Comments on: Using third party tools in SharePoint http://sharepointmagazine.net/news/using-third-party-tools-in-sharepoint SharePoint Magazine is an online Magazine dedicated to the world of SharePoint Thu, 11 Mar 2010 21:38:23 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: whymoore http://sharepointmagazine.net/news/using-third-party-tools-in-sharepoint/comment-page-1#comment-797 whymoore Tue, 07 Apr 2009 01:58:59 +0000 http://sharepointmagazine.net/?p=2398#comment-797 I agree, a serious attempt at performing QA on SharePoint products needs to not only to examine the basic differences between WSS and MOSS, but needs also to take a serious look at the customizability and extensibility of SharePoint. Load balanced and multi-server environments are becoming standard enough that most ISVs / 3rd Party Vendors are familiar with the challenges there. But custom workflows, web parts, features, and solutions are certainly starting to take off as both in-house and consultant-based developments. The need here does not necessarily fall to the vendors of this code but to Microsoft itself. SharePoint 14 and Visual Studios 10 must make sure that the open ended and flexible deployment of solutions and features follows a regular and recognizable pattern for QA developers to do their job well. <br><br>I’ll add to your list above that when considering a 3rd party vendor, make sure that they’re a Microsoft Managed partner or Gold Certified Partner, and that they’re involved in the TAP program to plan ahead for compatibility and differences in future versions, not just the current one. A good example is <a href="http://www.avepoint.com" rel="nofollow">www.avepoint.com</a>. I agree, a serious attempt at performing QA on SharePoint products needs to not only to examine the basic differences between WSS and MOSS, but needs also to take a serious look at the customizability and extensibility of SharePoint. Load balanced and multi-server environments are becoming standard enough that most ISVs / 3rd Party Vendors are familiar with the challenges there. But custom workflows, web parts, features, and solutions are certainly starting to take off as both in-house and consultant-based developments. The need here does not necessarily fall to the vendors of this code but to Microsoft itself. SharePoint 14 and Visual Studios 10 must make sure that the open ended and flexible deployment of solutions and features follows a regular and recognizable pattern for QA developers to do their job well.

I’ll add to your list above that when considering a 3rd party vendor, make sure that they’re a Microsoft Managed partner or Gold Certified Partner, and that they’re involved in the TAP program to plan ahead for compatibility and differences in future versions, not just the current one. A good example is http://www.avepoint.com.

]]> By: Rick McDannel http://sharepointmagazine.net/news/using-third-party-tools-in-sharepoint/comment-page-1#comment-786 Rick McDannel Tue, 24 Mar 2009 03:32:53 +0000 http://sharepointmagazine.net/?p=2398#comment-786 Nice article. We discovered some of the same "gotchas" with third-party tools. Your points are valid and should be considered before evaluating add-ons. For instance, one product we looked at had all of the functionality we needed, but it broke the native content deployment or STSADM backup/restore functionality. Spent many hours fighting this. Nice article. We discovered some of the same “gotchas” with third-party tools. Your points are valid and should be considered before evaluating add-ons. For instance, one product we looked at had all of the functionality we needed, but it broke the native content deployment or STSADM backup/restore functionality. Spent many hours fighting this.

]]> By: loumf http://sharepointmagazine.net/news/using-third-party-tools-in-sharepoint/comment-page-1#comment-768 loumf Sat, 21 Mar 2009 01:13:42 +0000 http://sharepointmagazine.net/?p=2398#comment-768 Great article -- very comprehensive. I can't begin to address all of these questions, but I blogged here:<br><br><a href="http://www.atalasoft.com/cs/blogs/loufranco/archive/2009/03/20/great-advice-from-sharepoint-magazine-on-third-party-add-ons.aspx" rel="nofollow">http://www.atalasoft.com/cs/blogs/loufranco/arc...</a><br><br>About how Atalasoft addresses some of these questions with Vizit. I think this article is a must-read (and must address) one for anybody hoping to sell third-party addons to SharePoint. Great article — very comprehensive. I can't begin to address all of these questions, but I blogged here:

http://www.atalasoft.com/cs/blogs/loufranco/arc...

About how Atalasoft addresses some of these questions with Vizit. I think this article is a must-read (and must address) one for anybody hoping to sell third-party addons to SharePoint.

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