Grantopedia

Government ponders Software as a Service (SaaS)

The government is evolving its approach and understanding of the best ways to provide services to its customers, both internal and external. In this recent FCW article, The Office of Management and Budget mentions SaaS as one option the government considers, and makes note that SaaS is gaining widespread commercial acceptance. Cayuse took the Web-based SaaS approach from the outset of designing our proposal platform.

The move to focus on services also includes using software-as-a-service providers, Evans added. Software as a service is a concept that focuses on a private-sector vendor providing a platform and application that many different companies or agencies use. The application can be modified to meet their needs, but the platform remains the same. Users also can buy it through a subscription or by a per-use model.


 

PureEdge to Adobe conversion: Update from Grants.gov

If you thought you were going to get some relief when the Adobe forms come out later this year, the latest news isn't too encouraging. Based on the latest briefing at the FDP meetings, it looks like the Adobe forms will be a lot like the PureEdge forms, but with a new set of problems.

A few serious issues remain on the table. Here are a few of the more painful ones:

• Using the forms will require strict adherence to version 8.1.1 of the Reader. Open a form in Acrobat Pro or a different version of Reader, and the submission is likely to fail. Enforcing absolute uniformity across the institution seems daunting so this issue may be a big one.
• A number of clunky UI conventions exist, due in part to the attempt to make the PDF forms mimic the older PureEdge version. Part of the news here is that they're different from the conventions your audience is already familiar with so a lot of people will have to start thinking about training.
• Attachments are going to be a big challenge. You can make attachments by using Acrobat Pro and other apps. But be careful! Don't use Pro for the form itself, or it won't submit properly.
• They are, of course, still just a set of downloadable forms, lacking the many features available via a Web-based solution.

Hopefully these and other issues will be worked out before the PureEdge license expires in June but right now things look a bit nasty. All in all, if you were waiting for the Adobe forms to improve workflow or smooth communication with Grants.gov, plan on more waiting. And while you wait, gear up for what looks like a fairly cantankerous transition.

83% of federal grant opportunities covered

Last month, we did a survey of all the federal grant opportunities posted on Grants.gov. At that time, Cayuse424 supported 83% of the unexpired opportunities. Of the 10,964 form instances posted along with those opportunities, Cayuse424 covered 96% of them.

The mix of opportunities and forms posted on Grants.gov changes from day to day. But it's clear that we have support for a solid majority of them. In future releases, this will only improve.   

Research collaboration: an important trend

We've seen that collaboration is an essential element in research. In fact, the NIH has been encouraging it for a while. Now this article in the NY Times makes the case that the threat posed by global warming  is driving collaboration on an entirely new scale.

The political landscape of academia, combined with the fight for grant money, has always fostered competition far more than collaboration.

But the threat of global warming may just change all that.

Notably, the joint effort between public and private entities is striving for fast results, as opposed to the longer lifecycle of purely scientific or academic research.

And this follow-up letter from a reader rightly states that:

Universities, by contrast, are in position to deliver the groundbreaking discoveries today that will change how we live, work and play tomorrow.