From the Inside July/August 2016
It is the time of year that I start planning for the next Spectrum conference. If you haven't yet seen the ad for the 2017 Spectrum, it will be May 1st-4th at The Wigwam in Litchfield Park, (Phoenix), Arizona. This is the same venue as the 2016 conference.
It seems like the conference is pretty far away, but it really isn't. I have to start planning everyone's sessions so you have something to show to your company. I would like to know what you, as a MultiValue user, would like to see. What topics will sell your bosses on sending you to Spectrum?
The demands on your IT department are getting more specific, which defines the types of examples and business solutions that you need to know more about. I remember having to justify my attendance, so I watch the trends that are coming. The conference works because we update our content with the times.
We have MultiValue Experts as speakers who give us great content, but it is up to me to guide them. It is up to you to guide me. I would like to hear from the MultiValue Users and Developers. I want to make sure you get the materials, education, and experiences that are needed to maximize your ability to create efficient enterprise applications.
There are a lot of different trends floating around right now. If you are unsure what you would like to see, here are a few that I've noticed:
Virtualization/Cloud Computing
Everyone is talking Cloud Computing and Virtualization, and for pretty good reasons. We have presented topics on Virtualization and Cloud Computing at the conference before, but what are you interested in hearing next? Do you need to know how to integrate MultiValue databases into a cloud API, like Azure or Google App Engine? Or are you looking run a MultiValue server in a VM(Virtual Machine)?
Tablets and Mobile Apps
Mobile Line-of-Business applications are a must. Many companies are not taking full advantage of what mobile apps can bring or how they should be used in the enterprise. How can we help you help them?
Windows 10 and Universal Apps
Working with Windows 10 development can be a pain, especially if you haven't been part of the beta program. Would you like to see general sessions on how to use Windows 10? On how Universal Apps are created? These would probably not be MultiValue specific, but we need to know about other software to make our jobs possible, so I'd be happy to include them.
Office 365 REST Services
Looking to integrate Office 365 more closely with your Line-of-Business application? Documents, calendars, e-mail, spreadsheets… there are versions that are free and versions for a fee. All can be integrated with your MultiValue data.
Integration - Email, CRM, EMR, LDAP, Active Directory
Do you have other applications within your environment that you need to integrate with? We have been an island unto ourselves for so long, we sometimes forget that our business has information that other systems can use, or is necessary for business functions. What integration options do you need?
External Programming Languages
What languages are your business requiring you to work with? .NET, Java, Python, Javascript, HTML, JSON… there are many others. We can provide topics on all of these, both stand-alone and in connection with your databases.
These are just a few examples. What do you find most interesting? What are the trends and topics that you would like to have covered in sessions at Spectrum? I would like to hear from you.
Nathan Rector, President of International Spectrum, has been in the MultiValue marketplace as a consultant, author, and presenter since 1992. As a consultant, Nathan specialized in integrating MultiValue applications with other devices and non-MultiValue data, structures, and applications into existing MultiValue databases. During that time, Nathan worked with PDA, Mobile Device, Handheld scanners, POS, and other manufacturing and distribution interfaces.
In 2006, Nathan purchased International Spectrum Magazine and Conference and has been working with the MultiValue Community to expand its reach into current technologies and markets. During this time he has been providing mentorship training to people converting Console Applications (Green Screen/Text Driven) to GUI (Graphical User Interfaces), Mobile, and Web. He has also been working with new developers to the MultiValue Marketplace to train them in how MultiValue works and acts, as well as how it differs from the traditional Relational Database Model (SQL).
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