LOGIN | REGISTER NOW | SUBSCRIBE
 

Microsoft focuses on 'pragmatic interoperability'


By David Worthington
Email    print   
June 26, 2009 —  (Page 1 of 3)
Microsoft receives feedback through many channels, but it chose to place itself in the hot seat in May at a closed-door meeting of its Interoperability Customer Executive Council (ICEC). The feedback that it received helped Microsoft form a more pragmatic approach to interoperability that focused on customer scenarios, two executives said, but critics maintain that Microsoft is not entirely sincere in its efforts.

Discussions at the ICEC event were "robust" and helped Microsoft understand what its customers really need, said Craig Shank, general manager of the interoperability group at Microsoft. As a consequence of that meeting, the company started various work streams, including meetings between its product architects and those customers, he added.

However, the company refused to discuss exactly what specific comments and suggestions were made. The event included 31 partner CIOs, who were "frank" with Microsoft in their comments, Shank said.

The ICEC work will focus on delivering interoperability in cloud computing, development environments, identity, Microsoft products and systems management, said Jean Paoli, general manager of interoperability strategy at Microsoft. It will follow a structured approach that Microsoft uses internally.

There are four main areas to Microsoft's structured approach to interoperability: products and standards implementations, collaboration, developer resources, and participation in formal standards bodies, Shank said.

"A standard is a stack of paper until you start coding," he said. "The nature of coding is that you need to know what you are coding against—that's where developer resources come into play."

Microsoft is identifying how it implemented standards, and it is collaborating with the industry to do testing work for its standards implementations, he said.

The company has commissioned a website called Interoperability Bridges and Labs Center to serve as an online resource for developers. Developers can find documentation about Microsoft protocols and standards implementations, as well as information about upcoming Plugfest lab events.

Shank said that enabling interoperability creates opportunities within its partner ecosystems. Apple used Microsoft's documentation to implement Microsoft's ActiveSync Exchange mobile e-mail synchronization technology for the iPhone. In addition, NotifySync, a communications software maker that brought ActiveSync to BlackBerry devices, used Microsoft documentation, he said. "The documentation is robust; sunshine is useful."


Related Search Term(s): interoperability, Microsoft

Pages 1 2 3 


Share this link: http://sdt.bz/33574
 
Most Read Latest News Blog Resources
Zeichick’s Take: Radio moves from analog waveforms to digital packets
Streaming radio highlights the need for streaming applications to be designed to take up as little bandwidth as possible
Taking enterprise architecture to the business side
Startup Corso is bringing out a cloud-based planning platform that ties into business plans
Appcelerator Acquires Cocoafish to Add Instant Mobile Cloud Capabilities to its Industry Leading Titanium Platform
Appcelerator Offers Messaging, Social, Location and Storage Mobile Cloud Services to All Mobile App Publishers
ComponentOne Releases a Collection of 40+ UI Widgets Powered by HTML5 and jQuery
ComponentOne has announced the 2012 release of Wijmo: a kit of UI widgets for HTML5 and jQuery development
Digg!  Digg
Reddit  Reddit
Slashdot  Slashdot
Share on facebook  Facebook
Share on Twitter  Twitter


Add comment


Name*
Email*  
Country     


  • Comment
Loading




close
NEXT ARTICLE
Microsoft joins messaging interoperability working group
Redmond has accepted an invitation to the Advanced Message Queuing Protocol, allowing it to work with other companies on increasing interoperability in messaging products. Analysts see this as Microsoft's acknowledgment of AMQP as a viable platform Read More...
 
 
 
 
News on Monday
more>>
SharePoint Tech Report
more>>


   

 
 

Download Current Issue
FEBRUARY 2012 PDF ISSUE

Need Back Issues?
DOWNLOAD HERE

Want to subscribe?


 
blogs tab
Are you at risk for burnout?
Burnout is a severe problem and it can strike at any time. Here's how to tell if you are nearing the edge.
02/09/2012 02:16 PM EST

Agility, mom, and apple pie
If we're to evaluate the state-of-the-art in software development, we should start with the values espoused in the Agile Manifesto.
02/07/2012 11:57 AM EST

RIM woos developers with free tablet
How do you get more apps ported to the BlackBerry PlayBook? By giving every developer a free tablet, of course!
02/04/2012 01:57 PM EST

GitHire: Use Headhunters to Find Your Perfect Programmer
Are you a hiring manager tired of scouring the job boards? Check out this new service that will find 5 people interested in your jobs.
02/03/2012 12:17 PM EST

Facebook claims hacker cred
Facebook's SEC S-1 filing form includes a short essay on the Hacker Way by Mark Zuckerberg himself.
02/02/2012 08:26 AM EST

Ryan Dahl steps down
Ryan Dahl, creator of Node.js, steps back from his position as gatekeeper for the project.
02/01/2012 04:58 PM EST

 
Events calendar tab
Cloud Connect
2/13/2012 to 2/16/2012
Santa Clara
TechWeb

SPTechCon: The SharePoint Technology Conf.
2/26/2012 to 2/29/2012
San Francisco
BZ Media

RSA Conf.
2/27/2012 to 3/2/2012
San Francisco
RSA

IBM Pulse Conf.
3/4/2012 to 3/7/2012
Las Vegas
IBM Tivoli

Game Developer Conf.
3/5/2012 to 3/9/2012
San Francisco
TechWeb