Leadership By Numbers

Category Administration Linux Open Source Ubuntu
Time for a Wi-Fi tune-up for the home office, and one of my first tools of choice is InSSIDer by Metageek. It provides a dynamic presentation of channels, traffic flow, encryption types and other statistics. Over the last six months, I've noticed that my Wi-Fi connectivity is getting a bit sketchy, depending on my location. My original configuration was put in place six or seven years ago. Perhaps I'm experiencing a problem of congestion from the addition of many more neighborhood routers.

Metageek now supports rpm and deb Linux packages. You'll need Mono, so there are extra instructions for Ubuntu 10.04. My work laptop is Ubuntu 10.10, so the install was quick and effortless. After I fired it up, I could see two Wi-Fi problems that required my immediate attention: up my encryption and change the channel.

When I originally set up my first Wi-Fi router, it was using 802.11b and WEP encryption. A few years later, I upgraded the router, but was lazy and kept the same security standard. After all, the amount of Wi-Fi activity in my area was very low. It was like living on a country farm in the Internet, where no one really bothers locking the front door. Well, the neighborhood's changed, and InSSIDer exposed just how many accounts were within range, and many of their encryption standards were WPA with TKIP/DSA. I can probably mitigate my guilt by drawing on my Wi-Fi configuration frustration with earlier Linux distributions. A 128 bit WEP key was about all I could get to work across a variety of NICs.

After moving to WPA-PSK with TKIP/DSA encryption, it was time to change the channel. When I selected channel 1, there wasn't anyone in my vicinity using Wi-Fi except for someone on 11. So, as more and more users set up their own routers I just assumed that they understood about the importance to avoid overlapping channels and wouldn't all choose channel 1. Apparently, I'm a leader. InSSIDer graphed the painful reality that just about all of my next-door neighbors were on channel 1.

Now that I've moved my Wi-Fi channel and upped my encryption, I'm feeling pretty good. Too bad it's now cheap and easy to crack WPA-PSK in less than six minutes. That information, though, I'm going to keep from my neighbors.


 




Technorati Tags: security, wifi, metageek

Posted by Jack Dausman At 12:37 AM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (13)

Category Administration Management Nyumbani Open Source Ubuntu
Malware is a parasite that is too familiar with Windows, and uncommon on Macintosh and Linux. It's going to be one more justification for moving onto a different desktop. Robert McCartney has detailed an article of his hijacked Windows machine, "Cyberjustice: An Impossible Dream?"

The cyberswindlers didn't get my money, but they cost me a heap of frustration. It took two weeks and four visits to The Washington Post's IT department to get my computer back to normal.

I've never met McCartney, but I am familiar with the technical support staff at The Washington Post, and they are not slackers. In fact, every workstation and laptop is installed with several monitoring programs to fight malware and viruses. Still, a smart journalist fell prey to a phishing scam and suffered a very long two weeks from an infected system.

Personally, I also provide a fair amount of family support. My solution for my Uncle Joe, after his second installation of malware ? Ubuntu. It's what's on my daughter's laptop, my Dad's workstation, and it's what I put on equipment that is being shipped to Nyumbani, a children's residence. I've been working with Linux, and Ubuntu in particular, for several years. The result has been no viruses, and no malware.

I've been running Ubuntu 10.04, beta, and it looks very polished. IBM's Client for Smart Work is going out on Ubuntu, and it is even possible to be run on a very inexpensive VDI platform by Virtual Bridges.

Ubuntu 10.04 is the release that enterprises will begin to seriously evaluate for deployment. Maybe it should have a market slogan of "Now, with less malware than competing platforms." I should ask Robert McCartney what he thinks.


Technorati Tags: Robert McCartney, Ubuntu, Virtual Bridges, OCCS

Posted by Jack Dausman At 1:52 AM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (5)

Category Administration Management Open Source Ubuntu
Early estimates are placing the price of the Ubuntu-powered Simmbook with IBM/Lotus software at less than my original guess. Lilliputing is noting that the little netbook will "come preloaded with IBM business software including Lotus Symphony, Lotus Notes, LotusLive iNotes, and other desktop and cloud-connected applications" for under $200. That's a lot of business-ware for such a small cost.

ReadWriteWeb summarizes the intention of the Simmbook:

Part of the strategy here is to convince IT managers in emerging markets that the Netbook is a legitimate alternative to the PC, especially when it comes pre-loaded with Ubuntu and productivity applications with no custom work required.

Interestingly, the inclusion of LotusLive places the Simmbook in the middle ground between the cloud-oriented iPad and Google's Chrome OS. The Simmbook has enough resources to manage locally stored applications, and will benefit from any available cloud-services, when there is connectivity.

It's being built at a rate of nearly 4,000 units/month, which isn't an overwhelming number considering that it will take 5 years to reach 1 million units. You'd think that someone else would jump into the fray and offer a competitive product. But, I'm not sure that another manufacturer is going to bother to undercut the Simmbook unless the scale is adjusted upwards. Simmtronics has several manufacturing facilities, so it's likely that they can increase their output to keep pace with the Simmbook's rising popularity.

