DominoKeys.com

Ten months ago I ordered a Dell laptop to replace my MacBook Pro at the office. I’ll be honest, at the time I thought I would be so convinced that OSX was a better O/S that 6 months into the decision, I’d want my Mac back.

That’s not the case at all.

Sure, I still run Mac’s at home and I’m not interested in changing that, but as a word device, my 64-bit Windows 7 environment makes everything much easier. Network drives? No problem. Cisco/Sametime integration – check. Quickr connectors? Eh, don’t go there.

So while I once called this move going to “the dark side” I have to admit I’ve only benefited from the change. In fact besides the overwhelming sense of being cool, the only thing I miss from the Mac environment is quick look and expose/spaces.

It was interesting to think about all this on the drive in this morning and then see an article about the Top 10 Reasons Apple is the future of IT. I get the point and I’m open to the idea in our environment but my own personal experiences as a HUGE Mac fan suggest that in our environment (which has lots of IBM, Cisco and Lotus Notes based utilities), its not something that makes as much sense as Win7, XP or even Vista.

Tags: ibm, lotus, mac, windows7

I. Am. Thrilled! to see that Lotus is doing so much lately to show a commitment to the Mac, iPhone and now iPad. Its actually been a bit hard to AVOID seeing something in the press about that – which is great. I’m especially glad because a quick click on the “iPhone” link in this site’s tag cloud will show lots and lots of entries where I’ve talked about the need for this over the last few years.

And its clear that Lotus has listened (perhaps not to me, but a bunch of us). That’s great! It sends a great message about the brand’s commitment to some outstanding devices; it positions them in a great way (hey, anyone who can ride Apple’s ad/press-tailwave should do so!); and I still believe that it will translate to $.

There is simply no other point to this article than to acknowledge that lots of people are talking about this and I think its all great news. Its easy to have a blog and stay focused on what improvements are needed or what messages are not being heard – I just wanted to say “thanks!” for listening and acting on this one. Its great stuff!

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go tell my boss that I NEED an iPad! 

Tags: buzz, ipad, iphone, mac, News

Irony: I officially remove “Mac” from the title bar of my blog the same week Lotus does a fantastic job of proving they are committed to the platform!

A bit of a history lesson before we get to this post…

When I started this blog I focused mostly on Lotus stuff. Shortly after I became a Mac guy. I then realized I was standing in two communities that (at the time) had little overlap but a lot in common (namely a strong, vocal, passionate and talented community around the product).

In the last 4 months I made the decision to go back to being a “Windows” guy largely due to looking at the roadmap our company had for deploying technology and coming to the realization that if I was the guy who was going to stand in front of the company and lead them into these new tools, I better use them myself.

As I have gone further and further away from Macs at the office, Lotus has gone closer to them – which is exciting to say the least. We still have a few here and for many users it simply isn’t much of a change to use “Windows” Notes (8.5) vs. “Mac” Notes. And that’s no small accomplishment on the part of Lotus! I’m delighted to see them continue to have a stronger commitment to that platform!

Don’t get me wrong – I’m still a Mac guy at heart (and at home). But I wouldn’t be telling the truth if I didn’t admit that it is noticeably easier to get my job done being on a Windows platform due in large part to consistency in using the same other software (VPN, VoIP, etc.) as everyone else.

So … for now, I got the Mac out of the focus of this blog. But given that my decision to finally do that came on the same day I saw many news stories from Lotus about their commitment to the Mac, I have to wonder if its temporary.

Time will tell.

Tags: consistency, mac, windows

Everyone else seems to be posting things that reflect on the last year – so I decided to do the same. Below are the top 10 moments/posts/thoughts that I feel are more noteworthy from this blog. Enjoy.

10. Lotus announces Sametime 8.5 before the end of 2009 (despite me being SURE they’d wait to Lotusphere)

9. Disk savings from DAOS was easy to implement and quite beneficial on disk space usage!

8. Began using Google Voice a utility that’s not all “there” yet but potentially a game-changer for managing phone calls & voicemails.

