ASP Project Management Software

Introduction to Project Management Software
ASP Project Management Software
Project Management Software as a Service
On-Demand and Online Project Management Software
Project Management Software Lists, Links, Comparisons and Reviews


Offering project management software in an Application Service Provider (ASP) model was popular in the late 1990's and early 2000's. ASP project management software can be thought of as the cutting-off point in the evolution of project management software. Looking at the movement of project management software starting from mainframe applications, moving to desktop applications then to client-server type project management applications, ASP is a threshold. It marks an attempt at offering enterprise or department wide project management appplications on a more broadly affordable, easier to use and easier to administer model (from a software administration and deployment angle).

Project management software vendors used different approach for accomplishing these goals. Generally, though, it was accomplished by taking an existing project management software and re-architecting it or opening it up so that users could remotely access the computer it lived on.. The project management software company would then utilize a third party provider to host the application (somewhere with big enough pipes so that multiple users could access it) and structure payments for the application like a lease.

At that time, ASP project management software did not mean that the application was made any easier to use, cheaper to buy, or that it required any less training or less of a commitment on behalf of the buyer. It was more of a way for project management software companies to start to experiment with the infrastructure provided by the internet.

There were companies that tried to ASP project management software like Microsoft Project. But the ASP model for project management software, in itself, was more of a starting point, a line in the sand. It kicked off significant changes in project management software and the way applications were built and delivered.

Fast-forward five years or so and the internet is everywhere. Internet access is pervasive in most businesses, including small to medium sized businesses, creating a lower cost distribution and development channel for project management software. Companies and users are on the web in droves. Software can now be built, delivered, administered and used "on-demand." This environment is the birthplace of Software as a Service project management software.