What is the future of software?

By Jeff Nolan

Continuing from my previous article, I think the biggest change in IT will be its transition from being a centralized, one-size-fits-all solution and section off into three core areas: infrastructure, application services, and line-of-business liaisons.

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By Jeff Nolan

It’s almost comical to suggest that a single blog post or article could cover the breadth of possibilities that the “future of enterprise software” might embody. Having said that, the future of enterprise software will not be determined by any one technology or architecture. Nor will it by be shaped by buzzwords — on-demand and Facebook and collaboration initiatives are not the future, but means to an end.

The future of enterprise software will depend on how independent software vendors define their solution set and how and where they go to market; it will also be shaped by the tighter integration of customer communities with vendors, and lastly, by a restructuring of IT itself. Read more »

By Surj Patel

We speak faster than we can type. Much faster. The average conversation speed of an American speaking English is 120-160 words per minute, whereas the average typing speed requirement is about 40 words per minute and the top 10 percent of keyboarders type at speeds of 64 words per minute or faster. Do the math. You could communicate nearly three times faster with a computer if it could understand you.

So why on earth are we still using two-dimensional representations of the real world like desktops, menus and pointers? I believe we could do a lot better by exploring how applications can work better with voice-driven user interfaces. Not just pure voice interfaces but also what are known as multimodal interfaces, which combine the best of vocal/audio interface elements with the best of what the screen can do.

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You know a web 2.0 application is hitting an upward inflection point when your inbox starts filling up with the likes of “Joe Doe wants to add you as a friend on VagueSter.”

Over the last few months, it’s been Facebook’s turn. The site’s rise in traffic is in no small part due to developers being enabled to deliver their apps using the Facebook API. Some of these apps are getting serious traffic; see the Alexa results for the ex-PayPal guys over at Slide.com, for example. But some words of warning about social applications.

By Surj Patel Read more »

The software industry these days is all about consumer software applications, with a new generation of Web 2.0 apps hogging the limelight. We caught up Vivek Ranadive, CEO and founder of Tibco Software (TIBX), to find out his thoughts about the state of innovation in enterprise software. Below are excerpts from a very candid interview with FoundRead editor Carleen Hawn. Read more »

If the 1990s were all about client server wars - Oracle versus Microsoft versus everyone - the coming years will be all about communication centric software. And that means Microsoft will tussle with Cisco, current peace accord not withstanding. Continue reading to find out why. Read more »