7. Notes turns 20

6. Realized the using an iPhone is more like integrating something into your life than getting a new phone.

5. Realized that people don’t “search” any more, they “Google.”

4. My alter-ego starred in a video all about “conferences at Disney World” which featured Lotusphere 2009.

3. After much debate (and frustration caused largely by SnowLeopard) I abandoned a Mac in favor of a PC.

2. Notes (Traveler) support for the iPhone was released (and it rocks!)

1. I got fed up with hearing things like “notes is a tarnished brand” and one simple thing to try to make my voice heard for a moment by being featured on theInfoBoom.com along with a companion piece on my blog.

Tags: 2009, daos, google, iphone, lotusphere, mac, pc, sametime, traveler

It is with a most humble attitude that I need to make this announcement: I just ordered a new laptop – and its not a Mac.

(Dominokeys.com would like to take this moment to remind you that for all medical emergencies we recommend using 911 or your cities local emergency services phone number.)

Yes. I’ve been a Mac fan for years. I’ve harped on the lack of Lotus support for the Mac. I’ve praised Lotus for a solid Mac Notes client. And now, I’ve gone back to a PC.

Simply put: there are too many business applications I need to run that require me to “live” in Parallels (virtualized Windows environment). If that’s where I’m spending my time, then why not just RUN Windows?! Our VPN, Cisco IP soft-phone, Quickr Connectors, System i emulation – and a list of other tools all require Windows. Yes, I could go around and hunt down Mac counterparts to those tools but it almost always results in more work for my Admins or the purchase of another software package (the System i emulator alone was over $100!).

At the end of the day – I need to get BUSINESS done. I’m not abandoning Mac altogether – I still have an iMac and MacBook at home. And I may even keep my MacBookPro around for presentations, videos and such. But as the primary machine, I’m kind of looking forward to the simplicity of Windows.

How smart of a decision will that be? I’m sure you’ll read about it here over the next few months.

Tags: Apple / Mac, bizness, lotus, mac, pc, windows

I have to admit that despite how many times I’ve praised Macs, I’ve found myself thinking about going back to “being a PC” quite a lot lately.

I’ll give you a moment to recover from that statement.

All better? OK, good.

My thoughts about going back to a PC have been driven largely by a frustration about how much “stuff” that is released only for a PC. Quickr Connectors and Cisco IP softphone products fill the top of that list. Sure, I can work around them but I have to admit, it would be really nice to just use what everyone else is using and get back to working.

Not to mention that Snow Leopard has many cool new features but was essentially a (temporary, I hope) step backwards. I’ve lost printer connectivity (most of our office printers don’t have compatible drivers yet) and Notes 8.5 and 8.5.1 is missing all sorts of icons throughout the system (which they have said they are working on), so something as simple as scheduling a meeting is now a bit of a guessing game.

Then there’s the list of the 10 things I dislike about my Mac. Most of which have no signs of “going away” any time soon.

Don’t get me wrong… I’m not crazy about opening up a Windows-can of virus and spyware problems; and I’d most likely want to move to Windows 7 which is arguably going to be as problematic as Snow Leopard is. Still, its tempting.

Now… on the Mac side, I would miss:

• Quick Previews (LOVE this feature – use it for all sorts of files)
• Ease of screen capturing (do that ALL THE TIME)
• Spaces (sooo handy)
• A sleep mode that works flawlessly
• … that cool Apple icon

Stay tuned. I’m just as eager as anyone to find out where this will end up.

Tags: mac, windows 7

Each time Apple releases an update to their O/S, I’m amazed at how they continue to come up with stuff I “need” and didn’t know I needed until they told me I needed it.

(Let me re-read that. ….. Yeah, makes sense.)

Their latest update gives me better (and faster) file preview functionality, more stability, a nicer Quicktime environment, faster file searching and a bunch of other things … not to mention getting BACK 16GB+ after the install. I think that is the first time I’ve ever done a major upgrade and got space back!

