After listening to the initial keynote, here are my observations:
- It’s well attended; but since Lotus didn’t make any announcements about growth or “the largest ever,” attendance is probably stable or down slightly.
- Lotus finally talked about “hybrid solutions”—that is, integrating both software and services (SaaS) so they’re seamless. This is a mantra that Microsoft has been chanting for several years now. Although IBM has been slow to catch on, if they do make it so that enterprises can’t tell where Notes or Quickr or Connections are running, they will be offering what customers want.
- There were several announcements about planned enhancements to LotusLive, and they will bolster the service—a big improvement from its initial incarnation, when it lacked e-mail.
- Project Vulcan is Lotus’s vision for the future. It’s a good vision—it’s not technology-centric but rather user-centric. However, the next question is when Lotus will deliver it. Are we talking one year or four years?
- Some general swipes at Microsoft SharePoint, but no acknowledgement of its fast growth or how Lotus Notes can integrate with it.