Add-Ons and ISV

David_Singleton
David_Singleton Member Posts: 5,479
edited 2006-11-30 in NAV/Navision Classic Client
In fact its good the way its being done, it shows that Microsoft are really following up on their promise to push niche markets (verticals).

I just wish they would get their act together, and get a clear definition of the difference between Verticals and Add-Ons. Both are key requirements for the Navision market, but they need to be served by different companies.
David Singleton

Comments

  • Waldo
    Waldo Member Posts: 3,412
    Indeed. Microsoft is really pushing you in the ISV-direction ... creating you own verticals/Add-Ons and delivering support for it. Man, what we had to do to get in order for the ISV test... .

    Eric Wauters
    MVP - Microsoft Dynamics NAV
    My blog
  • ajhvdb
    ajhvdb Member Posts: 672
    Did you change your add-on on request of microsoft or was it only a big deal to get your add-on listed?
    Create dynamic Excel or Word documents, ReportX
  • Waldo
    Waldo Member Posts: 3,412
    Getting it listed was no problem ... passing the ISV test was a huge job ...

    Eric Wauters
    MVP - Microsoft Dynamics NAV
    My blog
  • ara3n
    ara3n Member Posts: 9,258
    What does it involve in ISV test?
    Ahmed Rashed Amini
    Independent Consultant/Developer


    blog: https://dynamicsuser.net/nav/b/ara3n
  • Waldo
    Waldo Member Posts: 3,412
    Install script, uninstall script, online help, user manual, multilanguage, complete databases tests, ... .

    Actually all the stuff you SHOULD foresee with an add-on, but what almost no-one foresees.

    Eric Wauters
    MVP - Microsoft Dynamics NAV
    My blog
  • David_Singleton
    David_Singleton Member Posts: 5,479
    Waldo wrote:
    Install script, uninstall script, online help, user manual, multilanguage, complete databases tests, ... .

    Actually all the stuff you SHOULD foresee with an add-on, but what almost no-one foresees.

    The install/uninstall are a bit silly, and really have no place in navision. THe fact that uninstall basically means restore the client back to an unmodified cronus database is rather useless.

    I can see why they want to make it all Microsoft Generic, but there needs to be some exception.

    Mind you it was much worse in he Navision days. Where using the wrong font (12 pt instead of 11 pt) in a user manual would reject the whole add-on.
    David Singleton
  • Phenno
    Phenno Member Posts: 630
    Waldo wrote:
    I saw it here that somebody said it will be availible for us but no one else confirmed that...

    Well, this is not clear at all.

    Because we are ISV, and have a registered add-on, we CAN participate in the beta program. We signed up, and were granted.

    Now I hear, the MVP's (seems logical to me...), Microsoft Product Managers and certified education centers also receive a beta.

    The only difference I can see, is that we will receive some training from microsoft, for upgrading our ISV solution to 5.0 .


    A little OT and you can reply to my via PM or here if nobody complains...
    We have one addon registered (and two in different stages of development) but we never though about ISV "thing". what are requirements to achieve ISV status or, where can I found more informations about it?
  • Waldo
    Waldo Member Posts: 3,412
    Here is more info:
    https://partner.microsoft.com/isvov

    You should enroll in the partner program (your company should have a login).

    Eric Wauters
    MVP - Microsoft Dynamics NAV
    My blog
  • Phenno
    Phenno Member Posts: 630
    Waldo wrote:
    Here is more info:
    https://partner.microsoft.com/isvov

    You should enroll in the partner program (your company should have a login).

    Thank you very much.
  • David_Singleton
    David_Singleton Member Posts: 5,479
    Phenno wrote:
    ...

    A little OT and you can reply to my via PM or here if nobody complains...
    We have one addon registered (and two in different stages of development) but we never though about ISV "thing". what are requirements to achieve ISV status or, where can I found more informations about it?

    I thought you had to be an ISV to register an Add-On. Maybe you have ISV status.
    David Singleton
  • Marije_Brummel
    Marije_Brummel Member, Moderators Design Patterns Posts: 4,262
    You do NOT have to be an ISV to register an add-on.
    Marije Brummel | Freelance Business Central Specialist
  • Waldo
    Waldo Member Posts: 3,412
    Mark Brummel wrote:
    You do NOT have to be an ISV to register an add-on.
    Seems not logical, but it's true. Follow the link I gave earlier, and you'll see that you can enroll in a different part in partnersource.

    Eric Wauters
    MVP - Microsoft Dynamics NAV
    My blog
  • Phenno
    Phenno Member Posts: 630
    Waldo wrote:
    Mark Brummel wrote:
    You do NOT have to be an ISV to register an add-on.
    Seems not logical, but it's true. Follow the link I gave earlier, and you'll see that you can enroll in a different part in partnersource.


    apparently we do not have to be ISV to register add-on. we already registered one (and are not ISV definitively)...
  • David_Singleton
    David_Singleton Member Posts: 5,479
    Mark Brummel wrote:
    You do NOT have to be an ISV to register an add-on.

    That is good to know thanks.
    David Singleton
  • Waldo
    Waldo Member Posts: 3,412
    David Singleton wrote:
    Mark Brummel wrote:
    You do NOT have to be an ISV to register an add-on.

    That is good to know thanks.

    Probably not necessary to mention but ...
    You DO have to have a registered Add-On to become ISV ...

    Eric Wauters
    MVP - Microsoft Dynamics NAV
    My blog
  • Phenno
    Phenno Member Posts: 630
    Waldo wrote:
    David Singleton wrote:
    Mark Brummel wrote:
    You do NOT have to be an ISV to register an add-on.

