Re: Office Vision -- MIDRANGE-L

Hi All.....

Our college has recently adopted Domino/Notes.  We had many of the same
discussions I'm seeing here with respect to "What is Notes?"  "Or Domino?"
and more importantly "What will it do for us?".  Answering those questions
is definitely a non-trivial exercise!  The power of this solution by its
very nature makes describing it to prospective users nearly impossible.


I'll try to describe some of the key applications that convinced us that the
Domino/Notes platform was the correct choice for us.   We're very happy with
the results so far and expect that satisfaction to continue.

I think the first use of Domino (the server part) and Notes (the client
part) at most sites is the mail or messaging function.  Included are
integrated calendar and group scheduling, news groups and web access.  All
popular internet standards and clients are supported.  Much more detail is
available at:
http://www.lotus.com/home.nsf/welcome/dominomailserver
We have just completed the rollout of the Notes client to all desktops in
the college.



The Domino Application Server is the "collaborative" piece of the puzzle.
This is where "workflow" applications are created.  We are using a custom
domino application to help us manage our PeopleSoft installations.  The
project involves a consortium of three technical colleges in Wisconsin.  Two
of us use domino for messaging and groupware and use the notes client for
this application.  The third uses exchange, but still has full access to the
domino site via the web browser.  We see workflow / collaboration as a key
service, right up there with messaging.

The second major feature of Domino Application Server in  our plans is the
colleges Web Server.   Our current site includes only static web pages.  We
will be using domino to create "web page templates" which will be completed
by content specialists, e.g.. content relating to Financial Aids will be
created by the Financial Aids Office using "templates" created by the
web-team.   These "templates" determine the "look & feel" of the site, while
still allowing the content to be the responsibility of the respective
content "experts".  The work-flow capabilities of Domino allow us to enforce
appropriate content approvals before it is made available to the web.

The third major feature of the Domino Application Server in our plans is web
applications utilizing "Domino Enterprise Connection Services" (DECS).  DECS
provides rapid connectivity for "live" access to AS/400 DB2 databases - read
only or update.  Most popular databases and ERP Applications connections are
available.   More info is available at:
http://www.lotus.com/home.nsf/welcome/dominoapplicationserver


Finally, and perhaps most importantly, Domino customers, like AS/400
customers, seem to just love the product they use.  And largely for the same
reasons, e.g.. ease of use, reliability, lots of business partners and third
party applications, etc.   Even if they can't tell you what it is!

Ray




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