Thats the sound of the men using Workplace on the chain gaa-yang.

Well I've been on a Workplace shindig last thrursday, friday. It was a very useful session where I think I finally understand where the blue meanies are coming from.

We spent most if the time trying to get Workplace 1.1a working. We installed Websphere, Websphere Portal, DB2, Numerous fixpacks, an LDAP server, a cuddly toy, a fondue set and coffee percolator; we edited .properties files and held our breath; we typed huge command line commands; we asked questions and looked blank; we rebooted servers; and throughout we required the expert help of two blue meanies just in case we pressed the wrong button.

Workplace 1.1a is obviously not ready for prime time; in fact it was touch and go whether it was ready for this workshop. Workplace 2.0 is nearly upon us (gold in 3 weeks) and I am reliably informed it is "Rockin' at the hops".

The interesting thing is that the 2.0 will include a "Rich" Client that will include an office suite which is forked from open office and managed from a server. As the licensing seems to be in the same ball park as domino (when you include all the collaboration things like IM and Quickplace etc) it certainly looks like the blue meanies are after the desktop again. This could be a compelling argument in the light of M$ recent licensing hikes.

The big question, of course, is will it all work? Dunno is the only honest answer, although I'm inclined to think that some kind of third way will emerge over the next few years.

That said, I generally feel a bit better. I feel comfortable in my investment in J2EE and Websphere and I can see a transition path ahead for notes/domino. The fact that this will all be done by a load of blokes from Bangalore is neither here nor there.

"Do you have a nectar card?"