Shortly after the update, I was also reminded that: just because I have a Mac doesn’t mean I can do updates without remembering that I use my Mac at the office. I suddenly realized that my printers stopped working (no drivers yet from Ricoh) and Notes started to do flaky things. Example from my calendar:

Not the end of the word at all. I can live without the icons that are missing. However, I was reminded of the fact that I still use this as my primary “business” machine, and despite how cool/hip/Apple-esque it might feel to be a Mac user, normal “business” rules apply (checking for supported software, updates, testing, not being an early adopter, etc.).

Kinda makes me wonder what else has changed that I just haven’t discovered yet…

Tags: business, mac, osx, snow leopard

For YEARS I’ve wanted something that allows me to see my work calendar, my home calendar, my wife’s calendar, my kid’s calendar and … well… the schedule of the Denver Broncos, on one screen. With the combination of Notes 8.5 and Apple’s Me.com (formerly MobileMe) service, I can.

First, open Apple’s iCal application and right-click on the calendar(s) you want to subscribe to. Select “Publish” and make note (either copy/paste or use the “email” option) of the locations of your published calendar.

When the calendar is published, you’ll se a “broadcast” icon appear letting you know its available. In the “Publish…” dialog box, you may also want to select some of the options available. For example, I leave the defaults and select “Publish changes automatically” and “Publish To Do items” but do not “Publish alarms” (I don’t need to be alerted to when their appointments will occur, I just need to see them on the schedule).

Back in Lotus Notes, open your calendar and select “Show Calendars” from the navigation on the left. Use the “Add a Calendar…” feature to enter the location of your .ics feed. Give the calendar a name (can’t use hyphens for some reason) and select any custom icons or colors to make it stand out. I use the same color scheme as I’ve got set up in Apple’s iCal to keep the instant corellation of “who’s calendar is what color” straight in my head.

The new calendar will appear automatically on your Lotus Notes calendar. To toggle on/off, just use the appropriate check mark.

Pretty easy stuff and extremely handy!

Tags: Apple / Mac, broncos, calendars, ical, mac, me.com, mobileme, notes

Update: I attended a session this afternoon which provided the components of the OGS which I thought were missing. The two together have prompted me to change my opinion here. I now have a better understanding of why the OGS was structured the way it was (although they probably could have lifted 5 minutes of content about the direction of Notes/Domino from the INV102 session). I suggest reading that entry first, and then coming back to this one with the understanding that I’ve eased up a bit on my original thoughts.  -KH 1.19.2008 @ 2:45PM EST

The Lotusphere 2009 Opening General Session just finished and, as much as I honestly hate to say this, I can sum it up with one word: disappointing.

Normally, I have 8-12 pages of notes after this session; I want to redo my schedule selection because I’m so excited about new announcements; and I’m just so completely excited and enthusiastic that I start to “get” why people wear those “I bleed yellow” t-shirts. This year? Not so much.

I think Lotus was really trying to shift the OGS from being a demo session “lite” (which we all actually like) and be something that tells the story about their product portfolio. They also talked very little about the direction of Notes/Domino. Infact, hardly anything was mentioned about the Domino server at all.

Some of the highlights:

• 12,236 new Notes customers since the launch of version 8 (impressive!)
• 2% more attendance at Lotusphere this year vs. last (take THAT recession!)
• “Bluehouse” is now “LotusLive Engage” – gone is the cool logo. Instead, it now has both a very Microsoft name and font logo.
• “Alloy” is the new name for Project Atlantic – a sort of joint venture between Notes and SAP
• LinkedIn appeared throughout various slides
• Sametime looks like its getting some BIG improvements! Zero footprint. Great telephony integration. Slick interface. Looks great – can’t wait to use it! My team and I actually decided we need further evaluate this and potentially revamp some of our Cisco strategy.
• “Stuff’ (connections, LotusLive, etc.) works on the iPhone (’cause it has a browser)
• BlackBerry, BlackBerry, BlackBerry, BlackBerry, BlackBerry. (Lotus wants you to say that four times every time you THINK about the iPhone. It was really quite frustrating – the amount of focus they put on the BB and lack of mention of anything helpful for the iPhone.)
• Quickr for Domino will get ECM integration in the next release
• WebSphere – this section compelled people to leave, yet again. I’m really surprised at how many people get up and leave when this starts.
• Integration – its clear that Lotus/IBM have spent A LOT of time getting all of their apps to work together well. Connections, Quickr, LotusLive Engage, Sametime – all of it works together well and will continue to do so in the future.

