ABSTRACT
The whole history of a system project can be construed as a struggle to configure the user. This chapter illustrates, the rigid almost mechanical style is in turn what we mistake for automation: when users are configured to the system, looking in from the outside, it nevertheless appears that the system has been configured to the users. Through the Software as a Service (SaaS), the conditions for the systematic capture of transactions become changed and from the Leontievian perspective "unfold" back into conscious action, where the window of opportunity for learning or relearning opens. From the Leontievian perspective, where the SaaS is configured and deployed — the conditions of operations — and the degree to which these can change makes a huge difference to the success of the SaaS deployment and ensuing maintenance. When we begin to use SaaS, we are subsuming our daily interactions that take place outside the system within.
