29
Fri, Nov
0 New Articles

Technology Focus: Electronic Commerce Apps and Services

Commerce - Other
Typography
  • Smaller Small Medium Big Bigger
  • Default Helvetica Segoe Georgia Times

The importance of Electronic Commerce continues to grow. EC product vendors weigh in on the future of the market and the best ways to get started with an implementation.

 

With Electronic Commerce (EC) seeming to increase its contribution to the bottom line at most companies year after year, its importance to enterprises is growing proportionally. Given the opportunities to do meaningful business at any hour, with customers or trading partners located anywhere on the globe, companies who ignore or shortchange EC as part of their business plan do so at their peril.

 

If your organization is planning an overhaul of its EC operations, or even belatedly just getting started, an overview of the software options available for the IBM i may be helpful.

 

Although EC touches on many functional business areas, here we'll look only at general EC suites and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) offerings for general use with IBM i machines, as opposed to industry-specific EC applications or point-of-sale products. For a review of other functional areas closely related to EC, other MCPressOnline articles may be useful. For an overview of customer relationship management products, please see "Technology Focus: Apps for Managing Your Customer Relationships." For enterprise resource planning (ERP) applications, please see "Technology Focus: ERP Software for IBM i Offers a Smorgasbord of Features." For a closer look at supply chain options, please see "Technology Focus: Keeping the Links in Your Supply Chain Strong." Although data security is integral to the EC process, for a closer look at those kinds of products, please see "Technology Focus: Encryption and Tokenization."

General Advice on Getting Started with EC

If you're just getting started with EC, a survey of opinions from four major EC application vendors in the IBM i market shows that the most universal advice is to recognize that an EC initiative touches nearly all areas of a business.

 

"Probably the most important decision is to recognize that EC is not an IT-only project," warn Lana Ho, director of professional services, and Paul McDonald, services manager, both at LANSA. "It is a business project where sales, marketing, IT, finance, and operations are all stakeholders in the process. These stakeholders must then determine the target audience and the purpose of the e-commerce initiative."

 

"First, decide on the scope of your electronic commerce solution requirements," agrees Jim O'Leary, vice president of product management at EXTOL. "Will you focus strictly on meeting immediate needs, or also take future needs into account, and if so, which ones?"

 

Ron Katz, president of ENTRACK, suggests asking questions such as, "It is cost-effective? Will it provide faster response time between trading partners? Will this provide more electronic capturing of data as opposed to a manual process? Is this utilizing current technologies? Will this provide a good vendor/customer relationship?"

 

Jim Scott, senior VP and general manager at ACOM Solutions, points to process improvement and return on investment as the most key considerations.

 

"Many companies underestimate the scope of an e-commerce initiative. The good e-commerce site represents the results of a series of well-thought-out processes and internal projects across multiple business units within the enterprise," stress LANSA's Ho and McDonald. They recommend asking such questions as "Will the e-commerce site represent an extension of sales or marketing or both? Will the site be driving new business or facilitating current customers? Will the site service a multilingual user base? Will social media be required as an important element of the initiative? Where will product and content data come from? How will the e-commerce solution be dynamically integrated into the existing catalog, ERP, pricing, ordering processes? Where will the Web-ready content, images, translations (for multilingual customers) be sourced for the site?"

 

"Decide whether you want to outsource the platform, implementation, and operation of your EC solution, instead of using in-house personnel and resources," elaborates EXTOL's O'Leary. "The main factors that drive this decision are personnel requirements, skill-set compatibility, time-to-deployment, risk tolerance, and budgetary flexibility. Decide how you want to stage capabilities over time. Staggering projects and phasing in trading partners, document types, and application interfaces lets you deliver important capabilities earlier, less expensively, and with lower risk than tackling your complete EC program in one giant project."

 

In planning for the future, O'Leary concludes, "Look at the requirements of your most important partners first, then look at the needs of smaller partners. Decide what kinds of interactions you need to support. Ask yourself if upcoming mergers and acquisitions might affect a need to integrate data and applications, or to synchronize databases."

