New Ford Territory

Okay, so you may not find it at your local Ford dealer in the US.

CA chat

No not California, the other CA (Computer Associates). I was looking at some info on their site and it said chat with a representative. I figured rather than look through the site, I would try it. Asked a question regarding one of their database products (IDMS) and the reply was "Is IDMS a mainframe product?". That quickly gave me a clue that I had chosen the wrong path.

It was also a bit funny when we briefly conversed and she stated that she would have to have the technical staff get with me. She stated, "Okay. It should take very long to get back with you.". She did quickly correct herself.

To Late!

There use to be a lot of teams working on projects. Not necessarily IT specific. Some teams looked at streamlining forms, etc.. The team concept had a lot to do with the ideas of the Administration at that time. I stated several times that it would be nice to know what teams there were and what they were working on. One might have good information to share or be willing to participate, but when no one knows that it is being discussed how can they. Today I noticed a link on our Intranet. It has one of the little "NEW" bubbles. The teams and their projects are now listed on the Intranet.

I should be happy right. Well, now my reaction is why even have it taking up space on the Intranet server. Why such a change of heart you ask. The main reason is the information is worthless. The unit that was responsible for coordinating and tracking all of the teams and their progress is no longer as of this past Monday. The information is for the 52 teams that worked on projects in 2000 and 2001 (3 were actually in 2002). The information is brief, outdated, and pretty much useless. Several have no summaries. Most have summaries stating we are unable to implement at this time do to budgetary constraints. The team concept for such projects has basically died out. Another example of to little, to late.

Still frustrated

I hate it. I feel like I have been slamming IBM/Lotus a lot lately. I have had to battle about everytime I have a question. I am still caught.

It appears that IBM was pushing for the Data Center to move to Domino on zLinux. I spoke with someone that said it looked to be to early to go that route as tests were showing Linux on z/OS (Domino not even loaded) to be lacking in performacne, so I think it is out of the picture now. Looks like the 4 to 5 time increase for R6 on z/OS over R5 may have been inflated by IBM for various reasons. It is sounding like that price increase may actually be negligible now.

It looks like somewhere down the road the Data Center may look to blade servers and moving the shared Domino environment to these Intel based servers. I am ready. Bring them on! I am tired of the mainframe platform. The support alone for Domino on z/OS is terrible. Say z/OS and somehow even though you can't see them you know that "deer in the headlights look" just came across the face of the Domino Tech Support person on the other end of the line.

I once had a tech try tell me to just map a drive to the server. Quick clue he didn't get the environment.

I believe we would be running quicker on an Intel box with the resources of the box dedicated to the environment. We have never been able to convince the Data Center to put the Domino environment in it's own LPAR even when IBM/Lotus made the recommendation as well.

Advice on E-mail Platform

Let me just say, if you are currently in an environment that has Lotus Notes/Domino and Microsoft Outlook/Exchange (you can add lessor players in the mix if needed - GroupWise??) and you are looking to consolidate on one as a result of a merger, consolidation, need to standardize on a single mail platform, etc., take a really close look at the environments and what they are doing for you today. It seems the main problem when this comparison comes up is that a committee gets together and looks at doing e-mail only and has people say they like the Outlook client better (and they are use to it as they use Outlook Express at home, etc..). DON'T limit the evaluation to just sending e-mail and DON'T just buy into the ROI hype and say we're going with Microsoft.

Look at what applications are running in the Notes/Domino environment and what effect changing the e-mail system may have. If you don't and the applications actually have any use at all, you will probably end up with one of two scenarios.

Scenario One.

Move everyone to Microsoft Outlook/Exchange, many will be happy as the e-mail is flowing fine, but you have just turned the world upside down for those that came to rely on the Notes applications. You will probably be sending them back to manual processes or writing new applications to take the place of the old and realizing that the you just can't get the workflow that they are requesting.

Scenario Two.

You decide on Microsoft Outlook/Exchange but also realize the need for the Notes applications, so you move everyone to Outlook/Exchange for mail and keep some Notes/Domino around simply for running the applications. You have now limited the inherent workflow functionality of Notes, increased User Administration and are paying for an environment that could still do mail, but you are limiting it simply to applications.

Additional note:

I might add if you are simply looking at these e-mail systems for the first time don't discount the application side of Notes/Domino or you can often find that 6 months down the road you have people saying that they want workflow applications and you end up with all kinds of applications written with each application having it's own user administration.

Exchange Upgrade

At some point we will have to move off of our Exchange Server 5.5. As P.J. Connolly states "Exchange Upgrade Can Be a Tough Haul".

Updated Survey Results

I had 5 (6 counting my own responses) of 13 agencies respond with figures to my informal survey on Notes/Domino usage. As stated in my survey my main interest was simply to know what versions of Notes/Domino the other agencies were running. There were two additional responses stating that they believed my questions were redundant to questions asked by a recent survey conducted by a committee that had been formed to look at e-mail standards. One of those was addressed to me and the other I received via the person that headed the e-mail committee. I spoke with the head of the e-mail committee and he stated that the committee did not have the version information so he did not know where the redundancy came in. If it is redundant and you already have it, then would it be so hard to send. Oh well. You have to remember we are talking about Government.

