Shared Spaces ... the Collaboration Advisor

Shared Spaces Briefing, Aug 23

Today's highlights: Oracle Collaboration Suite 10g; Exchange 2003 Update; WSS in MBS; Google Desktop Search 2.0; BEA Acquired Plumtree Software; NextPage 2.0 available in September; Inxight SmartDiscovery Awareness Server 5.2; From Liquid Systems to Zimbra; Interwoven and SharePoint Portal;

• Oracle released the 10g update of Oracle Collaboration Suite, its messaging and collaboration platform. Offers content management capabilities ("Content Services 10g", a replacement for the current Oracle Files), IM and presence awareness via Jabber/XMPP technology, enterprise search, and Oracle Workspaces (a team-oriented collaboration workspace). Available immediately, at $60 per named user for a perpetual license. InformationWeek


• Microsoft released a limited preview of its forthcoming service pack 2 for Exchange 2003. Available for use in lab or testing environments. Includes the new wireless email capabilities, mailbox storage capacity expansion to 75GB, and a new offline address book format, among others. Requires Outlook 2003 SP2 for some of the security features; SP2 is not currently available. ZDNet, Geekzone


• Microsoft will add Windows SharePoint Services capabilities to its line of Business Solutions, including Great Plains, Axapta, Navision, Solomon, and Microsoft CRM. The integration allows users to view data from a Microsoft Business Solutions package in SharePoint Portal via a Web part, and to include collaborative capabilities in the Business Solution itself. eWeek


• Google released Version 2.0 of its Google Desktop Search product, adding a new Sidebar feature to provide access to email, news, weather, photos, stocks and Web feeds. InfoWorld


• BEA Systems announced a definitive agreement to acquire Plumtree Software, for US$200 million in cash. Plumtree offers a cross-platform enterprise portal platform. BEA intends to use Plumtree to reach a new audience of non-technical business users. Plumtree, InformationWeek


• NextPage announced that Version 2.0 of its NextPage document service will be launched at DEMOfall next month. New features / functions were not disclosed. NextPage


• Inxight Software released Version 5.2 of its SmartDiscovery Awareness Server, a federated search and alert solution. Includes over 600 search brokers for integrating with enterprise and Web-based data sources. Available immediately. InXight


• Liquid Systems, the stealth-mode collaboration software startup, has changed its name to Zimbra, and released some screen shots of its forthcoming open source collaboration product. Includes a conversation capability for seeing all messages in a given thread. Zimbra


• Interwoven released Interwoven WorkSite for SharePoint, for integrating its content management capabilities with SharePoint Portal Server. Adds a strong content infrastructure to SharePoint, enabling information workers to access content stored in the WorkSite repository from within SharePoint. Available end September 2005. Interwoven

This Briefing was written by Michael Sampson, of Shared Spaces Research & Consulting Ltd. Email or IM Michael to discuss any of these items further.

Conversations on the Web, Aug 22

Interesting conversations going on around the place:

• Volker on Nokia 9300. In his search for the ideal mobile device, Volker's current device of choice is the Nokia 9300. He's "surprised" that he likes the 9300 "so much" vs. the Treo 650 and Motorola RAZR. vowe.net


• Osterman on Encrypted Email vs. Secure Document Repositories. In response to a recent column on encrypted email, a reader commented to Michael Osterman that they had experienced greater success in shifting users to "secure document repositories" compared with encouraging an adoption of encrypted email. NetworkWorld


• Too Many Dipsticks in IT. With 67-90% of IT staff time being spent on "installation, migration, patching, security and compliance" work--which contributes little or no direct business value--David discusses the need for simplicity and agility in enterprise information systems. A key driver: find those things that contribute meaningful marketplace value and differentiation. ComputerWorld


• Lotus vs. MT for Intranets. James discusses Alcatel's apparent decision to embrace Movable Type rather than Lotus Notes, as an example of "portal, content management and collaboration players that will be impacted by a new generation of lightweight syndication service-enabled frameworks". MonkChips

Conversations around the Web, Aug 18

Interesting conversations going on around the place:

• Benefits of an Outside Perspective. Matt writes about the benefits IT organizations gain from bringing in an external consultant to give an "outsider's perspective" on major projects. Key reasons: major projects are demanding, and flexibility and experience are essential. Options are vendor-based and independent consultants. Comment: This is very much what I do when I engage with organizations; bring an independent viewpoint to the issues at play in the team collaboration and team productivity arena. SearchCIO


