I am very new with IBM Lotus Notes Developer.
I want to know wt is the future of this technology.I have switched two companys but their is migration form lotus notes to other technology. I have chance on lotus project.
My response was typical, I think, for someone who has worked with the product for some time.
You can view Ed Brill's 2009 Lotusphere presentation where he laid out the Lotus Roadmap:
http://www.slideshare.net/edbrill/lotusphere-200-inv102-lotus-notes-and-domino-strategy-2009-presentation
If you are running Domino 8.5.x, you will see many exciting features of the Notes client as well as Designer. Widgets, XPages, the UI, etc. If you want Lotus in the cloud, you can do that. If you want an appliance to run Lotus, you can do that, too. If you want it on your smartphone, that's in there too (and free).
IBM has really been investing money and time in the product, and it shows. Even Lotus marketing is getting much better.
Many of those migrations may have been from older versions of Notes/Domino. I do not see too many organizations leaving Lotus after the decision makers get a look at the current version of Notes. And understand what it is that they have.
My "issue" is that the other responses deal with the number of posts for Lotus jobs versus Microsoft. I can see that can have some bearing on the "health" of a particular technology or opportunity, however I don't think that it should be as high a priority as others make it. I think that in most cases, an organization can run very well with fewer Lotus professionals than Microsoft for similar tasks; Mail and instant messaging administration, application development, and the like. Thus, the title of this post.
When asked the question, I look to published Lotus Roadmaps, regular maintenance and version upgrades/updates, exciting and visible marketing, and great, new features like XPages, ID Vault, DAOS, Traveler, and more. Those types of things, and some others, like passionate IBM Lotus management and sales, show me that there is a solid commitment from IBM for the future of Lotus Notes and Domino, not the number of current jobs available.
Although, if I do look at the current jobs, I might want to know how to get a full scope polygraph.
What do you think? How would you answer the question?
Comment posted by Henning Heinz12/03/2009 06:28:07 AM
Well ok. Where is the roadmap for IBM Lotus Developers for Lotus Notes and Domino 9 and beyond?
Anyway your method does work for everyone that has been dealing with Lotus Notes and Domino a bit longer. For people new to Lotus it will be a bit harder. How will those see passionate IBM Lotus management and sales? In fact there is a chance that those people will only see Ed Brill and probably be a bit disappointed that he claims that edbrill.com is his private website.
Your quote mentions that the person already had experiences with Lotus (two existing Lotus customers migrating). I would consider this a very strong experience.
So how would I answer the question? I probably can't because I don't know anything about the person asking and his alternatives. So if he decides against Lotus Notes will he then bake pizza (like mentioned in the post) or become a top notch J2EE developer (I'll leave the admin part aside)? It is not so easy to answer.
But if I have to and I think that the person asking has a real choice I would recommend taking an alternative road. But again I am still making money with this technology.
Comment posted by Tom O'Neil12/03/2009 08:07:21 AM
I rather agree with Henning. I work in a fairly large Midwestern town and I've seen the number of local Lotus Notes developers go from near 100 to maybe 10.
I've worked at four different places in this town over the past eight years. Two have stopped Lotus Notes development (they might still use it for mail) and one Lotus consulting company is no longer in business.
Would I recommend Lotus development to any new developer? Probably not. Why would I want someone else competing for the maybe eight jobs in a metro area of roughly 1 million people.
Comment posted by Henning Heinz12/03/2009 09:14:52 AM
Well Tom if you currently do not look for a job no recommendation will be competing with you. In fact it can help to keep an account alive because finding none that fits a position would be a problem too.
Comment posted by Keith Brooks12/03/2009 10:10:51 AM
Homepage: http://www.vanessabrooks.com
The future of the technology is always changing. IBM is not going to let lotus die, contrary to Microsoft's view.
IBM is pushing WAS more and more and I would recommend someone spend more time on that side, it is more practicalo, especially from a development angle where skills in J2EE should come in handy.
Lotus is again at a crossroads, it is on the upswing after a few years of paralysis and it is for all of us to help it stay on track and continue to grow, in whatever shape or form.
Comment posted by Richard Moy12/03/2009 10:27:31 AM
Homepage: http://www.dominointerface.com
As a consultant and ISV I see some companies move away from Lotus recently and some using Lotus products for the first time. It will take a long time to reverse all the damage that was done by IBM over the past few years.
Comment posted by Anonymous Post12/03/2009 07:28:26 PM
I hate to say that after 10 years as a Notes developer I have decided not to learn XPages and am retraining on other technologies. I love working with Notes, but the job market has been so bad, for so long that I can't expect to stay employed in this field. If there is a resurgence I'll certify on ND8+ and jump back in.
Comment posted by RIshi12/03/2009 08:23:16 PM
Homepage: http://lotus-blogs.blogspot.com
I had experience where one of my company was migrated to Microsoft but they asked us to analyze LN applications and provide solutions in Sharepoint / Dot Net. Those who said I don't like to learn new stuffs they thrown out. By nature LN applications are quite complex to understand for non domino developers so we always get such opportunity where company ask person should know LN and Dot net or LN and Java. I would suggest every domino developers to get ready to learn new technology rather sticking in formula and lotus script.
Comment posted by Gregg Eldred12/03/2009 09:24:37 PM
Homepage: http://www.ns-tech.com/blog/geldred.nsf
Ahh and there it is.
@Rishi hits, what I believe. is the exact answer (also, @Keith touched on it, too). However, from conversations I have had with some developers, they feel that they don't have the time nor the inclination to learn anything beyond formula or LotusScript.
Even though I am a Domino Admin, I have added some Exchange Admin skills to my toolkit (and some very rudimentary development skills). I am a big believer in continually broadening my knowledge, even outside of technology.
Comment posted by 12/03/2009 10:54:27 PM
Homepage: http://www.benoitdubuc.com
I moved from Notes development to .Net because the number of companies running Notes is going down, period. I have worked for several companies that are or have moved from Notes to .Net and that is directly linked to the number of Notes jobs available.
I am not sure why we can't judge a technology by its number of job postings. I feel it is a good indicator of how popular that technology is. Mind you, no job postings might also tell us that the product is very stable and that people working with it are happy campers and they don't quit their jobs!!!
Comment posted by Charles Robinson12/04/2009 10:23:54 AM
Homepage: http://www.cubert.net
Gregg, I think job postings are a barometer of what businesses want. In 12 years there have been no job postings for Notes or Domino positions here. I am eager to learn new things, but it has to be relevant to the business market where I live. Either I can choose somewhere to live somewhere else or I can choose products and technologies that businesses here use.
I think that is what the person in the forums was asking. It wasn't a question about Lotus' roadmap or vision. It's a matter of can he feed his family with this career choice. For a growing number of people that answer is no, and they're having to go the same route I did and leave the Lotus bubble.
Comment posted by Gregg Eldred12/04/2009 04:03:48 PM
Homepage: http://www.ns-tech.com/blog/geldred.nsf
@Charles - thank you for your comment, I appreciate it. I have to agree with you, especially as I look at the job postings and every one of them require me to leave Cleveland (which, in some cases, is not a bad idea. If I were single).
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