Windows (ranging from Windows NT Server to Windows 2003 Server) was the most common OS. The two agencies in the shared environment are on the z/OS platform, one of those having a development server on NT. One proved to have a pretty good mixture - 3 servers running NT, 2 servers running Linux, and 4 servers running AIX, and the latest respondent is running on OS/400 v5r2.

The versions of Domino and Notes being run range from 4.6.3 to 6.0.1. The predominant version amongst the agencies being 5.0.8, although number of servers and clients deployed the majority would actually be on 5.07a. Of those that responded, all are utilizing Domino for internal applications, 5 of 6 are utilizing it for e-mail, 2 have Internet applications running on Domino and a 3rd one plans to.

In regards to additional applications being run in the Domino/Notes environment all but 2 of the 6 are running TeamStudio's products. Only 2 agencies are running anything additional - 1 running Sametime, and 1 running Quickplace. The latest respondent stated that they are looking at CRM from iExtensions.

What kind of numbers are we talking. Approximately 8,000 clients spread across approximately 208 servers. A single agency accounting for about 62% of that.

All responding that they plan to upgrade, a couple stating 6.5, a few 6.0x, and one unsure. None having definite dates, but ranging from the first of 2004 to late 2004 stated by a couple.

Another response

As is often the case, sending out the results from the survey prompts someone that didn't reply to get their responses sent. I'll try to repost the Survey Results post with the updated information.

Look at your Portal Lotus!

When putting some links in my previous post, I went to the Lotus website. Unfortunatley I must say that I was disappointed. I didn't like splitting the naming of the clients (Notes) and server (Domino) to begin with. It only confused the issue of IBM/Lotus products. To go to the Lotus homepage and find that the only reference to either Notes or Domino on the whole page is to a Lotus Workplace & Domino whitepaper was sad.

If one clicks on the Products and services link at the top of the page, does Domino or Notes show in the list anywhere on that page either? Nope, better keep looking. One unfamiliar (and some that are even familiar) could possibly pick a number of the items listed under Software thinking Domino may show in the results.

Now if one were to follow down to the bottom of the main page to the area that says "All Lotus products and services", selecting "products" here will get you to a page that simply has a listing for Lotus Domino, of course there are several Lotus Domino listings with suffixes (Web Access, WebMail, Express, etc..) as well, making it easy. NOT! How about an easily visible Domino/Notes link on the main page that takes you to a page devoted to the products. Definitley include a schematic and explanation of how all of the Domino branded products and Notes relate to one another. Simply a request from someone still using the products.

Survey Results

I had 4 (5 counting my own responses) of 13 agencies respond with figures to my informal survey on Notes/Domino usage. As stated in my survey my main interest was simply to know what versions of Notes/Domino the other agencies were running. There were two additional responses stating that they believed my questions were redundant to questions asked by a recent survey conducted by a committee that had been formed to look at e-mail standards. One of those was addressed to me and the other I received via the person that headed the e-mail committee. I spoke with the head of the e-mail committee and he stated that the committee did not have the version information so he did not know where the redundancy came in. If it is redundant and you already have it, then would it be so hard to send. Oh well. You have to remember we are talking about Government.

Of those that responded, those that are not running in a shared environment (shared by more than one agency), not unexpectedly, are running on an Intel platform.

Windows (ranging from Windows NT Server to Windows 2003 Server) was the most common OS. The two agencies in the shared environment are on the z/OS platform, one of those having a development server on NT. One proved to have a pretty good mixture - 3 servers running NT, 2 servers running Linux, and 4 servers running AIX.

The versions of Domino and Notes being run range from 4.6.3 to 6.0.1. The predominant version amongst the agencies being 5.0.8, although number of servers and clients deployed the majority would actually be on 5.07a. Of those that responded, all are utilizing Domino for internal applications, 4 of 5 are utilizing it for e-mail, 2 have Internet applications running on Domino and a 3rd one plans to.

In regards to additional applications being run in the Domino/Notes environment all but 1 of the 5 are running TeamStudio's products. Only 2 agencies are running anything additional - 1 running Sametime, and 1 running Quickplace.

What kind of numbers are we talking. Approximately 7,700 clients spread across approximately 200 servers. A single agency accounting for about 65% of that.

All responding that they plan to upgrade, a couple stating 6.5, a couple 6.0x, and one unsure. None having definite dates, but mid to late 2004 stated by a couple.

DB2 and .Net

Are you caught in a mixed world? IBM and Microsoft. It is more likely these days that you would be an all Microsoft shop than all IBM shop, as those that have Microsoft products are not necessarily likely to have IBM products, but those that have IBM products are highly likely to have Microsoft products, such as Windows Desktops/Servers. For those that have made it to the realm of Microsoft .Net and are in the mixed environment with a healthy investment in DB2, you may want to look here.

