Today I got an email telling me that Microsoft is planning a jumbo patch day next Tuesday. Microsoft today said it will deliver 10 security updates next week to patch serious bugs in Windows, Internet Explorer, Word and Excel. I don’t want to pick on Microsoft, since this is a common occurrence with software vendors. Microsoft gets the lion’s share of the grief, since they have a large percentage of the OS and desktop application market.
What if I didn’t have to worry about patching bugs on my computers? I have 2 desktops and 2 laptops at home to worry about. What if someone else did it for me? If I use a SaaS application, then all I need to think about is my browser. When I use Freshbooks, Gmail, Salesforce.com and Concur, the SaaS provider fixes the bugs and I don’t worry about them. Granted there could be a bug that interferes with my desktop, but that is less common than with a local application. With a SaaS application the provider can fix these bugs quickly and every user is immediately patched. This isn’t perfect, since I still need to worry about the vulnerability of my browser, but SaaS does simplify my patching problem. It also makes it easier to use a mobile device, netbook or Internet cafe to do my work.
With SaaS you worry less about patching your applications and more about your work. Do you think things are a little easier with SaaS?
photo credit oskay