• Samsung i730 Review. John reviews the new Samsung i730, a combined Pocket PC and PDA phone. Includes a QWERTY keyboard. SearchMobileComputing


• Dan Hammers InStat. Dan Taylor of the Mobile Enterprise Alliance continues his crusade to get vendors and analysts to think about life from the consumer's point of view. He hammers InStat's view about poor consumer education being the downfall of wireless networking. MEA Blog


• Forbes on RSS. Forbes looks at the nascent RSS industry and considers where the money is. Key opportunities: infrastructure products, online communities, collaboration (few deals disclosed), and new client software. Forbes


• Macworld Slams InterComm 1.3. Macworld's Matt Vance reviews InterComm 1.3 from Five Across, and concludes that it "fails in almost all of its tasks" ... instant messaging, file sharing, and version control features. Macworld

Offers from Africa were nil.

Thank you to David Sampson, Aug 17

I was away on business today, and didn't want to lug a third laptop to Wellington for the purposes of a 30 minute demonstration. So I left it in the office, with Citrix GoToMeeting up and running. At 2pm, I called back to the office and asked my 9 year old son--David--to initiate a session and then pass control to me. He'd never seen GoToMeeting before, and I had not explained the task in advance. We had a bit of difficulty initially, but I was eventually able to control the machine and provide the demonstration.

Major thanks to my technologist-in-training ... I'm very proud of him.

P.S. I guess I could have used Citrix GoToMyPC.

Shared Spaces Briefing, Aug 17

Today's highlights: RSS = Web Feeds; PlanView 2005 Conference; New customer for CoCreate; Champy to CIOs; Good on Samsung i730; C-Search 1.3; Intellext Watson 2.0 Beta;

• Microsoft has rebranded RSS feeds in IE 7 to "Web feeds", much to the chagrin of RSS designers and bloggers. Comment: I read a recent statistic that said that fewer than 5% of web surfers understood RSS and how to subscribe to an "RSS feed". I say, good on Microsoft for seeking for a clearer term. InfoWorld


• PlanView announced that its 2005 International User Group Conference will be held September 19-21 in Austin TX. A Forrester Research analyst will deliver a presentation on the benefits of integrated IT management. BusinessWire


• CoCreate announced a new customer for its collaborative PLM software: The Robbins Company, designers and manufacturers of tunneling and mining equipment. TenLinks.com


• James Champy has three nuggets of personal advice for CIOs: (1) stop going to meetings (unless they're with customers), (2) never start a project unless its business purpose is clear (what's the business need?), and (3) face faces about whether your IT projects are contributing to business goals or not. SearchCIO


• Good Technology extended its wireless messaging service to the Samsung i730, running on the Verizon Wireless EVDO network. prnewswire.com


• C-Search Limited released Version 1.3 of its name-sake search engine software for IBM Lotus Domino. C-Search Mail Monitor was added to the portfolio, offering indexing email content in Notes databases. Free version available for organizations with less than 50 users. WebHosting


• Intellext Software released the beta of Version 2.0 of Watson, its Pillar 7 technology that scans what people are doing and provides contextual notification about other potential sources of insight. Beta available immediately. WebProNews

This Briefing was written by Michael Sampson, of Shared Spaces Research & Consulting Ltd. Email or IM Michael to discuss any of these items further.

Shared Spaces Briefing, Aug 16

Today's highlights: Documentum eRoom 7.3; Dump Exchange, Four Alternatives; Meeting Maker Wireless Extensions; NextPage and Podcast Channel; AfterMail Gold; Novell GroupWise 7;

• EMC announced Version 7.3 of eRoom Enterprise, its team collaboration offering. New features: cross eRoom dashboards, instant messaging integration, enhanced content server integration, and new security features, among others. Available immediately. Documentum


• eWeek reviewed four email servers that enable companies to use Outlook on the desktop with enterprise-class email, calendaring and scheduling capabilities. Of Bynari Insight Server 4.2, CommuniGate's CommuniGate Pro RTC 4.2, Gordano Messaging Suite 11, and Scalix Server 9.2.1, the Analyst choice went to CommuniGate. eWeek


