The write stuff from reseller to developer

The bad news is that resellers moving into software development will have an investment to make. The good news is that there are global technology vendors also at the same starting point with platforms ranging from Microsoft Azure for cloud to BlackBerry PlayBook for mobility.

RIM, for example, is eager to build out its PlayBook ecosystem and could be — for some resellers — a good company to partner with on developing their own software capabilities.

It helps resellers measure that value in billable form as they deliver cloud solutions and more. But, Bova said, there is more than one route to this destination. Either develop the skills to write code, or partner with smaller software developers who can.

But even then it’s important to understand the levels of complexity of different development platforms, as well as the levels of opportunity they can provide. Oh, and there are many platforms.

If you were around in the earlierdays of the IT industry, when client platforms included Windows, OS/2 and Mac OS, and saw the complexity of cross-platform solutions, you know it’s nothing compared to today. Not only do cloud solutions require skill sets, but mobile platforms at the edge of the network, as well as newly adopted solutions such as digital signage.

Not only will resellers need to understand platforms that are, today, literally mere weeks old, but they will need to understand how they can drive value or destroy value depending on whether they are deployed intelligently and appropriately.

Platform: iOS

Apple provides Xcode 4.0.2 and the iOS SDK 4.3, which amounts to the complete Xcode developer toolset for Mac, iPhone and iPad. This includes an Xcode integrated developer environment and software development for the Apple platforms. The iOS developer program runs $US99 ($A97) a year (when we first signed up more than a year ago, it took about two weeks for the subscription to activate.)

What do you get for your money? The developer program allows for writing, testing/debugging and distributing apps through the iTunes App Store for those wanting to hit a broader market. To develop and distribute, work needs to be done on a Mac system.