Those of you that have followed me for the last year or so know I have a group on Linkedin for Lotus Software Professionals.
Having been on Linkedin since it's beta pretty much, you would think I had millions of people connected to me, or I should.
But no, I have a relatively small number, 2,770 direct Connections that link me to 10,011,500+ professionals
But what is interesting is wether you are another BP or just an IT person who likes Lotus, the need or interest of people to belong to a community is impressive. Note to self, must clear the recruiters out better.
Why have the group? It's a passive way to interact with people. Find new roles, new business oportunities, friends in funny places and indulge some other habits, like advertising partnerships. Some people do ask me about advertising which I am open to, if there is a proper fit or benefit to everyone, not just for me, although single malted Scotch is always welcome.
While I try to be helpful in other ways, like answering questions or people's postings for jobs, some of those have become better friends because it's not always about Lotus.
OK, my linkedin update is ALWAYS about Lotus.
But you should try it, some of you will nto want to share your links, unless your links are all CXO's, and some of mine are(would like to shield those few who need to be shielded), what are you afraid of? That you might help someone else?
That is not in the true spirit of Lotus or collaboration is it? after all, why did you join linkedin in the first place if you did not want to share your links?
If you think you are opne to it, and haven't yet, you can join my group here if you have not already. It has over 1,000 members as of this morning. Many of which are Lotus friends or blog readers or twitter followers or ex comrades in arms from my Lotus days.
My goal in the next 6 months is to double our companies revenue...at Microsoft's expense. And averages say 1-2% of the people in my list need my help at least I have a list to work with now. What have you done to prospect lately?
Speaker, Blogger, Author. Posts about HCL Digital Solutions, HCL Software, Lotus, Management, Collaboration, Competitive Intelligence and Strategy, Productivity, CRM and B2B Marketing.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Microsoft.com is down, so much for Hyper-V
Can't help myself with this one.
Click on it to see it larger.
I am sure IBM Global services could help them, but something tells me they will not ask for help.
Mail Fidelity, do you really have it with Exchange?
I wondered about this as well.
CIO magazine recently had an article in the June 15th edition about Records Management That works.
What was very interesting was this quote:
"One of the issues is to make sure that the documents in their electronic form can be upgraded and transitioned from one technology to the next over decades," says GWU's Bonig. "
This implies the data MUST be transitioned between systems, (GWU must be a Microsoft University)in order to stay fully usable for future reference/lawsuits et al.
Why do they say this, because if you had been using Microsoft email programs since MS Mail, you would have had to translate or migrate or convert those emails to Exchange mail, Outlook 2000, 2003, 2007 and now Live.
You can not read older Exchange emails in Outlook 2007 unless they have been converted to a format which is acceptable to the new system.
Now, let's compare Domino mail. You can, and I do, access emails from R3(few companies were into Notes prior to R3 but even their emails are accessible) using my R8 client. From 15 years ago to now, it only takes one mail file, one client.
Lawyers should be pushing all their clients to use Domino for this reason if nothing else. The cost to maintain old hardware, backups and software is not justified, especially if you are a financial, insurance, government(cough cough The White House fiasco) or manufacturing entity.
CIO magazine recently had an article in the June 15th edition about Records Management That works.
What was very interesting was this quote:
"One of the issues is to make sure that the documents in their electronic form can be upgraded and transitioned from one technology to the next over decades," says GWU's Bonig. "
This implies the data MUST be transitioned between systems, (GWU must be a Microsoft University)in order to stay fully usable for future reference/lawsuits et al.
Why do they say this, because if you had been using Microsoft email programs since MS Mail, you would have had to translate or migrate or convert those emails to Exchange mail, Outlook 2000, 2003, 2007 and now Live.
You can not read older Exchange emails in Outlook 2007 unless they have been converted to a format which is acceptable to the new system.
Now, let's compare Domino mail. You can, and I do, access emails from R3(few companies were into Notes prior to R3 but even their emails are accessible) using my R8 client. From 15 years ago to now, it only takes one mail file, one client.
Lawyers should be pushing all their clients to use Domino for this reason if nothing else. The cost to maintain old hardware, backups and software is not justified, especially if you are a financial, insurance, government(cough cough The White House fiasco) or manufacturing entity.
