IBM Lotus Connections 3.0 Files Plug-in for Lotus Notes

IBM has long had a vision that the value of social software your copy  increases exponentially when people can connect to their social networks at anytime and from anywhere. Along with delivering leading enterprise social software we have been working on extensions points that allow people to continue to use the collaborative tools they use today to provide value to the social network offered by Lotus Connections. The IBM Lotus Connections Files plug-in For Lotus Notes allows easy access to Lotus Connections Files from your Lotus Notes side shelf, taking advantage of the rich client platform.
Grab your copy today, before heading to Lotusphere!

Lotusphere 2011: A new year, a new wordle!

This image was created using the title and abstracts of this years Lotusphere sessions. Thanks to wordle.net!

Lotusphere 2011: SpeedGeeking!

SpeedGeeking is back for Lotusphere 2011 and I have had the great privilege to assemble the best 5 minute talks at Lotusphere. This year we are covering a wide range of topics, from Domino Admin to Social Portals to XPages development to getting things done and more! Join us, Tuesday, Feb 1st at 6:00PM, for a tornado of potpourri.

• Implementing Managed Replicas in IBM Lotus Notes 8.5.2 - Mitch Cohen
  Managed Replica is a new feature introduced in Lotus Notes 8.5.2. In 5 minutes learn what a Managed Replica is and how it can benifit your organization. A brief overview will be provided of implementation options for managed replica, including background creation, conversion of Local replica to managed replica, and seamless failback to server if the Managed Replica requires maintenance.
  
• Getting Started with Mobile Device Development - Julian Robichaux
  Take a whirlwind tour of several options for developing mobile apps for Lotus Domino, from native app development to mobile web page tips and tricks. We'll talk tools, toolkits, HTML5, swipes, gestures, and more!

• XPages: The Red Pill- David Leedy
  XPages can't be explained. It must be seen to be appreciated. Free your mind of all the rules Client development imposed on you and embrace the power that is XPages. While Agents do exist in XPages we'll spend our time looking at Data Binding, Rendering and Repeat Controls.

• Zero Code Solution for Implementing RDBMS CRUD model in XPages - Paul Calhoun
  What if you could implement a complete CRUD application model with RDBMs data WITHOUT writing a single line of code !! What if you could do this with software you already own and have installed on your Domino Server !! Come see a fully functional RDBMS CRUD document / record model using XPages to render the data.

• Take a vanilla Connections 3.0 install and make it yours in just 5 minutes! - Sharon Bellamy
  Sharon, will take you through the process of customizing the Connections 3.0 UI and login pages, detailing the steps required for creating and installing new themes, applying them to the site and making them manageable for the future.  If time allows, he will even throw in a bonus, how to both disable and add to the Blog themes within the product.  After seeing this super-speedy presentation, you'll never want to look at an un-themed Connections page again!

• 10 Things You're Not Doing: A Developer's Guide to Simple Yet Overlooked Techniques & Resources for the IBM Lotus Domino Application Developer - Chris Toohey
  With detailed, step-by-step overviews of development techniques and architectural considerations that you can envelope in your daily application development practices, this session will showcase real-world examples, demos, and highlight resources you may be overlooking

• The Value of Social Portals - Andreas Hiller
  The best way to bring advanced Collaboration and Social Media into business is with IBM Websphere portal as the Collaboration Portal. I will highlight how Websphere Portal with Lotus Connections, Lotus Quickr, Lotus Sametime and Lotus Web Content Management can be the basic Collaboration Center for Smarter Work projects and provide great benefit from CIO's to line of business people.

• Social, Social, Social... Adding Business Value - Bruce Elgort
  In this 5 minute speedgeeking session you will learn how you can make the social software "nonbelievers" - believers.  You will learn what it means to be social, the business value that social brings to an organization and 10 top tips on how you can reap business value from social software and media.