I'm keeping an eye on the Simmbook, and looking forward to the possibility of evaluating one.

Technorati Tags: Simmbook

Posted by Jack Dausman At 1:49 AM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (1)

Category IBM/Lotus Open Source Ubuntu
For most of the world, Apple's iPad is an expensive and pretty tourist-gadget that saps up Internet bandwidth, uses a proprietary OS, doesn't have a lid and lacks a keyboard. I applaud its style for the executive suite and those enthralled with IT-chic, but it's more about New Age minimalism than social change.  It's utopic, both in the fiction of the imaginary Utopia island of political perfection as authored by Sir Thomas More, as well as by "u-topia" being a Greek pun for "no place."
 
If you want to learn about a revolution, then you need to know about the Simmbook and an interview I had with Managing Director, Indrajit Sabharwal of Simmtronics, along with IBM's Antony Satyadas. The Simmbook is a pared down netbook that fits in with a family of products from Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, Lenovo, and Samsung. Its feature set is equal to its cousins offering a 10-inch netbook, and the build quality looked good (I'm hoping to have a chance for a hands-on review copy). What makes the Simmbook unique is pure economics. The substance of Simmbook's potential isn't found in being another micro-laptop, it's in the context of its marketplace and its partners. Think of it as the front-blade of a bulldozer.

• It is manufactured at a lower cost than comparable units
• It's packaged with Ubuntu, an open-source operating system
• It includes IBM's Lotus Symphony, an open-standards office suite
• Canonical, the creator of Ubuntu, is providing commercial support for Symphony
• The Simmbook is tailored for distribution into developing economies, with Simmtronics working with regional channel partners

Simmtronics Seminconductors is a 20 year old electronics manufacturer, with production facilities in India and Singapore. They are mostly known for their motherboards, memory modules and graphic cards. The Simmbook is where they have put all the pieces together, to enter the laptop market with a low-cost netbook. Indrajit pointed out that "because the motherboard and memory is 25% of overall cost," Simmtronics has a competitive pricing edge.  By removing the expense of a Microsoft operating system, and relying on Ubuntu (Windows XP is an option, at an increased expense),  Simmtronics has created a mobile computing device with 1 G of RAM, Intel Atom processor and a 160 HD that will be selling in the neighborhood of $250 US.

This is no WalMart Linux, or an import with an edge in cheapness. Simmbook represents the melding of an open-source, open-standards platform produced for emerging economies, and sold through partner channels into other developing economies. Writing "emerging" for Indian technology makes me wince, unless of course, I borrow from Gartner Analyst, Brian Prentice and accept that the developed economies are themselves "submerging" in our current recession. There is nothing substandard with Indian manufacturing, and the integration of open-source architecture has forged a strong union with the hardware build and the software stack. The Simmbook is witness to this new trend:

Countries like India are not technology backwaters. It's a country brimming with software engineers and companies that have been highly successful in exploiting their ability to work for much lower wages than developed nations. If a local open source supply and demand equilibrium can emerge than I would think we'd see an explosion of comprehensively designed and supported solutions.

If such a scenario unfolds, the ramifications are significant. The unencumbered availability of open source coupled with the global capabilities of Indian service organizations would make these projects just as viable in developed countries. These so-called emerging economies, therefore, become both the development centers and test markets for a base of open source projects that can shift the balance of power in the US-dominated software market.

In the process of adding Canonical's open-source Ubuntu to the Simmbook, Simmtronics was introduced by Canonical to another partner: IBM. That relationship has matured into a global agreement to preload IBM Lotus Symphony as part of the "IBM Client for Smart Work." Symphony is an ODF compliant office suite, based on open standards, which matches well with the intention of the Simmbook providing an enterprise-grade device. IBM's "Client for Smart Work" is a fascinating blend of hosted services and inexpensive devices. Pradeep Nair, director of IBM India Software Group, explains that this is a solution that "brings together the strengths of cloud-based collaboration, virtual desktops, netbook devices and open source, supported by a strong ecosystem of business partners, to help Indian innovators harness the next wave of growth."

So, now does it make sense to look at the Simmbook with renewed respect ?  It's the bionomics of the open-source, open-standards culture; world-class manufacturing expertise that understands developing economies;  the Fortune 50 resources of IBM; and a partner channel which is building out innovative, integration solutions that includes Virtual Desktop Infrastructures.

The next generation of Internet use will be built from the likes of the Simmbook, creating new markets and new opportunities.  I can easily imagine hearing the diesel engine starting to rev up as this bulldozer begins to rumble forward.