Excerpt:

Welcome to the .NET Technology Preview and Beta area for IBM Information Management solutions! IBM Information Management is committed to providing leading edge support for application programmers developing solutions for Microsoft .NET environments. Here you will find current technology previews and betas related to the .NET technologies. If IBM Information Management support for .NET technologies is important to you, bookmark this page and come back often.

Supercomputer

In the Spectrum section of the November 2003 Edition of Government Technology you will find the article "IBM Deliver's World's Most Powerful Linux Supercomputer". I think they were really just trying to build a box that would meet the minimum specifications for running Longhorn. Okay, so I am just kidding.

Click here to go to the Longhorn Developer Center on MSDN.

Longhorn Architecture Diagram.

2-24-05 Picture no longer posted, so I removed the link.

The Myth?

A quick side note, while speaking of myths. There is a show on Discovery Channel called MythBusters. It is entertaining, sometimes educational and one that can even capture the attention of your kids long enough to get them to sit down and watch it with you sometimes. You might want to check it out.

I was told repeatedly by several different IBMers that R5 Domino on the mainframe scaled so much better than Domino on the Windows platform. We had a lot of performance issues when we started on the mainframe, moving to z/OS helped, but as long as I am reading this correctly, it looks as though the chart shows R5 scaling better on Windows that on the mainframe. When you hear it from people that are suppose to be experts on the subject matter you tend to believe it, but then you see otherwise in print and wonder what to believe.

Excerpts from a Redpaper (3634) "Upgrading to Domino 6 Performance Benefits"

Figure 1-1 shows a stacked column chart that combines the number of supported users (bottom portion) with the percentage of remaining available CPU (top portion). Taken together, they indicate how hard a particular system had to work to achieve the specified number of users. Each set of data has been
converted to use a scale of 1 to 100. So, the highest number of users possible on the chart is 10,000 (100 scale times 100 users in a set). The highest remaining CPU available would be 100%. Therefore, a system supporting 10,000 users and requiring no CPU to do so (impossible, but it would be nice) would reach to the top of the chart at 200. So, in any case, the higher the column the better the result.

Looking across the chart you can see that Domino 6 was able to reach the goal of 10,000 users (each bottom portion of the chart for Domino 6 reaches the 100 scale line, meaning 10,000 users) on each platform while maintaining a 1 second or less response time. In each case, Domino 6 also had a good deal of CPU resource left over (in each case 50% or more looking at the size of the top portion of the chart). Simply put, Domino 6 performed better than R5 on all four tested platforms.

The z/OS platform added 3,000 users with Domino 6 and still used less CPU than R5.0.10. And even when the number of users did not increase greatly,
Domino 6 utilized much less CPU. The Solaris R5 system reached 9,000 users but had very little CPU processing power remaining. The same Solaris hardware running Domino 6 reached 10,000 users and had 30% more CPU processing power left than the R5 system.

On the OS/400 platform, a single Domino 6 partition running on iSeries hardware had 12% to 26% more CPU processing power left than the R5.0.11 partition supporting the same number of users (3,000 in one test and 8,000 in another). That translates to a 30% improvement in CPU usage. Domino 6 also had better
response times than R5.0.11 during both test runs.

At a glance, it is clear that just upgrading your servers from R5 to Domino 6 will allow you to support a larger number of Notes client users. Alternately, by moving to Domino 6 and keeping the user load the same, you can reduce the CPU workload burden on a server operating near peak CPU utilization.

What about upgrading Notes clients? The Domino 6 server supports mixed clients, so after completing an upgrade of your servers, you can then upgrade your Notes clients. Once you upgrade to Lotus Notes 6 you will be able to use a powerful new feature, Lotus Notes Smart Upgrade (see the IBM Redbook Upgrading to Lotus Notes and Domino 6, SG24-6889 for details). Domino 6 gives administrators the ability to post new client builds and have employees automatically prompted to install them with the click of a button when they connect to their home server. Your employees can enjoy the full functionality of the Notes client while you benefit from a centrally managed upgrade process.
Since future upgrades happen automatically, you can immediately exploit the benefits and performance improvements of each new release of the Lotus Notes client.

Consistently better performance results across all platforms, coupled with the ease of upgrading the Lotus Notes 6 client, means an IT department can upgrade from R5 to Domino 6 and not only expect quantitative performance improvements from their Domino servers, but also benefits such as productivity efficiencies.

Update: 1st Page 2000

I posted the entry below back on October 9th. I deleted that post and am reposting here. As stated at that time I had not used it. I still have not used it yet, but just downloaded it and started the installation process when my anti-virus software kicked up the message that the file C:\Program Files\Evrsoft\1st Page 2000\IScripts\Buttons\Six buttons from hell.izs was infected with JS/Winbomb. I still have someone that keeps telling me how great this application is. I guess I need to mention the trojan to them and would mention to those that download it that you may want to make sure you have virus software with up to date definition files. Hmm, What's that saying, you get what you pay for. I'll still try to take a look at it and I'll also send a note off to EVRSOFT about the trojan (harmless unless you try running, which doesn't spread, but simply uses up your pc 's resources, eventually locking your machine).

