Microsoft is developing integration technology to enable
end-users to update enterprise systems from Office applications
such as Word and Excel.
Called Lobi (Line-of-Business Interoperability) for Microsoft
Office Sharepoint Server, the product is part of Microsoft’s
People-Ready initiative to help IT directors extend the use of
enterprise applications within their businesses.
Microsoft said Lobi would provide deep structured process
integration with Office client applications. It would also enable
users to update transactional applications from within Microsoft
Office, and allow structured business processes and data to be
taken offline more securely.
The company already offers integration with MySAP through the
jointly developed Duet product. As with Lobi, Duet relies on Office
2007 and Sharepoint Server.
Rob Gray, portals and BSM product manager at Microsoft, said,
“Lobi extends what Microsoft is doing with Duet.”
Commenting on the use of Office 2007 as an application platform,
John Rymer, vice-president at Forrester Research, said, “The
primary limitation is that applications will not be portable across
operating systems because they require not only the Office front
ends but also the new Office server.”
Through Lobi, Micrsoft is working with suppliers such as
Accenture, OpenText, Hyperion Solutions, UGC and Epicor to help
them develop integration with Office 2007.
AMR Research analysts Jim Murphy and John Hagerty said better
support for XML and other factors were making Microsoft software
more open than it has ever been, but the easiest integration, the
slickest features and arguably the highest value would be gained by
users who adopt the entire Microsoft stack, including Office 2007
and Windows Vista. “Let’s not mistake the motivations – Microsoft
wants you to upgrade, and quickly,” they said.
AMR believes Microsoft Office is evolving into a platform, with
Sharepoint also at the centre of Microsoft’s platform strategy.A
technical preview of Lobi for Office Sharepoint Server will be
available at the end of 2006.