Technorati Tags: simmbook, ibm, lotus symphony, Indrajit Sabharwa, Antony Satyadas

Posted by Jack Dausman At 6:21 AM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (6)

Category IBM/Lotus Linux Ubuntu
IBM is now offering the African package of its Virtual Ubuntu for the rest of us. It's touted as a choice fit for today's netbooks--a downsized desktop for the pintsized workstation. Does it really make sense ? It's definitely a splashy topic. The news made it on Slashdot, with an unusually large number of respondents. Let's look at the parts:

• Ubuntu on a netbook has proven itself, even providing a 'Remix' version best suited for the smaller netbook screens. Dell just released their Ubuntu 9.04 ISO, so anyone can purchase brand-name hardware that supports Ubuntu.

• Virtual Desktop Integration (VDI) is starting to get some serious attention. These platforms have come a long way from their earlier, nearly dumb terminals based on protocols like VNC. Citrix and Microsoft are promoting the XenDesktop package, with VMware and Parallels presenting their own VDI infrastructure. Canonical's Ubuntu has had several different VDI choices, but with the addition of IBM's approval and partnership, Ubuntu under VDI is being recast as Enterprise Grade.

• Lotus Symphony looks good and works well on Windows, Macintosh and Linux. As a Microsoft Office alternative, it's a good choice, but it's not the only player. The question for IT managers is whether or not Sun's OpenOffice is preferred to Lotus Symphony. Both have large companies behind their development, offer support and sell at a zero price point. Until recently, I would have understood a hesitancy to pull in Lotus Symphony. But, Sun is now in negotiations to be purchased by Oracle; a company that is not a flagbearer for Free Open Source (FOSS). The future of OpenOffice is uncertain, and IBM is strongly committed to the ongoing maturation of Symphony. Interestingly, Lotus just released an upgraded Symphony development kit that uses a Visual Basic style of programming (LotusScript) that works with Lotus Notes.

• Lotus Notes is now at release 8.5.1, and has revitalized their entire product line. It's obvious from numerous press accounts, that inclusion for iPhone support has been widely welcomed. Lotus Notes has been polished up and shows well in any office environment. Rob Koplowitz, Forrester Research's principal analyst summarizes that,"Lotus can now go side-by-side with Microsoft in a UI bake-off." Add in the integration capabilities of Lotus Notes and Lotus Symphony and there is now a framework for a uniquely productive office suite. I'm not sure there is anything equal to it. With the addition for Sametime IM and Quickr Entry, IBM has a challenge to Google Apps.

An IBM-Canonical VDI looks like an arrangement where the pieces fit well together: each link stands well on its own merits. Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols gives his summary analysis of IBM's news, and concludes with a pricing breakdown. If your site is running Lotus, then you need to be evaluating VDI possibilities. If you are not using Lotus, then you couldn't ask for a better friend during your next round of negotiations for license renewal.

---

Update: I'm looking to identify some point of contacts for the IBM Business Partners who can provide the VDI solution. I've worked with Virtual Bridges, and I know they are included in the list. In the meantime, there is a ROI/TCO calculator with some more details.

Technorati Tags: Ubuntu, VDI, IBM/Lotus

Posted by Jack Dausman At 8:33 PM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (1)

Category Linux Open Source Ubuntu
Jono Bacon is the Community Manager for Ubuntu, and author of the highly praised "The Art of Community." The text has been published by O'Reilly under a Creative Commons license. Jono has decided to include access to a PDF of his work (though, he also encourages everyone to purchase a commercial copy, as well).

From OpenNTF to Sourceforge, if you are working in open-source, then this is a must-read.

Throughout the eleven chapters and 360+ pages the book covers the major elements of building strong community:

* Foreword by Leo Laporte ' emmy award-winning broadcaster and founder of the TWiT Network provides a thoughtful foreword, complete with his expected wit and repartee.
* Preface
* Chapter 1 ' The Art of Community ' We begin the book with a bird's-eye view of how communities function at a social science level. We cover the underlying nuts and bolts of how people form communities, what keeps them involved, and the basis and opportunities behind these interactions.
* Chapter 2 ' Planning Your Community ' Next we carve out and document a blueprint and strategy for your community and its future growth. Part of this strategy includes the target objectives and goals and how the community can be structured to achieve them.
* Chapter 3 ' Communicating Clearly ' At the heart of community is communication, and great communicators can have a tremendously positive impact. Here we lay down the communications backbone and the best practices associated with using it.
* Chapter 4 ' Processes: Simple Is Sustainable ' We then move on to focus on putting the facilities in place for your community to do great things. In this chapter we build simple, effective, and nonbureaucratic processes that enable your community to conduct tasks, work together, and share their successes.
* Chapter 5 ' Supporting Workflow with Tools ' We continue our discussion of community facilities to build workflows that are driven by accessible, sensible, and rock-solid tools that enable your contributors to do great work quickly and easily.
* Chapter 6 ' Building Buzz ' With a solid foundation in place, we move on to build excitement and buzz around your community and encourage and enthuse every man, woman, dog and pony to get involved and participate.
* Chapter 7 ' Measuring Community ' Although many consider community hand-wavey and unmeasurable, this chapter confronts the myth and guides you in tracking, monitoring, and otherwise measuring the work going on the community so it can be optimized and simplified.
* Chapter 8 ' Governance ' Our next stop is the wide-ranging and seemingly complex topic of governance. We explore what options are available for a low-friction, capable, and representative governance strategy for your community.
* Chapter 9 ' Handling Conflict ' One of the most sensitive topics in community leadership is handling conflict. In this chapter we explore how to identify, handle, and prevent irksome conflict; handle divisive personalities; and unblock problems.
* Chapter 10 ' Creating and Running Events ' Events offer an excellent opportunity for your community to bond, be productive, and have fun, and this is where we cast our beady eye in our penultimate chapter.
* Chapter 11 ' Hiring a Community Manager ' Finally, we close The Art of Community with some advice and guidance for organizations who want to hire a community manager to conduct and implement the wide range of topics that we have discussed throughout the book.

