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Same Same but Different SaaS and Cloud Computing

	Posted On Jul 16, 2008 in Web 2.0, Web 2.0 Trends, Internet Services	Comments(2)
Experts world over are grappling with a new kind of confusion that is trivial for the common man. But for the purists who have invested so much time and research work to study a particular phenomenon, its really tough to call it trivial. Anyone who has been intimately involved in the evolution of the SaaS or cloud computing worlds has a right to be frustrated by the blurring of the lines between the two concepts. So the obvious question over here is- are the two same or different? We will go step by step.Firstly we will analyze the two topics in brief and then we will focus on similarities and differences.Let’s begin with SaaS first as it appeared first on the IT radar as compared to Cloud Computing which came into existence few years back. Cloud computing has already been discussed in detail in our previous blog “Amazon on Cloud nine via Elastic Compute Cloud.” Software as a Service SaaS is the acronym for Software as a Service.It is also known as Software on Demand. In simple words, an application that is delivered through the SaaS model typically is done so: Over the internet, Remotely by a third party, with little/no opportunity to bring that application in-house With a usage-based pricing model For example, Google Docs Application. One can easily edit and create documents without installing the software and just needs an access to the internet to use the Google Docs Application. Cloud Computing Cloud computing refers to the virtualization of the data center, such that server machines are not thought of individually but as just a commodity in a greater collection of server machines. Cloud computing solutions in general strive to eliminate the need for an application deployer to be aware of the actual physical machines that are used to host the application. Some have called this idea “hardware as a service”. Read More For all software developing companies, if they want to provide their software as a service, they need to host their software somewhere in the cloud and provide storage to store and access the user’s data. Also they will have to store all the user’s data in the same place, but the data identifies itself whom it belongs to (Multi-tenancy) think of like a apartment number, if you are living in apartments complex sharing the same address. SaaS and Cloud Computing Cloud Computing is viewed as a broad array of web-based services aimed at allowing users to obtain a wide range of functional capabilities on a “pay for what you use” basis that previously required tremendous hardware/software investments and professional skills to acquire. Cloud computing is the realization of the earlier ideals of utility computing without the technical complexities or complicated deployment worries. With this precept in mind, SaaS can be seen as a subset or segment of the cloud computing market that is growing all the time. Unfortunately, opportunistic vendors, as well as uneducated journalists and overly simplistic industry analysts, are using the terms interchangeably to serve their own purposes.While this might infuriate industry purists, the good news is that both ideas are gaining greater mainstream attention and acceptance as a result of escalating coverage in nearly every IT industry trade publication and even more importantly among the major business pubs like the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Fortune and BusinessWeek, along with the NY Times. To make things very simple: Cloud computing is an "infrastructure" response, a substitute to in-house data centers. SaaS is a "usage" response, a substitute to classical software licensing solutions. IT today Infrastructure: In house Usages: Software licences IT tomorrow Infrastructures: Cloud computing Usages: SaaS This positive development far outweighs the potential confusion that could arise about the nuances between the two concepts. The surge in demand for cloud computing and SaaS is partially due to macro-market factors, such as the recessionary economic climate and escalating pressures to fundamentally change traditional business practices. But, growing interest in cloud computing and SaaS is also the result of the success and satisfaction of the early adopters who are not only renewing and expanding their use of these web-based services, but recommending them to others, according to THINKstrategies' research and consulting experience. The 'gold rush' stage we are entering in the cloud computing and SaaS movement will attract plenty of self-serving vendors, overnight experts and tabloid press who will attempt to exploit this exciting market opportunity.

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Tag :SaaS, Cloud Computing, Google Docs

Enterprise 2.0

Posted On Jun 27, 2008 in

Web 2.0, Enterprise 2.0

Comments(1)

At the recently held Conference in Boston from June 9th to 12th 2008, on Enterprise 2.0 most of the speakers agreed to the view that E2.0, as it is popularly known as, is inevitable. Marketing and software pundits believe that this will be the next big thing that will have a major impact on how the business is run today after Internet infiltrated into the business processes. So this time around we won’t be discussing the regular stuff- Internet and Business- instead we will give you an insight into the somewhat new world of Enterprise 2.0 and how it is getting transformed into a major business phenomenon.

