Ed Brill

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1. 1  xy xy  | 8/10/2006 1:24:22 PM

   Right now DB2-CM and Workplace are not integrable very well. Maybe this acquisition will delay these kind of integrations between IBM products. If it will be true, how IBM will be able to response to MS with its all-integrated middleware (aka office-system 2007) ?

1. 2  Raj Patel  | 8/10/2006 3:33:32 PM

   Any news on how this will affect Domino Doc ?

   FileNets offering seems to be a fully fledged eDRMS with records management and workflow built in.

1. 3  Silvia Garcia  | 8/10/2006 4:42:28 PM

   at @2,

   In fact, I had to deal a lot of times with the argumentation of Lotus Notes not being able to have DRMS as Microsoft Outlook has (just do a googling for Microsoft Right Management Services & Outlook)... I always thought that IBM had to empower the integration of DRMS with Notes / WorkPlace / Domino.Doc.... I understand it was difficul before, because there was limited control on the "Office Suite" side.. However, now that Hannover will have included his own suite based on OpenOffice, may be is the time to try to offer a DRMS solution, counting with the experience of Filenet and the power of Notes / Hannover....

   Please..... :-)

1. 4  GarryL  | 8/10/2006 5:02:59 PM

   Another day, another purchase. It kinda gets my goat.

   Over the last couple of weeks IBM has bought Webify (no financial info posted), £396m for MRO software and now FileNet for £880m. At least £1.3b. And the Notes community is having to band together on their own time, and for nothing, to try and get some modern, consistent applications/framework models to try and see off the exchange/sharepoint threat themselves? That just sucks.

   I had not heard of FileNet before this. but if you take a look at their products......

   Content Manager

   Email Manager

   Forms Manager

   Image Manager

   Records Manager

   Team Collaboration Manager

   ..there isn't anything here that you couldn’t do in Notes. So, now you not only have the Sharepoint threat, you have yet another IBM product to compete with. With these and the Workplace offering it’s getting rather crowded on the IBM shores.

   Take the Forms Manager, it was only last year that IBM bought PureEdge for their E-Forms product. I have to ask whats going on? What’s the end goal here and where does Notes fit in?

   I really think we need an overall update on what’s going on.

1. 5  Silvia Garcia  | 8/10/2006 5:07:57 PM

   @1, delay ? why delay ? Why not impulse ? Take, for example, adquicistion of Bowstreet and the new offerings for portalon just a few months (aka, IBM WebSphere® Portlet Factory ) , or the adquisition of the leader of XForms PureEdge (Adobe competence) and the new product WorkPlace Forms, that can be integrated on Websphere Portal and even on Notes.

1. 6  Silvia Garcia  | 8/10/2006 5:16:00 PM

   @4 Garry, that is a very limited point of view...

   PureEdge forms could add an incredible value to Notes and Portal... Do you really known the product ?

   And regarding FileNet... of course there is areas where they are competing notes (ie, email manager), but they are different products, with diferent focus, do not forget that.

   I am agree that would be fantastic to have a end goal vision where we can see where notes fit, but I do not see this mergers and adquisitions as something problematic for the Notes Roadmap, on the other hand, I see them as products that can give them a lot of additional value

1. 7  Silvia Garcia  | 8/10/2006 5:29:49 PM

   @4, a clarification on previous post, regarding focus...

   Filenet, when working as "Email Manager" it does not substitute a mail client.... in fact, it needs either Notes or Outlook on top.... Is just a solution for email regulations that force you to have audited all the mail...

   So, is not other product to compite with, in fact, is a solution to be offer to both Outlook & Notes customer for regulatory issues !!!

1. 8  GarryL  | 8/10/2006 5:50:00 PM

   @6

   “@4 Garry, that is a very limited point of view...

   PureEdge forms could add an incredible value to Notes and Portal... Do you really known the product ?”