I will simply start by stating that I have not used this, but thought I would pass it along as I heard about it yesterday and it came highly recommended, especially taking price into consideration. Kind of a notepad on steriods. It is a html editing tool called 1st Page 2000 and it is free.

Still frustrated

I followed up with the IBM rep via e-mail regarding the issue noted in an earlier post. He had stated that he was going to get with a Domino on Z specialist and get back with me. The answer I received to my follow up was yes he did get with a specialist. He went on to say that IBM did talk to the Data Center about moving to ZLinux, but that he did not get the feeling that they really wanted to pursue running on Linux. Hello, don't go with feelings, simply flat out ask them. So IBM is working on a special bid for the product on z/OS. Of course, he went on to say to contact him if I needed more information. Yeah, right.

I had also asked per our licensing if our agency was licensed to run Domino for zLinux on the mainframe and he responded saying that the Data Center was not licensed to run it. Okay, but what about answering my question! I'll follow up on that one too.

I do want to say that the people involved do seem to be nice people and I don't have any ill feelings towards the people themselves. I think they truly believe that they are being helpful I think part of the problem (my assessment or feeling ;-) has to do with the environment that they are in.

Sun bets on free Java Tool

See the story here on c|net's News.Com.

More on Security

As far as password security Rob McDonagh had some valid points in his article, "The Maximum Security Myth" in September issue of e-Pro Magazine.

IBM adds to Workplace lineup

See the article from NetworkWorldFusion (nwfusion) here.

Hey Ford! Why don't we get these?

Check out more at Ford Peformance Vehicles.

National Institute of Standards and Technology - NIST

On NIST's Draft Publications page they now have NIST Special Publication 800-53, Recommended Security Controls for Federal Information Systems, which is a 238 page document. The document details steps that civilain agencies must take to protect software, hardware and network resources. A separate document "Standards for Security Categorization of Federal Information Systems" describes segmenting information into risk categories.

Frustrated! - Gripes!! - What's the story?

(I couldn't decide which title to go with, so I just put them all.)

Still not getting the whole story. Per a response I received on a survey sent to other agencies, it appears that another agency using the shared data center for Domino isn't pleased either.

In regards to my question "What is your server Operating System (zOS, Windows 2000, Linux, etc..)?" the response actually came direct from the agencies CIO himself, stating that they were on zOS (utilizing the shared Data Center) - but he believed that this has become a point of dispute between the Data Center, IBM, and his agency; IBM wanting to raise the price of Notes on zOS and push the Data Center to Linux over zOS; the Data Center is supposedly resisting- citing "nervousness", "unfamiliarity", "cost concerns" & other excuses; and his agency possibly caught in the middle having to start up their own servers or OUTSOURCE their Lotus Notes/Domino.

Hmm, seems like I have heard it before. Can't we all just get along?

It appears that both IBM and the Data Center have forgotten the customer.

I keep getting messages with statements such as, "We will pass along more information as we get it.", "I will get back to you on that.", "I can keep you posted on our progress.", and so on from both parties. I don't get anything from anyone unless I start making calls and e-mailing everyone all over again.

Does anyone understand or know Lotus Licensing? Lotus and IBM reps don't appear to. It is like there is a guy locked in a room somewhere that comes up with an answer to a question only when an e-mail gets far enough up the Lotus/IBM chain that someone actually gets it forwarded to this guy. He then looks over at the pile of documented contracts AND THEN AND ONLY THEN, picks up the Magic 8 ball and checks to see how to answer this time. It does appear that the reply does often follow the consistency of answers from the Magic 8 ball. Go ahead ask the same question to two different IBM or Lotus reps, especially one that they can't answer off the top of there head. See what your results are. Come on IBM, if this is the service I get, can't you simply assign Magic 8 balls to all reps?

Domino for S/390 was available for Download via the Passport Advantage Agreement (Enterprise Option) at one point in time. Lotus/IBM thought that it would be smart to break it out and align it with all the other S/390 products. In doing so it went away from our Passport agreement. Not a problem, we ran on the shared environment that had the licensing in place.

I notice the other day, I still cannot download code for S/390, fine, I really don't expect to, but I notice that there is a listing now of "Linux zSeries Enterpr SVRs Mainfram". I try and can download it just fine. Sounds like what everyone has been talking about in regards to replacing what the Data Center is running on zOS, so I ask about it. Does that mean that I am already covered with my current licensing? I ask the Lotus/IBMers and the response on 10/28/03 is, "I'll have to get with my Domino on Z specialist and see what that product does." Nothing further!

