Intelligent Enterprise

NetSuite is offering development tools for independent software vendors and value-added resellers to build industry-specific applications on the vendor's software-as-a-service platform.

NetSuite offers over the Internet integrated business software suites that include accounting and enterprise resource planning, customer relationship management and e-commerce. Competitors include Salesforce.com.

In launching the NetSuite Business Operating System this week, the vendor is offering to host third-party software on its multi-tenant, on-demand architecture. As a result, ISVs and VARs can extend NetSuite's underlying capabilities to specific verticals.

NetSuite calls its development tools SuitFlex, which includes point-and-click tools to underlying Web services and the SuiteScript programming language, which is based on JavaScript. Part of the development environment is SuiteScript D-Bug, a debugger for code validation and testing on NetSuite's server environment against live data.

The Web-based D-Bug interface is similar to those found in popular integrated development environments, such as Microsoft Visual Studio, NetSuite said. The debugging tool includes controlled code execution, such as setting break points and step in, out, and over; as well as providing execution logs, local variable inspection and watches.

Once applications have been built, NetSuite is offering SuiteTalk, which are tools for integrating with the underlying NetSuite applications using SOAP; and SuiteBundler for packaging applications for deployment by customers. SOAP, or simple object access protocol, is a message-based protocol that uses XML for accessing services on the Web.

The benefit of NS-BOS to ISVs and VARs is faster development of SaaS applications that automate industry specific business processes through business rules and workflows running on top of NetSuite's core ERP, CRM and e-commerce functionality. For the vendor, third-party developers extend its reach into vertical markets.

NetSuite says partners have already built with NS-BOS software for government service contractors, high-volume e-commerce operations and EDI system integrators.

The SuiteScript D-Bug is available now to developers, ISVs and VARs. It'll be available to NetSuite customers on a rolling basis from March through May. All the other components of NS-BOS are available to all parties now. ISVs and VARs building applications with NS-BOS can set the price of their software with an agreed-to revenue share with NetSuite.