Browser based softwares, SaaS, and Web 2.0 have been making fast advancements in the enterprise arena, however the absence of useful pioneer reports is hampering the development process and preventing many organizations from moving on to this next level. The trends have been really amazing with more and more number of user generated content and communication collaboration mushrooming up via blogs and social media websites. Keeping all the above developments in mind a question that often comes to our mind is can the integration of the three- SaaS, Web 2.0 and business- be more meaningful in the enterprise as well.

What is Enterprise 2.0?

The term Enterprise 2.0 was coined by Andrew McAfee, Associate Professor, Harvard Business School. According to him,”Enterprise 2.0 is the use of emergent social software platforms within companies, or between companies and their partners or customers.” Source: Professor Andrew McAfee’s Blog

Social software enables people to rendezvous, connect or collaborate through computer-mediated communication and to form online communities.

Platforms are digital environments in which contributions and interactions are globally visible and persistent over time.

Emergent means that the software is freeform, and that it contains mechanisms to let the patterns and structure inherent in people's interactions become visible over time.

Freeform means that the software is most or all of the following:

Optional Free of up-front workflow
Egalitarian, or indifferent to formal organizational identities

These examples will help you understand the term better:

Rite Solutions' (http://www.ritesolutions.com/home.html)
R&D departments' use of Innocentive to find solutions to problems that have been stumping them (http://www.innocentive.com/)
MK Taxi's ability to connect mobile phone users in Tokyo directly to the driver of the cab closest to them, bypassing the dispatch center altogether.

To make a long story short, it means using inside an enterprise the successful tools of web 2.0.These new tools may well supplant other communication and knowledge management systems with their superior ability to capture tacit knowledge, best practices and relevant experiences from throughout a company and make them readily available to more users. Enterprise 2.0 liberates the workforce from the constraints of legacy communication and productivity tools like email. It provides business managers with access to the right information at the right time through a web of inter-connected applications, services and devices. It makes accessible the collective intelligence of many, translating to a huge competitive advantage in the form of increased innovation, productivity and agility.

Other than Web 2.0, E2.0 makes extensive use of Office 2.0, the term coined by Ishmael Ghalimi. The term Office 2.0 is a marketing neologism representing the concepts of office productivity applications as published applications rather than stand-alone programs. The term leverages the Web 2.0 concept to conjure imagery of collaborative, community based and centralised effort rather than the more traditional application running on a platform locally. Office 2.0 prevents you from the tedious work of software installation, updates, administration rights, software versions, virus scanning and all like stuff. Read More
Tools of Enterprise 2.0
Whether created by software vendors, internal IT departments, line-of-business units or service providers, the software of Enterprise 2.0 will be flexible, simple and lightweight. It will be created using an infinite combination of the latest - and possibly, some old-fashioned - ingredients, including the following:
- Technologies
  Open source, SOA/Web services (AJAX, RSS, blogs, wikis, tagging, social networking, and so on) Web 2.0, legacy and proprietary - or some combination
- Development Models
  Relying on in-house, outsourced or offshore resources - or any combination; pursuing a global development strategy; and/or pursuing co-creation with users, partners or both
- Delivery Methods
  Downloading individually; paying for a license; and/or, using on-demand/SaaS or via a service provider
Business Vs Enterprise 2.0

Enterprise 2.0 is the synergy of a new set of technologies, development models and delivery methods that are used to develop business software and deliver it to users.Enterprise 2.0 is more than just Web 2.0 for business. The complexity of enterprise computing is far more than personal computing. Things like legacy environments, innumerable vendors, mismatched data sources, stringent regulations and scattered pattern of users make it further complicated. While Web 2.0 can deliver genuine advantages for both business users and consumers, the real "Enterprise 2.0" will encompass a far broader and more complex vision. But with Web 2.0, all these complexities can be metamorphosed into strength as the organization becomes flat and there is ease of flow of information. Just take a look at the major advantages that E2.0 has in store for you as compared to conventional business methods often called as Enterprise 1.0 or E1.0.

Everything about E2.0 is not perfect and there are limitations like what happens when the server is down or the connection is irregular. These shortcomings may look to deter people/organizations from quickly shifting to E2.0. Despite those limitations its getting all the attention in this world and more and more business firms are embracing these new tools and technologies, either at the top-down level or at the grassroot level, and often both. It’s also an indication that the network is going to become the pre-eminent location for most meaningful business software.