THE ROLE OF INTEROPERABILITY

Interoperability -- the ability to work with other systems -- is the soul of the Internet.

Some phrases get used so much they become the stuff of legend. One such example is "No one ever gets fired for buying IBM" and its progeny, adopted to fit the circumstances of the day. People who regurgitate this sort of phrase, seeking the safety of numbers, waste their opportunity to make a mark, to find a way to provide the perfect solution to the problem at hand. Thus, instead of solving the problem, they find a way to muddle through it along with everyone else.

Our solutions aren't based on marketroid predictions about who will and who won't be around next year.

"Netscape compatible", "Macintosh compatible", "Microsoft compatible", and "IBM compatible" are useless phrases on the Internet. You don't need to use the same stuff that everyone else does. Your problems are unique, so solve them. Be an individual if you must.

Interoperability doesn't mean using the same stuff that everyone else does. Interoperability means providing the ability to communicate with everyone else. Don't "standardize" on the tools for creation; standardize on the mechanisms for communication. This is how it works when computers aren't involved: Think what you want, the way you want and I'll do the same. Then when it's time for us to share our throughts, we'll do so using a language we both know, perhaps English.

Solve your problems the right way and you don't need to be dependent on your vendor. You don't need to use the same stuff that everyone else does if it doesn't work for you. Use the tools that solve your problems better than any other can. The Internet makes this possible. Any vendor who claims otherwise fails to understand the Internet. Any vendor who fails to understand the Internet will be incapable of making you get the biggest return on your investment in Internet technology.

It really is that simple.