Technorati Tags: Jono Bacon, Ubuntu

Posted by Jack Dausman At 2:07 AM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (1)

Category Ubuntu
There is a very good reason why Microsoft is contributing to the Linux kernel: virtualization efficiency. Microsoft's Linux virtualization is third string. A few weeks back, Network World gave a review of different virtualization performance results. It was ostensibly an analysis of the Parallels Workstation Macintosh and Windows software.

However, buried in the performance table, was a side-by-side comparison of VMWare, Sun's VirtualBox, Parallels and Microsoft's Virtual PC. Admittedly, this overview was for desktop and not server virtualization, but the basic platform code is the same. Ubuntu and Windows XP were used within each virtual offering, with some really interesting results:

• Most of the time, the benchmarks were about the same between Ubuntu and Windows XP.
• VMWare produced the best time for Ubuntu on Windows.
• Parallels had the best time for Ubuntu on Macintosh.
• Ubuntu on Microsoft's VirtualPC was a tenth of the performance of Windows XP. It wasn't just bad, it was under water.
  

That's right. Ubuntu's Linux was absolutely crippled when run in Microsoft VirtualPC. So, I don't think it's too surprising that Microsoft has come forward, bearing gifts to The Linux Foundation. Linux is mainstream enough for Microsoft to have supported it within their VM technology for a few years. The news is that Microsoft is moving forward to optimize their VM to stay competitive with Linux installations.


Technorati Tags: Ubuntu, Microsoft, Linux Kernel

Posted by Jack Dausman At 6:03 AM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (2)

Category IBM/Lotus Linux Ubuntu
The good news is that IBM understands Lotus collaboration as dead-central to their "Smart Work" initiative. Bob Picciano, the Lotus GM, has written up his attack points at CIO.com, and then took time for a conference call with some bloggers (thanks to Nathan Freeman for his transcript).

There is more to Picciano's analysis than a C-level,
marketing cold-call for reducing cost. I'm reading his words as a shift into the core strengths of the Lotus platform, and a revitalized effort to engage customers. Not just customers as in Enterprise Businesses, but customers as people who are as diverse as those with strained resources in developing economies, as well as those working with mashups against huge data-centers. It's a smart message.

The timing is late for Lotus.

What Lotus Notes does well, no one else can touch. But, IBM's competition delivered a smoother GUI earlier, provided more appealing hosting options, and created lock-in by tying the customer's assets into a single platform. The years of building out with Workplace, the slow maturation of Sametime, an awkward UI to Notes (pre-8.5), and weak data integration with Domino has taken a toll on the public image of Lotus.

Lotus Notes is the only collaboration platform that can be delivered as a full-featured client on Linux, Macintosh and Windows. That is an amazing capability. Yet, even in the Ubuntu Linux stronghold of Free Open-Source Software, there is no recognition for Domino, and very little for Notes. That is a stunning disconnect.

The Ubuntu 199 Exam Objectives actually requires Linux System Administrators to understand the process of integrating with Microsoft Exchange:

125.4 Configure Evolution mail client (Weight: 2)

Description: Candidates should be able to configure Evolution to work with a variety of server types and mail protocols. This objective includes the secure configuration of POP3, IMAP, SMTP as well as the integration with an Exchange mail server. Candidates should also be able to set up filters in Evolution to manage spam and other email.

Key files, terms, and utilities include:

• evolution
• ~/.evolution/*
• evolution-exchange

IBM has all the right pieces to build a new customer base, but that opportunity has many challenges. I think a lot of the Lotus faithful have become so accustomed to being an underdog, that there is a community expectation that no one but the Disciples of Domino understand the product. Many of us who have lived with the rise of Lotus Notes have accepted an industry insulation that lacks appreciation for our virtues in security and stability. It's a mistake to ignore public perception.

Google Apps is awesome. It's becoming it's own trend, and university after university are discarding their messaging infrastructure for Google's. And, Microsoft ? Their Exchange 2010 is just not half-bad. It's had a serious update, most of which was cooked off-stage with little pre-announcements, and it's scheduled for an early debut. They have also done a great job in building up a hosted solution, and that has been years in the making. And like it or not, Sharepoint is taking up a lot of oxygen.

It is possible for Lotus Notes to adapt and morph into a platform which is better accepted. But first, there needs to be a hard stare at some tough realities. Rejected technologies never rebound.

