Microsoft promises to change how users create, access
and manage information, by making XML the foundation for its
forthcoming Office 2003 productivity suite, writes Karl
Cushing.
Microsoft is positioning Office 2003 as a hub for front-end
applications such as customer relationship management. By using
data language XML as a base for documents, it will make it easier
for data generated in front-end applications to be submitted to
back-end applications such as Oracle databases.
The downside of this increased flexibility is that IT managers
may see an increase in problems created by tech-savvy end-users who
experiment with the new functionality.
Simon Ratcliffe, a consultant at Business Systems Group, said,
"Office 2003 blurs the boundaries between users and developers by
giving users more control over data." This could lead to support
issues as users create "mini-applications" around Office 2003. "You
could end up with a bit of a mess," he said.
Ratcliffe stressed the need for users to document their actions
and be made more accountable. "I do not think businesses are quite
ready for XML, and we are not seeing a big demand for Office 2003
at the moment. It is one more thing to think about. Most companies
are too busy sitting tight and focusing on consolidation," he
said.
Tim Jennings, research director at analyst firm Butler Group,
said the support issues for Office 2003 would come more from
managing the transition from earlier forms of Office than from
supporting XML itself.
He said, "IT departments are used to handling XML now." Jennings
believes a more important issue will be managing communication with
partners on older versions of Office.
He also warned that if users start building applications around
Office 2003, there was a risk users could end up with "a Microsoft
applications vision".
Microsoft acknowledged that another issue companies may
encounter when they deploy XML is the relatively large size of XML
files. This could result in band-
width problems for organisations looking to transfer large
numbers of files over relatively slow connections such as GPRS or
dial-up modem.