A short time ago, I was emailed about writing a magazine article discussing the impact Microsoft Windows Vista might have on management software. I'm sure several software developers were contacted and I think most of the responses were similar to my own: Vista is a non-issue for most developers. We've been writing applications that run on various flavors of Windows for a long time now and Vista isn't going to change that.

Today, our Senior Sales Associated Mickie Brown forwarded this link to me and the author does an excellent job of explaining why this is true:

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscente...plication.html

As far as Vista relates to our industry, it would appear that any software vendor who is viable will make the appropriate 'tweaks' to allow their application to run on Vista. Vista itself isn't going to make your business more money nor will it open the door for exciting new directions of software development. Perhaps most importantly, it isn't going away and while some vendors might incorporate workarounds for today's issues, eventually these requirements will force vendors into making any necessary changes.

As the article states, there are other things that are opening the door for exciting new software features - one of them being the .NET Framework. Version 2.0 shipped in 2005 and Version 3.5 began shipping earlier this year. These recent toolsets gave developers the building blocks to address many of the chief concerns in self-storage (and other industries) including security and leveraging the Internet. The .NET Framework isn't suited for all things but as far as management software goes, it sure makes our (your) applications easier to use and maintain. And .NET runs on many versions of Windows including XP and Vista.

If you have the time to read the article and want to discuss it here, I'd love to hear opinions. Vista receives its fair share of negative press but when it comes right down to the impact it will have on your office, I'd say it's a lot less than some might think.