Let me point out a famous struggle between Microsoft and WordPerfect. The European Committee for Interoperable Systems has just published their findings in support for the EU Commission's recent preliminary findings, on January 15, 2009, that Microsoft violated antitrust law. On page eleven, there is a chart of the dominance of Microsoft Word over Wordperfect. Look at that curve for Wordperfect, because it's the shape of a plumetting demise that never, ever recovers.

Technologies just don't have comebacks. Companies might readjust, but no one is going to revisit Token Ring or fire up the Iridium satellite network and SmallTalk will never resurge. The trajectories of  technology on a down slope are boringly consistent at SimplyHired.com or Indeed.com.

Smart Work for Lotus is going to have to extend beyond new economies of lower cost. Bob said that it takes smarter people to implement the Smart initiative. That's a good line. I'm hoping it has many meanings. I'd like to see real integration and interoperability into other open-standard and open-source platforms. It'd be great to have Lotus Symphony as a pre-load on Netbooks. The pricing of the Ubuntu PPA for Lotus Notes (and marketing) needs to be nudged forward. Even LotusLive holds promise.

Smart Work is going to be hard work, but IBM/Lotus can rebuild if they are working towards a new base.





Technorati Tags: Bob Picciano, Lotus Notes, Ubuntu

Posted by Jack Dausman At 8:29 PM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (9)

Category Security Ubuntu
Last night, I asked our security manager if we had contingency plans for the expected impact of the Conficker worm on April 1st. Perry smiled and said, "Yes . . after the meltdown, we'll all install Ubuntu."

And, still be running Notes.

Posted by Jack Dausman At 5:53 AM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (0)

Category IBM/Lotus Domino ND8 Marketing Open Source Ubuntu
This last January, after Stephan Wissel's presentation on DXL at Lotusphere, he and I had a frank talk over some trends, and some possibilities for Lotus. Notes and Domino should be the hands-down winner of any county fair cook-off. But, sometimes IBM is like a cook that could have a winning recipe if only a few, small ingredients had been included. Notes is so close to being able to make up some lost ground: the ND8.5 client is user-friendly, and it runs as a full client on three operating systems. Spice up IMAP, throw in some MAPI, and Lotus would have a completely different flavor.

Because I was an IBM/Lotus Business Partner for many years, and Stephan is a "Lotus Technology and Productivity Advisor" for IBM, he and I could commiserate how difficult it has been for IBM to take competitive advantage of Domino. Part of the problem could be that Domino is just a different sort of product from the standard portfolio offering for an IBM client representative to choose.

IBM's Systems and Technology Group (STG) know about how client reps want an easy sell, and they create a conversation around their p and z series systems: "Dear IT manager, look around and count boxes in your server room. ah... so many!! Have a look with one or two of our big machines you can kick all these boxes out, and we also have the service people to do that for you." This conversation is easy because the client rep is talking to the person she is most likely to have the best relationship: the IT manager. It doesn't hurt, either, that the result is very concrete and tangible.

Domino, though, has been on the defensive for a long time. This has changed with ND8.x, and there might be a renaissance for developers, clients and administrators. But, a lot of business users still think of it as an "historic" product (which competitors exploit). So, when an IBM sales rep tries to introduce Domino to a Microsoft Exchange shop, the conversation is familiar, but also out of sync: "Dear IT manager, look around and count boxes in your server room. ah... so many!! Have a look with one or two of our big machines you can kick all these boxes out, and we also have the service people to do that for you. Hm, you will, however, have to touch every desktop as well as retrain each user, while changing a corporate mind set. It's worth it, though, because the Notes 8 client is a truly collaborative platform."

The Lotus seller loves to have this conversation, but you and I can see there will be a fundamental, and dramatic disconnect between the product's capabilities and the customer's interest. The client rep and the IT manager see it, too: "Um, I'll need to discuss this idea first with our users, and they are so opinionated. Don't count on anything." The Domino conversation dies before it starts.

Incredibly, there is new competition which has already jumped ahead of Domino in the conversation to win over Exchange clients. How can this be ? IBM has been struggling in this terrain against Microsoft for over a decade. Yet, Cisco, for one, has aggressively began to elbow IBM out of the arena with their recent acquisition of PostPath. Cisco has already figured out how to make the conversation easy. Their secret ? Postpath includes MAPI and is a drop-in replacement for Exchange.

Here's how Stephan and I imagine their conversation: "You have so much Cisco gear already, just add a few more and get rid of all those patch cycles. Your users won't notice, since you don't even touch the desktops !" That's a simpler conversation. With Cisco marketing power, the slogan can be, "Let's kick out Exchange, but still keep Outlook."

