This weekend I received an invitation to open a free Google Voice account. Google Voice (formerly GrandCentral) is currently available by invite only. If you haven’t already heard about it, Google Voice is a service that makes using your current phones much better!

Here’s what it offers:

• A personal phone number that rings all of your existing phones when people call
• All of your voicemail in one inbox with unlimited online storage and free voicemail transcripts sent to your phone and email
• Low-priced international calling to over 200 countries and free SMS
• Other powerful features like the first phone spam filter to protect you from unwanted callers, the ability to ListenIn™ on your voicemail messages while they are being left, conference calling and more

After spending some time tinkering around with it I have to say that in general I am impressed. I can’t wait for Google to launch an official API for Google Voice!

SugarCRM API Integration

EDU Interactive completed another successful integration of Lead Genisys with Sugar CRM for a valued client this week. In real-time Lead Gensiys delivers new leads directly into Sugar and sends an email alert, notifying the assigned user that a new leads has been received. Lead Genisys also handles the complex reporting requirements that the Sugar CRM Open Source Edition does not include. Sugar Open Source is at the forefront of integration with its open source, standards-based architecture which enables applications to be seamlessly integrated with each other. The Sugar SOAP API makes tasks like inserting and relating records, and assigning records to users at the time of inserting them a breeze.

About SugarCRM

According to the Info Tech Research Group SugarCRM is becoming a disruptive force in the small enterprise Customer Relationship Management (CRM) market. Its commercial open source model, CRM appliance option, low price, and strong set of CRM features are impacting more traditional methods of CRM delivery and the perception of CRM value among small enterprises. Despite its small size compared to other vendors, SugarCRM scored highest in the Product Index of its evaluation, due to its broad features and extremely flexible deployment options.

Talisma iServices API Integration

EDU Interactive completed another successful integration of Lead Genisys with Talisma CRM for a valued client this week. In real-time Lead Gensiys creates, sources and assigns new leads in Talisma. Remarketing efforts seamlessly update existing lead records. Lead Genisys also automatically pulls complex reports from Talisma and processes the data to drive business decisions.

Talisma CampusCRM

Talisma CRM is a Client Relationship Management software product which encompasses enrollment management, student retention, student services, education finance, alumni relations and more.

Campus Management

Talisma CRM was aquired by Campus Management Corp in November 2008 as part of an agreement with nGenera Corporation that included the asset aquisition of its subsidiary, Talisma Corporation.

Technical Details

The integration utilized the Talisma iServices Web Service using the SOAP protocol. SOAP is a simple XML-based protocol which allows communication between applications running on different operating systems, with different technologies and programming languages.

What is an API?
I am frequently questioned by my peers as to what exactly an API is… The acronym API stands for Application Programming Interface. An Application Programming Interface (API) in layman’s terms is simply an interface for allowing two different programs or systems to communicate. Note: API is also commonly called a 3rd-Party Integration Method or Web Services Intergration. Think of it as a universal language – like Sign Language. Now imagine an Italian trying to speak Italian with a German who only knows German. This gets them nowhere. Now imagine that they are both able to use Sign Language. The language barrier is now broken. An API is kind of like Sign Language, in that it breaks the programming language/interface barrier. All modern programming languages today are able to communicate to APIs using standard protocols. My personal favorite – the world’s most popular web programming language – is PHP. Using PHP, I am able to interface with modern online systems, as well as perform complex third-party integrations with legacy systems for our EDU Interactive clients.

Who offers an API?
Many of the larger, more reputable online companies offer API integration to some or all of their services. A few companies that have mature APIs are Google, Yahoo, Salesforce, Digg, Flickr, Basecamp, etc. With the internet’s growing number of disparate systems, programs and languages, APIs are rapidly growing in popularity and use.
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