Your Web Browser as a Powerful Business Tool
by Al Polanec, Blue Archer Principal
As seen in Pittsburgh Business Times
You may have heard some industry publications touting the current generation of web browsers as the "Universal Client." The idea of a Universal Client, simply put, is that you have one piece of software that has the ability to act as a common interface for many programs. Wouldn't it be great if your accounting software, time tracking software, data reporting software, and contact management software all had the same interface? No more installations of client software on your PC. Your PC will run faster, and will be subject to less downtime. When your company upgrades their traditional client server software, you invariably must install the new software on your PC. All software delivered through a browser is installed at only one place (the server), so updating the software is simple and efficient. And the complexity and expense of individual site licensing can be impossible to manage. This whole process can obviously become quite a headache.
A few years ago, some very intelligent individuals came up with the idea that our normal web browser could become the "Universal Client" that would solve all of these problems. Well, we haven't reached that perfect world yet. But we have come a very long way. Have you been noticing web sites that have incorporated some very "desktop-like" functionalities in the last few years? You can transfer money from your checking to your savings accounts, you can locate your package anywhere on the globe, and you can even see a live video feed from a music concert in Europe. The reality is that the internet has been undergoing a transformation from a repository of static information to a very interactive environment. The beauty of this technology is that you already have it sitting on your computer, and it's free. That's right, all of the power to search for data in a corporate database, submit information to applications such as time-tracking software, and even the ability to remotely dial-in to your computer at work all exist in the technology of the browser.
You do still need the applications and databases that allow you to conduct your business, however. But right now, chances are that your company is using software that runs on your local network ("Client/Server" software) to satisfy most of your business computing needs. Your company also has ongoing needs for new applications, and ever changing needs of the software you currently have. What if, for example, you would like to get reports from your inventory database? You may be faced with two choices, either build the reports using the facilities of the inventory system, or else build the reports using Internet technologies. Why would you choose to use Internet technologies in this case? Several critical reasons exist. In many cases legacy systems offer only static reports. This forces you to manually go through reports to find key pieces of information. Internet reports can allow the user to custom build their own reports easily via filter criteria. This may be impossible, or cost prohibitive in the confines of the original legacy system. You may be a user who only needs certain reports from the inventory database. But to have access to any of the legacy information, you may be forced to install and learn the interface for the legacy system. This will result in lost time and efficiency. You may also wish to have access to this information while traveling. Your legacy system cannot communicate though phone lines, so you have no ability to retrieve current information. If you used Internet-based reports, you would be able to use any number of popular "Virtual Private Network" solutions, or your company could locate their web report warehouse on a server accessible via password from the Internet.
As you can see from this example, there are many advantages to Internet software over traditional client-server models. One of the main advantages of the browser, is that its native environment is the Internet This means you automatically have facilities to access any applications that use a browser through a phone line or high speed DSL or other connection. The browser also has facilities to leverage high security encryption and file transfers of various types. You are probably starting to get ideas about how Internet software could help your business. From data warehousing to intranet/extranet applications, from contact management to querying the databases of key suppliers, Internet technology represents great benefits at exceptionally low costs.
I hope this brief article was informative and helpful. If you have any questions or comments about how your business can leverage the power of Internet browser technology, feel free to drop me an e-mail at apolanec@bluearcher.com. Also, if you have any questions or would like to know more about any technology areas, drop me a note with your idea. I may tackle it in next month's article!
Best of luck,
Al Polanec Principal
