Software by any other name, such as 'process outsourcing'

SaaS: First there were ASPs. Then service providers. And now we have software-as-a-service. "I think there is an unwritten rule that you have to switch buzzwords at least every two years, else lose your market. However, as I'm thinking about what these guys are becoming, I think their purpose is changing, thus the name should change," explains Dave Linthicum in Should we begin to call SaaS, process outsourcing? "Indeed, we are not outsourcing entire applications, but outsourcing services or processes."

The news beat: While SAP is letting loose with a flurry of announcements at its Sapphire user group this week, rival Oracle aims to lure SAP customers away by adding support for R/3. Yes, that R/3, SAP's own. SAP, meanwhile, says it intends to acquire Frictionless Commerce for its on-demand supplier relationship management software, and partners with IBM to leverage Big Blue's channel network serving SMBs.

Columnists' corner: Nearly five years on, and there are still IT lessons to be learned from Sept. 11, 2001. Our Off the Record author recounts one. In this case, a financial services firm waited a mere 7 weeks to layoff the IT staff that not only escaped a nearby building, but then went on to resurrect the company and get it back online. Warms the heart.

Best of the blogs: Oliver Rist, the SMB IT blogger himself, cautions readers to beware the free blogging sites, namely MSN Spaces, Blogger, even MySpace, among others. "The word to SMB (especially SB) guerilla marketing types is: Be careful. If your free marketing ploy actually becomes successful, there's a good chance it might just disappear one day."

Posted by Tom Sullivan on May 17, 2006 11:34 AM