   With regards to PureEdge, I have read some literature and saw a live demo at the Lotusphere event in Manchester. I’m from what you guys class as an SME. Can you tell me the cost of PureEdge please?

   Competing? There’s a stack of overlap here.

1. 9  GarryL  | 8/10/2006 6:18:24 PM

   @7 "So, is not other product to compite with, in fact, is a solution to be offer to both Outlook & Notes customer for regulatory issues !!!"

   Yep, you got me there. { Link }

1. 10  xy xy  | 8/10/2006 8:00:16 PM

   @5

   Portlet Factory was already a development environment for WebSphere Portal, so IBM has just rebranded it.

   Workplace Form is about 'standard' story:

   1) version 2.5 was just logo-substitution

   2) designer 2.6 is eclipse-based but it losts useful wizard like calling a web-service (see its ibm newsgroup)

   3) neither 2.5 or 2.6 are well integrated with Workplace ( e.g. try to handle e-forms in a document library)

   IMO, IBM has great products but unlike MS it must:

   a) blue-washing every acquired software

   b) support foreign middleware (like use of Oracle db as backend for portal)

   These 'must' involves inevitables delays for strategic release like Workplace 3.0 (maybe on summer, that is more than 8 months after Sharepoint 2007).

1. 11  Ed Brill http://www.edbrill.com | 8/10/2006 9:28:54 PM

   Alright so I posted this and then was offline all day.

   xy xy -- no anonymous comments allowed here. I am not deleting them after being up for hours, but I won't accept any more.

   GarryL -- I can understand the frustration of seeing money in one pocket but not another. But the discussion around templates is NOT a money discussion alone. I was talking with Steve Castledine today, and it reminded me just how much work goes into building and maintaining the Notes templates. And that's for the ones where IBM wouldn't create channel conflict.

   As to your point about overlap, enterprise content management is not the same as document management. We are talking some implementations with millions of documents, which is not what Domino is optimized for. IBM ourselves have a few other solutions for content management. Part of today's announcement is that the content management products line will be brought together. How and what happens -- let's wait until the filenet acquisition closes and more details emerge. But this is a very good move for IBM in the overall market and I think you'll see long-term good come from it.

1. 12  Jens http://www.ligonet.ch | 8/10/2006 11:53:34 PM

   Garry, I can only confirm, what Silvia and Ed have already pointed out. Filenet is in no way any competition to any parts of Domino or Workplace. As an SMB you will never really try to purchase Filenet for yourself. Filenet is playing in the big-big environments. This are dimensions, where Domino or Workplace or Domino.doc will simply break down completely, not able to manage the sheer mass of documents/informations that would be thrown on it. Look it that way: Filenet is the like a truck, whereas Domino(.doc) your luxury car. Usually, people that like to have a Mercedes, would not even one second consider to buy a truck instead.

1. 13  Michael  | 8/11/2006 2:25:53 AM

   What we can say is that DB2 Content Manager was, well, quite complicated already and that this Filenet operation does not allow us to say that things are going to be simpler in the near future ;)

   With this aquisition Documentum (certainly one of the first competitor in this area) may be in a very unconfortable situation cause Filenet is a big player and so is DB2 Content Manager : the reunion of both (technicaly but most of all the customer base) should make IBM the clear leader and logical path to many future ECM customers...

1. 14  Ed Maloney  | 8/11/2006 6:46:35 AM

   @13 - and many current EMC customers! This is really more of a threat to Documentum than to Domino.

1. 15  GarryL  | 8/11/2006 7:59:41 AM

   @11

   I fully understand that its not just money alone. I have to say though that I believe that if a company with resources like IBM wanted to make something happen, it would. Maybe this situation would not have arisen if regular template updates, and application templates that are being asked for, had been introduced over time, rather than all at once, (or not at all - we still have not heard anything on this).