EDI and XML: Not Exactly Competing

Aside from the strategic business concerns, there is at least one technical question that needs an early answer. That's what document exchange standards an EC system will need to support.

 

There are several major standards for EDI document exchanges. ANSI ASC X12, or X12 for short, is the primary standard used between North American businesses. UN/EDIFACT is the most widely used standard for international EC. Less commonly used are TRADACOMS, primarily used in the U.K., and ODETTE, a standard used in the European automotive market.

 

Extensible Markup Language (XML) has also increased in use in EC document exchanges, but not all the vendors agree on its importance.

 

"More customers are using XML for application integration; however, no two implementations have been alike," notes ACOM's Scott. "Unfortunately, without an 'across the board' XML standards-compliance initiative, this will continue to be a high-priced option."

 

"I haven't seen a huge increase [in need for XML]," reports ENTRACK's Katz. "Current EDI documents that use X12 and EDIFACT are more standard."

 

"We've seen an increase in XML adoption for EC, but primarily for application-side integration," observe LANSA's Ho and McDonald. "In part, this trend is driven by application-vendor adoption of XML, but we also see businesses adopt XML internally for proprietary interfaces, [and] because of portability, tool support, and other advantages. [Otherwise,] use of XML for EC documents is driven primarily by larger companies and consortia."

The Future Outlook for EC Apps

When asked if there's any significant difference between EC apps for IBM i and other platforms, the vendors cited agree that today there really isn't. O'Leary best sums up the biggest change by stating, "Years ago, businesses invested in tight integration between EC middleware and IBM i applications. Today, most businesses we talk to who have IBM i investments prefer to install EC middleware on less expensive Linux or Windows machines, accessing IBM i resources over the network."

 

When asked what the most common requests for new features in EC apps are, ACOM cites enhanced XML capabilities and HIPAA 5010 EDI compliance. ENTRACK notes new communication encryption methods. EXTOL points to improved visibility of EC content and activity data to better support service-level agreements, auditing requirements, and daily operations. LANSA has seen requests for Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance, social marketing, dynamic content management, and mobile solutions.

 

The most critical technology that may affect EC in the future is also the source of multiple views from the queried vendors.

 

Using cost-effective, PC-based translation tools is ACOM's suggestion. Communication features for the IBM i such as encryption is ENTRACK's thought. EXTOL believes the ways in which cloud computing will change EC is going to be a major issue. LANSA, perhaps a bit more ominously, sums it up this way: "With the on-demand expectations of the target market, the paradigm shift to an app-centric view, and the fragmentation in the mobile-device market, the ability to keep pace is daunting."

 

No time like the present for getting started.

 

Below is a quick summary of some major EC application and service vendors for IBM i. Obviously, these descriptions are incomplete information about the offerings. They are simply summaries of major features to help you decide where to focus your own research efforts first.

 

As always when looking for products or services, be sure to check the MC Press Online Buyer's Guide.

EC-Related Applications and Services for IBM i

ACOM Solutions

EZConnect EDI/XML

EZConnect EDI/XML automates translation of business documents between EC trading partners. It enables direct access to multiple databases and applications systems, automatically maps documents from new trading partners without user intervention, and includes document-level tracking and auditing capabilities.

 

Aktion Associates

DataLink/400

DataLink/400 is a data-synchronization tool that interfaces between DB2 databases and IBM/Lotus Notes-based e-commerce applications. The product supports real-time synchronization of IBM i data with online Domino applications, offers synchronization for applications that require disconnected users, and controls timing of data transfers through triggers.

 

ASSISTCornerstone

ASSISTCommerce Suite

ASSISTCommerce Suite is an end-to-end, cross-channel, real-time enterprise solution for companies selling their products to end users. The suite includes an order-management system designed to support multi-channel commerce activities between retailing enterprises. It includes features for handling customer contact, order management, inventory, fulfillment, and accounting, as well as offering multi-lingual and multi-currency capabilities.

 

Axway

Axway B2Bi

Axway B2Bi runs on IBM i under AIX and Windows. It provides an integration solution that ties together software products of multiple enterprises, provides a data exchange via EDI and other B2B software messaging systems, and helps users manage business transactions and other communications.

