Big Push From IBM On Lotus AppsBig Push From IBM On Lotus Apps

IBM is rolling out new releases of its Lotus Notes/Domino, Sametime, and QuickPlace collaboration software, promising that the products are more tightly integrated than before and offer a lower total cost of ownership. The company also is debuting LearningSpace Virtual Classroom, Web-based training software that allows real-time collaboration between instructors and students.

Notes and Domino 6, the core of Lotus' messaging-and-collaboration product lineup, sport new capabilities, including increased security and spam management. Productivity enhancements include new attachment-handling options, in-box management, and improved access via mobile devices. The new releases are more closely linked to other IBM software, including DB2, Tivoli systems management, and the WebSphere app server.

Sametime 3 and QuickPlace 3, new releases of Lotus' instant-messaging and team-collaboration apps, respectively, are integrated with the Notes and Microsoft Outlook calendar apps. A new Sametime IM Gateway provides links to other IM systems. The new version of QuickPlace also lets users search across all virtual team workspaces they belong to.

Capacitor maker Kemet Corp., a Notes user since 1994, has been trying out Notes' spam filter. It has identified as spam--and blocked--about 16% of all incoming E-mail, says Matthew Henry, the company's technology architect. And Notes' new network-compression capability is reducing network traffic by up to half--a plus given that many of Kemet's employees work in remote offices.

All of the new Lotus software is available now, with the exception of LearningSpace Virtual Classroom, which will ship in two weeks priced at $76,325 per CPU. Domino Mail Server is priced at $894, Domino application server at $2,308, and Domino utility server at $11,750 per CPU. Sametime is priced at $38 per registered user and $25,700 per processor for unlimited extranet use, while QuickPlace is priced at $39 per registered user or $10,300 per processor.