New Software Service Options

The acronym SaaS for Software as a Service looks like a retro-Swedish rock group (aBBa reborn?) but offers new ways to get work done. The good part is that you don’t own the hardware and software so it costs less. The bad part is that you don’t own the hardware and software so you can’t control everything. Like a coin flip, sometimes you get one result when you hoped for another. Let that not deter you from trying new applications, however, because SaaS makes a great pilot project test.

If you have more databases than just Microsoft Access, you can get much better reporting than you are right now. Crystal Reports from Business Objects SA comes to mind first in the third-party report world. Their new online service, CrystalReports.com, offers, you guessed it, a hosted application but only to share reports, not create them. You still need their latest software, Crystal Reports XI, but you can share the information over the Web with “the right people” according to their Web site. Usernames, passwords, then pie charts.

At the end of March I talked about Better Tools for Mobile Users and Nice Office Wireless from eAgency.com. Either I did a wonderful job describing the benefits, or SalesForce.com has been working to get into that market already, because they just took steps to add a mobile component by purchasing a company named Sendia. It will take some time for SalesForce.com to catch up to Nice Office Wireless, but if you’re the type who wants to see a market validated by a big company jumping in, this is your cue to take this market seriously.