IBM Notes/Domino 9 Social Edition public beta planned for December 14
November 13 2012
On a webcast watched live by 2000 people, earlier today, IBM announced a plan for a public beta of IBM Notes/Domino 9.0 Social Edition. The beta is expected to be available on December 14, and you can register for the beta today via bit.ly/ND9BETA .
If you were unable to join us for the webcast, a replay will be available starting tomorrow morning via On24.
Notes/Domino Social Edition was first unveiled at Lotusphere 2012, and has been in development for more than a year. We decided to release a public beta, the first in a long time for Notes/Domino, because of the importance of the release. That was also the consideration that lead to putting the 9.0 version number on the beta, rather than the 8.5.4 we have previously announced.
The plan for Notes/Domino Social Edition calls for availability in Q1 2013, subject to change and all the usual disclaimers.
The decision to call Social Edition beta "9.0" is the right one, but leads to some questions. Yes, there will still be an 8.5.4 maintenance release, with no new features, sometime in 2013. A "dot zero" release is legendary in the IT industry as being the one you play with, waiting for a bug fix release. Except that the DNA of this release is what we have been building as 8.5.4, and carries with that all the stability and reliability of the 8.5 codestream. The 9.0 beta will show that though there are many new features, they are built upon the same solid architecture as the entire 8.5 series. We want you to deploy the dot zero, and we will stand behind it with every confidence.
A version number increment is designed to do several things: create buzz in the market, including awareness from the industry press and analysts who might not pay attention to a "mod" point release; convey vendor confidence in the product and its value; indicate longevity of the product; and signal the delta in new features and capabilities. Thus, it only makes sense to call a version that adds embedded experiences, a modernized user interface, new mail and calendar features, the Notes browser plug-in, SAML support, Traveler support on the IBM i operating system, new XPages features, and more.... 9.0.
The same message of confidence is why this beta is also the point where Notes/Domino will join other IBM software solutions in sporting only the IBM brand--the second-most valuable brand in the world. It's also why we showed a roadmap for the next three years in the community broadcast section of today's event, and have indicated that the 8.5 release will be supported through at least 2016.
There were many other topics discussed on the call, including plans to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Lotusphere at IBM Connect 2013. Thank you to Eric Petersen of the Salvation Army, Lance Spellman of Workflow Studios, Daniel Lieber of IIUI, and Bruce Elgort of Elguiji for their contributions to today's announcements.
There were over 200 questions submitted during the webcast and community call. We will post answers to them either in the IBM Collaboration Solutions community area on Greenhouse, or here on my blog. Additional videos of Notes/Domino 9 Social Edition beta will be posted to YouTube and other channels soon as well. And in 30 days, you'll get to check it out first-hand.
"Opting In" update: production, foreword, target date
November 12 2012
My last blog post about Opting In: Lessons In Social Business from a Fortune 500 Product Manager was about six weeks ago. At that time, the manuscript was complete, the title and table of contents was announced, and the contributors were recognized.
Since that time, the publishing process has accelerated quickly. A peer review cycle took place, with my colleagues Luis Suarez, Jennifer Okimoto, and Jeanne Murray providing feedback. Grammar/spelling/punctuation editing has begun, with that process expected to finish this week. Opting In is now available for pre-order on Amazon.com and other bookselling websites, and this week we are working on a marketing plan.
The target in-print date: January 23, 2013, just in time to be available at IBM Connect 2013. The e-book version should be available around the same time.
The last bits of the book are coming together. I'm pleased to announce today that Marcia Conner, Principal of SensifyWork and a published author herself, graciously agreed to write the foreword. She did an amazing job.
If you don't know Marcia, you should.
Marcia Conner advises executives in some of the world’s largest companies to unite collaborative technologies, analytics, and human energy into the power that drives best-around-the-globe performance. ...Working with Marcia in the last couple of months has been a great experience. She, too, provided extremely useful comments to help structure the book, especially the opening chapter. I am looking forward to working with her more as the book is finalized, including at IBM Connect 2013.
She is a member of Telefónica’s Disruptive Council, a fellow of the Darden School of Business, writes for Fast Company, and speaks at both public and private events throughout the year. ... Marcia has published three books, the most recent being The New Social Learning: A Guide to Transforming Organizations Through Social Media. She is currently working on a new book about human ingenuity.