IBM and Linux

Excerpts from "Novell to acquire SuSE Linux" By Stephen Shankland Staff Writer, CNET News.com

The balance of Linux power shifted Tuesday, with Novell announcing an IBM-assisted plan to acquire SuSE Linux.

Longtime Microsoft foe Novell has signed an agreement to acquire SuSE Linux for $210 million in cash, while IBM, the most powerful backer of the Linux operating system, will make a $50 million investment in Novell.

Read the full article here.

What would the reaction of such an investment been back when the big battle was Windows, Novell, and OS/2?

Weekend's over

Much of the time one does not want the weekend to be over, but after hauling off three pickup beds full of leaves, and we're talking stomped down loads, not just fluffy leaves as that probably would have easily doubled the loads, sitting here at work isn't so bad. It did not look as though there were as many as last year, but got it done in two loads last year. Anyone got a chainsaw I can borrow? ;-)

PMI ISSIG Webinar

I would have to agree with some of Neal Whitten's comments in his Webinar, "The #1 Reason Why Project Manager’s Fail: Too Soft!" If you are a member of the Project Management Institute (PMI) Information Systems Specific Interest Group (ISSIG) you can view it free, otherwise it cost $25.

Kind of steep for a webinar if you consider that adding the special interest group (SIG) to an Individual PMI membership ($129 for new member - 1 year) is only $20, which would include all of the webinars (I think around 8 this year).

Of course, the somewhat ironic part of it is that you can download the slides in PDF format. I have to admit it is a much better presentation if you can hear Neal as well, but you can get the idea of what he is saying from the slides.

I would say that a lot of organizations preach Project Management, but don't really enforce (for lack of a better word) it. I agree with Neal that one can probably do better if they to look at things as if it were a company that they owned. One would probably put more effort into it if this were the case and be more willing to take control. As he kind of puts it , until you are told that you don't have authority to do something, then proceed as if you do (now I would put a disclaimer or something here that if you do that in some organizations you may find your way out the door). I would say most people have an idea if they can proceed in such a manner. Anyway you might take a look.

XP - as in eXtreme Programming

Check out Tom "Duffbert" Duff's web exclusive article about Extreme Programming, "Domino and XP (No, Not That XP)" for e-Pro Magazine. Just got my Zinio version download of the November 2003 Edition. As mentioned in the contents the online Article ID is 4190 or you can simply click on the title above in this post to get to it.

Duffbert, I guess you can add that term eXPert next to another subject now. ;-)

Graphic File Optimization

Someone was talking about wanting to optimize a graphic file they are using on a website. As I have mentioned before I know a little about a lot, but I don't know a lot about any one thing. I did a bit of web development when it was in it's infancy her at our Department. I remembered that there was a sight that would let one optimize their graphics online. It took me a minute or two, but it turns out that it is still around and still free. The do offer some pay services, but one can still optimize a gif, jpg, or png file from a local drive or per a url for free. Try it here.

Looking for a Redbook for installing Websphere Express?

Look no further. Click here for the WebSphere Application Server - Express V5.0.2 Administrator Handbook in PDF format.

Standards

It seems like a lot of people hate it when you mention standards. This can especially be true in a development environment, although there are some things that you can look at that easily remind you of the usefulness of standards. Of course, some items are so entrenched, part of laws, etc.. that we just take them for granted. Just think if every town came up with it's own traffic light colors and sequence of the lights.

I am certain what I have been witnessing lately is simply driver error, but I have seen this happen more and more frequently lately. A person performing a right turn when they have just signaled with their left turn signal and vice versa. What if every make, model and trim level of vehicle had blinkers (turn signals) that were activated differently on each one. How well could you get into a vehicle with turn signals activated the opposite of what you are use to after having driven for many years and have any luck trying to change this habit simply for the duration of driving that car for the day.

I read an article several years ago about an early automobile that had a manual transmission. Nothing special about that except that pedals were in a different configuration. I believe the middle pedal was the clutch instead of the brake as most of us that know how to drive a manual transmission (seem to be fewer and fewer of us) in the US would be accustomed to. Yeah for standards!

The View's Admin 2004

The View's Administration Conference (ADMIN2004) for Notes and Domino Professionals will be in Boston in May.

Red Hat recommends Windows

Okay, so I left a small piece out of the title, which of course is critical. The CEO of Red Hat makes that statement in regards to (home) consumers.

Excerpt from article

Matthew Szulik, chief executive of Linux vendor Red Hat, said on Monday that although Linux is capable of exceeding expectations for corporate users, home users should stick with Windows: "I would say that for the consumer market place, Windows probably continues to be the right product line," he said. "I would argue that from the device-driver standpoint and perhaps some of the other traditional functionality, for that classic consumer purchaser, it is my view that (Linux) technology needs to mature a little bit more."

Szulik gave an example of his 90-year-old father going to a local retailer in order to purchase a computer with Linux: "We know painfully well what happens. He will try to get it installed and either doesn't have a positive experience or puts a lot of pressure on your support systems," he said.

