lekkimworld: Is the lack of Java skills in the Notes/Domino developer community the Achilles´ heel of IBM?

Mikkel Heisterberg totally gets it in termsof where Notes is going and some of the opportunities, and challenges,of Notes in the "Hannover" release (emphasis mine):Thoughsupported it will be very difficult, if not impossible, to build the kindsof composite, networked applications that will be possible with Hannoverusing LotusScript. You'll need Java for these kinds of applications. Thisbrings us back to IBM since this fact will be a real Achilles' heal [sic]when it comes to the adoption and getting the real benefit from the newHannover client. The success of the Hannover client and the applicationspossible will rest on getting the customers to use and new features andbegin to develop composite applications. I don'tknow if Mikkel has my phone tapped, but this is exactly the message I'vebeen delivering to colleagues over the last couple of weeks.  It iscritical that Notes"Hannover" demonstratebest-in-class usability and all the other great things coming, but themain driver for upgrades will be the new value in  "Hannover"-- the fact that for the first time, Notes is more than just a client forDomino. This is a complex thought.  The attention paid to "Hannover"since its announcement last May has been primarily around the major refreshof the user interface.  This gets everybody's attention , eye candyalways does.  But "improved user interface", no matter howamazing the new UI is (and from everything I've seen so far, it totallyrocks), won't necessarily be enough for the CFO to approve an IT projectto upgrade Notes.  Other new things, like activitesand compositeapplications -- now it getsinteresting.   If you remember back a few years to when Lotus first announced "collaborationfor J2EE", one of the driving factors for starting to build what isnow known as Workplace Collaboration Services/Workplace Designer/WorkplaceManaged Client was the coming market shift to Java/J2EE as a mainstreamapplication development language.  I disagree with Mikkel that IBMhasn't been promoting Java to Lotus developers -- look at Lotusphere agendasfor three years running now, and it's clear from jumpstarts to the breakoutsand BoFs that IBM has.  But maybe still not enough.  Becausemany many organizations report now that they are building all new applicationsin J2EE (or in .NET or both), and are less-inclined to build new apps inanything else -- no matter how easy it is to get a Notes application upand running. "Hannover" represents an opportunity to unify two applicationdevelopment worlds -- Notes developers building Notes apps and Java developersbuilding Java apps.The community at large needs to skill-upand get to grips with Java. Now is a good a time as any to get started- rather sooner than later. The reward will be apparent once Hannover isreleased. Composite applications represent a transformation-- Notes does more than just Domino applications.  Understanding thisnow will prepare for "Hannover", and how to better leverage yourNotes investment in the future. Link:lekkimworld: Is the lack of Java skills in the Notes/Domino developer communitythe Achilles' heel of IBM? >