One of the biggest challenges faced by senior IT professionals in organizations is the choice of the right software vendor. In the highly competitive enterprise software industry, there are lot of vendors who claim to offer the best software for the problem and it can be really daunting to narrow down the best choice. Additionally, enterprise software costs can often run into millions of dollars thereby leaving very little margin of error. The real cost of choosing a wrong software can often result into losses much more than the cost of the software itself as highlighted by software disasters experienced by leading companies like HP, Nike etc. In such a scenario, senior IT professionals despite years of expertise can find it very difficult to choose the right business software vendor for their organization.

Here are some of the proven ways of short-listing and selecting the right business software vendor for your organization,

·         Understand and Define The Exact Need First: Before embarking on a journey to select the software vendor, it is critical to understand and define the exact problem you want the software to solve. The paramount question to be asked is what business objective does the software need to solve. Is the software required to “reduce costs” or is it to “improve productivity”? Extracting and defining this fundamental question is the bare minimum but necessary step to go searching for the right vendor. It will then form the basis of comparing multiple vendors on this very need that your organization has and will help drive the selection process going forward. The detailed approach involves creating a set of parameters that the software needs to meet in order to be considered. In fact, consider categorizing these parameters further in “must-haves”, “good to have” etc. which will help you assign relevant weights to these parameter and how the software’s fare on each of these parameters

·         Building The List of Vendors Who Meet The Need: Once you have defined your need and distilled that need into various parameters, it’s time to built the list of vendors who you think will meet the need. This is akin to a lead generation model wherein you want to identify a large enough pool and then filters your list down to the best ones. There are multiple ways of building a list of vendors and more often than not, you must use a combination of these methods to build a good enough list.

o   Use Industry Reports: We discussed the IT intelligence offered by leading industry firms Gartner and Forrester in How To Keep On Top Of Latest Trends In Information Technology. These firms based on their access to leading software vendors and CIO network publish vendor comparison research reports across specific verticals as well as specific technologies. Gartner’s Magic Quadrant and Forrester’s Wave are a very good starting point to get an insight into the best software vendors. For example, if you were looking for a CRM solution, you could look for Gartner’s Magic Quadrant for CRM and look at the vendors that make the list. These reports can be pricey but well worth the money if you are going to invest hundreds of thousands in the software. Having said that, you don’t have to trust these report blindly because how these firms define the best software may not match how you define the best software for your organization

o   Competitive Intelligence: If you are a smart professional, you are already keeping tabs of your competition. Chances are that if you are a big organization, you might see a Press Release either from your competitor or their vendor announcing the implementation of new software. Extrapolate that across 5-10 key competitors of yours and you might discover the vendors that your competitors are choosing. This gives you a good indicator that the vendors used by your competitors must be offering something right.

I will begin our blog on Java Tutorial with an incredibly important aspect of java development:  memory management.  The importance of this topic should not be minimized as an application's performance and footprint size are at stake.

From the outset, the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) manages memory via a mechanism known as Garbage Collection (GC).  The Garbage collector

• Manages the heap memory.   All obects are stored on the heap; therefore, all objects are managed.  The keyword, new, allocates the requisite memory to instantiate an object and places the newly allocated memory on the heap.  This object is marked as live until it is no longer being reference.
• Deallocates or reclaims those objects that are no longer being referened. 
• Traditionally, employs a Mark and Sweep algorithm.  In the mark phase, the collector identifies which objects are still alive.  The sweep phase identifies objects that are no longer alive.
• Deallocates the memory of objects that are not marked as live.
• Is automatically run by the JVM and not explicitely called by the Java developer.  Unlike languages such as C++, the Java developer has no explict control over memory management.
• Does not manage the stack.  Local primitive types and local object references are not managed by the GC.

So if the Java developer has no control over memory management, why even worry about the GC?  It turns out that memory management is an integral part of an application's performance, all things being equal.  The more memory that is required for the application to run, the greater the likelihood that computational efficiency suffers. To that end, the developer has to take into account the amount of memory being allocated when writing code.  This translates into the amount of heap memory being consumed.

Memory is split into two types:  stack and heap.  Stack memory is memory set aside for a thread of execution e.g. a function.  When a function is called, a block of memory is reserved for those variables local to the function, provided that they are either a type of Java primitive or an object reference.  Upon runtime completion of the function call, the reserved memory block is now available for the next thread of execution.  Heap memory, on the otherhand, is dynamically allocated.  That is, there is no set pattern for allocating or deallocating this memory.  Therefore, keeping track or managing this type of memory is a complicated process. In Java, such memory is allocated when instantiating an object:

String s = new String();  // new operator being employed
String m = "A String";    /* object instantiated by the JVM and then being set to a value.  The JVM
calls the new operator */

The innovators in technology have long paved the way for greater social advancement. No one can dispute the fact that the impact of Bill Gates and Microsoft will be far reaching for many years to come. The question is whether or not Microsoft will be able to adapt and thrive in emerging markets. The fact that Microsoft enjoys four decades of establishment also makes it difficult to make major changes without alienating the 1.5 billion Windows users.

This was apparent with the release of Windows 8. Windows users had come to expect a certain amount of consistency from their applications. The Metro tile, touch screen interface left a lot to be desired for enough people that Microsoft eventually more thoroughly implemented an older desktop view minus a traditional Start menu.

The app focused Windows 8 was supposed to be a step towards a greater integration of Cloud technology. In recent years, Microsoft lagged behind its competitors in getting established in new technologies. That includes the billions of dollars the emerging mobile market offered and Cloud computing.

Amazon was the first powerhouse to really establish themselves in the Cloud technology market. Google, Microsoft, and smaller parties are all playing catch up to take a piece of the Cloud pie. More and more businesses are embracing Cloud technology as a way to minimize their equipment and software expenses. While it does take a bit for older businesses to get onboard with such a change, start ups are looking at Cloud computing as an essential part of their business.

But what does that mean for Microsoft? Decisions were made to help update the four decade old Microsoft to the "always on" world we currently live in. Instead of operating in project "silos", different departments were brought together under more generalized headings where they could work closer with one another. Electronic delivery of software, including through Cloud tech, puts Microsoft in the position of needing to meet a pace that is very different from Gates’ early days.

The seriousness of their desire to compete with the likes of Amazon is their pricing matching on Cloud infrastructure services. Microsoft is not a company that has traditionally offered price cuts to compete with others. The fact that they have greatly reduced rates on getting infrastructure set up paves the way for more business users of their Cloud-based apps like Microsoft Office. Inexpensive solutions and free applications open the doors for Microsoft to initiate more sales of other products to their clients.

Former CEO Steve Ballmer recognized there was a need for Microsoft to change directions to remain competitive. In February 2014, he stepped down as CEO stating that the CEO needed to be there through all stages of Microsoft's transition in these more competitive markets. And the former role of his chosen successor, Mr. Satya Nadella? Head of Microsoft's Cloud services division.

Microsoft may not always catch the initial burst of a new development in their space; but they regularly adapt and drive forward. The leadership of Microsoft is clearly thinking forward in what they want to accomplish as sales of PCs have stayed on a continuous decline. It should come as no surprise that Microsoft will embrace this new direction and push towards a greater market share against the likes of Amazon and Google.

Related:

Who Are the Main Players in Big Data?

Is Cloud Computing Safe for Your Business?

Is The Grass Greener in Mobile App Development?