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Features And SOA
By Rajesh Menon
Expert Author
Article Date: 2007-05-21
You know when Gmail came out with 2 GB of storage, everyone flocked to get a piece of the action. Today rediffmail offers unlimited storage capacity.
When I started out with a small pocket computer, it had 544 steps (translates to about 544 bytes) i.e. ½ a KB. Can you imagine that? Today's contraptions are fitted with 256 MB RAM minimum. And OS's like Windows Vista demand a minimum of 1 GB RAM. And that too DDR.
Similarly when Netscape came out with it's first browser (I was working with them at that time), it had very limited features - no tabbed browsing , no extensions or plug-ins etc. Look at any browser today - it is power packed.
The job of a Product Manager seems to be going uphill with the pile of new and unstoppable features that need to be built into these gadgets of today. The question is whether we need all these textures.
Look at a word processor like our MS Word. A writer or for that matter, anybody who needs to write a letter, at the best, needs an editor that works with probably a thesaurus and the ability to print. Maybe e-mail too. You think he would give a hoot about VBA or Frames or Clippy's built into your software.
Well, that's MS model. Give them the basic stuff and extras and charge them for that too. Get them hooked first, so any other similar product would look dull. I call it doping. No wonder people stay away from OpenOffice or other free software once they have tasted the master model.
Well, here's the good news. This model is dying and will evaporate very soon. Software as a service. SOA is the new rage. Companies like ORACLE and IBM have been fluttering this flag for some time now. And the world has taken notice.
If electricity and water are charged only for as much as we consume, then why not software? The same is true of internet browsing. The plans mention the download limits and bill us for the said usage. While the earlier model was static, the transactional model is what the public seems to prefer. Auctions happen every day, and I'm sure that like commodities, we will be able to give away extras that we don't need. To indicate, look at the sale of used books at Amazon or Barnes & Noble. In the future we will be able to block services like power and water and probably trade them as derivatives.
Products are being enveloped by services. Our gains in the modern world are short term. Look at why pleasure is in vogue as opposed to the traditional long term happiness. But in this rat-race, one thing we forget or are likely to forget is that an orange is not known for it's peel but for what's inside. A solid foundation - that's what we need from the existing products or the new ones in the pipeline. As newer revisions get churned out, I'm sure more and more lacunae's will emerge, but let's stick with the basics. A good product will encapsulate and solidify it's offerings by fusing into it the original ideas that have in the first place created it. Ideas that were born selfless and addressing a ‘need' hole which will somehow alter the destiny of many or few individuals on the globe.
Services would be built on top of it. This segment will cater to individual requirements. In all its variations. And the day is not very far when I see pharma companies making medicines for individuals, based on their DNA. Or for that matter, software that will suffice the need for our time being - instant nirvana for the new generation.
About the Author:
e-mail:
rajesh.menon@guru-30.com
rajesh30menon@yahoo.com
Website: www.guru-30.com
Tel: 91-22-25890408
Mobile: 9867071790
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