 

Axway Integrator

Axway Integrator runs under AIX and Windows and provides real-time data control and transformation to help enterprises manage partner networks. It can process data in any format, including all variations of EDO, XML, flat files, as well as data from in-house applications and common ERP packages such as Lawson, Oracle, and SAP.

 

CLEO

LexiCom

LexiCom is a secure data-transfer solution that can be used to support EC activities. It can interface to IBM i via a Windows PC used as a gateway. The product supports more than 30 EDI translators.

 

DPS

DPS Flash

DPS Flash runs on IBM's WebSphere Application Server and provides e-business integration services for wholesalers and distributors. It supports XML communications, credit-card payments, order processing, customer self-service features, and security controls.

 

Ektron

e-Commerce

Ektron's e-Commerce is an accelerator for enterprises seeking to establish EC websites. The product includes prefabricated shopping cart, payment gateway, order fulfillment, and browser interface software components to help developers rapidly build EC capabilities.

 

ENTRACK

ENTRACK EDI Software

ENTRACK EDI Software is a GUI that supports EDI communications and standards on platforms running i/OS or Windows. It supports numerous encryption standards, multiple-company operations, as well as VANS and private networks.

 

EXTOL

EXTOL Business Integrator (EBI)

EXTOL's EBI runs under i5/OS, Linux, and Windows. It replaces conventional EDI translators, mapping tools, XML integrators, data integration tools, and web services toolkits and integrates with existing applications, data, and business processes to create simple point-to-point connections that automate parts of larger processes.

 

EXTOL EDI Integrator for i

EXTOL EDI Integrator for i integrates external business partner transactions with internal applications and data, based on any combination of X12, EDIFACT, or proprietary flat-file information. The product also includes administrative dashboards, support for all major EDI standards and proprietary formats, automated trading-partner setups, and auditing features.

 

EXTOL EDI Integrator Option

EXTOL EDI Integrator Option extends the services of the EXTOL Business Integrator product on platforms running Linux and Windows. The product provides a combination of integration services, tools, and metadata needed to create, deliver, manage, and maintain EDI collaborations. The solution extends the services and tools foundation used in EBI to support non-EDI collaborations and business integration.

 

EXTOL Enterprise Adapters (EEA) for Applications

EXTOL's EEA product family offers design-time and runtime interface components that integrate commercial application systems with external trading partners and internal applications and enterprise data, using XML, EDI, spreadsheet, flat file, and database content. Supported third-party applications include those from Oracle/J.D. Edwards, Infor, and SAP.

 

EXTOL Portal

The EXTOL Portal is a combined software and service offering that facilitates migration to full Internet-based e-commerce by enabling communications with traditional VANs and private networks as well as Internet-connected partners and exchanges.

 

GSX

Managed Services

GSX, which absorbed Inovis in 2010, offers a wide range of EC-related managed services for companies, including those using IBM i, that want to establish an EC trading network. Services include mapping and translation, trading community management, technical support, data-center operations, and reporting.

 

IBM Corporation

WebSphere Commerce

IBM WebSphere Commerce enables construction and maintenance of EC sites for enterprises that include relevant content, marketing and promotions, and all selling business models (including B2C, B2B, and B2B2C) in a single customer interaction platform.

 

I/NET

Commerce Server/400

Commerce Server/400 is an HTTP daemon that gives enterprises the ability to conduct secure, encrypted financial and other transactions over the Internet.

 

Merchant/400

Merchant/400 helps users create merchant applications that function over the Internet. The product accepts credit card transactions and authorizes or rejects transactions in real-time.

 

LANSA

LANSA Composer for EDI

LANSA Composer for EDI facilitates integration of business-transaction documents with applications. It includes EDI-mapping and automatic translation of traditional EDI documents to and from application databases.

 

LANSA Data Secure Direct

LANSA Data Secure Direct provides Applicability Statement 2 compliance for companies using traditional EDI for EC communications, as well as XML documents. It runs under i5/OS and Windows and integrates with existing EDI translators.

