ScottDatabases.com’ offers both traditional software development and “Software as a Service” to its clients. The primary difference is that with Software as a Service (SaaS) the software is put on our web server, and your customers and employee (users) access the software by using any computer with an internet browser. Typically, a monthly fee is charged instead of buying the software up front. Is SaaS better than the traditional model? It really depends on your company’s needs; we can discuss both with you and then allow you to make an informed decision.

Since the 1980′s, the most common software model has been to sell business clients software that must be installed on individual computers or on a local server (non internet based). In order to use this type of software, the business must maintain or pay for an IT staff to install and maintain the software themselves. This was fairly easy since software was much more simple and computers were less complicated. But after 30 year years and an exponential growth in the power and subsequent complexity of software and hardware as well as the rise of security issues, the challenge of maintaining software on personal computers is not always the logical approach. To save costs, many large companies have moved to standardized desktops that are all configured identical making them simple to build, replicate, re-image, and repair.

SAAS is often the ideal solution to this problem; it can reduce and eliminate most of these variables. SAAS accomplishes this by putting the custom designed software on a hosted web server, such as GoDaddy who for a simple low monthly fee will remain dedicated to keeping your server healthy and safe 24/7. This allows your users to access the software from anywhere with a browser and their login information. The web server doesn’t care what hardware or software is running on the user’s machine.

All of ScottDatabases.com’ applications are located on dedicated servers using Microsoft operating systems, providing you high levels of uptime(99%+) and security. SAAS is will give you less problems than running software on your own PC. You will spend less time with tech support, and more time enjoying the benefits and power of well managed data.

Yes, ScottDatabases.com will customize the SAAS product to support your needs, it can feel and function as you desire, because the code can be modified and additional functionality added as you desire.

The cost of managing enterprise level data is not limited to the software. A client needs a database, an application to work with the database, hardware to run the application and database, infrastructure to support multiple user access, and access to the technical expertise to maintain the system. The days of one “computer guy” are gone. Enterprise clients need database administrators, operating system and hardware experts, network experts, and security experts. All of these are specialized skills.
For small companies, the cost is prohibitive, and they typically settle for less sophisticated software packages or expect employees to process data in Microsoft Excel. For larger companies, they can afford the overhead, but is it the best use of their resources?

The SaaS model allows users to access powerful software without their own server hardware, and they don’t need an IT department with specialized skills. The SaaS provider takes care of all of those concerns, and the user just needs a PC with a browser. And similar to how a utility company charges for water, the SaaS user only pays for what he uses: no more no less. So, a small company of 5-20 people can access the same quality of software as a Fortune 500 company. The Fortune 500 company pays more since they may have 10,000 users instead of 10, but the functionality and capabilities can be the same.

Intuit, one of the largest financial software manufacturers, already has several SaaS offerings. You can still buy a Tax software program on a DVD or download on the internet for local installation, or you can access the software on-line as SaaS. The SaaS costs will often cost you less, since its is cheaper for the maker to maintain one system, so they can pass on the savings to you. Yahoo has invested enormous amounts of money into data centers to support companies as they start leveraging the SaaS model, and Microsoft is also offering some SaaS services.