Since announcing the completion of the manuscript, the question I've been asked over and over: "How did you write a book so fast?" I guess I didn't really know any other way. Even as a nights and weekends project, I wrote every word (other than the sidebar contributions) myself. I did my own research and interviews. Sure, there were some tense moments, but once I got into the rhythm of writing, it just flowed.
When it's final, I hope you'll enjoy the book as much as my colleague Ellice Uffer, who is part of the IBM Press team:
"Reading manuscript of @edbrill of Opting In - #socialbiz book. Almost weeping at how good it is. Standing O and I'm only on chptr 3."
Comments like that totally make the effort worthwhile. My hope for this book is that it has that impact (well, maybe not the crying part) for all of you.
New IBM study: The business of social business
November 9 2012
Earlier today, the IBM Institute for Business value released a new study, "The Business of Social Business: What works and how it's done." This comprehensive study interviewed over 1,100 participants and executives from across several industries globally. The analysis discovered that there are three clear areas where social business is transforming organizations:
- Creating valued customer experiences
- Driving workforce productivity and effectiveness
- Accelerating innovation.
Several organizations are highlighted in the study, including TD Bank, Boston Children's Hospital, Beiersdorf, and Citibank.
I think one of the key findings of the study is how businesses can be successful in leveraging social tools. At IBM, for example, we are finding our inside sales organization is increasing productivity and close rates when the sales specialists employee "Digital IBMer" tools. It's all about getting these ingredients right:
Our survey and interviews have made one thing clear: those organizations experiencing the most success in social business approaches know they have to make fundamental changes in the way their employees worked across the entire enterprise. To weave social business into the fabric of the organization, three key issues must be addressed on an organizational level:What is fascinating to me personally is that this study was conducted in parallel to the authoring of my forthcoming book, Opting In, yet we cover a lot of the same concepts...in the same ways. That speaks to the thought that the transformation to Social Business is a cultural one; though I have never worked with the study's authors (Eric Lesser, James Cortada, and Peter Korsten), their research validates many of the examples in Opting In from IBM's own experience. That means we have the recipe right, and this study is among the ingredients to helping other organizations recognize the real business value of social business.
• First, companies need to consider how to incorporate social metrics into their traditional enterprises and processes.
• Second, they need to understand and manage the risks associated with social business.
• Third, change management remains a critical requirement in embedding successful social business practices in an organization. But, the implication is also quite clear: social business requires a unique application of traditional change management principles to influence corporate culture and performance.
Check it out ...
Link: ibm.com: "The Business of Social Business: What works and how it's done." >
Updating entitlements in Notes/Domino 8.5.3
November 7 2012
When IBM Connections 4 shipped eight weeks ago, I was frequently asked, "When will the Connections Files and Profiles entitlement in Notes/Domino be updated?"
Based on what I knew then, the answer was, "When we ship Notes/Domino Social Edition in Q1 2013."
With all credit due to my colleagues on the IBM WebSphere Portal product management team, I have good news. Next week, on November 13, we plan to update the entitled version of Connections Files and Profiles to IBM Connections 4. Two weeks after that, on November 27, we plan to update the entitled version of Tivoli Directory Integrator to version 7.1.
These updates will appear automatically as part of a Passport Advantage customer's available downloads. The license agreement for each of them remains the current shipping 8.5.3 Notes/Domino license, though, like everything in Notes/Domino Social Edition, there are expected changes when that release ships.
November 13- Notes and Domino Social Edition webcast
October 29 2012
Mark your calendars and register today!!!!
Calling all IBM Lotus Notes and Domino customers, Business Partners and developers!This should be pretty exciting...
Join IBM on November 13th at 10am Eastern Time US for an important series of announcements and previews. Learn how IBM Lotus Notes® and IBM Lotus® Domino®, better than any other platform investment, positions you to create a more effective workforce.
During this special broadcast, we will introduce our new IBM Notes and Domino Social Edition beta program, and updated product roadmaps, that truly demonstrate IBM's strong commitment to the Lotus Notes and Domino platform.
And, stay afterwards for a special edition of the IBM Collaboration Solutions monthly community call to discuss what you just heard. Register for the combined Special Broadcast and monthly ICS Community meeting today!
