Bob and Martha own and operate a 2-chair barbershop in Maine. The shop is on the square downtown where it has been for nearly 70 years. Bob’s father, “Big Bob,” started it and handed over the business about 25 years ago. Clients come from far away as it has become a meeting place for long-time friends. Bob’s son, “Little Bob,” is away at school working on an MBA and has expressed a desire to take over the business. Martha likes that idea (so they can retire), but wants to modernize some things before Little Bob comes in. Taking appointments over the phone takes time away from other shop duties. They have been considering one of those personal web sites that provides the address and business hours of the shop, but most folks know Barber Bob and the family. Martha wants more from the web site. She wants to get the business on the Internet so her clients can make appointments from their browsers before heading into town – remember, that for some, it is a long trip. She and Bob could also dial in and see the appointment schedule from their browsers at any time.
Fred has just acquired a patent for a new kind of automotive air filter – it is renewable through a special process. He has one commercial customer nearby in Illinois and expects to have more throughout the country. He plans on franchising the process and needs to track the filters as they go through the return-renew-deliver cycle to initiate customer billing and for quality control purposes. Each filter has a unique UPC code printed on it and can be scanned through a PC keyboard by the franchisees in their local renewal center. Fred wants the information to come to his “master” PC via the WWW. His PC will be online during normal business hours. Fred currently has nothing on the Internet. While developing his new product, his operation has been “stealthy” in order to avoid large competitors who make their money on “disposable” filters. But, now is the time to begin his launch into the marketplace.
Tommy is the golf director at the country club down the road in Augusta. He and his staff work very long hours to keep the course in shape and to handle calls from patrons wanting to reserve tee times. Sometimes, patrons call from cross-country to reserve times for business associates. Tee times are all pre-set, but they change slightly with the seasons. Tommy sets the tee slots at the beginning of the season. He wants to get the scheduling on the Internet so he and his staff can spend more time working on the course (and away from the phones). Tommy wants around the clock availability so patrons can reserve a tee time from their browsers anytime, anywhere. The country club has a LAN already connected to the Internet with a cable modem.
ParentCare in Utah offers assisted living for senior citizens. Penny is the administrative assistant and wants to put two aspects of their business on the Internet for residents’ friends and relatives who live throughout the country: post “Activities of the Month” and “Weekly Meal Menus.” They already have a web site containing information about the center. Unfortunately, it is very difficult and time consuming to update the contents of the site with new information and pictures of recent activities. They add about 100 pictures each month to the online photo album. When their web site administrator goes on vacation, ParentCare can make no changes to the site’s contents.
What do the stories have in common? Simply put, they are all about very small businesses wanting to get on the Internet. They are not about mammoth corporations with mega bucks to spend. The businesses in these stories do not want to put up complete ERP systems and they don’t have their own IT organization filled with C++, VB and COBOL programmers, web page designers, HTML experts, database designers and administrators, and computer operators. Yet IBM and others would have us believe “it is possible.” And, the hidden message is that it is affordable by even the businesses in these stories.
“I’ve done some web surfing, but I know only LINC and LDA, so what has all this got to do with me?” you may be asking yourself. Well, surprise, you probably have the skills required to get each of these business on the Internet. Think how you would design a 10 to 20 ISPEC LINC system to solve each of the business scenarios in the stories. Think of what GUI, web-based screens (throw away the T-27s) might look like.
Keep thinking. Add to those thoughts, the fact that you can do this in your own time, at your own pace, in your own place, making your own income. You are what we call an “Application Developer (AD).” You develop and test applications in LDA; they are deployed to the WWW using LDA Runtime and special software we provide. Your customers are yours: you find them in your own neighborhood or in your own way. They pay you directly for the application you develop or obtain from other ADs (Hmmmm, this means if you write a good application, you could sell it to other ADs). Your customers pay someone else for the deployment of their application (that could be you, too – read on).
LDA Runtime applications are “front-ended” with special software we provide called a “Connector.” Each LDA Runtime requires its own Connector and Internet connectivity. A PC can host only one Connector, thus there can be only one application per PC. People that provide the application platforms (PC plus Connector plus LDA Runtime with your application) are called virtual Application Providers (vAPs). They charge the customer to “host” an application usually on a monthly basis. VAPs do not need permanent Internet IP addresses in order to offer up an LDA Runtime to the WWW. They pay and connect to someone else to publish each Connector to the Internet (that could be you, too – read on).
The Connector connects to the WWW with special software we provide called a “Monitor.” The Monitor can serve as the publisher to a large number of Connectors simultaneously and runs under a Microsoft Web Server having a permanent IP number on the Internet. People providing these platforms (PC plus Monitor plus Web Server plus permanent IP) can legally host web sites and are called virtual IP Providers (vIPs). They charge vAPs to publish Connectors usually on a monthly basis. VIPs pay IEG $1,000/yr for each Connector they publish to the Internet.
What you charge your clients is your business. We have seen charges vary widely from $2,000.00 per web page (ISPEC) to $8,500.00 per web page. Just make sure to cover your costs as is wise in any business venture.
You are responsible to license LDA from Unisys. In addition, all hardware, Internet services and other PC application software are your responsibility to acquire. You pay IEG $1,000 for each deployment of an application to cover special development and test software that IEG provides.
There are a variety of ways to implement LDA applications in the stories – including scanning the filters and the photo album. The client can purchase the hardware and arrange for the Internet connectivity and even install and manage the web server. However, regardless of who runs the PC and manages the Web Server the basic components remain the same.
o A PC will need to be purchased to contain the application and of course this PC will require Internet connectivity.
o The application will cost something (as determined by whoever wrote it).
o Each application will require DHTML forms generated by IEG’s Interface Builder (IB).
o Each application will require Connector (provided by IEG).
o Each application will need Internet visibility by connecting to a Monitor (provided by IEG).
All clients except Tee-Time Tommy will need access from their PC to the Internet through an Internet Service Provider (ISP).
Barber Bob, Filter Fred and Planner Penny have no desire to manage web servers or LDA Runtime environments, so they will need to make arrangements with someone who will host the application (vAP) and who can provide 24x7 availability.
Tee-Time Tommy already has a web server and wants to add the scheduling application. With the existing web server already in place, he will host all the new software. Tommy will be come a vIP and vAP.
Planner Penny already has an ISP and a computer and would like to incorporate as much of the existing site as possible – especially the pictures.
Filter Fred wants to “host” his own application in order to run other application software, but doesn’t have the skills or desire to implement and manage a web server. He decides to host his own application on his own hardware (Fred will become a vAP). Since he does not need 24x7, he plans on a dial-up connection to a provider who will be hosting the vIP Monitor (vIP).
|
|
ISP |
Application Development |
Application Deployment |
PC |
|
Barber Bob |
14.95/mo |
9,000 |
2,000/yr |
1,500 |
|
Filter Fred |
19.95/mo |
20,000 |
5,000/yr |
3,500 |
|
Tee-Time Tommy |
Club is an ISP |
14,000 |
8,000/yr |
1,500 |
|
Planner Penny |
Already has an ISP |
32,000 |
1,200/yr |
2,000 |
$$$$$$$$$$
The application
development (AD) and hosting service revenue is yours.
IEG receives monthly or annual
fees for the usage or access to the vIP Monitor and vIP Connector.
$$$$$$$$$$