News
Salesforce.com Launches Summer '07 Release
- By David Kopf
- July 20, 2007
On-demand software pioneer
Salesforce.com has unveiled
Salesforce Summer '07, the 23rd upgrade to its customer relationship management solution, which brings with it
Apex Code and the company's "Platform as a Service" approach.
Apex Code provides a Java-like language for creating software that is accessible through SOAP and XML, and can be used as a Web service. Thanks to a January developer preview, already more than 1,200 Salesforce Developer Network members have been using the language to build prototype apps.
Other Summer '07 features:
- Salesforce Mobile User Interface, a search-based user interface that provides a search box on the main screen to track down information such as contacts, accounts and opportunities. Reports are also now available via Salesforce Mobile.
- Salesforce Service and Support users can tap into Summer '07's rich content solutions to incorporate diagrams, pictures and HTML to help illustrate complex solutions.
- The Custom Reports Wizard now provides completely customizable reports in a more streamlined fashion than before.
- The Salesforce Customer Portal incorporates Web 2.0 collaboration features to help users deliver around-the-clock self-service to their customers. The portal can be customized to different users, roles and businesses, and will provide a knowledgebase to help customers.
Salesforce Summer '07 will be available to customers in August via the company's multi-tenant, on-demand model. Monthly fees for the Salesforce Customer Portal start $5 per user, per portal, with multiple sandboxes available at an additional fee for Unlimited and Enterprise Edition customers. Apex Code is available to Unlimited Edition customers for no extra charge.
Saleforce.com says its customers have built 125,000 custom apps and objects, conducted 30,000 AppExchange installations and generated nearly 100 million transactions a day, marking mainstream maturity for the company's software-as-a-service application.
About the Author
David Kopf is a freelance technology writer and editor.