IBM today announced an expansion of its Lotus Notes and Domino collaboration flagship software to new markets and users with a new version that delivers higher levels of mobility and security for the iPhone and another that protects companies from Internet-borne threats such as spam and viruses.
Lotus Notes and Domino software adoption has grown to more than 140 million licensed users worldwide.
The ability to connect to secure business email on devices such as the iPhone is an example of Tomorrow at Work, an IBM initiative that examines a changing work world and anticipates trends in technology, business, society and culture.
Lotus iNotes ultralite is a software download that allows a person to do Lotus Notes email and view calendar and contacts using the iPhone. iNotes is available at no extra charge to people who have a Lotus Notes software license and is also included with IBM’s new Lotus Notes software 8.0.2, which raises performance significantly, and uses 20 percent less memory than the previous version.
Notes 8.0.2 also includes an updated version of Lotus Symphony, an easy-to-use document, spread sheet and presentation software package based on the Open Document Format. This newest Symphony has improved compatibility with Microsoft Office and now supports 28 languages. The four new ones are Catalan, Slovakian, Slovenian, and Thai.
iPhone users can access Lotus iNotes ultralite through an intuitive interface via the Safari browser. For added security and protection of corporate data, iPhone users can choose to use IBM’s Lotus Mobile Connect virtual private network software along with ultralite. The latest version of Lotus Mobile Connect, which became available at the end of June, makes the ultralite sign-on process even easier.
IBM’s new Lotus Protector for Mail Security, which protects companies from Internet-borne spam and viruses, is also available now. The first offering in the new Lotus Protector security family, it shields Notes and Domino systems and users from harmful and inappropriate content, and secures company data from unauthorized access. Lotus Protector for Mail Security features a high-performance engine with comprehensive scanning and filtering techniques. It also features a sophisticated rules engine to block incoming and outgoing content based on customer specifications.
Lotus Notes and Domino has grown across small-medium business, and is used by more than half of the largest 100 corporations in the world, 80 percent of the top 10 global companies in banking, telecommunications, aerospace and defense, consumer products, electronics, insurance and pharmaceuticals.
Features include:
• Access email, calendars, and contacts
• Easily view your inbox
• Read email with details either hidden or shown
• Quickly compose or reply to email
• View email attachments
• View day-at-a-glance calendar
• View details on meetings, all day events, reminders, and anniversaries
• View an organized view of your contacts
• View information on contacts and groups
• Quickly create new contact entries
More info here.
It looks like it will require the IT department to implement this because is it web based. This SUCKS!!! This should have been an app that you could login to with your email password. THIS SUCKS.
I’ve had this for about a week now. It’s ok but I’d really like an actual app better.
It’s basically web based access Notes style. Users need to grasp that regardless of your mobile device, companies have concerns over their data (email) and we have a ton of regulatory issues to abide by. Functionality is not as critical as security
Until iphone proves whole device encryption, a way to effectively manage them (read itunes not required) and a way to audit SMS messages it will have a hard time being adopted regardless how cool it is. Not helping that all the latest ads just show games being played on it.
@ MobileAdmin
FYI:
The latest ads are showing the iPod Touch and are highlighting the games. Not the iPhone. Although I can see how the average consumer would confuse the two. (Not that you’re an average consumer)
They decide to come out with this, at the same time our company has almost finished the switch to Exchange… Wonderful.
Web based? Why?
Actually I noticed two different app store ads last night, during Heroes.
Each featured the iPhone, and only one featured a game. The game was Cro Mag Ralley (or whatever it’s called), and the other app was an English to Mandarin translator.
In both cases, the ad ended with an incoming phone call.
–Web based? Why?–
Because as MobileAdmin explained, there’s no way to control data otherwise.
this is pointless… I’ve already been using the web bases inotes since I got the 3G iphone. The one problem I have is continually needing to login. So hopefully after IBMs servers stop getting slammed I can download this crap and see how it is. I hope I wont have to login to my email every time I want to check.. it gets annoying
As much as Safari crashes, I’d hate to rely on it for anything real important.
*begins to enter important business data*
*data entry sluggish; cursor stutters*
*can feel the crash coming!*
*black screen!!!*
*fail…*
@R2
are you speaking of the safari 4 beta? I have never seen my screen go black
Web-based interface has serious limitations. This won’t be the same as when using Mail with Exchange. Your mail, contacts, calendar, etc. remains on your iPhone. You can turn the radios off (on a plane) and still work with your messages, appointments, etc.
With web-based iNotes, you’re stuck until the plane lands. I won’t say this is useless, but it isn’t much better than the existing web-mail; it doesn’t merit such special plugging.
In order to effectively support iPhone, Lotus needs to deliver a real mobile client application. Considering that the desktop Notes (both Mac, as well as Win version) is a behemoth, I can’t possibly imagine Lotus squeezing all desktop functionality into a mobile version. Even just messaging, calendaring, contacts and to-do would be a nightmare, mainly because the Notes client is just a runtime environment for Notes-based applications, and as such contains tons of libraries. IBM has painted itself into a corner with the Notes platform.
Let’s hope GroupWise becomes available for iPhone soon. That would be the third big collaboration tool out there (after Exchange and Notes).
Lotus Notes sucks ass on the desktop. It is however very popular with large companies so it is a good thing for the iPhone