Sometimes you have to step outside of the channel to see what’s going on within it. That’s why The VAR Guy calls JasperSoft CEO Paul Doscher. JasperSoft designs open source business intelligence software and only works with a few integrators.
During one recent call, Doscher mentioned that more than 12,000 programmers are now registered to access JasperForge.com, an open source developer portal. JasperForge community members have launched more than 50 developer projects that extend JasperSoft’s technology–including some efforts to integrate JasperSoft with Microsoft .Net.
Doscher also mentioned that JasperSoft continues to partner across the software industry. Two recent relationships involve Novell and SpikeSource (which provides integration between open source applications).
What does all this mean for VARs? First, start visiting open source vendor sites and register to join their online communities. This will give you a feel for where software is heading next. Second, explore the open source market for technologies that extend and enhance Microsoft solutions. Third, determine if open source software stacks–which typically include Linux, middleware, ERP, CRM and BI applications–can round out your solution set.
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