The new offering from this "platform as a service" allows anyone to easily build a fully-featured website using the very same cloud infrastructure it has provided for applications. In other words, a comprehensive website can now be created through Force.com, and literally all you need do is design your UI with web standards such as HTML, JavaScript, Flex and CSS.
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One Custom Site, 100 Users, Free Forever
As an incentive to those interested in exploring the new platform, Force.com is allowing anyone to create one site for 100 users at no cost indefinitely.Truth be told, almost all users of the platform have exceeded the user limit and other factors extremely quickly. But a freemium approach should let smaller enterprise dip their toes in the water when it comes to Force.com Sites.
Same Cloud Service, New Approach
Force.com is one of the leading avenues for developers looking to build their applications in the cloud. Until now, web pages were an afterthought for the service.But there's no doubt the back-end could power robust, scalable sites. Needing only a front-end that you develop, your site is fashioned through the ridiculously simple Visualforce interface.
The new face to the platform has been in developer preview since February of this year. In that time, it's powered websites for some of Salesforce.com's biggest customers, including the Red Cross, Crocs, Dell, FICO, Juniper Networks, NJ TRANSIT, Seagate, and Starbucks.
Salesforce.com posits their new service as an alternative to Java and .NET, and for those looking to first and foremost reduce overhead in hardware and software, it's not a bad one.
According to Salesforce.com and an independent assessment by Nucleus Research, site development on Force.com is significantly faster than traditional approaches, letting you focus on user experience and content rather than database configuration.
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