• Getting Things Done with Lotus Notes - Eric Mack
  Lotus Knows when tools become “personal,” productivity increases, and when personal productivity increases so does the productivity of the workgroup and the organization. Lotus also knows my Inbox is overflowing; I could be better organized; and my real work is outside the inbox. This session will show you how you can use Notes coupled with proven best practices to become more productive and get things done! David Allen’s GTD methodology has been embraced worldwide and I will present GTD in the context of Lotus Notes and show people how they can get things done with Lotus Notes.

• Home Alone - Devin Olson
  Today's (and Tomorrow's) economy is one of increasing budget cuts and belt-tightening.  Home Office Professionals and Remote Workers are rapidly becoming the rule, rather than the exception, for IT workers.  Working remotely or on the road presents it's own unique set of challenges, many of which can not only be conquered but turned into strengths -assuming the worker is properly prepared.  These challenges can and will  overwhelm the unwary, and can quickly lead to feelings of isolation, depression, and loss of control over one's work; as well as cause productivity losses and project failures.  In this session, Devin Olson will give you pointers on how to succeed with little or no support, communication, or resources from your corporate office.

• Welcome to Planet Lotus - Yancy Lent
  Looking for what's hot, the latest tweet, recent forum posts, upcoming community events and more for all things Lotus? Then jump over to planetlotus.org! Planet Lotus is an aggregation of Lotus related blogs and news. It acquaints those interested in the Lotus Blogosphere with the best social resources out there.

• Increase Productivity with IBM Lotus Quickr Connectors - Dean Braddock
  IBM Lotus Quickr connectors are the "secret sauce" by which you can add a team place to your e-mail sidebar, share content in a Lotus Sametime chat, and use Lotus Symphony and Microsoft Office to drag and drop content with your teams. Take a quick tour at the five connectors for Lotus Quickr and see how you can use them to increase your team' productivity.

I am an IBMer

5 years ago, I decided on a career change and join IBM. Working in the past as a freelance consultant, I approached the new job like a new contract. Just another gig and we'll see what comes of it. I never thought that I would become completely immersed and part of a machine that is changing the way the world does business. However, I'm grateful that I did and I am looking forward to another five years with Big Blue and the five after that.
About this time of year, I get a lot of questions on how I got into IBM as a experienced hire. I think the new year, plus time to catch up at Lotusphere peeks interest. I can say that is was not any one thing, but a great combination of work and luck that got me to the right place at the right time.
Working as an independent developer and business partner, I clearly put all my eggs in IBM's Collaborative basket. At an internship while at university, I heard the siren song of Lotus Notes and Domino. Mine came from any early Domino build for the s/390. I answered it and other's sweet sounds of rapid application development with years of LotusScript, @Formulas, Java and DXL. It was the latter two technologies that I focused on primarily as I got more into creating applications rather than databases. It was fun work that took me into the world of DHTML, well before it was known as Ajax and lead to the complexities of WebSphere and Portal server infrastructures that had me jumping between roads.
Early on, I drank from the IBM Workplace fountain. I, like others, believed that it was the new future and as a Partner, I knew that there was work to be had. I jumped in and worked on one of the few RedBooks on the product. This tied me into a world I had not yet seen at IBM. The brains and guts behind a new offering that if anything was trying to redefine how we collaborate. It was exciting to get hands in with the Loti on Workplace and it was then that I decided that working for IBM Lotus would not be a bad thing.
A couple of years later and a few more products and platforms in my toolbox, I got the opportunity to interview with IBM Software Services for Lotus. They needed a me to do what I was already doing and it was the opportunity to get back in with the brains and guts that had impressed me so much before and I'd get away from hounding clients for collections and scratching around for the next job. So, as a said, I decided to see what would come of it and I can tell you that it has been nothing but great things. As an IBMer, I've traveled the world, worked with the best people and been on great projects. It has been a fantastic ride that only looks to get better.
Working now as a Product Manager on IBM's Social Software team, I have access to the greatest minds and coolest tech out there for collaboration and smarter work. I could have never imagined that this job would be such a huge lift for me and become part of who I am, an IBMer.