
  8. Service could be poor with a SaaS
  9. SaaS companies have an unproven business model
  10. SaaS companies are competitive with the IT organization

Crownpeak’s line on every one of these myths that the opposite is in fact the truth: SaaS delivers more features, enhanced control, better security, superior integration, less risk … and so on.

Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2006/08/top_10_saas_myt/

Jul 28 2006

QS News covers NCCTP extranet research

QS News is the latest journal to publicise the NCCTP market research published last week (see 20 July post – Contract Journal wrote about it earlier this week); read "QSs back web portals" (strange that they chose to use the word ‘portals’ – not a word employed in the NCCTP news release at all). The article noted QSs’ strong commitment to extranets but went on:

The survey contrasts with a gloomier assessment of the e-tendering process from the RICS, revealed in QS News last month. The survey found that only 7% of QSs were sending and receiving documents purely electronically and that the vast majority (64%) that were using digital communications were using email rather than a web portal.

I’m not surprised there is a difference. Construction collaboration technologies (aka: project extranets) are much more widely used than online tendering tools, and familiarity quickly breeds enthusiasm. E-tendering tools are also a relatively more recent development and have also had to overcome occasional confusion with the more controversial topic of reverse auctions. As understanding and uptake of e-tendering grows, hopefully future RICS surveys will show a much greater uptake of the technology. In the meantime, you can read about the RICS e-tendering survey in this article: Why is the pen still mightier?, and a response: Paper Issues.

Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2006/07/qs_news_covers_/

Jul 28 2006

End of the PC era

The latest Microsoft admission that the future lies in internet-based services comes from new Microsoft boss Ray Ozzie. The Financial Times says the "top technology visionary" has declared an end to the PC era, laying out a vision for the company in which internet-based services, rather than PCs, lie at the centre of its worldview. Ozzie told the company’s annual analyst and investor meeting:

“In a previous era – in the PC era – Microsoft would naturally begin with a PC mindset. We’re in a new era – an era in which the internet is at the centre. … [This] “fundamental and transformational shift to services [will] turn the technology industry on its head.”

Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2006/07/end_of_the_pc_e/

Jul 27 2006

“95% of email is junk”

The email management headache shows no signs of diminishing. According to a BBC report: "More than 95% of e-mail is ‘junk’". The article says spam, error messages or viruses account for a large proportion of email traffic – less than 4% is legitimate email.

Of course, we don’t always see much of the junk – anti-virus software, spam filters and other automated responses reduce the volume of rubbish that gets through to our desktops. But think of the impact this junk has, clogging up and slowing down our internet connections….

Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2006/07/95_of_email_is_/

Jul 25 2006

Construction Computing 2006 (2)

The dates for the Construction Computing Show have been changed since my 6 June post. It is now being held on 22-23 November, still at London’s Barbican Centre, two weeks later than originally scheduled (no mention of the Bentley user group event, so perhaps they are now avoiding each other). The email I received also said:

"To compliment [sic] the Construction Computing Exhibition we will shortly be unveiling the inaugural Construction Computing Awards. More details by email will follow in the next couple of days."

This makes two batches of new UK construction computing awards in one year. Earlier this year, we had the rather hastily arranged "inaugural iTSHOWCASE Construction IT Awards" (incidentally, the ‘Best Information Control’ award went to Union Square and the Pel group – the latter have since gone into administration, so presumably their financial information wasn’t best controlled after all!).

Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2006/07/construction_co-5/

Jul 25 2006

Causeway links with National Federation of Builders

Contract Journal reports that the UK trade association, the National Federation of Builders has named Causeway Technologies as its "Strategic IT Solutions Partner". NFB members, which are primarily small or medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), will get preferential rates on Causeway software solutions which include estimating and project accounting products, along with offerings for content management, document management and electronic trading. This will probably have little impact on the construction collaboration market – I suspect any NFB members taking up the offer will tend to look mainly at the financial tools.

Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2006/07/causeway_links_/

Jul 25 2006

ProjectDox: Informative Graphics enters US collaboration market

Well-known for its Brava! viewer, Informative Graphics has now launched its own AEC web-based ‘extranet’ product, which will apparently go head-to-head with Autodesk’s Buzzsaw and Constructware in the US market (see ProjectDox for Construction Project Collaboration in AECcafe.com).

It is not offered as an Application Service Provider (ASP, aka Software-as-a-Service, SaaS) solution. Instead customers host the ProjectDox on their own servers, with – potentially – an unlimited number of projects, an unlimited number of users, and unlimited data space. A pilot version allows 25 concurrent projects, unlimited users and unlimited data starting out at $10,000.

Permanent link to this article: http://extranetevolution.com/2006/07/projectdox_info/

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