Re: What do people really expect from ebXML?

[David Lyon <djlyon@one.net.au>]

Core functionality...

I have read a few posts and get the impression that ebXML will be quite a
complex monster when it is finally built.

Correct me if I am wrong, but it seems to me that ebXML is heading towards
being simply a reincarnated EDI.

It would be so dissappointing if this is the case.

SME's and the 90% of business who do not have computer based electronic
commerce need a technology that is *not* EDI like. They need something much
simpler (to use) and better.

I'm suggesting that notions of "what a good e/c system actually is" are
inappropriate if they are based on EDI technology.

For example, a Plumber (a typical SME), always buys pipes. The important
thing to note is that he doesn't use a PC. Instead he drives a VAN (wheely
type not value added network).

The original EDI architecture never catered for SMEs, and if we use the same
old model again for ebXML then there is every chance that 80% of businesses
worldwide will be excluded just like they are from the current Electronic
Commerce model.

The fact is that EDI doesn't work well outside the well proven hub/spoke
model.

What people really expect from ebXML is *core components that will work on
portable technology* like PDAs, Mobile phones, Smartcards and the Net.

It's a world that has changed so fast. Remember that somebody in India
making garments can afford a PDA, a mobile phone and so forth, but may not
be able to afford a PC. They certainly can't afford a western style IT
department.

People expect ebXML will work on PDAs, consoles and other mobile devices.

So therefore, the core components need to cater for the latest hardware, and
we all must move our mindset away from looking at technology like EDI that
was designed for/by automobile manufacturers.

There really is a world out there *begging* for some decent technology.
ebXML really needs to move on from previous efforts and embrace the business
conditions that exist now, and not keep looking back to technology that
existed 20 or 30 years ago.

David Lyon