IBM Launches New Initiative to Help Developers Build Skills and Open Standards Solutions

IBM Launches New Initiative to Help Developers Build Skills and Open
Standards Solutions

 

ARMONK, NY -- 08/22/2005 -- IBM today announced a new initiative to help
start-up companies in emerging markets -- China, India, Russia, Brazil --
more quickly and easily develop solutions based on open standards
technology. For the first time, developers will get instant access to IBM's
hardware and software portfolio, free of charge, from their desktop that
will enable them to gain new skills and build open solutions in half the
amount of time and at one tenth of the cost. 

 

IBM will also roll out more than 40 different virtual enablement workshops
through the IBM Virtual Innovation Center that will expedite learning and
help developers go to market with their applications faster and cheaper. 

 

The move is focused on helping to accelerate the development of open
standards-based solutions. In 2004 alone, more that 400 developers a day
joined IBM's developer networks in emerging markets. This equates to about
17 new developers signing up every hour. In response to this rapid adoption,
IBM is deploying a series of virtual mentoring classes that will allow
developers to integrate their applications with IBM technologies through
virtual resources. 

 

A shift is occurring in emerging markets as the number of developers
supporting open standards continue to accelerate. According to an IDC study,
China and India will experience the highest growth in professional software
developers by 2008 with compound annual growth rates of 25.6% and 24.5%
respectively. The firm also forecasts that the total number of professional
developers, many who will be building solutions on open standards
technology, will reach nearly 15 million in 2008.* 

 

Application development companies can gain access to a host of virtual
workshops through a web conference from their personal computers. The
mentoring classes, which are modeled after the successful classes taught by
skilled architects at the IBM Innovation Centers, are designed to increase
workplace productivity so companies can complete enablement activities,
while executing core business functions. 

 

The rSmart Group, a provider of open source applications for higher
education, recently accessed online tutorials, classes, and input from an
IBM specialist to port their applications to WebSphere in less than seven
days. "Through IBM's mentoring program, we were able perform advanced
application integration work that would have been difficult and time
consuming without IBM's focused support," said Scott Birmingham, Vice
President of Product Development, of rSmart. "Using IBM's comprehensive
educational and technical resources as our guide, we were able to complete
our IT project seamlessly, easily and methodically -- three times faster
than we had expected." 

 

ISVs can sign up for the virtual workshops through the Virtual Innovation
Center site, IBM's one stop enablement portal for Business Partners to
learn, build and deploy solutions based on IBM technologies. 

 

Educating and Collaborating Through Online Classrooms 

 

As part of its larger ISV education and technical enablement efforts, IBM's
Virtual Mentoring initiative increases ISV exposure to the use of
innovative, open standards-based technologies. Through this initiative, IBM
is paving the way for thousands of ISVs to pursue virtual enablement so that
they can go to market with their solutions faster. 

 

IBM's virtual workshops are structured after classes taught by skilled
technical architects at the IBM Innovation Centers. Students can attend
classes from their home, office or even local coffee shop -- simply by
dialing into a lecture via phone or Voice over Internet Protocol. Before
each class, IBM configures a customized remote environment for students so
they can follow the lecture and participate in virtual learning labs. The
instructor remains accessible via telephone, e-mail and instant messaging
tools to support students through each stage of enablement. ISVs can
participate in virtual workshops that cover a wide range of topics,
including classes to jumpstart software development on IBM WebSphere
Application Server, Advanced Portal technology and IBM Express middleware. 

 

IBM already has received positive interest in virtual workshops from ISV
located in Brazil, India, and China. Some ISVs, such as CPM in Brazil, and
DHCC in China, have been able to "preview" early versions of the classes. 

 

Shanghai-based DHCC, recently accessed the virtual mentoring program in a
pilot that was being operated in China. 

 

"IBM's easy-to-access classes and technical labs have helped us tremendously
with our enablement work on WebSphere Portal," said Liao Xiao Gong, DHCC.
"The instructors were skilled and the classes were informative. Because of
the guidance that IBM gave, we were able to speed up development and begin
additional enablement work through the IBM Virtual Innovation Center." 

 

Driving Developer Skills in Emerging Markets 

 

developerWorks creates a foundation for skills and innovation among all
types of developers, including individual developers, ISVs, and faculty and
students involved in development within universities. More than 4.5 million
registered users have access to skills-building resources around open
standards, open source and IBM's Software Development platform. 

 

developerWorks resources for developers include tools, trial code,
discussion forums, how-to articles from introductory to advanced levels,
certification tutorials, news, and events. As emerging markets embrace open
standards and open source, developerWorks offers special sections
emphasizing emerging open technologies such as Eclipse, Linux, and PHP. 

 

"To help our Business Partners become successful, we must transfer our
knowledge and skills so that they can continue building innovative
solutions," said Roy Aho, Director, Developer Relations Technical Services &
Support. "The mentoring programs, coupled with IBM's developerWorks
resources, allow us to influence and impact a greater pool of ISVs in
emerging countries. By focusing on nurturing our ISV relationships, while
promoting open standards, we are helping our partners deliver more impactful
business solutions." 

 

About IBM 

With 80 years of leadership in helping businesses innovate, IBM is the
world's largest information technology company. IBM is a leading provider of
e-business solutions and is dedicated to helping companies, Business
Partners and developers leverage the potential of e-business on demand
across a wide range of businesses and industries. The company offers a host
of cross-industry and industry-specific solutions designed to meet the needs
of companies of all sizes. For more information on IBM, please visit:
<http://www.ibm.com/businesscenter>> http://www.ibm.com/businesscenter 

 

* The 2004 IDC Professional Developer Model, IDC #32546, December 2004