InformationWeek

This time, Microsoft consulted with customers and software suppliers, and it hired Gartner Group to design a uniform application specifica-tion. Software vendors test their apps at VeriTest Labs, a service of Lion-bridge Technologies, a software localization and testing vendor in Los Angeles.

Gartner Group research director Michael Silver estimates that companies can shave 3%, or $189, from their annual desktop total cost of ownership by using software that complies with the Windows 2000 Professional application spec, based on a per-desktop cost of $6,200. Some of the savings comes simply from fundamental Windows 2000 features that prevent users from deleting key system files, minimizing support calls. Silver admits it's not practical today to use only certified applications, but he says companies can achieve similar benefits by downloading Microsoft's spec and making sure that their homegrown applications comply.

For some companies, running Windows 2000 on the client and server sides speeds creation of new features for in-house apps. At Creative Artists Agency LLC, a Hollywood talent agency that manages the careers of A-list talent such as Tom Cruise, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Steven Spielberg, "normal text reports and HTML don't really excite people," says CIO Michael Keithly. "You're dealing with right-brained people who are used to high-end multimedia." So Keithly's staff builds applications that stream music and video samples over the Web for clients to evaluate during meetings, as well as customized technology such as a database called "The Grid" that stores scripts, articles, sales data, film trailers, and anything else that agents might need to call up during a project.

Agents naturally get choosy about who views this content, so Creative Artists' IT shop had to build permissions into all its applications. "But that took a lot of code in the individual apps," says Keithly. Windows 2000's Active Directory, on the other hand, lets administrators create new user accounts that describe the groups the users belong to and access rights they possess, and store these rights in one place. "It really gives you a much richer environment for application development," he says.

But back to the workaday world. For users of the ubiquitous-but-indispensable Microsoft Office suite, running Office 2000 on a Windows 2000 PC offers enhancements. Using the self-repair features of Office and Windows in tandem can cut down on help desks' attempts to figure out where the problem lies if a system file is deleted or damaged, Microsoft product manager Lisa Gurry says. When users create a new network folder, Office automatically puts a copy on their hard drive. It also replicates files when workers log on and off the network.

About 16% of the worldwide installed base of 120 million PCs running Microsoft Office--roughly 19 million users--have upgraded to Office 2000, according to the vendor. Microsoft commands nearly 97% of sales through corporate resellers, according to market researcher PC Data.

Microsoft, of course, recommends that customers undertake a "one-touch upgrade" to Windows 2000 and Office 2000 at the same time, to lower the cost of desktop visits. It's a compelling argument if companies are installing a new desktop image as part of their Windows 2000 upgrade, says Gartner Group's Silver, though IT managers must factor in the costs of training and compatibility with older desktops that aren't upgraded immediately.

In June, Microsoft plans to ship a version of Office 2000 Developer Edition that includes a workflow design tool for use with the forthcoming Exchange 2000 Server messaging platform, as well as the Access Workflow Designer that's been available as a Web download. Last month, the vendor launched a Web service for Office developers called Code Librarian Update. Developers can download drag-and-drop code snippets that automate tasks; the first posting lets Visio users automate routines to diagram Office data.

Microsoft closed its acquisition of business drawing software developer Visio this year (see story, "Visio A Draw For Business Tools"), but Visio's products have long been among the most tightly integrated with Microsoft's. The Outlook 2000 E-mail client in Office 2000, for example, for the first time contains Microsoft's Component Object Model, so IT shops can build apps that incorporate Visio documents and E-mail without writing custom scripts, says David Edson, a technical product manager for developer tools at Microsoft's Visio unit. Visio 2000 also talks to Windows 2000's Active Directory, so IT managers can more easily document computing resources on their networks using Visio diagrams.

IBM's Lotus Development division, meanwhile, is preparing an update to its SmartSuite Millennium Edition that includes a feature that lets Lotus Notes users open and edit E-mail attachments from within a SmartSuite's WordPro without switching between applications. Says senior product manager Dan Collins, "You're making Notes a drive." But mainly, customers "want more mundane things like stability," he admits. "It's a mature market."

So are PC operating systems, but Microsoft and its network of developers realize that sometimes being steady and reliable counts a lot.

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