Unify just a Microsoft shell?
Ed Brill posted a great blog entry which I want to make sure others find.See it here
When I posted this back in July 2007 it was an odd drawing then. I posted it to a number of people as well.
Evidently they were not exceptionally successful with it.
The drawing would scare off any Domino application sites.
But if one was just email based without Domino apps then this is overkill, if you have the proper tools and more importantly the right people and resources.
Did Unify make money on it? Did Microsoft support them and the project?
Should IBM pay it's BPs too? If so, how and why?
Is money the answer?
I have offerred to migrate companies off Exchange to Domino for Free and how many of you have inquired about it?
So if I told you it would cost $1 million does that make you feel better?
It's all a game but so far it's one of the few Microsoft has not been able to outright defeat the competition.
And we like it that way!
When I posted this back in July 2007 it was an odd drawing then. I posted it to a number of people as well.
Evidently they were not exceptionally successful with it.
The drawing would scare off any Domino application sites.
But if one was just email based without Domino apps then this is overkill, if you have the proper tools and more importantly the right people and resources.
Did Unify make money on it? Did Microsoft support them and the project?
Should IBM pay it's BPs too? If so, how and why?
Is money the answer?
I have offerred to migrate companies off Exchange to Domino for Free and how many of you have inquired about it?
So if I told you it would cost $1 million does that make you feel better?
It's all a game but so far it's one of the few Microsoft has not been able to outright defeat the competition.
And we like it that way!
Friday, June 20, 2008
The CEO/CIO thinks free is a great idea and it is too!
The previous post was created to show a theory.
Namely that some people would say it's a bait and switch.
Or Microsoft people would claim they do this too, some would say they offer to give everything for free, but I won't go there.
Or Business people would say how can you do it for free.
Never said I would pay for your licenses, after all I am not IBM, nor would I cover your hardware.
Just that I would migrate your users off Exchange to Domino.
And I could do it in one day/night too.
Rolling out Notes to your employees is up to you, I will give them all webmail access immediately, plus their own blogs and a wiki for them to discuss the pros and cons of your decision.
Still not enough? How about automatic push email, Lotus Notes Traveler, with no other server required. Again ALL from one Lotus Domino box.
Want more? I have over 100 applications I can include and you can use at no cost to you for your internal employees to use, depending on YOUR needs.
EDITED after original Posting to include:
Plus a free Operating System, Lotus Foundations!
And finally, a 100% free Office Suite courtesy of Lotus Symphony for every user. So you can stop paying extra licenses to Microsoft for that as well.
END OF EDITS
I could go on, but, right I forgot, you love Exchange, Office, Windows and it is so useful you wouldn't dream of changing it for anything.
Thank you for the graphic from here.
If companies don't believe something for free is worth anything, why do they consistently take Microsoft up on their offers of Free Exchange or Sharepoint or ahem, Vista.
The next time your CXO or a new one, comes in and saying you must get to Exchange, ask him this question:
How much of your bonus is tied to the company making money? Because you are about to disrupt the company in ways you can not imagine.
The graphic above takes what sits on one server in Domino and shows just how many pieces you need from Microsoft to recreate it.
You don't need more servers, you need less.
You don't require more silos, you want fewer.
Everyone wants to collaborate, the shortest distance between 2 points is a straight line, or in this case....
1 Lotus Domino Server.
Namely that some people would say it's a bait and switch.
Or Microsoft people would claim they do this too, some would say they offer to give everything for free, but I won't go there.
Or Business people would say how can you do it for free.
Never said I would pay for your licenses, after all I am not IBM, nor would I cover your hardware.
Just that I would migrate your users off Exchange to Domino.
And I could do it in one day/night too.
Rolling out Notes to your employees is up to you, I will give them all webmail access immediately, plus their own blogs and a wiki for them to discuss the pros and cons of your decision.
Still not enough? How about automatic push email, Lotus Notes Traveler, with no other server required. Again ALL from one Lotus Domino box.
Want more? I have over 100 applications I can include and you can use at no cost to you for your internal employees to use, depending on YOUR needs.
EDITED after original Posting to include:
Plus a free Operating System, Lotus Foundations!