Why isn't this possible with Domino and Notes ? Why doesn't Domino support Outlook clients ? Or, why can't a Notes client connect to Exchange ? The introduction to Lotus architecture to a Microsoft shop can just as easily begin on the client side, as with the server. The Open Source community has already taken advantage of the European Union's demands for Microsoft to publish their protocols. The latest Linux releases can now read/write locally stored Outlook PST files, and connect to an Exchange server by MAPI. Ubuntu 9.04 is a full MAPI client, at zero cost. Today, Novell's SUSE can natively connect to either Exchange or Novell Groupwise.

Domino is being pushed out of the competition, because it lacks a few protocols. It needs to support the Microsoft messaging wire protocols that Outlook uses. I'll leave it to your imagination, how much the sales conversation will improve, just by adding in a little MAPI into the mix.

Posted by Jack Dausman At 6:35 PM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (6)

Category IBM/Lotus Linux Ubuntu
Have you been to wi-fi cafe, like Caribou or Starbucks ? They have become laptop showrooms, offering everything from the Dell Mini 9 to upscale Apple Macbook Pros. I'm tempted to park my cup of java (straight, no sugar) and run EtherApe to trace the connections, but it's obvious that most of what is happening in the cafes is what I see on the corporate desktop:  e-mail.

On Windows systems, there is a lot of Outlook 2003/2007. On the Mac's it's Apple Mail, and on the Linux distros, it's Thunderbird and Evolution. Oh, and everyone is using web mail as well for GMail, and Yahoo). I'm not prying, but I do fall into a friendly chat session every now and then, and I've learned more about what is happening than I expected. Two things are obvious: everyone has multiple e-mail accounts, and they are using IMAP to connect them up into a single client. Which is why, I'm not seeing as many Notes clients as I would expect. Notes and IMAP just don't seem to mix well.

It's not a secret that Notes has been weak on IMAP. Ideajam.net has a topic to "remove IMAP support from the Notes client" that has garnered more votes in favor than opposed. Apparently, there is some frustration that the current IMAP capabilities are not workable, and it would be better off if Notes just dropped IMAP in general. I'm voting the topic down,  though, as I think it would be a mistake. Lotus Notes needs a robust IMAP implementation with a consumer-friendly GUI. Especially now, with the launch of a Ubuntu client.

IBM is on the edge of pushing out the IBM Open Collaboration Client Solution for Ubuntu. They actually have an OCCS ISO for you to take it for a 90 day trial run, and they have a PPA repository. This is a terrific mail client on Ubuntu--but it doesn't do IMAP easily. So, now there is a problem for IBM/Lotus. We know that most people have multiple mail accounts, and they don't want to shift between them. And, we know that IMAP is the de-facto protocol for general mail usage.

To add a little spice into the mix, the latest Gnome 2.6 will now support Microsoft's MAPI. This means that I can take an Outlook 2003 or 2007 PST file from a Windows system, and run it on a Linux installation. I can use the Linux Evolution mail client with a very simple configuration to become an Exchange client.

If I were a Lotus Business Partner, looking to convert Exchange shops to Domino--I'd be looking at the Ubuntu OCCS. After all, it is a disruptive force on any pricing spreadsheet. But, now that MAPI is integrated into Linux, it makes it possible to preserve the back-end Exchange installation and simply switch out the client OS. No messy mail file conversions.

Putting a good IMAP interface into the Notes client would go a long way in ensuring an opportunity for OCCS. With solid IMAP, the Notes client could provide at least a rudimentary connection to an Exchange server, and other mail services, while also offering Domino (for those that have it).

Throw in a Starbucks card, and I think a crowd would grow.



Technorati Tags: OCCS, Ubuntu, Lotus Notes

Posted by Jack Dausman At 5:38 AM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (6)

Category IBM/Lotus Domino Linux Open Source Ubuntu
The topic is interesting, but not compelling. Let's start with an acknowledgment that I share with The 451 Group: Open source is not a business model. Certainly, it can be part of a business model, but it does not stand alone.

Now, "making Lotus Notes work better with open-source" is an idea I can support, wholeheartedly.

• Sell Lotus Domino on the Ubuntu Store. Why not? If you check the link, you'll see that IBM has already figured out how to sell DB2 on Ubuntu.

• Sell the Lotus Notes client as a mail client for anyone. Why is the Lotus Notes client the only mail client that an end-user has no reasonable means to purchase ? For example, if I look at Amazon, I can easily purchase Outlook, if I'm check for Lotus Notes, I get books.

• Encourage better open-source development, and foster that growth with IBM Business Partners. Lotus Symphony supports 3rd party plug-ins, and we have OpenNTF.org but it'd be really impressive to see something like what Ubuntu has done with Launchpad.

• Finally, get some real training out in front of this push. Sure, people learn differently, but most people learn best in the same way that they enjoy movies: in a crowd. If there aren't enough IBM/Lotus training centers to support orienting customers to open-source alternatives, then create a traveling show that floats from city to city. I'm sure that it could be a shared sponsorship.

Technorati Tags: Open Source, Lotus Notes, Ubuntu

Posted by Jack Dausman At 1:16 AM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (11)

Category Administration IBM/Lotus Linux Ubuntu


IBM has announced another Microsoft-Free desktop solution. Early this year, it was with RedHat, and now Ubuntu has been added into the fold. "Microsoft-Free" is nothing less than an IBM war banner. I'm curious who else IBM is marshalling for its support beyond RedHat and Ubuntu.

