Introduction

Office 365 takes productivity to the cloud. It offers all of the tools a business office needs without the hassle of supporting the necessary infrastructure. But what if you need customization? What can developers do to extend the tools of Office 365?

Office 365 brings together a fully integrated suite of office automation tools, including the key server components: SharePoint, Exchange, and Lync. Volumes have been written on each of these products. In addition, there is an impressive list of client applications that can be leveraged, including

• Access
• Excel
• Visio
• InfoPath
• SharePoint Designer
• Visual Studio

There is so much that you can do with this platform that it's not possible to cover every aspect in a single book. However, we have tried to pack in as much as possible and to demonstrate the features that are the most useful. The topics span a broad range, including web databases, declarative workflows, custom Lync and Exchange applications, and public-facing web sites.