 

LANSA Commerce Edition

 

LANSA Commerce Edition is a suite of Business-to-Consumer (B2C) and Business-to-Business (B2B) components built upon LANSA's powerful, award-winning productivity tools. Using a framework approach, LANSA Commerce Edition rapidly generates IBM i (System i, iSeries, AS/400) and Windows eBusiness applications which leverage your existing ERP system. The eBusiness applications integrate with existing logic such as pricing and inventory allocation with real-time data access to provide award winning customer self service to your business partners and users.

 

MICROS

eOne Commerce

MICROS' eOne Commerce runs on any platform supporting Java to provide online consumer EC services for nearly any business type. Features include catalog browsing, ordering, customer self-service, promotions, inventory checks, and customer information updating.

 

NetSuite

Suite Commerce

Suite Commerce is a SaaS offering that provides a wide range of customizable B2B and B2C EC services, including product catalog, site navigation, online ordering, inventory and order management, and online analytics and reporting.

 

OpenText

EasyLink

EasyLink is an EDI service-provision arm of OpenText. Service options include an EDI VAN, EDI via the Web, a service bureau, and other managed services. Service offerings may be specialized or combined and support all platforms.

 

Prime Factors

Psypher Security Suite

Psypher Security Suite lets users manage a trading-partner database of encrypted keys and security options to protect EC transactions. The suite supports hub-spoke trading configurations and multiple EC protocols, and runs on AIX and Linux as well as i/OS.

 

Townsend Security

Alliance XML/400

Alliance XML/400 supports EC activities by automating the inbound and outbound processes of XML documents and Web services. The product handles ASCII-to-EBCDIC translation, data conversion to IBM i numeric formats, field-length validation, Base64 encoding, and IFS file integration for inter-enterprise documents.

 

 

John Ghrist

John Ghrist has been a journalist, programmer, and systems manager in the computer industry since 1982. He has covered the market for IBM i servers and their predecessor platforms for more than a quarter century and has attended more than 25 COMMON conferences. A former editor-in-chief with Defense Computing and a senior editor with SystemiNEWS, John has written and edited hundreds of articles and blogs for more than a dozen print and electronic publications. You can reach him at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

BLOG COMMENTS POWERED BY DISQUS

LATEST COMMENTS

Support MC Press Online

$

Book Reviews

Resource Center

  • SB Profound WC 5536 Have you been wondering about Node.js? Our free Node.js Webinar Series takes you from total beginner to creating a fully-functional IBM i Node.js business application. You can find Part 1 here. In Part 2 of our free Node.js Webinar Series, Brian May teaches you the different tooling options available for writing code, debugging, and using Git for version control. Brian will briefly discuss the different tools available, and demonstrate his preferred setup for Node development on IBM i or any platform. Attend this webinar to learn:

  • SB Profound WP 5539More than ever, there is a demand for IT to deliver innovation. Your IBM i has been an essential part of your business operations for years. However, your organization may struggle to maintain the current system and implement new projects. The thousands of customers we've worked with and surveyed state that expectations regarding the digital footprint and vision of the company are not aligned with the current IT environment.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT Generic IBM announced the E1080 servers using the latest Power10 processor in September 2021. The most powerful processor from IBM to date, Power10 is designed to handle the demands of doing business in today’s high-tech atmosphere, including running cloud applications, supporting big data, and managing AI workloads. But what does Power10 mean for your data center? In this recorded webinar, IBMers Dan Sundt and Dylan Boday join IBM Power Champion Tom Huntington for a discussion on why Power10 technology is the right strategic investment if you run IBM i, AIX, or Linux. In this action-packed hour, Tom will share trends from the IBM i and AIX user communities while Dan and Dylan dive into the tech specs for key hardware, including:

