Response to Forbes: Yawn...
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By now everyone in the Notes/Domino world has seen the latest Forbes' "Notes is Dead" article entitled "IBM in Denial Over Lotus Notes". As a quick side note, I find it interesting that the article is written by the same guy that made the same claim in 1998. Anyway, there have been numerous people who have responded to this article to quickly refute it, discount it, and mock it. However, I am not going to go that route. Why not? Because, to be honest, it just isn't worth the effort. We all know it is crap. Others have done a great job of pointing out that it is crap. So, instead of repeating what others have thoroughly pointed out, I am instead going to point out my own observations.
- I believe that counting "seats" or trying to measure "revenue generated" for the messaging products on the market is basically meaningless - for both sides. Microsoft gives away Outlook licenses; Lotus has never been great at tracking their licenses and never release revenue specifics. Overall the only people who really care about this are the people who work for IBM and MS and the reporters who report on it. I believe for the last few years the messaging market is divided about evenly, with the occasional sways back and forth - which is what happens in a competitive, saturated market. Basically, it doesn't matter one iota which one has a couple of percentage points over the other one.
- Lotus Notes/Domino is healthy, alive and well. 6.5.4/6.0.5 was just released, and ND7 is in beta. ND8 and ND9 have been announced as well, so there is a clear future for the platform. Exchange? Don't make me laugh. What, 60% of Exchange users are still on 5.5? LOL...
- Personally, my clients are excited about the future. All of them have upgraded to 6.x, and they are looking forward to 7. Additionally I continue to get calls for new business - so much that I have given jobs to other BPs because I am maxed out. This is not a trend you find in a declining market. The market - at least the part of the market I am exposed to - is excited about the future, and they are investing in a future that includes Notes/Domino.
- Lotusphere 2005 was arguably the best Lotusphere ever. If you had asked me about the future of Lotus in general, and Notes/Domino specifically, during earlier Lotuspheres I would have been skeptical (at best). However the message from IBM is clear, and the community at large is comfortable and excited about the future. Lotusphere is usually a good place to take the temperature of the market, and the temperature this year was great.
Now, I do want to make some general comments about the article, and my opinion of Forbes and Daniel Lyons (the, ahem, author of this article). I have no idea who pissed in the collective Wheaties over at Forbes, but that organization in general seems to have had it out for IBM, Lotus, and Notes/Domino for quite some time. The article in 1998 that proclaimed that "Notes is Dead" was laughable back then, and is even moreso now - considering that Notes/Domino is stronger now more than ever. It seems that Lyons can't admit he was wrong, so he had to drag out the tired old mantra again in the futile hope that saying it makes it so. Mr. Lyons, you were wrong in 1998, and you're wrong again - the first step to healing is admitting your deficiencies, and now is as good a time as any to do so.
There's one other thing I want to mention, on a more personal note: I read a report on Duffbert's site that Mr. Lyons contacted Bruce Elgort's place of work about his comments concerning this article. This contact forced Bruce to temporarily take down his site, remove the post, and then he was able to relaunch it. Well, Mr. Lyons, what is the problem? Can't take the public scrutiny? Give me a break. You could have responded on his site, you could have responded on your own site, you could have even had a discussion with him via email, but instead you decide to whine to his place of work? Grow up, Mr. Lyons. You wrote an article that is flimsy at best, and now you can't take the heat? You sound suspiciously like a minion of Dr. Radicati, since this is something she has been known to do as well.
Update (8 APR 2005): Bruce informed me that he took down his blog for awhile at the request of his employer to "uncouple" his blog from his employer so that there is no doubt that it is his personal blog only. OK, I can see that - but Mr. Lyons is still a whiny boy for feeling the need to rat him out to his employer. That is simply petty and vindictive. Shame on you, Mr. Lyons.
People who speak the truth are almost willing to stand behind those words, and are willing to submit them to public scrutiny with the confidence that the truth is self-evident. Those who speak half-truths and lies tend to shy away from public defense of those words, and usually resort to attacking the challenger rather than breaking down the challenge itself.
"It isn't how you speak the word; it's how you stand behind the word you speak."
So, gentle reader, I encourage you to explore the facts yourself, rather than rely on fluff pieces like the Forbes article. Take a look at the roadmap offered by the various companies in the marketplace; talk to people who work with the respective products; and examine all areas of a platform when deciding worth, including secondary costs of maintenance such as scalability, virii vulnerability, ease of development, extensibility, and so on. Read what others have to offer, but don't give it too much weight (including the stuff written by bloggers like me). Go with your own information and instincts, and you will be much more likely to choose the right platform for your environment.
Rock
**You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. Of course, you could do even better with a dead squirrel.
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Comments
Posted by Simon At 01:02:46 PM On 04/11/2005 | - Website - |
Posted by Bill Gates At 01:09:02 PM On 05/06/2005 | - Website - |
Did I miss something ? Bruce Elgort's site is a personal blog, isn't it ? It doesn't have any connection with his employer, does it ? Did someone pass a law prohibiting the expression of a personal opinion on a personal site ??? If so, then Damien Katz had better watch out, or he is going to get into serious trouble about what he's saying about Vonage at the moment, over on his blog.
Anyhow..did you take a look at the links in Mr. Lyons' "By This Author" section ?...
"Dancing Lessons" - (an article on why IBM Global Services is doomed.)
"Linux ? No Thanks" - (well, you can probably guess what this article is about.)
"Payback" - (another slam at IBM.)
and....
"Firefox ? What a piece of crap !"
"Apple iPod ? Not that popular really !"
"Why open-source software will give you cancer"
Okay, I may have made the last three up, but the first three are all genuine. I don't know about you, but I think I detect a slight trend here
How does the saying go ? "He who controls the press...."
Tim (another "rah-rah Lotus faithful--consultant")
Posted by Tim Leach At 06:30:26 AM On 04/08/2005 | - Website - |
Lyons reminds me of beer belly sports reporters who never played sports. Real players know a fake when they see one. I trust the fruit on the tree of real developers on the front lines.
Posted by Curt Stone At 01:21:53 PM On 04/11/2005 | - Website - |
Rock
Posted by Rock At 01:26:39 PM On 05/06/2005 | - Website - |
How can you even compare the two products in a case like that?
Posted by Dave At 03:57:48 PM On 04/11/2005 | - Website - |