One other item that’s worth noting is the use of Twitter. The “#LS09″ flag allowed people to tweet realtime throughout the event. I can’t imagine being a presenter and getting instant feedback like that. When its good feedback, I’m sure it helps the energy build – when its not, its got to make things that much worse.

Overall, the feedback I’ve been hearing from people has been surprisingly split. IBM/Lotus employees and business partners seem to be saying that it was the best OGS in a long time. Nearly all of the other people I’ve talked to who are customers completely disagree. I’m hearing people complain about the lack of new announcements for the Notes Client, Domino and Administrator. I’m hearing positive things about Sametime, but a mixed interest in Connections and disappointment in improvements for Quickr. Even the Mac crowd seems to be subdued … most likely largely due to the fact that they now have a great Notes client (and can shut up about wanting one – myself included, btw) and the disappointment about NOT hearing an announcement about an iPhone PIM application (and the repetition of “BlackBerry” throughout the morning didn’t help.)

So there you have it — I’m anxious to hear what others thought as the week goes on. So far (yesterday and the one I’m in now), the sessions have been outstanding. I’d also offer that I had my hopes up for the OGS since the decision was made to announce 8.5 at MacWorld … I assumed Lotus had more surprises up their sleve for their own conference.

Tags: Apple / Mac, iphone, lotusphere, ls09, mac, notes, ogs, quickr, sametime

I have mixed feelings about continuing to post anything about the Notes 8.5 release for the Mac. The fact is that I was one of the many people at Lotusphere 2008 who frantically downloaded the beta release when it was announcd. However, I only kept it installed on my machine a total of 5 weeks because … well, it was beta, slow and buggy and I needed to get stuff done. (I’m not condemming the beta version at all – the fact is that it wasn’t a production version, and that’s what I needed at the time.)

My mixed feelings are due to the fact that I’m stumbling on a lot of things that are interesting and wondering “Was that in the beta? Was that supposed to be there? Was this a problem in the beta? Is this by design?” Regardless, I said I’d post some updates, so that’s what I will do.

First off, I LOVE the way you can check up on your quota in your mail file. There’s an indicator at the top of your email navigation (which seems like it should be clickable, but isn’t) and the ability to access a quick pop-up via a menu to give you some more detailed information. For the record, my mail file is MUCH larger than I’d like it to be. Time to delete.

One of the things I rely on (for now) is the ability to export every calendar entry to an .ics file, which I drag into iCal, thus syncing a number of Mac calendars in my life, including my iPhone. Yes, its not the most glamorous way of doing this, but it works and I’ve been too busy to try alternate methods. There are two problems with doing this in 8.5: 1) I can’t select multiples via the gutter and 2) there are two options for the export type, both of which appear to be similar. I’ve tried both types and they appear to do the same thing.

Finally, I’ve seen a few cases where there is a phantom tip bubble. I haven’t figured out a rhyme or reason to it, but occassionally one appears and doesn’t disappear. In this case, a calendar reminder stayed up over my inbox, workspace and a few applications. Minimizing, then bringing up the window again usually takes care of it.

I still have a lot of positive things to say about this release and I’m thrilled that the Mac version doesn’t appear to be an after-thought on this release. This is all helping build up even more excitement for Lotusphere!

Tags: 8.5, lotusphere, mac, notes, quota