   I do not want to flog a dead horse, but I really do not think that IBM 'gets' the SME market. And worse still, SME's don't 'get' IBM. Your product range is too wide, too deep and too confusing for an SME to grasp. The IBM web site really could do with some simplification – there’s just too much to choose from, unless you exactly what you want. Nearly everyone I know, everyone, has, or is, implementing a version of Exchange then using Microsoft technologies to handle their files/content/intranet sites. The others are looking at open source solutions.

   So this purchase, like many others, is purely aimed at the big boys. That’s fine, if that's where you want to be. Just a shame that Microsoft appears to have effectively got the SME market sewn up.

1. 16  Wild Bill Buchan http://www.billbuchan.com | 8/11/2006 8:15:50 AM

   I note that some MS bloggers are asking how Domino will integrate with FileNet. Whilst far too early for anything detailed, it would be useful to understand if there was a roadmap for some level of integration, and perhaps discussion around what that might be ?

   Cheers,

   ---* Bill "Our product is available for a few million less" Buchan

1. 17  Ed Brill http://www.edbrill.com | 8/11/2006 9:18:24 AM

   @16 I can't comment on product plans like that...the acquisition hasn't closed. IBM now offers DB2 Content Manager which integrates with Domino and products based on it like CommonStore for archiving. { Link }

   @15 Garry, I've said this publicly before -- about half of Notes/Domino customers are in small and medium (<5000 employee) organisations. Is there room for improvement and more to go after that market? sure, always. I notice that Nitix is getting some play, and they have a Nitix+Domino offering: { Link }

   On the template thing, "we still have not heard anything on this". What are you expecting to hear? On what timeframe? I'm in regular communication with those who have chosen to lead the discussions (like those ongoing on John Head's blog, for example). But if you are looking for some kind of press release later today, then your expectations of what IBM does and can do are very mis-set.

1. 18  John Mikels  | 8/11/2006 10:10:45 AM

   Ed, you don't seem to want to hear the underlying message.

   We complained about the confusion with kstation, raven, workplace, ambuj's confusing plan, portal, etc, etc etc - and how it all didn't translate, how it was confusing (esp. to SME, though I would think to everyone).

   GM's keep changing, and I admit the message is better today then in Ambuj or the other guys short reins. Though the multitude of IBM\lotus products that do the same thing, the confusion of the website, things like portal with 1000 page installs, what's a workplace?...

   factor in things like quickplace, learning mgt system, lotus workflow and such not getting a real makeover in 5 years...

   it often takes me weeks to get a price on a product or to figure out how to buy some of this stuff. And I am an IBM\Lotus loyalist with a dedicated sales rep.

   We have spent $500k trying to use portal for our firm intranet, and I have no idea how to post a simple document on a page. I bet you couldnt either. Create Portals? Publish dominion apps? Portal Factory is a BEAR too!

   And we are all looking at Sharepoint shops, buy, install and deploy.

   If the above rant seems all over the place, you start to get the idea. Not looking for a response on anything specific above... though shouldnt someone in the sales\marketing world be able to build and implement a vision that can solve this?

1. 19  GarryL  | 8/11/2006 10:10:55 AM

   "But if you are looking for some kind of press release later today..."

   I presume that this was said in a Tongue-in-cheek manner. I am fully aware that a company of IBM size and complexity could not move as fast on this as some would like. With level of interest within the Notes community this generated, however, a simple "IBM is looking into how we could address this perceived issue" statement, or something, anything. At least then it we know it has been acknowledged.

   I'm pleased there are talented people out there who care enough about the product and the community to do this, and let’s just hope it comes to something. I cannot do anything to help with this, I'm not a developer. As a manager though, I could bang on to my peers, contacts, anyone, how great the Notes product actually is. All we need is some kick-ass apps, out-of-the-box, so they can immediately see the ROI. Then maybe you guys could get in and sell something else out of your product range.

   From small acorns large oaks grow.

   That’s it for me on this. My head is sore and the brick wall is getting cracked.

