Developer update: mark as sent through API

Today we’ve released the ability to mark an invoice within Xero as “Sent” using the API. This was our most requested API feature from current developers. It is really useful if the invoice has been sent/presented in another system and you want to reflect this in Xero.

Full details on how to use this in our release notes.

There have been requests for the ability to email invoices from Xero through the API also – we are holding off on any development until some of the new functionality within the Xero application around emailing invoices is completed later this year. Keep up to date on this here.

Upping the tempo

It has been 2 weeks since we announced the release of the first version of the conversions import tool, a project the API team have been working on for the past 5 months, so we wanted to increase the velocity of feature development with some short, sharp releases through the latter part of 2012.

2 API developers, 2 keyboards, 1 PC

Reminiscing

In early October I’m heading to Christchurch in order to give a talk at the Canterbury Software Summit entitled “Xero to a Million: The Fear and Ecstasy of building Web Scale”. It’s an emotive title, but I want to convey the rollercoaster ride of building a software platform where the number of users can double every year. It’s the most thrilling but scary project I’ve been involved in, and as I come up to my 5 year anniversary I can’t help but look back at the journey of the last half a decade.

This is HQ as it existed some 5 years ago

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Healthy start to helping Add-on partners

Following up from our commitment to help Xero Add-on partners raise funds we attended the Ice Angels investment event last night.

What an inspiration! Sir Ray Avery regaled a fascinated crowd with stories of health sector entrepreneurship both in New Zealand and with the legendary Fred Hollows in Africa. His key message – be customer centric by using observation, and just solve the problems you see. “People say things in surveys but don’t do them, just watch what happens – that is my only trick,” Ray says.

Following on presenting accounting software after Ray spoke of saving lives is always a challenge but I then covered the Xero ecosystem and pathway to market. The evening was held in conjunction with ICE Angels and JBWere and attracted an influential audience of over 70 people.

This desire to get more developing software companies in front of funders came out of our thinking on the Apportunity and what we learned at Xerocon Melbourne about Xero as a platform with a growing range of enthusiastic development companies connected in. We want to make sure that our Add-on partners are well resourced and this event was just the beginning.

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