How Microsoft Dynamics CRM 5 Will Transform the User Interface, Ease Customization, and Improve Integration

Microsoft is offering its developer community a peek into the workings of the new version of Dynamics CRM, and they are already appreciating its new user interface, customization techniques, and integration into other Microsoft applications. 

More than 400 partners are now testing the next version of Dynamics CRM, code-named CRM 5.

Last week, Microsoft Corp. released a Community Technical Preview for CRM5 to enable developers to begin early development and testing of their products for CRM5. The companies participating in the beta test are independent software vendors, systems integrators, hosting partners and value-added resellers.

The next generation of Microsoft Dynamics CRM, which will support more than 40 languages, will be offered as an online service, as on-premises software, and via partner-hosted offerings. It will be available in the second half of 2010.

"With this next version, Microsoft is continuing to drive new levels of user productivity and collaboration, giving customers deep core CRM capabilities, low total cost of ownership, and fast and easy deployment options for their CRM applications," said Brad Wilson, general manager of Microsoft Dynamics CRM, in a statement.

Mike Snyder, a principal at Sonoma Partners LLC, a Microsoft partner in Chicago, said his company is testing the new version of CRM. He said CRM5 has made significant changes that improve the user interface.

"One of the bigger things we're excited about is the Ribbon interface," Snyder said. "The Ribbon was new in some of the Office products, so the 2007 versions of Excel and Word received the ribbon interface."

According to Microsoft's Statement of Direction (SOD) for CRM5, the Ribbon Interface replaces the traditional menus and toolbars with the Ribbon, a device that organizes commands into a set of tabs. The tabs on the Ribbon display ...