1. 20  John Head http://www.johndavidhead.com | 8/11/2006 12:30:27 PM

   @19 GarryL - um, there are THOUSANDS of apps that you can install and get ROI right away .. they are called Business Partner applications. No product, not even Sharepoint, has this "out-of-the-box" ... so let us asking for what no one else provides. All that does it makes any person from IBM reading this just turn off. We need to be accurate and realistic in our requests.

1. 21  GarryL  | 8/11/2006 1:31:07 PM

   John,

   Sorry, when I'm talking out of the box, I mean the Lotus Notes/Domino box, not somebody elses. You get more with Sharepoint, and its easier on the eye, and easier to use, than Notes as standard.

   I'm in the UK. Maybe things are rosier for Notes in the States. Here, for SME's certainly, Microsoft rules the roost. As a Notes site in the SME market in the UK, we're definately in the minority. Why? Well, for one, the SME market really relies on support from IT their local IT companies, and the vast majority of them are Microsoft based. They don't know Domino.

   I'll just wait to see how the Sharepoint 2007/Exchange numbers stack up against whatever IBM says their competing product(s) are.

   In the meantime, I am really hoping what you're trying to do with the Community effort comes off.

1. 22  John Head http://www.johndavidhead.com | 8/11/2006 1:39:02 PM

   @Garry .. you go count the Out of the Box templates that comes with Sharepoint 2003 and Notes 7.x (if you dont want to use 7.0.2 and the blog template, fine). Only count what comes on the CD. Then come back and lets talk .. because all 36 of those sharepoint templates are NOT IN THE BOX. They have no formal support and many of them will not work once you upgrade. All of the ones in the Notes/Domino box are supported, translated, and maintained version to version.

   I am with everyone when it comes to smacking IBM for its lackluster samples/templates that are available, but let us talk apples to apples ... not apples to fake organes.

1. 23  Ed Brill http://www.edbrill.com | 8/11/2006 1:39:59 PM

   So, Filenet....

1. 24  GarryL  | 8/11/2006 1:52:19 PM

   @23

   :-)

1. 25  Charles Robinson http://cubert-codepoet.blogspot.com | 8/11/2006 2:10:26 PM

   All I can say is good luck with it. I don't have any particular use for it or any other document management system so I'm completely neutral.

1. 26  Samuel deHuszar Allen  | 8/11/2006 2:44:46 PM

   Well, I think most people that peruse the blog don't know much about FileNet or have use for it for the very reason that we're all Notes/Domino-heads and eat and breath that particular market. But I think there is a resounding cry that needs attention. And it's one I've echoed a few times before on this site myself.

   Most small businesses have never heard about Notes and Domino. Getting information about it from the ibm.com website is a masochist's wet dream. And learning how to set up very simple process which would help your business often requires SOMEONE to sift through 7-10, 600-800 page RedBooks (if they're lucky!).

   The Lotus brand is still catering to the geek mindset of 10 years ago. The product has evolved dramatically in the past 2 years and has an exciting future, but if you aren't a 15 year veteran of the platform, there is a tremendous gauntlet you have to run to become competant in the necessary skills unless you limit yourself to the core basics and Java/JavaScript development, at which point you only have to learn Formula Language the hard way, and get your Java/Script education from one of the hundreds of books, and websites out there.

   I think there is this "if we build it better, they will come!" mentality, which is fine. But IBM doesn't seem to see any value in having some pie and punch at the party when they arrive. The Notes-Domino portfolio REALLY needs a Head-First (www.headfirstlabs.com) type series of books, and I agree, the ibm site should be rethought and DRAMATICALLY simplified for the web 2.0 era. If it weren't for my having bookmarked it last time, I don't know if I'd be able to find my way back to my passportadvantage site without using Google, which is a little retarded (if you'll excuse my explicitly non-p.c.-ness).

   The long and short is, having a better product is not enough. And while IBM has put a lot of effort back into the platform, and have pushed out a lot of press-releases and magazine ads, they've essentially been neglecting the eco-system that surrounds the products, that make the products compelling to people, that make them feel like they've invested in a safe bet.