However, Szulik expects Linux to be ready in a couple of years after it has had time to mature. In the mean time, he is adamant that corporate users would be surprised by how much the operating system has to offer. "Consumers want USB drivers and digital camera support; but for the enterprise desktop, that is a little bit different -- that area is ripe," he said. "We think that the enterprise desktop market place is much more strategic and has buyers whose needs we can exceed."

Tips

I have mentioned it before, but will again. The Learning Continuum Company (TLCC) has Notes tips on their site. Here are a couple of the latest. (ArrayUnique Function - R6 & FullTrim Function - also in R5).

Need a .pdf, but don't have Adobe or $$

I have not tried this as I already have the ability to create simple pdf files with the pdfwriter that came with Adobe PhotoDeluxe Home Edition 4.0 software I already have, but for those that may need simple pdf files and don't have the money to buy Adobe software, here is a possible alternative for you. If you find the sponsored ads annoying you can pay $9.95 for the product or $19.95 for a suite of three products by pdf995.

I might also mention that if it is such a rarity for you to create pdfs, then you might simply try creating them online. Adobe allows you to try their online service and create 5 free pdf files. If you decide you like the service you can sign up for, but you will have to pay. The price is $9.99 a month or $99.99 for the year. Note: You do have to register and use a valid e-mail address to try this out.

Sneak Peek

Want a sneak peek at the future of MSN Hotmail, then click here.

Silly

My dog, I mean cow made it on Text America's Halloween Page.

Not just for Sprint anymore

Cingular is now taking pre-orders for the Treo 600. Good it is available on something other than Sprint now. That should help the product. If the phone portion works as good as it sounds like it does, then this should be a great device. From prior post you may have seen I did try a Springboard Module in my Handspring Visor Deluxe, which turned it into a phone. It was a bit ackward, but the killer was the lack of sound quality from the built in microphone. As this version should have a substantially better microphone and has a nicer form factor, it should prove to be a very handy device for many.

As I have mentioned in the past, for the most part I am pleased with the service I get with Sprint. I have had a few gripes now and again about the Vision features being unavailable, but other than that the service has been great. NOTE: This does not pertain to their customer service as that part of Sprint STINKS!

Yeah!

I am off tomorrow. Not because I am big on Halloween, but the kids are off school tomorrow as the teachers are having Parent-Teacher Conference Day and my wife is off too, so a day to spend with the family. Probably won't do much. The boys both have checkups at the dentist. My wife and older son have yet to get their flu shot, so they will be doing that as well. Lucky them.

I just got called to sub for a volleyball team tonight, so at 6pm, 8pm, and 9pm tonight, you'll find me on the volleyball court. Just finished up our Wednesday night league last night. We ended up winning it, but we didn't get t-shirts as Parks and Rec have a policy that if you have more than four of the same players on your team and that team wins the league more than once in a year then you don't get the t-shirt. We sat out over the summer and started back up in the fall and won. It just so happens that we won back when we played in the Spring. I think the rule use to be just if you win two sessions in a row. I guess the City is really hurting for ways to save money too.

Integrate Domino and WebSphere MQ (formerly MQSeries)

This may be something that I need to check into further. I was invited into a meeting in progress that looks to have possilby spawned another project for us. I need to get with another manager to see where the data resides on the mainframe and what format it is in and then we can go from there.

Register for the tutorial here.

It is official

Palm and Handspring are officially palmOne.
Press Release

Busy

I am busy enough with projects right now that I didn't get a chance to read any blogs today or post anything of any substance. Oh well. My photoblog has really been ignored lately. At least the moblog lends itself to getting something posted as I can take the picture anywhere and upload it without a computer.

Cool Art

There is a married couple that lives in Boston, MA. They are dear friends. Cathy works at Harvard and Dan is an artist. He does some really cool work. Much of his work is three dimensional, you really have to see it in person to appreciate it. Cathy has put some pics of his work online. You can see a single sample below. To see more of his work click here or on the picture below. If you are interested in obtaining some of his art there is a "Send me a message" link on the bottom of the page I have linked to, or you can send me an e-mail and I will pass your request for more info on to them.

From the Boston Phoenix (city life section - 2000)

Best place to wash the mustard stains and/or eyeblack out of your sweatshirt

The Red Sock doesn't sound like an especially auspicious name for a laundromat, evoking as it does the stray garment that turns your white shirts a delicate shade of Pepto-Bismol. But around the corner from Fenway Park, the theme was apparently too irresistible to pass up. About a year ago, someone renamed this tiny, formerly nondescript laundry and painted every available inch of wall space with an all-encompassing ballpark mural. A cloud-flecked blue sky greets you at the entrance; a stroll down the narrow aisle between the single banks of machines puts you in the dugout, the outfield, the infield, and finally the stands, where what started out as a blurry, impressionistic crowd resolves itself into a series of distinct individuals: a leather-jacketed hipster, a man in an old-fashioned suit and fedora, a kid on the shoulders of a grim-faced father, a white-haired woman who appears to have her eyes shut against some gruesomely botched play. It's probably not Izzy Alcantara who's bumming her out, though - this field of dreams is a little too dreamlike to pass for Fenway (and what's with that dugout in the outfield?). It's more like a stage set for the sock-ball dreams of the neighborhood's weekend warriors.


