Google App Engine, Enterprise Accounts & GData API

In the Admin Console of my Google Apps Premier Edition, I can add App Engine apps for my Enterprise users to access, as an integrated part of my GAPPS environment, Great :-)

App Engine now has a Java API, Great :-)

The Java API exposes a User Service so that I can authenticate users using their Google account, Great :-)

No, wait ... The User Service only appears to support the Consumer version of Google Apps, so my Enterprise users cannot be authenticated using this, NOT Great :-(

Maybe I can use the GData API's? Kinda, some of the common classes they have dependencies are repackaged on App Engine with different package names so there is a bit of trial-and-error, NOT Great :-(

Solution, I write my own libraries to for authentication and maybe some GData interactions with the Enterprise Apps API's, NOT Great :-(

If Google is really serious about playing in the Enterprise space, they are going to have to raise their game. Microsoft are fixing issues with BPOS and I am pretty sure that their Azure platform will be enterprise ready at some point in the not to distant future. Plus IBM are getting serious about the Enterprise Cloud. Google have a window of opportunity right now to grab a big chunk of the Enterprise market, if they don't raise their game they could find their Enterprise division being no more than a bit-player in this space. They need to shake off the Consumer mentality and make some serious investment in their Enterprise division.

The Enterprise Division is the fastest growing part of their business right now; I know they are making investment in that area of the business, but it is not enough and I am not convinced that they are focussing on the right things. They have some real challenges with their platform and they are still trying to find their way with a workable partner strategy. I really hope that Google get it together - they could be massively successful in the Enterprise space - right now they just aren't there - if they frustrate their partners and Enterprise clients too much, they won't stick around.

UPDATE:

I can use some of the GData Classes to effectively implement my own EnterpriseUserService to manage Auth. I can then use the GData Client Library for Java (at least the classes that don't depend on the repackaged common classes).

Of course, once Google support the GData Client Libraries on App Engine fully, I'm going to have more refactoring to do; kinda like with Android!