Building New Product: ASP.NET vs SharePoint 2010

Question

Hi I met an investor who wants a new product to sells to other companies. We agreed to make it SaaS, but we're arguing over three options:

SaaS product using pure ASP.NET Saas product using huge SharePoint server A couple of SharePoint add-ons (web parts)

I can't disclose the product but its is about collaboration and involves many interaction between users. That is the reason why we have SharePoint as an option also because a user might optionally create web pages (single home page) many many times.

Some users don't want SaaS. So, there is possibility of hosting the product locally (to protect their 'sensitive' data).

So my question is: which one would you choose from programming point of view?

(Note:I asked this question in onstartup site, and i was advised to ask here for the technical aspect)

Answer 1

It's hard to give a conclusive answer without knowing more details of the project. However, my general advice is to consider SharePoint only if you plan to use its built-in features and don't need to add a lot of custom ones.

Moreover, I recommend you read these questions:

• ASP.NET vs SharePoint - which one is better for web developers?
• How good/bad is sharepoint programming?
• https://stackguides.com/questions/256407/what-are-your-biggest-complaints-about-sharepoint
• How is SharePoint perceived in your company?

Answer 2

based on tiny info of project , i would Harmonize with marek , as it deals with Collaboration share point would be the best choice.

Answer 3

There are two things called "Sharepoint". There's Sharepoint Services, and Microsoft Office Sharepoint Server (MOSS). Sharepoint Services provides a lower level framework that you can build other applications upon rather nicely, and doesn't require any additional licensing. However, MOSS requires very expensive licensing, and will only make sense to build upon if your customers already have MOSS. You don't want to force them to purchase MOSS and implement it just to use your product. MOSS is built on WSS (Windows Sharepoint Services).

If you're selling it as SaaS, then that means you will need to buy those licenses, which will be very expensive.

If what you need to do is "Sharepoint with some additional stuff", then maybe sharepoint makes sense. If not, then go with a ground up approach.

Answer 4

SharePoint can be the main solution for enterprise, if users really need RIA and heavy customization, SilverLight would be one of your solution.