Cheap and EasyTechnology

A Tour of Web Services for Business

David RobertsonCovenant Technology Services

Thank You

now . . . the bait-and-switch

A new type of technology that can (and likely will) significantly impact your organization

The next paradigm in the evolution of technology

OR

OR

Learning to think in new ways: How new technology

matches (and drives) organizational needs

Web Services

•Web-based applications

•Computers talking to other computers over the Internet

•A new paradigm of computing

Evolution ofTechnology (1981 -

now)

•Age of the PC (1981 - 1991)

•Age of the Local Area Network (1990 - 2006)

•Age of the Internet (2006 - ???)

PCPC

•Individual productivity•Local storage, local apps•Applications directly

replaced existing processes

PCPC

PCPC

PCPC

ServerServer

•Deparment productivity•Storage and some apps

on server•Applications started to

be something new

•Organizational productivity•Storage and some apps in

the cloud•Applications now completely

different than what was possible before Internet

Google Apps

•www.google.com/a

•Collection of tools: Email, Calendar, Word Processor, Spreadsheet, Presentation, Wiki (Sites), IM (GTalk)

•3 versions: free, Premier ($50 / user / year), Education

Components of a business web

service•API

•Data you can export

•RSS feed

•Tagging / organization tools

APIs

•Application Programming Interface

•Allows you to use your data, in ways the web service has not appreciated

•Gives you (potentially) data portability

Application & DataApplication & Data

ApplicationApplication

DataData

ApplicatioApplicationn

DataData

AnotherAnotherApplicatioApplicatio

nn

Flickr

•www.flickr.com

•$25 / year

•Photosharing. Unlimited uploads, unlimited storage, access to original files

•Another option: www.smugmug.com

Why the Cloud?

•Cross-organization communication, collaboration

•Cost and capabilities

•Ubiquitous access

Why a web service?

•Organization: Tagging, and geotagging

•Storage: As much as you want, infinitely cheaper than doing it yourself

•Storage management

•Sharing

Wiki

A wiki is a collection of web pages designed to enable anyone who

accesses it to contribute or modify content, using a simplified markup

language.

Wiki - sources

•www.editme.com

•www.pbwiki.com

•www.wikispaces.com

Online Storage

•Store files on the web

•www.box.net

•Useful for sharing, backup, collaboration, distribution

Campfire: Chatroom

•www.campfirenow.com

•IM for groups

•Great communication and collaboration tool

•All history is kept

Highrise

•www.highrisehq.com

•Lightweight CRM; great tool for managing contacts and interactions with customers, vendors, partners, etc.

Web Services . . .moving

Now

Later

Toes in the Water

David Robertsondrobertson@covenant.com