Genii Weblog


Civility in critiquing the ideas of others is no vice. Rudeness in defending your own ideas is no virtue.


Thu 27 Mar 2014, 01:11 PM
Without mentioning names, we got a customer request today:
 
  
We need to migrate some data to SQL server and having difficulties with RTF's. By using @abstract, results are mixed. Some records have partial data from RTF field and also formatting is not retained.
 
So we are looking for MidasLSX which allow us to easily export an RTF along with a few other fields directly into SQL server or write all the records from Notes database into a CSV file which can be imported into SQL table.

 
This request, and the two others like it I have had in the past two weeks, is why the Export to CSV sample database is so important, and why the video below is so useful even with just a few views.
 
 
 
 

Copyright © 2014 Genii Software Ltd.

Thu 27 Mar 2014, 10:12 AM
While Gimp may not be relevant to IBM software or Notes/Domino, many business partners have chosen to use this free, open source image manipulation software for creating graphics, cleaning up photos and even building simple animations. Over on Mini-Lessons.info, I have twenty-two different Gimp tutorials along with many tutorials on Notes/Domino topics including some on the Midas LSX and CoexLinks.
 
This is my latest Gimp 2.8 mini-lesson. Like all of my videos, there are no ads at all, and I aim for brief and easy to understand. Like most, it is in HD and has closed captions if you find that easier or want a translation. Enjoy, and if you are interested in either my Gimp or Notes or other tutorials, why not subscribe? 
 
 
 
 

Copyright © 2014 Genii Software Ltd.

Mon 24 Mar 2014, 12:05 PM
As one of the many in the Notes community who have felt this way about Bruce Elgort over the years, it is nice to see that his students feel the same way

Congratulations on your well-earned adoration, Bruce!

Copyright © 2014 Genii Software Ltd.

Mon 24 Mar 2014, 08:56 AM
PHB says, You want me to take a dump. Other person says, A data dump. We need your data from Notes in SQL.
PHB says, How can I take notes on the sequel when I didn't read the first yet. Other person says, Is your secretary available or a janitor? Why did we let the Notes developers go?
 
When your PHB needs to take a data dump from Notes to SQL Server or DB2 or SharePoint Lists or whatever, and your organization is low on Notes developers, there's always the Midas LSX and the completely data-driven Export to CSV database. Request an evaluation license today and see how easy it can be. Or watch the video for a short demo. High fidelity full screen is recommended, and closed captions are available both for following along in English or getting translations to other languages. (Demo is related to last week's post, Help Needed in Lanes 1 and 2)
 
 

Copyright © 2014 Genii Software Ltd.

Thu 20 Mar 2014, 10:01 AM
Yesterday, I laid out a roadmap for Genii Software, defining three lanes that we see companies fall into and how we aim to address the needs of those companies. Over the next few days, I will post a few examples to illustrate our goals.

Lanes 1 and Lane 2:Taking data from a Notes database to SQL server without Notes development

Problem: a company has a Notes database, and they need to take a number of fields of a specific form and put them into SQL Server tables. They may be migrating (Lane 1) or simply need it for a specific purpose (Lane 2), but have no Notes developers and don't want to hire consultants for a one-off need.

Solution: using the Midas LSX 5, a customer could download the Export to CSV sample database. All they would need to do is fill out an Export Directive form (see below) with the database and specify which forms and fields to export (or all of them, if they didn't know which are needed), then click the button. Importing the CSV into SQL server is easy, using a technique such as How to create and populate a table in a single step as part of a CSV import. There is no need for Notes developers, and the entire process can be done in an afternoon. This example includes a rich text field, which is rendered by default to high fidelity HTML.


Export directive form

Copyright © 2014 Genii Software Ltd.

Wed 19 Mar 2014, 04:51 PM
I thought it might be worth laying out a roadmap for where I see Genii Software and its products going in the future. While these are mostly continuations of current directions, not everybody is aware of the different overlapping features. So, here goes.

Lane 1: Companies leaving Notes behind or moving part of their infrastructures away from IBM
This lane is often seen as "migration", but frequently turns into "coexistence". We support both things. This lane is likely to be quite active.

CoexLinks Fidelity will allow email infrastructure to move to Microsoft or Google or anyone else, while allowing high fidelity email to be sent to the new mail system with total control of doclink and with a built in Message Store for emails with Notes-specific functionality. CoexLinks Fidelity serves both those in the process of migrating and those coexisting between IBM Notes/Domino and other software infrastructures.

Midas LSX allows the high quality export of both mail and other data to a variety of formats supported outside of Notes/Domino, whether in other IBM software or software from many other companies including Google, Microsoft, Oracle and many, many others. Hands-off exports will be increasingly used so that no developers are needed for this process.

Product X will provide a more seamless migration process for email, utilizing both the Midas engine and additional functionality. Details not currently public.


Lane 2: Companies staying with Notes but without significant developer resources
This lane reflects the reality of many companies today, not only in Notes but in many technologies. Some companies have only a skeleton developer staff, while others have no developers, but their infrastructure has been mostly paid for and they are not interested in moving. We are finding more and more ways to support these companies, and see this as an area with significant growth potential, both for Genii Software and for other flexible software and consulting companies. This is the middle lane because those in both Lane 1 and Lane 3 may drift this direction.

CoexLinks Fidelity will allow a company with an existing Notes/Domino email infrastructure to improve the quality of their customer-facing emails. It may also improve the quality of email accessed through the iNotes web interface. Since it can be deployed/configured without developers needed, it allows a company to do more/better with their existing infrastructure.

CoexEdit will offer enhanced functionality to both XPages and classic web interfaces, whether they are Notes/Web combined or not. The interface will be primarily non-developer focused, with no changes to templates or database designs required.

Midas LSX already offers many templates for processing/importing/exporting and managing rich text resources, but will increasingly offer a line of designer-free templates which are data driven and can be used by either administrators or users as is. The scope of such templates will not be limited to rich text, just as the Midas LSX is less tied to rich text.

Midas C++ API will increasingly be used to provide add-in functions either through a menu interface or a data driven interface so that specific functionalities will be available "built in" rather than through a database. This will be increasingly important for server applications. Some of these may be labeled as separate products, but will still fall into this product family.


Lane 3: Companies moving to Notes or with significant Notes developer resources
There are still companies moving to Notes/Domino or maintaining and growing their Notes/Domino infrastructures. While this may not be a growth area, our products provide the ability to do more and get better returns on the Notes/Domino infrastructure, even if IBM does not significantly invest in new features.

CoexEdit will offer enhanced functionality to both XPages and classic web interfaces, whether they are Notes/Web combined or not. The interface will be primarily non-developer focused, with no changes to templates or database designs required.

Midas LSX offers many templates for processing/importing/exporting and managing rich text resources, but will increasingly offer templates which work beyond rich text. Developers can build in this functionality to make enterprise-class applications that go well beyond what IBM envisions in Notes/Domino. Hooks are being added to provide more functionality inside XPages, but also in non-XPages applications. Also, data import functionality allows customers to bring data in from other platforms using the powerful Midas fidelity engine.

Midas C++ API is available and being enhanced to allow sophisticated developers to build Midas power inside their own software, or offer extended functionality with hooks to the Midas functions optionally available for those who "buy up".


Exit Lane A: Products built for other platforms
No details at this point, but we may release one or more products for other platforms that may or may not be integrated with our Notes/Domino products.

Copyright © 2014 Genii Software Ltd.