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SAP hasn't had a lot to do with average computer users, let alone CPAs. It's been a company selling high-priced software to other big companies. But there's a change in the wind and it's not about SAP trying to hit a volume market with its online Business By Design financial application. [The latest version hits the market Friday/] No, it's about reshaping computing. That's not going to happen this year or next, but it is going to happen in stages if the German company gets its way. Because SAP has been moving towards being a platform company -- one whose products provide the central nervous systems to computing, if you will.

It started moving that direction with the acquisition of Business Objects, whose product with the most visibility among its smaller customers is Crystal Reports. And it took another step with the merger with Sybase, which will soon be completed now that a tender offer has been concluded successfully.

Sybase has a lot of tools, including SQL Anywhere, a rival database to Microsoft's SQL Server, and development tools such as PowerBuilder. But it's clear the hot button for SAP is messaging and mobile technology and that's something that could end up affect about everyone if the plan is executed.

In an earnings Webcast this week, co-CEO Bill McDermott hit that point when he stated "The world is ready to make a mobile standard." Of course, he meant that standard is something that would come out of Sybase, although there were no further details. But when the deal was announced in May, the SAP press release noted that "Sybase’s innovative mobile platform can connect all applications and data (SAP and non-SAP) and enable them on mobile devices." And add onto that an extremely robust messaging system and you have something else than a company simply making products.

SAP wants to set standards, which is what Microsoft has done in dominating the software market for several years. There was talk about developing mobile applications and the word standard came up again in regarding to the BusinessObjects line.

No, it's not just about selling products. It's about a company that wants to change the rules of the computing game and probably has the resources to do it. It wants to be the sun around which all the technology planets revolve. Of course, there's that little issue of Microsoft wanting to continue doing the same thing.

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