Google Fails = Microsoft Fails = Lotus Loses

Bad logic? yes.

But if they had knew better, they wouldn't be in this place to start would they.

By now you saw this article about privacy issues with Gmail and from Information Week recently this article from the last outage of Google's Gmail.

This quote below has me thinking I have heard this before...

Johnson Diversey, a manufacturer of cleaning products that has moved 12,000 employees from Lotus Notes to Gmail, was satisfied with Google's response to the outage, said global communications director Mark Goldman. "Google kept us informed and updated throughout the process, and we believe it's making every effort to minimize disruptions to our users," he said.

It is almost exactly what Microsoft customers say after they move to Exchange and it fails. But they spent millions, Mr. Goldman just $50/user(well at a base level). So in his eyes it's not a problem. If you were down ALL DAY would that be a problem....yet? Ask my law firm clients, they go down for 5 minutes they flip out(Exchange fails constantly on those sites using it, Domino is up till I bring it down for maintenance)

Now as I have pointed out before and can back it up with client sites, if you build anything properly it will stay up and running. Domino and even Exchange, after all a good admin is a good admin, makes no difference what platform.

But the companies who move from Domino face the reality that it's really THEM not the software. Until now. Lotus the brand can't win this ever, it's always their fault.

Now, with Gmail from Google it can never be "our" problem anymore, they are pushing the lack of responsibility to someone else, and will get away with it because their hands are tied, it's Google's fault. Lotus can't win here either.

Before they blamed Domino, but really Domino runs perfectly fine even Exchange admins admit it. The problem is cost cutting and hiring inexperienced people and not knowing the difference will hurt you. Especially if you claim IT is your business differentiator.

I could list too many companies in this state of chaos that want to be in this mess and spent millions of dollars. For not even $100K they could have hired us or one of the other excellent Business Partners that do this work every day and ended up better off in the long run and short run.

If you have a Ferrari and take it to a Honda dealer, Ferrari doesn't care they will still fix it, but it just costs you more. But now the organizations without money have no choice so don't expect them to gripe and moan, they are happy it's free and someone else problem. Besides students expect something? Come on, they pay tuition for a degree not email, get real. Students reading, show your administration what you want and need, don't let them dictate to you what you need. Customers reading this should do it too. Go to the IT guy or CIO and demand proper services, use the right tools, make technology work FOR you not the other way around.

Lotus products do help, do work, do make life easier for IT and users. That is the key in any organization, to make life easier for EVERYONE. If your IT staff has more time, you will see more innovation and at nominal cost compared to the alternatives.

How many people will come out and say "Damn, we screwed up, should have stayed on Domino". Just never happens does it. Stop expecting anyone to do so. Start trying to get customers involved, help them find you to help them. The LotusKnows campaign started today and I for one look forward to a busy Q4 and Q1 already so this should make it even greater.