Service Oriented Architecture (SOA): Fuel Innovation, Boost Agility, Harvest More Value

What is SOA

Service-Oriented Architecture is an approach to organizing, developing and integrating information technology in which data, logic, and infrastructure resources are organized as services and accessed by exchanging messages with one another to support flexible business processes and enabling IT to become accelerator for business agility and innovation.

Benefits

• Fuel Business Innovation thru Composite Applications:
  
  SOA focuses on bringing the business processes and information which is locked up in multiple disparate systems to the familiar tools people use as services; resulting in maximizing users (internal and external) productivity and efficiency, leading to increase in adoption while reducing training cost fueling accelerated business innovation and profitable business connection.
  
  
• Boost Business Agility via Business Process Management:
  
  SOA is centered on service enabled business processes allowing you to model, develop, manage, monitor and control business processes through dynamic composition delivering continuously optimize operational capabilities and improve business performance.
  
  
• Harvest More Value from exiting Investments enabled by Cross Platform Interoperability:
  
  SOA leverage your existing investments and interoperates with what you have by extending functionality through cross platform interoperability standards support and provide incremental routes to introduce change in IT infrastructure at your own pace.

Microsoft's WebsiteSpark Program

Microsoft WebsiteSpark to Jump-Start Business for Web Development and Design Shops (Press Release)

Yesterday, Sep 24, 2009, Microsoft announced a new program – WebsiteSpark – building off of Microsoft's current BizSpark and DreamSpark programs – will give eligible Web developers access to support and software for creating Web sites. Microsoft hopes the program will expand its partner network, the company said in a news release.

The program has no up-front cost for three years, but Microsoft wants $100 upon exit. Professional Web design or development companies with 10 or fewer employees will be eligible.

WebsiteSpark is designed for independent web developers and web development companies that build web applications and web sites on behalf of others. It enables you to get software, support and business resources from Microsoft at no cost for three years, and enables you to expand your business and build great web solutions using ASP.NET, Silverlight, SharePoint and PHP, and the open source applications built on top of them.

What does the program provide?

WebSiteSpark provides software licenses that you can use for three years at no cost. Once enrolled, you can download and immediately use the following software from Microsoft:

• 3 licenses of Visual Studio 2008 Professional Edition
• 1 license of Expression Studio 3 (which includes Expression Blend, Sketchflow, and Web)
• 2 licenses of Expression Web 3
• 4 processor licenses of Windows Web Server 2008 R2
• 4 processor licenses of SQL Server 2008 Web Edition
• DotNetPanel control panel (enabling easy remote/hosted management of your servers)

The Windows Server and SQL Server licenses can be used for both development and production deployment. You can either self-host the servers on your own, or use the licenses with a hoster. WebsiteSpark makes it easy to find hosters who are also enrolled in the program, and who can use your licenses to provide you with either dedicated or virtual dedicated servers to host your sites on.

In addition to software, WebsiteSpark provides partner opportunities to grow and build your business (including customer referrals through our partner programs). It also includes product support (including 2 professional support incidents) and free online training for the products.

Who can join the program?

WebSiteSpark is available to independent web developers and small web development companies. The only two requirements to join the program are:

1. Your company builds web sites and web application on behalf of others.
2. Your company currently has less than 10 employees.

If you meet these requirements you can visit the WebsiteSpark website and sign-up today.

As part of the enrollment process you can pick either a network referral partner (for example: a hoster or an existing Microsoft partner), or enter a referral code that you have received at an event or from a Microsoft employee. If you send mail to webspark@microsoft.com you can get a referral code quickly. You can then use that code to enroll in the program on the WebsiteSpark website. Once enrolled you can immediately download and use the software, as well as begin to participate in the network/partner opportunities.

If you have any problems enrolling, you can also send me mail (scottgu@microsoft.com) and I can connect you with someone who can help.

What happens after the 3 years?

WebsiteSpark is a 3 year program. There is no obligation to continue to use any of the software after the three years is over, and there are no costs for the three years other than a $100 program fee at the end of the three years.

At the end of the three years, WebsiteSpark participants can optionally choose to purchase all of the software in the WebsiteSpark program via a $999/year package. This includes 3 copies of VS Professional, 1 copy of Expression Studio (including Blend and Sketchflow), 2 copies of Expression Web, and 4 processor licenses of Windows Web Server 2008 and 4 processor licenses of SQL Server Web edition that can be used for production deployment.

Alternatively, if you want to purchase only the production server licenses, you can take advantage of a $199/year offering that includes both 1 Windows Web Server processor license and 1 SQL Server Web edition processor license. You can buy the quantity you need of this package at $199/year each.

Summary

The WebsiteSpark program joins the other two successful “Spark” programs we’ve previously launched -BizSpark for startups, and DreamSpark for students.

Coming at a time when the current economic climate is still tough, WebsiteSpark will help support developers and companies by providing the business resources, training, and software necessary for companies to get started and grow successful businesses on the Microsoft Web Platform.

Visit www.microsoft.com/web to learn more about the Microsoft Web Platform, as well as download and install the new Microsoft Web Platform Installer V2 we released today – which makes it really easy to quickly provision web servers and web development machines. You can then browse and download and use open source web applications from the Windows Web Application Gallery.

Google Wave: 5 Ways It Could Change the Web

While riding the Google Wave, I came across this nice post by Ben Parr on Mashable that talks about how Wave applications can change the web.

1. Wave-Powered Forums

2. Wave-powered Commenting System

3. Wave-Based Content Management System

4. Wave for Customer Support

5. Wave for Education

Check out the article.

Google Sidewiki – a comment engine for the whole web

A new feature on the Google toolbar—which is installed on millions of computers around the world—lets users comment about the content of any web page they visit; the comments are then visible to other toolbar owners when they visit that site (see screenshot to the right). Group product manager Caesar Sengupta tells us the company wants to “help foster and create communities around different web pages” and provide a functionality that is currently missing from most websites.

The feature called Sidewiki appears as a sidebar and allows users to discuss the content of the page currently open in the browser. Users can vote comments up and down, theoretically meaning the "best" comments rise to the top.
The sidebar, which is also to be built into future versions of Google’s Chrome browser, has already angered some content producers. The fear is that if Google adds advertising to Sidewiki it will be making money from content without the original content producers seeing any of it.
Blogging veteran Robert Scoble today described Sidewiki as the "…latest attempt by (a) big company to make money off of my content on my blog."

Talking to PaidContent, Google’s Aseem Sood denied that it planned to monetise the service. "Right now, our goal honestly is to increase the engagement of users on the web". Note the "Right now"; that suggests that if the sidebar is a success it may still see Adsense units being added.

Google is walking a fine line in its efforts to innovate in some areas that have long been the domain of traditional publishers, while not alienating them. Just last week, it introduced Google Fast Flip, a new user interface for online content that lets readers browse through web pages faster. It was widely seen as an effort to collaborate with publishers in order to upgrade the experience of reading news online.