The Red Sock Laundry, 37 Queensberry Street, Boston.

IBM/Lotus Game

I am working on a note (unfortunately I have found that this works much better for me as word of mouth doesn't document as well) to IBM/Lotus Reps AGAIN.

I sent a note on 10-7-03. It had three items. Two required a response and one that was just an FYI. I received a response on the FYI, from a rep that was not even addressed in the e-mail. That is fine, except I never received a response from any of those addressed or anyone else on the items that actually affect me. It is time to follow-up. Unfortunately I have an additional question at this point as well. Two of the questions have to do with licensing. Yuck!!

The e-mail has been sent. I included the person that responsded to the FYI. I don't know if there is really a distinguishing factor anymore, since the e-mail addresses have converged, but it went to two classic Lotus Reps and three classic IBM Reps for those keeping track.

Below is a picture of a game I got two or three years ago from one of the developers in our group. It was a gag gift exchange at Christmas. We had some issues on getting support tickets resolved and getting answers from our Lotus Rep of the time. We have a different Lotus Rep now, but he has the same philosophy on customer service. If you get the game out and play it, there is no possible way to get to the end. The developer had to spend some time to get it all lined out. It is based upon Chutes and Ladders. It is really funny. It seems that I have played that game to many times with Lotus over the years. What happened to the days of asking a question and getting an answer.

Reminder

If you haven't already and you observe Daylight Savings Time (DST) you need to change your clocks back an hour. And everyone, even if you don't observe DST, make sure you check the batteries in your smoke detectors.

Do you need to know what time it is? Click here and select your time zone.

Migo

I have seen this device mentioned in several places. Interesting.

See the demo on Forward Solution's site.

Funny

From eWeek Rumor Central

TechBuilder.org

CRN and VARBusiness have setup a website for system builders, integrators, VARS and white-box solution providers. It is called TechBuilder.org.

CNET Radio Direct

CNET had a nice thing going. One could simply signup and setup a CNET version of the delivery tool (Kontiki) and receive mp3 files of tech news highlights done by Brian Cooley. They have enhanced (my translation - scrapped) the content you use to be able to get.

I didn't really have the time to troubleshoot the problem as there have been issues getting the content through the firewall at times, which usually just clears up. I did take the time today and the old CNET Radio Direct is gone. Here is the message that greets one when the open the Kontiki delivery manager and click on the CNET tab.

Dear Listeners,

We're all back from the summer months, focused on a strong finish to the year, and CNET Radio is going that direction too. I'm excited about a new partnership we're launching with CNET News.com and its brand new "Get Up To Speed" section.

Starting Monday morning, September 15, the CNET Radio team will be offering a new way to listen and really understand what is happening in technology: Listen to our "Get Up to Speed" audio magazines and in 15 painless minutes or less you'll be up to speed on:

Enterprise security
Open source
Utility computing
VoIP
Web services
Wi-Fi

These are the Big 6 issues that are driving enterprise technology today and we know you don't always have time to read every article and news story to keep them in perspective. That's where our "Get Up To Speed" audio makes it easy. Everything you need to know to be savvy -- and nothing you don't.

Your current subscription to CNET Radio Direct will be discontinued and access to the new "Get Up To Speed" audio segments on will be available via streaming audio after a simple free registration at www.news.com (click an audiocast here to register). No third-party players or tricky download technologies needed!

We spent a lot of time listening to users of CNET Radio this year and you told us you like hearing news headlines but would value *understanding* even more. That's what we bring you with "Get Up To Speed" audio. Look for it at News.com starting Monday, September 15. And as always, e-mail me with your suggestions and feedback.

Brian Cooley
CNET Radio
brianc@cnet.com

Go to Get Up To Speed Audiocasts now!

I did go ahead and take the time to send a note stating my displeasure.

Date: Fri, 24 Oct 2003 07:54:07 -0700 (PDT)
From: "bonj blog" | Add to Address Book
Subject: lettertolisteners
To: brianc@cnet.com

I have noticed that I have not been receiving any of my CNET Radio files. It has been gone for some time, but didn't think to much of it as there are times with the firewall, etc.. that content delivery issues arise and then magically go away. I had time to check into it further today and now notice that the whole thing has changed. I must say that even though I did not offload the mp3 files off to another device it was nice getting the files delivered automatically with little effort on my part. I could chose to listen to the file when it came in or simply follow up with them on another day when I had time to listen. I didn't have to take the initiative to go to a site, look things over and click on what I wanted. Simply start it, let it run in the background and listen much like listening to the radio. If I heard something that really caught my attention and I wanted to here it again, simply rewind the audio just a bit and listen closer. Now to get the info I have to be more interactive and take more time away from the job at hand. Although the content for "Get Up To Speed" may be good, I must say I miss the old CNET radio.