Link: IBM Webcast: Special Broadcast: IBM Notes and Domino Social Edition Preview and Announcements >
1,151 enterprises return to Notes/Domino YTD in 2012
October 23 2012
One of the metrics of the Notes/Domino business that my team has been tracking this year is "reinstatements," or customer purchases that bring lapsed licenses back on active maintenance contracts.
For the first three quarters of 2012, that number is a surprising 1,151 enterprises.
Why is this a focus, and why does it matter?
It matters because those organizations, at some point, had walked away from their Notes/Domino investment. Even with annual feature releases, innovation in XPages, Traveler upgrades, and entitlements, they let their software subscription and support lapse. Thus, a conscious decision to go back and reactivate those licenses is an endorsement -- a recognition that there is value in what IBM is delivering, now and in the future. These customers have determined that it is valuable to have access to support for currently-deployed mail and applications, and to the latest software versions. With Notes/Domino Social Edition, the biggest release in years, coming in Q1 2013, they may have felt it was time to recommit to Notes/Domino -- as some very large enterprises that thought they were moving to competition have recently done -- or to explore the latest capabilities of the product.
This is a focus for my team because it gives us a chance to revisit decisions from the last few years. As in the last point above, recently we have reinstated some of the marquee companies that claimed they were moving their email to Microsoft Exchange. In a few cases, they did, but those Notes applications that had built up over years or decades kept running their business. In others, the mail migration proved pointless, when they started to look at IBM's leadership in mobile collaboration, or the entitlements to Connections Files and Profiles, or the forthcoming Notes browser plug-in as a way to extend the useful life of those applications.
Earlier this year I announced that we had strengthened our business relationship with Trust Factory. Part of the motivation for doing so was reinstatements, and in fact our internal working group prioritizes Trust Factory engagements related to reinstatements. Why? Because often the outcome of the Trust Factory analysis is recognition of how strategic the organizational investment in Notes/Domino was...and what it can be in an optimized future state. We want to help those organizations that thought there was less of a need to focus on their use of Notes/Domino to, based on data, rationalize how they view that estate going forward. Trust Factory's DNA is a huge help.
Not surprisingly, we have been working with IBM sales on this focus, and in fact this data point was first brought to my attention by my sales partner, Jack Welch (no, not of GE fame). It's one of many solid data points about the strategic nature of Notes/Domino for IBM today, which I'll be blogging more about in the coming days.
EasySync Pro?
October 18 2012
Do you still use EasySync Pro?
IBM® Lotus® EasySync® Pro is a personal productivity solution that provides data synchronization between your IBM Lotus Notes® desktop and handheld devices running PalmOS and Windows CE/Pocket PC operating systems.We are thinking about its future and trying to determine where/if it is still in active use today. Anyone? Email, tweet, or comment here with thoughts. Thanks.
OpenOffice graduates to Apache Top-Level Project (TLP)
October 18 2012
Earlier this morning, the Apache Software Foundation announced that Apache OpenOffice has graduated from the Apache Incubator and become a Top-Level Project. This is significant recognition of the community effort around OpenOffice since it became an Apache project in June, 2011.
"The OpenOffice graduation is the official recognition that the project is now able to self-manage not only in technical matters, but also in community issues, said Andrea Pescetti, VP Apache OpenOffice. "The 'Apache Way' and its methods, such as taking every decision in public with total transparency, have allowed the project to attract and successfully engage new volunteers, and to elect an active and diverse Project Management Committee that will be able to guarantee a stable future to Apache OpenOffice."In other words, OpenOffice has the full faith and backing of the Apache community, and is here to stay.
What I think is more interesting is that since OpenOffice 3.4 was released in May, it has been downloaded over 20 million times.
IBM contributors continue to work within the Apache framework to bring in the Lotus Symphony features and to build extensions to connect AOO into IBM collaboration solutions.
Link: Apache OpenOffice >
Also available on Amazon.com: Apache OpenOffice >
Link: Apache Software Foundation: OpenOffice graduates from the Apache Incubator >
Link: Apache.org: The Apache Software Foundation Announces Apache OpenOffice™ as a Top-Level Project >
October webcasts on IBM Docs
October 15 2012
Three upcoming and one recorded webcast are available on IBM Greenhouse regarding the soon-to-be-released IBM Docs....