   Most SMBs aren't scouring the web for press-releases, nor do magazine ads do much in the education realm. They're merely perceptional reinforcement. But when it comes to purchase time, and the IT guy goes down to the Barnes and Noble to pick up some reading material, and in between 3 columns of shelves filled on one side, with Java books, and on the other side with Microsoft Office, or Oracle, are 6 copies of Notes-Domino books, and only Rocky's ND6 Bible was written less than 10 years ago, that doesn't give people the perception that there's demand for the product. That gives them the perception that Notes is dead. They weren't at LotusSphere. Most don't know what a LotusSphere is. To quote someone else whose name I can't remember from this site, "they don't know middle-ware from underwear."

   And when they try to get a magazine subscription to get all the latest tips and tricks, they have to drop $600-$800/year. If they want to set up a simple fax-gateway, unless they are Linux whizzes and can set up HylaFax, they've got to drop $10,000 for a Notes Partner's product.

   And without IBM's help evangelizing, and refining its vision into simple digestible concepts with simple digestible documentation and support options, it's going to be very difficult for Notes shops to survive serving small-businesses, because even if Notes is a better product for small businesses (and I truly believe it is), most people aren't convinced of that regardless of what comes in the proverbial box.

   And I think when people in the inner-sanctum of Notes Geeks see these huge purchases of new portfolios of software to bolt on to the software they are still having problems convincing people to invest in, which is required for them to make their living, it becomes very, very frustrating.

   My $.07

1. 27  Paul Robichaux http://www.robichaux.net/blog | 8/11/2006 3:38:07 PM

   @26: wow, what a great summary of why I think Exchange has such a strong future! Not that I'm trying to tell Ed his business, of course, but the Notes ecosystem could use some proactive development :) I will note that the ecosystem for books and magazines is driven solely by demand, and it's very difficult to get a publisher to fund books on a topic unless a) it's a hot topic or b) the book has a unique competitive approach in a market with good sales potential. A "Head First Domino" might work, but I'm not sure the sales potential is there. Don't take my word for it; see { Link } for Tim O'Reilly's analysis of the current book market.

   As for FileNet: we'll have to see how well whichever division of IBM ends up with the FileNet portfolio integrates it. ECM is increasingly important, which is why it plays such a prominent role in MS' 2007 releases.

1. 28  Ed Brill http://www.edbrill.com | 8/11/2006 4:14:35 PM

   It's so funny to think that seven months outta Lotusphere, after a marketing road show that reached tens of thousands in the first half, with ads and marketing campaigns, huge new announcements esp. around Linux, web 2.0 and enterprise integration, and "Hannover" about to enter beta that this thread about a pending acquisition can somehow turn into a "Lotus marketing sucks" thread.

   Good thing I'm going on vacation again next week. :-)

1. 29  Samuel deHuszar Allen  | 8/11/2006 4:25:23 PM

   Hehe. It's true, Microsoft has done a tremendous job in promoting an ecosystem around Exchange. The only thing tripping up Exchange is the product itself. :P

   My point is that IBM is going to have to get its hands dirty and help stir the pot in such a way that can produce that demand. Notes hasn't had that "cool factor" for a while in spite of its tremendous capabilities. They're already publishing tons of PDF documentation, but again, you need a pickax and a shovel to get there if you are even aware that they exist.

   Why not invest a bit of money in getting Head First certified, or setting up an agreement with O'Reilly to take the effort that goes into these dry and complicated Redbooks and make a human/newbie readable introduction to the various paths available to a Notes-initiate (end-user/developer/admin). If it's too expensive to publish them in paper, then surround the PDF download link as obnoxiously visible as possible, AND include it along with ALL the Notes/Domino Redbooks on a disc which comes with every media pack CD set that ships out.

   Put the info in EVERYONE'S hand at EVERY opportunity.