Bonj
http://bonj.blogspot.com

NotesSQL

I have known some Notes users that have never heard of Lotus NotesSQL , so I thought I might mention it.

Description from the site:

NotesSQL is an ODBC (Open Database Connectivity) driver for Notes and Domino. It allows ODBC-enabled data reporting tools, database tools, and application development tools to read, report, and update information that is stored in Domino databases (.nsf files). With NotesSQL, end users and application developers can integrate Domino data with their applications using tools such as Crystal Decisions Crystal Reports, Microsoft Visual Basic, Access, Brio and Lotus Approach. Even Internet application development tools that support ODBC can access Domino data. IT professionals can enable their existing ODBC-enabled applications to access data stored in a Domino database.

A Domino database is not relational, but with NotesSQL a Domino database looks like a relational data source to an OBDC-enabled tool. This allows relational database management systems (RDBMS) such as Oracle or DB2 to issue SQL (Structured Query Language) statements to Domino.

developerWorks new design

Check out the prototype evaluation page for the new developerWorks site. You can then see the prototype pages here and let your opinion be know in the discussion forum.

IBM's WebSphere Portal Server vs. Microsoft's SharePoint Portal Server

Integro, a Colorado-based information technology consultant and systems integrator, is hosting a Portal Server Head-to-Head Comparison Webinar, November 6th at 4 pm ET - 3 pm CT - 2 pm MT - 1 pm PT. Click here to find out more.

ZapNotes

Most in the environment probably know of it, but thought I would make mention of it for those that might not. New and improved (9/8/2003) Zapnotes 3.4 will help you get back to work quicker after a Notes crash than having to reboot. It is free, easy to use and available in the Sandbox. Try it out.

Upgrading Java

I haven't been to the mysun site in some time (Remember when they actually hosted free e-mail on the site). Noticed the following posts:

Upgrade to the Official Sun Java Platform on 10-20-03

Java Upgrade Guide: Migrating from the MSJVM to the Sun JRE on 10-21-03. It makes the point of slamming Microsoft (I didn't say it wasn't justifiable, but I'll let you make your own decision on that topic). In the article it gives the "GET IT NOW" link to the Sun JRE.

Lotus Expert

It looks as though one of the incentives of being a Lotus Expert is trips to England. Okay some of the people blogging about Notes already live there. It does seem that many writing blogs about Notes have been jetting off to England. Not a bad gig if you can get it. I am not knocking those doing it. They have put in the time and have the expertise. Afraid it is beyond my technical abilities. As Ben Langhinrichs mentions in his 10-21-03 post, "Competence is a precious commodity". Well, for me there are some things I am good at, some okay, and some that I stink at (I try to stay away from those). I am not on the plateau of really good at anything, which is what sets some people apart. For some the really good is a struggle and for others it is natural.

It does appear that Notes has a big following in Europe.

Dave

If you ask me, "Jay or Dave?", I definitely have to say Dave. Need a break. Browse the Top Ten List archive.

Here is a sample:

Top Ten Messages Left on the Answering Machine of the Cubs Fan Who Tried To Catch the Foul Ball in Game Six


10. "You owe me $7.50 for the beer I threw at you"

9. "'I'm with Century 21 -- heard you might be moving"

8. "Hey, I just got back in the country -- how was the game?"

7. "'Don't worry, I'm sure we'll get another shot at the World Series in 2098"

6. "This is Pete Rose. You cost me 50 G's, jackass!"

5. "Hey, it's Don Zimmer. Thanks for taking the heat off me"

4. "Hi, this is Mike from Hasbro. I'm calling to verify some information for your Trivial Pursuit question"

3. "Have you heard about Northfield Medical's great prices on cosmetic surgery?"

2. "Hey, it's Bill Buckner. Wanna hang out?"

1. "Rush Limbaugh here. Gimme a buzz if you need something to take the edge off"

Oh, Domino! Why Lotus is dropping the ball

I would have to agree with Paul Gillin's article. Come on IBM. Wake up! Get with the program. Most Domino environments don't want Websphere pushed down their throat. They want to hear what you are going to do for their Domino environment. Other than those that really follow Domino, how many people in the world even know that there is such a thing as Domino 6.5, or for that matter even Domino 6. Ask an average person walking the street and see how many have heard of Exchange and how many have heard of Domino and even know what it is. You can follow that by asking if they have heard of Outlook and Notes. Don't run everyone off.

StarOffice 7

A new version of StarOffice from Sun became available for purchase on 10/14/03. Story on news.com.

Nice Camera

Here is a camera I think I would like to have.

FY2005 Strategic Plan

Reading through the draft of our Fiscal Year 2005 Strategic Plan. Not what I would call a fun read.

IBM, Adobe to draw up digital documents

See the article on c|net's News.com. Hey Lotus, could you add it to Notes/Domino as well?