    That is good to know thanks.

    Probably not necessary to mention but ...
    You DO have to have a registered Add-On to become ISV ...

    In a link that you gave for requirements it mentions few options and one of them is to have registered Add-On... It doesn't says that I Must have Add-on. That is if we speak about Navision add-ons, ofcourse.
  • Waldo
    Waldo Member Posts: 3,412
    :sick:

    But you do have to have a product, no?

    Eric Wauters
    MVP - Microsoft Dynamics NAV
    My blog
  • Phenno
    Phenno Member Posts: 630
    Waldo wrote:
    :sick:

    But you do have to have a product, no?

    Ofcourse, any kind that is "Designed for" or "Created for" in Microsoft meens...

    Due to fact that we are mainly on navision, when you said Add-On my first thought was Navision Add-On but you probably thought "any kind of add-on"...
  • Waldo
    Waldo Member Posts: 3,412
    what's in a name ...

    :wink:

    Eric Wauters
    MVP - Microsoft Dynamics NAV
    My blog
  • kriki
    kriki Member, Moderator Posts: 9,121
    This topic was splitted
    Old topic : Microsoft Dynamics NAV 5.0 Beta Program

    PS: this topic is the very first topic ever splitted on Mibuso!
    Regards,Alain Krikilion
    No PM,please use the forum. || May the <SOLVED>-attribute be in your title!

  • Phenno
    Phenno Member Posts: 630
    I have another question, cause, our first add-on was more like a small changes then a full add-on but other one will be in a form of a full add-on.

    That mark "Designed for" or "Created for", who actually test this and applies (or don't applies) those marks?

    What is the exactly procedure for this?

    I know, I should contact our nearest Microsoft office, but I'm just asking for quick infos...


    @kriki,

    There is a First time for everything ;)
  • David_Singleton
    David_Singleton Member Posts: 5,479
    Is it worth mentioning that Certifying an Add-On today as an ISV with Microsoft is about 10 times easier than it was to register an Add-On as an NDP when Financials was first released.

    In those days, an Add-On would be rejected if you used the wrong font in the manuals to write a caption on a picture. (Yes I saw an Add-On rejected because the text "Fig 3.4" was written in 11 point instead of 10 point font under a screen shot.)

    Personally I think its important that there is a procedure for certifying Add-Ons, not because it really says that someone checked the Add-Ons, but it shows that if a company is serious enough to go to all that effort, then they probably will have invested in making the product decent.

    Of course for someone like me that has a Library of Add-Ons its tough, since the cost of moving them to 4 and 5 is just to high. But really end users need some protection that the Add-Ons they are buying are good solid products.
    David Singleton
  • Phenno
    Phenno Member Posts: 630
    David Singleton wrote:
    ...

    I agree with you but, how can somebody from Ireland (f. e.) evaluate solution that is ment for some specific region (that excludes Ireland) or some very specific/unique business features?

    Bottom line is, they can evaluate technical part of add-on, and help/documentation. But what add-on brings (at least most of add-ons do) is that business logic/functions...
  • David_Singleton
    David_Singleton Member Posts: 5,479
    Thats why Add-Ons come as either W1 version, or Specific country versions. To release a specific country version, you need to have a partner in that country that can localize for you.
    David Singleton
  • Waldo
    Waldo Member Posts: 3,412
    David Singleton wrote:
    Is it worth mentioning that Certifying an Add-On today as an ISV with Microsoft is about 10 times easier than it was to register an Add-On as an NDP when Financials was first released.

    This also has a negative consequence. There are 1400 add-ons allready. Seems that everyone is registering add-ons, even when they've not finished it, even when they're just a solution at one customer, ... . A registered add-on does not guarantee the quality :|

    Eric Wauters
    MVP - Microsoft Dynamics NAV
    My blog
  • Phenno
    Phenno Member Posts: 630
    Now, I'm a little bit confused...


    What is situation now regarding appovements for Add-ons? Do they actually testing them or not? Is testing poor now, and 'cause of that, it's much easier to register add-on?
  • Waldo
    Waldo Member Posts: 3,412
    Phenno wrote:
    Now, I'm a little bit confused...


    What is situation now regarding appovements for Add-ons? Do they actually testing them or not? Is testing poor now, and 'cause of that, it's much easier to register add-on?

    You can ask for a range to program an add-on in. From that time, you have a "registered add-on" solution and you're in the solution catalog. To become ISV, you should have your product tested by Veritest. This makes sure that the product is made conformous numerous standards (online help, install manual, user manual, database test, form design, ...). If the tests succeed, you have a tested solution, which is a much more guarantee that it is a "serious" Add-On

    Eric Wauters
    MVP - Microsoft Dynamics NAV
    My blog
  • Phenno
    Phenno Member Posts: 630
    Waldo wrote:
    Phenno wrote:
    Now, I'm a little bit confused...


    What is situation now regarding appovements for Add-ons? Do they actually testing them or not? Is testing poor now, and 'cause of that, it's much easier to register add-on?

    You can ask for a range to program an add-on in. From that time, you have a "registered add-on" solution and you're in the solution catalog. To become ISV, you should have your product tested by Veritest. This makes sure that the product is made conformous numerous standards (online help, install manual, user manual, database test, form design, ...). If the tests succeed, you have a tested solution, which is a much more guarantee that it is a "serious" Add-On

    Thanx! =D>

Categories