IBM's Open Collaboration Client Solution (OCCS) is not a tack-on, but a nuanced and fully client-integrated desktop package. The software vendors have been lined up (IBM, RedHat and Ubuntu). So, who are the hardware vendors and ISVs that will push this solution ?

The biggest winner for OCCS implementations could be Dell. After all, Dell already offers Ubuntu as a consumer option (not just for enterprises that purchase in blocks of a hundred). Even better yet, if your work site has an Inspiron 530, 1420, 1525; XPS m1330, 1530; or the Studio 15, guess what ? Dell already has a free Ubuntu ISO for these models !

The OCCS is promising, and may even be brilliant, but in order for IBM to take away Microsoft market share, IBM is going to have to partner, partner, partner. Forget counting seat conversions, I'm not going to measure the success of OCCS by nothing less than the support channel. If there are enough partners for it, then it'll work.

As for Dell ? If they don't have something prepped for Lotusphere '09, then they need a new marketing team. Lotusphere will give them an excellent opportunity to reap the benefit of all their hard work with Linux and showcase their products.

Technorati Tags: Lotusphere2009, Dell Computers, Ubuntu, OCCS, Lotus Notes

Posted by Jack Dausman At 12:35 AM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (1)

Category Ubuntu
The official presentation template for Lotusphere 09 requires the Tahoma font. This is one of the fonts that Microsoft released years ago, and is included in a Linux collection, "msttcorefonts." I'll be using my Ubuntu Dell XPS laptop, when I present at this years Lotusphere, and for some odd reason Ubuntu (and Debian) don't include Tahoma in their msttcorefonts set.

However, Microsoft still makes the font available for download, and it's easy to install:

wget http://download.microsoft.com/download/ie6sp1/finrel/6_sp1/W98NT42KMeXP/EN-US/IELPKTH.CAB

cabextract -d tahomafont IELPKTH.CAB

sudo cp tahomafont/*.ttf /usr/share/fonts/truetype/msttcorefonts/

rm -rf tahomafont/

sudo fc-cache -fv

Thanks to MonoGuy for the specifics. Tahoma is a nice looking font, just don't forget to set your sub-pixel smoothing to get your best results. Look under System/Preferences/Appearance and Fonts for the configuration.

Posted by Jack Dausman At 6:57 AM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (1)

Category Diversion Ubuntu
The Matrix, from Redmond. CollegeHumor video short that is surprisingly good.



Technorati Tags: Ubuntu

Posted by Jack Dausman At 7:52 PM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (5)

Category IBM/Lotus Domino ND8 Ubuntu


Google's Picasa is my default photo editor. I've recently upgraded my primary work laptop to Ubuntu 8.10, which includes Lotus Notes 8.5. Today I went ahead and added the Google Picasa testing repository for trying out the latest release, Picasa 3. Better cropping, easier uploading to Google Images and a few other changes have made for a big improvement. But, what about e-mail integration ?

Everything works great. Sure enough, if I'm in Picasa and select the image I want to e-mail, it will fire up Lotus Notes, and embed the image with some comments in the memo area, and a subject header. I'm presented with a dialog for choosing GMail or my default e-mail. Lotus Notes is my default, so it kicks right into it. Even better, I use GScrot to make my screenshots, and that application will work with Picasa, as well.

This is a pretty handy desktop, for being free and running the Lotus Notes client.

Technorati Tags: Ubuntu 8.10, Lotus Notes, Picasa 3, GScrot

Posted by Jack Dausman At 11:07 PM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (2)

Category Linux Ubuntu
Remember when Firefox was being launched ? Very few pundits thought it would survive well against Microsoft's dominance.  Firefox has thrived. And, now a new class of mobile devices, netbooks, is opening up opportunities for Linux. I am reading Sunday paper advertisements of Dell's Mini 9, which are quite clearly describing that it runs Ubuntu.

Microsoft is being perceived as "getting some real competition," which is mostly coming from Ubuntu. Owned by Canonical, Ubuntu now has a world-wide installed base of 8 million users.

"We're not sharing our revenues publicly but I will say revenue growth is extremely strong and we're bullish across the board both at server side and desktop," Kenyon said. "The difference between now and even 12 months ago in terms of size and volume of deals coming through is a big difference."

"We'd expect there will be further significant announcements on that [partners] thread before the end of the year," Kenyon commented. "In terms of the large ISVs, we already have a good story with IBM DB2, Websphere, and now Lotus Notes as well."

It's cool to read that Lotus Notes is associated with this surge, but there is another story: it's the netbooks. Hidden in Microsoft's latest finanical statement, there is a subtle hint about a cross-current with these micro-laptops.

The company notes that growth in the client division was four points short of guidance. The company said PC units grew 10% - 12% in the latest quarter, in line with its guidance, but with a different product mix. Traditional PC units were slower, while netbooks were stronger.

