In case you haven’t noticed, IBM Lotus not only didn’t go away, it’s here with a vengeance. LotusLive.com claims 18 million users, the 8.5 release of Notes/Domino is a winner in storage savings, Lotus Connections beats other social software platforms on many dimensions, and Sametime’s pushing the envelope on real-time collaboration at a global scale.
I've been meaning to blog about the culture that is at the heart if Cirrus Australia, but I've been so busy enjoying my job that I've neglected the blog a little. However, Darren articulates it better.“The whole idea of using quality of life to measure outcomes has been absolutely fantastic. This is our mission statement and rather than merely paying lip service to it, it really forms the base culture of the organisation. I have a company full of incredibly bright people who are motivated to improve the quality of life for their customers. The team specialises in IBM software implementation and providing a solution that works for their customers is what drives them. When this culture pervades the organisation, you end up with staff on top of their game. What we have is a very motivated and technically proficient offering,
New applications are typically installed in web-based configurations thanks to "a massive bias towards" online applications and services. For example, a major roll-out of web-based email and collaboration built on IBM's Lotus iNotes is underway, while back-end administrative systems and even Bankwest's teller system are installed as server-side applications with web-based front ends.
"Over the years, there has been a very conscious effort to avoid legacy systems," Clasquin explains.
We also wanted to address the changing nature of client access. For too long, we have asked you as customers to decide whether a particular user is a "Notes user" or a "browser user" or a "mobile user". We thought it might just make more sense, given the trend towards ubiquitous access, if an end-user became a "Domino user", with the choice of tools and interfaces as needed.
That concludes my three-part introduction to Notes/Domino 8.5.1 -- and I haven't even talked about the technology yet, from the iPhone support in Traveler to the new Eclipse Lotuscript Editor to the Notes UI improvements to the further enhancements in DAOS.
This paper outlines the steps the author took in introducing the Scrum agile process into the Dept of Housing and what lessons were learnt.
Housing has now been running the ‘Scrum’ agile project delivery process for over 2 years. During that time all software projects have been delivered on or ahead of agreed time frames. ICT staff, engaged in the Scrum process, became motivated about delivering value to the client. ICT staff morale increased which led to staff retention. Feedback from business units across the department indicates that the usage of Scrum is a success.
The agile process called “Scrum” was selected over theI particularly like the summary, which highlights an often missed attribute of Scrum.
alternatives because it:
- Emphasized communication and collaboration, functioning software, and the flexibility to adapt to emerging business realities[1];
- Was not just relevant for developers but the entireproject team; and
- Embraced agile philosophies such as the Agile Manifesto[2].
The use of Scrum was a success at the Department of Housing. However even as a lightweight methodology, it requires much discipline.
Whitespace is often used to create a balanced, harmonious layout
According to a 2002 study, the “appeal of the overall visual design of a site, including layout, typography, font size, and color schemes,” is the number one factor we use to evaluate a website’s credibility.
Okay, so maybe perceptions are important to product design. But what about “real” usability concerns such as lower task completion times or fewer difficulties? Do attractive products actually work better? This idea was tested in a study conducted in 1995 (and then again in 1997). Donald Norman describes it in detail in his book Emotional Design.
Cycle 2.
RowElement headerrow = new RowElement();
CellElement headercell =
new CellElement(
"Here is a big table and some headings");
headercell.setCellspan(3);
headerrow.addCell(headercell);
headerrow.setTableHeading(true);
table.AddRow(headerrow);
// create a list item and add the bullet.
ListElement le = new ListElement(10, tableStyle);
le.setSymbolImage("examples/orgball.gif");
le.setBulletIndent(20);
le.addBullet("Here is one");
le.addBullet("Here is two");
data.add(le);
// create an image and set scale and alignments.
ImageElement ie = new ImageElement();
ie.addImage("examples/ls09-bloggers.jpg");
ie.setImageScalePercent(100);
ie.setImageAlignment(ImageElement.IMAGE_ALIGNMENT_MIDDLE);
data.add(ie);
data.add(new PageElement(Page.ORIENTATION_LANDSCAPE));
data.add(new PageBreakElement());
1. Changing the page orientation on the fly,