Zoho Creator - in House?

Zoho Creator is a Platform as a Service. (PasS) It allows people like me and you to create forms driven database applications with relative ease and access them via a browser.

Even better, sprinkle lightly with Zoho's Deluge script and the addition of logic and workflow transforms the app from data collection to a workflow driven tool that can solve many unique business problems.

Until now this has only been available via a subscription from Zoho. Many people, myself included have asked for either a Zoho device or a version of Zoho that will run behind a company firewall.

Well according to a post by the Zoho Creator team on Facebook today that might be happening.

Could Zoho creator become a PFH - Platform for Hire?

What are the possible implications?

Pro's

• A new set of customers I can target who are concerned or obliged by law to keep their data within their control
• Potential new functionality e.g. accessing local fileshares, printers, directories etc
• Speed / responsiveness improvements - Although for me ZC has always been perfectly acceptable
• Possible licencing improvements regarding number of users who can access the applications - I would expect this to be relaxed as the clients infrastructure is doing the work apart from authentication.

Con's

• Feature incompatibility? ZC's distributed architecture may work better than local hosting for some types of apps
• Another application to manage, patch, update?
• Could be slower to receive new features in the development roadmap?
• There may be broken integration between ZC and for example CRM, Zoho Reports?

This is just conjecture of course, until the Zoho guys and girls remove the covers and do a full announcement. I expect great things.

Drop me your thoughts in the comments