And finally, a 100% free Office Suite courtesy of Lotus Symphony for every user. So you can stop paying extra licenses to Microsoft for that as well.
END OF EDITS
I could go on, but, right I forgot, you love Exchange, Office, Windows and it is so useful you wouldn't dream of changing it for anything.
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Thank you for the graphic from here.
If companies don't believe something for free is worth anything, why do they consistently take Microsoft up on their offers of Free Exchange or Sharepoint or ahem, Vista.
The next time your CXO or a new one, comes in and saying you must get to Exchange, ask him this question:
How much of your bonus is tied to the company making money? Because you are about to disrupt the company in ways you can not imagine.
The graphic above takes what sits on one server in Domino and shows just how many pieces you need from Microsoft to recreate it.
You don't need more servers, you need less.
You don't require more silos, you want fewer.
Everyone wants to collaborate, the shortest distance between 2 points is a straight line, or in this case....
1 Lotus Domino Server.
Free migration to Domino from Exchange
Well, let's step back a minute and then read the last 2 lines of this post.
Why not? You probably have a cadre of staff sitting around anyway, why not put them to good use.
What? They are busy?
But Exchange is a quiet and perfectly upright piece of software, what could they possibly be doing all day long?
You have a help desk, you have an ID management group, you even have a security group, and probably a hardware group too....all assigned to manage your Exchange infrastructure, or I should say AD.
So why not get them to help build a Domino server and at least see the other side.
What if you really did not need to have so many silos of servers?
What if you really couold do this collaboration thing, but from within 1 server, not needing 3,5,7 or 9?
What if you really wanted to reduce your harwdare, OS, licensing, electric, real estae costs?
Nah, you'll never do it, big business is in it for the salary, no one wants to actually reinvent their company.
Or do they?
By the way, I will honor the free migration to Domino, for one server or one group of people up to 100 users.
After that you pay the rest of the migration.
Why not? You probably have a cadre of staff sitting around anyway, why not put them to good use.
What? They are busy?
But Exchange is a quiet and perfectly upright piece of software, what could they possibly be doing all day long?
You have a help desk, you have an ID management group, you even have a security group, and probably a hardware group too....all assigned to manage your Exchange infrastructure, or I should say AD.
So why not get them to help build a Domino server and at least see the other side.
What if you really did not need to have so many silos of servers?
What if you really couold do this collaboration thing, but from within 1 server, not needing 3,5,7 or 9?
What if you really wanted to reduce your harwdare, OS, licensing, electric, real estae costs?
Nah, you'll never do it, big business is in it for the salary, no one wants to actually reinvent their company.
Or do they?
By the way, I will honor the free migration to Domino, for one server or one group of people up to 100 users.
After that you pay the rest of the migration.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Microsoft Apologizes for Vista, then claims it's a Green thing!
This is from an email just received from Microsoft "TechNet Flash: Special Edition: Why should you upgrade to Windows Vista?"
Nothing really to comment aside from, my thoughts which are found in parentehses,and selling the upgrade as a Green initiative is just, I don't know, scraping the barrel for a reason or jumping on the bandwagon of everyone's greeneness?
"When we released Windows Vista, security was clearly a top priority. However, one of the implications of the increased focus on security was that compatibility with Windows Vista was not where we wanted it to be at launch. (So you felt we the public are just stupid and should accept your half baked software?)Over the past eighteen months, Microsoft and our partners have made tremendous progress in compatibility, performance, and battery life.
Here are updates on a few key facts:
• Windows Vista now supports more than 77,000 printers, cameras, speakers and other devices.
• More than 2,700 software programs are “Certified for” or “Works with” Windows Vista-logoed; 97 of the top 100 consumer applications are compatible. (Quicken still doesn't work!)
• 62% of small businesses said Windows Vista saves them time, and 70% said it makes them more productive, according to an independent survey. (Right, and XP was so bad, everyone wants to keep using it because it doesn't make one productive?)
• More than 140 million copies of Windows Vista have been sold, making it the fastest selling operating system in Microsoft history. Even Macs run it. (OEM sales I would bet is 90%)
• 71 percent of Windows Vista customers like it better than their last operating system. (The implication is of ocurse that 71% hated their previous Microsoft OS? XP was that hated and so everyone wants to stay on it?)
