Web Development Live

Salesforce.com has extended its platform as a service offering with the addition of Force.com Development-as-a-Service - a new set of development tools and APIs that help enterprise developers harness the full potential of cloud computing. Force.com, which was first unveiled during the company’s Dreamforce conference in September, is built on the company’s proprietary Visualforce technology. It gives customers, developers and independent software vendors (ISV) the ability to create custom applications and user interfaces that can be accessed from desktop PCs, iPhones or retail kiosks using the Salesforce.com service.A new API will allow developers to access Salesforce metadata. Developers will be given full access to the platform, offering data that had previously been managed by wizards and setup tools. Salesforce also unveiled a new integrated development environment, and a service known as 慍odeshare which allows developers to collaborate remotely on a project. A new ’sandbox’ option allows developers to test applications in a protected environment. The new tools are part of a larger campaign to bring third-party developers onboard. Salesforce plans to promote Force.com with a global tour dubbed ‘Tour de Force’.Salesforce.com has also released a new pay-per-login payment option for users to access applications developed on its Force.com platform.An enterprise building a low-volume, occasional use application through Force.com, such as an online vacation scheduling app, faces a list price of USD 5 for each user login, but will only be charged 99 cents through 2008 in an effort to promote use of the new platform. More frequently used applications will carry a fee of USD 50 per user per month for an unlimited number of logins.

Salesforce.com has extended its platform as a service offering with the addition of Force.com Development-as-a-Service - a new set of development tools and APIs that help enterprise developers harness the full potential of cloud computing. Force.com, which was first unveiled during the company’s Dreamforce conference in September, is built on the company’s proprietary Visualforce technology. It gives customers, developers and independent software vendors (ISV) the ability to create custom applications and user interfaces that can be accessed from desktop PCs, iPhones or retail kiosks using the Salesforce.com service.A new API will allow developers to access Salesforce metadata. Developers will be given full access to the platform, offering data that had previously been managed by wizards and setup tools. Salesforce also unveiled a new integrated development environment, and a service known as 慍odeshare which allows developers to collaborate remotely on a project. A new ’sandbox’ option allows developers to test applications in a protected environment. The new tools are part of a larger campaign to bring third-party developers onboard. Salesforce plans to promote Force.com with a global tour dubbed ‘Tour de Force’.Salesforce.com has also released a new pay-per-login payment option for users to access applications developed on its Force.com platform.An enterprise building a low-volume, occasional use application through Force.com, such as an online vacation scheduling app, faces a list price of USD 5 for each user login, but will only be charged 99 cents through 2008 in an effort to promote use of the new platform. More frequently used applications will carry a fee of USD 50 per user per month for an unlimited number of logins.

MySpace opens up to developers

Social site Bebo opens up to outside developers

The search giants OpenSocial program, presently little more than a concept despite having the support of most major social networks, was born out of criticisms Facebook was too closed.
It promised a platform where software developers could write plug-in programs that were supported by all social networks, instead of picking sides.
But in a shock announcement to its 100,000 third-party developers, Facebook said its platform was now open to anyone, even arch-rival MySpace.
Previously, applications written for Facebook - like FunWall, iLike, Scrabulous and Vampires - could only be accessed by Facebook users.
Bebo, the third most popular social network behind MySpace and Facebook, has already linked up with Facebook, allowing its users to add Facebook applications to their profiles.
Of course, Facebook Platform will continue to evolve, but by enabling other social sites to use what weve learned, everyone wins - users get a better experience around the web, developers get access to new audiences, and social sites get more applications, Facebooks Ami Vora wrote.
The move is being seen partly as an attempt by Facebook to salvage its public image after it copped a beating over its controversial new advertising system, which shared users private activities on external sites with their friends.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg apologised earlier this month for breaching user privacy in the pursuit of profits and wound back the more controversial aspects of the advertising system.
But opening up its plug-in applications to other social networks is also a strategic move to maintain its dominance and cut out OpenSocial before it launches.
Google recently announced OpenSocial wouldnt be ready until January, and many of its initial partners, including Bebo, LinkedIn and Friendster, have subsequently announced their own application platform initiatives that are separate to OpenSocial.
But in a statement today, Google Australia spokesman Rob Shilkin said OpenSocial was definitely still on track and all partners were still on board.
We all have the same goal of making the Web more social in more interesting ways, he said.
We support all initiatives to make the Web more open, which in this case means developers can reach users faster and users can get new features faster.