The strangest part of this competitive trend is that underneath the netbooks, is another class of even smaller computing devices. These are the new smartphones, which have gotten smart enough to be running full-fledged operating systems. And, their OS is not Microsoft.

Technorati Tags: Lotus Notes, Ubuntu

Posted by Jack Dausman At 6:47 PM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (0)

Category Administration Linux Ubuntu
This summer, I've had the opportunity to update, migrate, and reconfigure workstations and laptops over to Linux (mostly Ubuntu 8.04). It can be a lot of trouble, depending on the complexity of the install (e.g., multiple sound cards) or the state of the wi-fi drivers. I'm doing this because (1) at each cycle with each system I pick up a little bit more about Linux and (2) right now, it's the most direct way to build a solid Linux workstation for my friends and family.

But, I don't expect to be offering this service in the future. After all, once I've polished up the installation, it's just too easy to create a master image for anyone else !

For instance, my parents visited this summer and I helped my Dad choose a Lenovo 3000 N200. This is a terrific buy at $400, and it took me a weekend to put on Ubuntu with the right network configuration, etc. I've created a backup of the system (http://www.clonezilla.org) which is about 2.5 G.

Now, I have a Ubuntu image for the Lenovo 3000 N200 which anyone else can use. You don't have to fuss with reading a wiki page where I detail all the little widget tunings I turned. Just grab a copy of the clone'd image and install onto identical hardware. Trouble is, I don't know where I can upload my 2.5 G of files.

So, I'm betting that within 18 to 24 months, we'll start to see sites which will host hardware-specific-images. The manufacturers and the resellers would l-o-v-e to see free images, and the Linux FOSS community would l-o-v-e to see more Linux desktops.

And, just when I was getting good at modprobe.

Technorati Tags: Ubuntu, Linux, Lenovo

Posted by Jack Dausman At 3:29 AM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (2)

Category IBM/Lotus Domino ND8 Linux Ubuntu

Ahhh. Notes 8.5 beta has been released. Domino Designer in Eclipse. Supported roaming with the Standard install. Google Calendar integration. And, Symphony 1 is out.

Oh, and the Linux Notes client can finally be placed on a Free Open Source Software client platform. I think it was a matter of time, and while RHEL and/or SuSE have FOSS clients, I had my fingers crossed that Ubuntu would get the nod. So, now we have a supported FOSS client with Notes. On Ubuntu. It's just weird looking at a Notes .deb package.

If you don't know where to start with Ubuntu, Yaser Sulaiman's Best Ubuntu Resources is current and recommended ! !

Technorati Tags: Ubuntu, Lotus Notes 8.5

Posted by Jack Dausman At 4:36 AM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (2)

Category Ubuntu
No doubt about it, I work in an IT Department as one of the many foot soldiers in the corporate computing world and am attired in business casual. James Governor is a respected analyst with RedMonk and I expect that his daily wardrobe is to fill a suit. We haven't met across any tables of shrimp and champagne--but we do see eye to eye on Ubuntu and Lotus.

Last March I wrote that "I think it's time that IBM Lotus reconsider supporting Ubuntu," then I guest blogged that "IBM Lotus Notes 8 is a Linux Killer Application."

Today, I had the extraordinary enjoyment of reading Governor's post asking "Why doesn’t IBM just take our advice and support Ubuntu?"

Just asking. Its a matter of time in my opinion. Lotus, which currently has a Nitix-based appliance style offering, would be a good trial balloon platform. Lots of community interest in Ubuntu. People choose SLES or RHEL because they have to. Ubuntu because they want to.

Thanks, James, you made my day.

[Update: 7/31/07] James has noted that IBM does support Ubuntu, just in a very limited manner and mostly to appease developers who need to run DB2 under an evaluation.

Posted by Jack Dausman At 9:32 PM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (7)

Category Ubuntu
This weekend I needed to spend a little quality time on Ubuntu and thought it would be time to add the ND8 Beta 3 into the mix. Ubuntu is not a supported IBM platform, so I expected the effort to require a few adjustments. The ND8 Beta forum has enough guidance that most Linux aficionados can successfully complete the install.

It works very well, and with the addition of the "IBM Productivity Tools," the ND8 client includes the capability of creating presentations, spreadsheets and word processing documents. For the Notes geeks, the news about ND8 Beta 3 is that it works faster than earlier builds. For the Linux users, they are still getting oriented to the concept of a Notes client on Linux.

Karl L. Gechlik of Ask The Admin has a short write-up on Zimbra, which he recognizes as a compelling alternative to Microsoft Exchange.

When in doubt, check out Lotus/Domino. Platform independent and has a LOT more functionality over Exchange including native clustering, but you will miss a lot of the integration.

I'm pretty sure that if Karl can take a look at ND8 running on Ubuntu, he'll rework his assesment of "integration" and Notes.

Posted by Jack Dausman At 7:28 AM Location Washington, DC | Permalink | Comments (3)