Comments on: Outlook Bleak on Microsoft Exchange Paradigm

By: Bilal Jaffery

Bilal Jaffery — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 16:25:17 +0000

In this economic environment, it only makes sense to go with best bang for the buck.

Do more with less.

By: Blair MacDonald

Blair MacDonald — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 15:00:25 +0000

@Leo K: you raise some very valid points. As CRN stated, “Outlook has the upper hand in the features department”. Notes does have some catching up to do on the features, but 8.5 did made noticeable improvements “performance-wise” over 8.0 (addresses Eclipse overhead). IBM still has to work on closing the gap, but I disagree that it’s still a huge stretch. It really isn’t.

As far as DAMO goes, I really try to sell the benefits of Notes over Outlook and provide resources to help make the transition as smooth as possible. Here’s a wonderful resource that makes a world of difference for end users: ftp://ftp.software.ibm.com/software/lotus/idc/N8150/index.htm

The bottom line (and the main point of my blog post) is that people are now ultimately faced with:

_A.) Get cool features and continue to pay through the nose.

_B.) Get decent features and best bang for your buck.

By: Jan Van Puyvelde

Jan Van Puyvelde — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 13:36:00 +0000

>> see unaccepted meeting invites in your calendar
It does, even in Notes 8 (but you need to enable it in Preferences).

Does Outlook forward when you press CTRL+F ? Outlook Express does and I hate it, as it’s the shortcut for “find” in any normal application.

But I get your point and I even somewhat agree with you.

By: Leo K

Leo K — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 12:19:30 +0000

Yes, I am aware of the Outlook client interface. And I’ve used DAMO. And it’s regrettably broken. Recurring meetings are not handled properly (if at all), email gets lost, etc. It simply can’t be trusted.

I think Notes is on the right track, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t want people who appreciate Notes (and there’s lots to appreciate) to think it’s a slam dunk. The front end is still a problem and still needs a lot of work.

All of us involved in the Notes business hate the bad rep it has — and why does it have that reputation? — because even though the businesses might recognize it at the right decision, the END USERS are the vocals ones that tarnish the brand in the marketplace at large — to the detriment of Notes adoption.

I still have a strong worry that 8.5 is too little, too late, regardless of its improvements over 7.

By: Ian Randall

Ian Randall — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 11:07:41 +0000

Perhaps Leo K is not aware that Foundations also supports the option of an Outloook client, with the Domino back-end replacing the Exchange server, so users can select whichever client and user interface they prefer for email or calendar functions.

By: Leo K

Leo K — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 02:56:19 +0000

I take issue with “… the Lotus Notes 8.5 user interface is so intuitive and easy to use, it’s not a huge stretch in transitioning away from Outlook.” *bzzzz* Newsflash, it’s STILL a huge stretch.

Yes, Notes 8.5 is an improvement, but that isn’t saying much. Lotus Notes 7 was horrific and an industry joke, and the smooth Outlook windows feel was sorely missed by those switching to Notes. Notes 8 made improvements, but at a performance cost with the Eclipse overhead and the smooth interface was still missing. And, in the end, you still can’t do simple things like Ctrl-R to reply to an email! Or forward a meeting invite! Or easily adjust start and end times for meetings! Or see unaccepted meeting invites in your calendar!

Wonderful that Notes scrapes by on the TCO argument. It will continue to scrape by until it truly takes the user seriously. Win the user, dammit, and you win the war. Notes 8.5 still doesn’t take it anywhere near far enough. No end user who goes from Outlook to Notes enjoys the transition. 8.5 is not the Notes messiah by a long stretch.

By: Keith Brooks

Keith Brooks — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 02:08:58 +0000

Well said, love the fact Outlook is not “Free” anymore…..as if it ever was LOL