• Meeting Maker announced Meeting Maker Mobile, a wireless calendaring and email solution for its calendar server, powered by Intellisync's Mobile Suite. Supports access from multiple devices, against the Meeting Maker Millennium calendar server, and a variety of standards-based and proprietary email servers. Available in Standard and Premium Editions starting August 30. Meeting Maker


• NextPage announced a partnership with Podcast.net, for sponsoring a document management and collaboration podcast channel. The intent is to facilitate interviews with thought and industry leaders on document collaboration. NextPage executives will also feature on the channel. NextPage


• AfterMail announced achievement of Microsoft Gold Certified Partner in the Microsoft Partner Program. AfterMail offers a next generation email management solution, offering archiving, compliance, and email-enabled application functionality. AfterMail


• Novell released Version 7 of GroupWise, its email and collaboration platform. New features: integrated email and IM, enhanced Microsoft Outlook support, and a pre-bundled license of SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. Available immediately, worldwide. Novell

This Briefing was written by Michael Sampson, of Shared Spaces Research & Consulting Ltd. Email or IM Michael to discuss any of these items further.

Conversations on the Web, Aug 16

Interesting conversations going on around the place:

• Four Areas to Use a Tablet. Author Michael Linenberger offers four tips for improving tasks at work via a Tablet PC. (1) mark up and edit documents with digital ink; (2) brainstorming (with OneNote or MindManager); (3) prepare, give and edit presentations; and (4) taking and sharing notes in handwriting. Michael wrote "Seize the Work Day", a book about using the Tablet PC and Microsoft products for business productivity. Microsoft

Offers from Africa were $25m.

Shared Spaces Briefing, Aug 15

Today's highlights: SharePoint Portal Server Discovery Kit; Novell Hula Project; Red Hat on Enterprise Email;

• Microsoft has prepared a forthcoming information resource to detail the value that SharePoint Portal Server adds to Windows SharePoint Services. It is targeted at IT Professionals, and will be available shortly. Arpan Shah


• Novell's Hula Project, an open source project for the development of a collaboration platform built on Novell's NetMail code, will enable cross-organizational calendaring, mobile device integration, enterprise email, among others. The first version is scheduled for release later in 2005. ITWeek


• Red Hat remains undecided as to what it will do with the Netscape email server it acquired when it purchased the Netscape assets at the end of 2004. It is in the process of releasing the Certificate Server under an open-source license. TechWorld

This Briefing was written by Michael Sampson, of Shared Spaces Research & Consulting Ltd. Email or IM Michael to discuss any of these items further.

Shared Spaces Briefing, Aug 12

Today's highlights: CTC 2006 Dates; Collaborative Communications Summit 2005;

• MediaLive announced that the 2006 Collaborative Technologies Conference will be held June 19-22 at the Seaport Hotel in Boston MA. CollaborationLoop


• The Collaborative Communications Summit is being held October 24-25, 2005, in San Francisco. The intent is to provide an executive-level view of applications that focus on managing real-time communications between individuals and groups. BusinessWire

This Briefing was written by Michael Sampson, of Shared Spaces Research & Consulting Ltd. Email or IM Michael to discuss any of these items further.

Conversations on the Web, Aug 11

Interesting conversations going on around the place:

• Google to Buy Meetroduction? Continuing earlier speculation about Google entering the IM market, there's a new "report" that Google has acquired Meetroduction. With the IM software it already owns via its Picasa acquisition, Google could create a service that combines social and local networking, photo-sharing, and geographic search and mapping. CNET News


• Do One Thing at a Time. Jeffrey strongly advocates a key productivity principle: do one thing at a time (focus), and keep at it until it is done (concentrate). Simple advice, but it sure is hard to follow! Thinking Faster


• Only Do One or Two Things. Dave extends Jeffery's thesis on productivity to "only do one or two things" in order to achieve excellence and to be brilliant in your chosen field. Salon Blogs


• Condolences to Hassan and HumanWare. The founder and CEO of HumanWare (ex-Pulse Data) and his wife were killed in a light plane crash here in New Zealand over the past weekend. I just found out that Hassan Wong, who shared an office with me for six months during our MCom program at the University of Canterbury, was their son. My condolences to Hassan and all those affected by this tragedy. HumanWare

Offers from Africa were $9.8m.