   I think IBM currently views that type of work as an unneccessary financial loss instead of an investment.

   As it stands, each Redbook assumes you already understand the platform and are just trying to absorb this one bit. Help us help you, IBM!!!

1. 30  GarryL  | 8/11/2006 4:36:28 PM

   @27

   The thing with Microsoft stuff going forward is that to make the most of it you need a whole stack of products, including the Office, Sharepoint, Exchange etc. That’s fine if that’s what you want. Notes gives you the ability to do that from one product.

   The issue that many have (and I can only talk from an SME aspect) is that Notes may not stack up well enough on the surface to the new MS offering, due to various reasons, a concentration on Workplace being one of them.

   I read the InfoWorld Exchange beta review that is linked to on your site and honestly, instead of a one size fits all as is current; we get roles such as Mailbox, Client Access, Bridgehead, Unified Messaging, Edge Transport, and Clustered. It’s getting confusing for SME's! I'm actually heartened for Notes by this! Where Microsoft does win, has always won, is its ability to produce an end-user client that is very attractive and consistent.

   I have worked with both Domino and Exchange, and Domino just runs. I have always found Exchange needs much more looking after. You get the ability to do so much more with Notes, it’s just that you really need some work to get it there, which is at the root of all the recent blog chatter.

1. 31  Samuel deHuszar Allen  | 8/11/2006 4:46:10 PM

   @28

   Ed, I don't know how else to say this, but it's not about marketing in the traditional sense. The whole argument I'm making is that you're putting money into marketing where enormous corporations go to look for it. And that's fine, and IBM is doing a GREAT job at that, don't get me wrong.

   ...but small businesses don't work that way. Having a two-page spread in PC-Magazine doesn't tell people about Notes and what it does, nor does it help them use it once they've bought it, regardless of how they heard about it. It reminds people about what they should already know and tries to embue them with positive feelings about the product. That does nothing for the companies who end up dumping Notes because it's too expensive to keep their IT staff trained. And so they implement a poorly configured system that would work fine if they knew what they were doing.

   IBM needs to be in the small-business incubators, Lotus Notes user groups and the Universities, setting up demonstrations, tutorials and howto's and investing in pilot projects, not so much as good marketing, or to get the headlines, but so young people and young companies will think about how to be creative with YOUR tools as they enter the real-world.

   This is much different from marketing in the traditional sense.

   Another example of this is that I get phone calls from companies that make Microsoft training tools and books ALL THE TIME! What aspect of Microsoft tools do I want to learn? Well, none. I'm a Linux guy. But my point is, Microsoft is ACTIVELY ENGAGING me ALL THE TIME.

   The seven month roadshow and warm-fuzzy glow coming out of LotusSphere was awesome and exciting, and shouldn't be dismissed, and I'm not dismissing it, but the reason this conversation keeps happening, is that several people in your midst keep crying "education and concision!!!" and you (you as in the IBM execs) keep responding "marketing???"

   That may be indicative of a much deeper perception problem. But I think this conversation needs to continue, even if it's not in this particular forum. Because if IBM is putting it's efforts in this area, it's either missing the mark of wasn't intended to hit the mark we keep asking about.

   Again. You've already won me. I love Notes, I'm not slamming Notes as a product, although there's always room for improvement. I just want it to be the success that it should, and I have the same conversations with all the members of the Chicago users group (GRANITEUG if you're interested) and we've been talking about what we as a group can do to help each other on this problem that we ALL SEE. But most every attempt to communicate these issues to IBM that I've heard of are met with a rather cold indifference, or an apologetic shrug of the shoulders.

   If the the persistence of this topic frustrates you, it should. But we keep bringing it up because it frustrates us and is pretty critical to all of our success.

1. 32  GarryL  | 8/11/2006 4:47:26 PM

   Ed,

   Don't get too downtrodden! { Link }

   We love you really! Enjoy your break!