  • Magic MarkTRY the one package that solves all your document design and printing challenges on all your platforms. Produce bar code labels, electronic forms, ad hoc reports, and RFID tags – without programming! MarkMagic is the only document design and print solution that combines report writing, WYSIWYG label and forms design, and conditional printing in one integrated product. Make sure your data survives when catastrophe hits. Request your trial now!  Request Now.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericForms of ransomware has been around for over 30 years, and with more and more organizations suffering attacks each year, it continues to endure. What has made ransomware such a durable threat and what is the best way to combat it? In order to prevent ransomware, organizations must first understand how it works.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericIT security is a top priority for businesses around the world, but most IBM i pros don’t know where to begin—and most cybersecurity experts don’t know IBM i. In this session, Robin Tatam explores the business impact of lax IBM i security, the top vulnerabilities putting IBM i at risk, and the steps you can take to protect your organization. If you’re looking to avoid unexpected downtime or corrupted data, you don’t want to miss this session.

  • SB HelpSystems ROBOT GenericCan you trust all of your users all of the time? A typical end user receives 16 malicious emails each month, but only 17 percent of these phishing campaigns are reported to IT. Once an attack is underway, most organizations won’t discover the breach until six months later. A staggering amount of damage can occur in that time. Despite these risks, 93 percent of organizations are leaving their IBM i systems vulnerable to cybercrime. In this on-demand webinar, IBM i security experts Robin Tatam and Sandi Moore will reveal:

  • FORTRA Disaster protection is vital to every business. Yet, it often consists of patched together procedures that are prone to error. From automatic backups to data encryption to media management, Robot automates the routine (yet often complex) tasks of iSeries backup and recovery, saving you time and money and making the process safer and more reliable. Automate your backups with the Robot Backup and Recovery Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAManaging messages on your IBM i can be more than a full-time job if you have to do it manually. Messages need a response and resources must be monitored—often over multiple systems and across platforms. How can you be sure you won’t miss important system events? Automate your message center with the Robot Message Management Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAThe thought of printing, distributing, and storing iSeries reports manually may reduce you to tears. Paper and labor costs associated with report generation can spiral out of control. Mountains of paper threaten to swamp your files. Robot automates report bursting, distribution, bundling, and archiving, and offers secure, selective online report viewing. Manage your reports with the Robot Report Management Solution. Key features include:

  • FORTRAFor over 30 years, Robot has been a leader in systems management for IBM i. With batch job creation and scheduling at its core, the Robot Job Scheduling Solution reduces the opportunity for human error and helps you maintain service levels, automating even the biggest, most complex runbooks. Manage your job schedule with the Robot Job Scheduling Solution. Key features include:

  • LANSA Business users want new applications now. Market and regulatory pressures require faster application updates and delivery into production. Your IBM i developers may be approaching retirement, and you see no sure way to fill their positions with experienced developers. In addition, you may be caught between maintaining your existing applications and the uncertainty of moving to something new.

  • LANSAWhen it comes to creating your business applications, there are hundreds of coding platforms and programming languages to choose from. These options range from very complex traditional programming languages to Low-Code platforms where sometimes no traditional coding experience is needed. Download our whitepaper, The Power of Writing Code in a Low-Code Solution, and:

  • LANSASupply Chain is becoming increasingly complex and unpredictable. From raw materials for manufacturing to food supply chains, the journey from source to production to delivery to consumers is marred with inefficiencies, manual processes, shortages, recalls, counterfeits, and scandals. In this webinar, we discuss how:

  • The MC Resource Centers bring you the widest selection of white papers, trial software, and on-demand webcasts for you to choose from. >> Review the list of White Papers, Trial Software or On-Demand Webcast at the MC Press Resource Center. >> Add the items to yru Cart and complet he checkout process and submit

  • Profound Logic Have you been wondering about Node.js? Our free Node.js Webinar Series takes you from total beginner to creating a fully-functional IBM i Node.js business application.

  • SB Profound WC 5536Join us for this hour-long webcast that will explore:

  • Fortra IT managers hoping to find new IBM i talent are discovering that the pool of experienced RPG programmers and operators or administrators with intimate knowledge of the operating system and the applications that run on it is small. This begs the question: How will you manage the platform that supports such a big part of your business? This guide offers strategies and software suggestions to help you plan IT staffing and resources and smooth the transition after your AS/400 talent retires. Read on to learn: