IT Architecture - Let's talk about it

I tend to agree with the opinion that your major applications control much of your architecture. But you do have a say in selecting your applications and hence you are in a way of coontrol of your architecture.

On the one hand you do not want to leave the architecture question to be answered by your supplies but on the other hand developing your architecture in isolation on your current and future technologies will produce a theoretical that you will be forced to abandon with your next technology purchase .. so I see architecture development as an iterative process that looks at what you and and where you want to be and who are likely to be your major software suppliers.