1. 33  NeilT  | 8/13/2006 5:17:06 PM

   @28

   Ed, unfortunately your loyal community is not so "hype" or "marketing" focused. Yes the roadshow was an incredible investment not seen since the days of LotusSphere Europe. However the actions do not appear to match the hype.

   There have been many fingers pointed here. Most of them with very valid core issues. I personally see FileNet as a domino.doc killer. However depending on how that is handled, that could be a positive thing.

   It does not take much to read the press release and realise what FileNet is NOT being aimed at. Now either IBM bought the product and has a strategy for it, or it does not. Now given the fragging that Microsoft has taken on this very blog about a lack of a roadmap, is it unresonable for your loyal followers to ask where the FileNet strategy sits vis a vis Notes/Domino? After all, if anyone knows, you should.

   In the MS space, I see a cohesive push. OK so the product set is chopping about a bit, but the message is constant and the products are deliverable "out of the box" for the many of their customers.

   There is a great deal of frustration right now. Hannover is not going to fix this for some time to come.

   My personal impression is that when Lotus was finally painted blue, the traditional "Lotus" product set wound up at the bottom of a pile of heavyweight priorities and budgets. OK so it didn't die and it's building back, however that doesn't help all that much right now. I certainly don't see it as too little, too late, however I do have my concerns about the IBM focus and support internally. Especially as this current intiative is going to take at least 3 years to come to fruition. For me that makes 9 years waiting for a real sea change. That's a long time in the software world.

   Expect to see comments when Hannover finally ships like "I waited 5 years and upgraded my hardware to get Notes 6/7 in another package". They are guaranteed to come.

   As for the IBM website. Well what can you say? Every time I get a survey on developerworks I reply the same way. "If your intention is to provide a user hostile experience, you succeeded beyond you wildest dreams" and it just keeps getting worse. This is the public face of IBM's "Lotus Software" and to be honest it's mediocre. Lots of work to do in order to make sure that all that "LotusSphere comes to you" feelgood factor is not lost.

   Perhaps it would be good for the IBM website designers to go back to the old 1999 Notes.net website and just have a look. In comparison with that Devloperworks looks like an old chipped military grey filing cabinet. Now I know it is just an Electronic filing cabinet, but it doesn't have to Look like one. In some things it really is the little things that cause the most pain.

1. 34  Ed Brill http://www.edbrill.com | 8/13/2006 6:13:24 PM

   @33 "is it unresonable for your loyal followers to ask where the FileNet strategy sits vis a vis Notes/Domino? After all, if anyone knows, you should."

   I'm not sure why I should -- I'm the sales leader for Lotus Notes, and I didn't work on this deal. But the bigger issue is that Filenet is a public company, and until their shareholders approve the deal, there's very little that either company can say publicly.

1. 35  Henning Heinz  | 8/14/2006 6:17:49 AM

   I am one or the conspiracy theorists but even me has never considered the FileNet aquisition a threat to domino.doc.

   Just one quote about FileNet pricing

   "Prices for the FileNet P8 architecture range from $125,000 to $420,000, depending on the chosen suite and its configuration".

   From my opinion domino.doc development is put on the back burner anyway.

1. 36  NancyFG  | 8/14/2006 9:41:47 AM

   Just a comment on the form design aspect of this merger. As an eform coordinator, I've looked at both the PureEdge (Workplace Forms) and Shana/Filenet form softwares in detail. Both of them, as far as I know, still do not have a viable thin client interface that will work well in a business environment. IBM will tell you that the Workplace Forms product is thin client, but they were at our location a month or two ago and their product simply does not measure up to other form softwares.

   IBM should work with both of these packages to make sure that companies can deploy their forms in an intra/internet environment.

1. 37  andy b http://andy.the-broyles.com | 8/18/2006 10:35:52 PM

   I would give my eye teeth to have IBM release FileNet's old Watermark imaging server IP to public domain...heck, I might even be willing to buy it.