• People familiar with Windows Vista are two to three times more likely to have a favorable impression of it. (True, I use it and don't complain, usually)
• Every 10 PCs that switch to Windows Vista is the equivalent of taking an automobile off the road, in terms of greenhouse gases."
So now XP looks bad and Microsoft is trying to convince us we are killing the Earth by using their previous OS! I hope you forward this to all yoru environmental friends.
Nothing really to comment aside from, my thoughts which are found in parentehses,and selling the upgrade as a Green initiative is just, I don't know, scraping the barrel for a reason or jumping on the bandwagon of everyone's greeneness?
"When we released Windows Vista, security was clearly a top priority. However, one of the implications of the increased focus on security was that compatibility with Windows Vista was not where we wanted it to be at launch. (So you felt we the public are just stupid and should accept your half baked software?)Over the past eighteen months, Microsoft and our partners have made tremendous progress in compatibility, performance, and battery life.
Here are updates on a few key facts:
• Windows Vista now supports more than 77,000 printers, cameras, speakers and other devices.
• More than 2,700 software programs are “Certified for” or “Works with” Windows Vista-logoed; 97 of the top 100 consumer applications are compatible. (Quicken still doesn't work!)
• 62% of small businesses said Windows Vista saves them time, and 70% said it makes them more productive, according to an independent survey. (Right, and XP was so bad, everyone wants to keep using it because it doesn't make one productive?)
• More than 140 million copies of Windows Vista have been sold, making it the fastest selling operating system in Microsoft history. Even Macs run it. (OEM sales I would bet is 90%)
• 71 percent of Windows Vista customers like it better than their last operating system. (The implication is of ocurse that 71% hated their previous Microsoft OS? XP was that hated and so everyone wants to stay on it?)
• People familiar with Windows Vista are two to three times more likely to have a favorable impression of it. (True, I use it and don't complain, usually)
• Every 10 PCs that switch to Windows Vista is the equivalent of taking an automobile off the road, in terms of greenhouse gases."
So now XP looks bad and Microsoft is trying to convince us we are killing the Earth by using their previous OS! I hope you forward this to all yoru environmental friends.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
CIO Magazine quotes me regarding the iPhone
Al Sacco wrote the article, and I had responded with my thoughts about the discussion being rather funny.
What makes a phone a corproate item? For that matter what makes a laptop?
I enjoyed seeing he printed my thoughts about a BES like server for iPhones, called an MIS. Read and enjoy.
Iphone lovers, I am not against it or for it, but it was nie to know Lotus was teh first to work with it.
What makes a phone a corproate item? For that matter what makes a laptop?
I enjoyed seeing he printed my thoughts about a BES like server for iPhones, called an MIS. Read and enjoy.
Iphone lovers, I am not against it or for it, but it was nie to know Lotus was teh first to work with it.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Middle Initials? Not in Traveler?
While I tend to prefer sticking to other topics. Many readers knwo I love being mobile and especially enjoy using Sametime Mobile and Traveler from the 8.0.1 package.
So my quest for help has met no answers so I ask all of you this question:
If you receive notes mails on your phone(windows mobile 5)with a middle initial in the name, example: "James T. Kirk", in our case it is coming in as "James T.Kirk" with no space after the middle initial's period.
Thus when you reply, the lookup on Domino directory is invalid and you get a dead message error email.
Perhaps it is a configuration issue we have made but as it started to happen out of the blue I am not sure.
The implication is Domino is forwarding the email incorrectly. It arrives fine in my notes client inbox, just not on my phone.
Anyone with similar experience or pointer to resolve it let me know.
In the meantime I took out the middle initials of users names and that resolved the immediate problem.
So my quest for help has met no answers so I ask all of you this question:
If you receive notes mails on your phone(windows mobile 5)with a middle initial in the name, example: "James T. Kirk"
Thus when you reply, the lookup on Domino directory is invalid and you get a dead message error email.
Perhaps it is a configuration issue we have made but as it started to happen out of the blue I am not sure.
The implication is Domino is forwarding the email incorrectly. It arrives fine in my notes client inbox, just not on my phone.
Anyone with similar experience or pointer to resolve it let me know.
In the meantime I took out the middle initials of users names and that resolved the immediate problem.