Come and join us for these hands-on sessions where you'll learn about the rich capabilities in IBM Docs, how to leverage the social features to work in a more collaborative and efficient way, and understand the integrations with IBM Connections, Lotus iNotes, and IBM SmartCloud. Speakers: Nikhil Parekh, IBM; Wei Gao, IBM; Da Peng Deng, IBM; Sean Brown, IBM.Next sessions on October 18, 25, and November 1.
Link: ibm.com: IBM Docs webcast series >
New Sametime client update for Android
October 11 2012
Chris Reckling has posted an update on the IBM Sametime mobile client for Android devices:
Today IBM released new Sametime Chat apps for Android tablets and phone. This is the first release of Sametime to have an experience designed specifically for the Android tablet. Tyler Walters, on my team, is the designer. Great job by him and the development team to produce this. This design is in line with the Notes Traveler tablet design, so you can use them side by side and have a great experience.Find screen shots at Chris's blog.
Link: Chris Reckling: New Sametime Chat apps for Android >
Updates from the Social Business Leadership Alliance
October 8 2012
Last week I was in Boston, meeting with customers and partners as part of the annual invite-only Social Business Leadership Alliance. The event contents are covered by non-disclosure agreements, which gives us a chance to "let our hair down a bit" and discuss concepts and decisions ahead with the opportunity to garner candid input and feedback. We take the non-disclosure very seriously, and I am pleased to see that even some of the most provocative thoughts shared in Boston stayed in Boston. Thank you to those who attended and participated.
There are a few things I can say coming out of the event that don't have to wait for non-disclosures to be lifted.
- Notes 8.5.3 on Mac OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion: Last week, we posted Interim Fix 1 for Notes 8.5.3 FixPack 2, and slipstreamed the Notes 8.5.3 client overall to include the fix. Details are in IBM technote 1599884.
- Notes/Domino Social Edition: Watch for public updates on this release in the next 30 days or so. I was surprised -- in a good way -- to see some new features come into the latest builds, even literally being finished up just in time for the live demos at the event.
- IBM Connections entitlement with Notes client licenses: Connections 4 has been out for a month, and as a result my team and I have received several inquiries about updating the Files and Profiles entitlement in Notes 8.5.3 to the newer release of Connections. No commitments yet, but contrary to my earlier comments on this topic, we are working on a way to address this sooner than the Q1 release of Notes Social Edition.
On the personal front, feedback on my book project was wonderful. With slight agita, I added a self-promotional slide about Opting In to my presentation, stating as it came up "Now I have to do commercials in my sessions." In the first session, the room spontaneously erupted in support. Thank you all so much for that.
Right now I have kept my travel schedule for Q4 very open, as I expect a lot of last-minute type activity ahead. However one trip on the agenda for next month is to Denmark for the DanNotes seminar on 28 and 29 November. Looking like a great event. I'll be staying in Copenhagen to the 30th as well for customer meetings, and maybe a repeat visit to wintertime Tivoli Gardens...
In the next few days, I am expecting a lot more information about IBM Connect 2013 to be released. Yes, it's all late. We heard that feedback loud and clear last week. Sometimes a sprint is more fun than a marathon, I'm excited about the next sixteen weeks!
Notes/Domino 8.5.x supported for at least four more years
September 28 2012
About once a day right now, I am getting questions about the longetivity of the current release of Notes/Domino. It turned out our support page was caught between two policies; an old one that said that we supported a release for a minimum of five years and then had extended support for an additional three years, and a new one being phased in that says that a product will be supported for its current and the previous two feature releases. The old policy could have concluded Notes/Domino 8.5 support fairly soon, but as we continue to update this codestream, there has been no discussion of an end of support date. As such, I asked that we publish a technote projecting as far in the future as we could get away with:
The EOS date for these products has not been planned. Based on IBM's commitment outlined at the IBM Software Support Lifecyle Policy, 8.5.x versions of Notes, Domino, LEI, and related products will not reach EOS before September 2016. Any official EOS date for 8.5.x will be announced a minimum of 12 months prior to an EOS date. Going forward we intend to provide support for the current version and two previous versions.Hopefully that clears things up. In the coming weeks we will announce further details around the lifecycle for the forthcoming planned Notes/Domino Social Edition.
Link: ibm.com: When will 8.5.x versions of Notes, Domino, LEI & related products reach End of Service/Support? >