IBMs Lotus Software Division plans within the next year to port the WebSphere Everyplace Server synchronization engine to Lotus Domino Everyplace Server.
Doing so will enable Domino Everyplace Server to interoperate with non-Domino applications, such as allowing a third-party mobile sales application to interact with the calendar or contact lists in Lotus Notes.
Currently, customers must use Domino Everyplace Server in combination with the WebSphere Everyplace Server to deliver this interoperability. Including the synchronization will simplify the system administration for wireless access, Lotus officials said here last week at the companys headquarters.
Wireless Domino applications are typically used in offline mode and then synced with the server when the user is connected. Adding WebSphere synchronization capabilities to Domino Everyplace will not only add interoperability but also promote more real-time use for wireless access to Domino applications beyond the Lotus Sametime instant messaging client, said Bob Norton, senior manager for middleware products at Lotus.
The Domino applications will still maintain the same look and feel and wont switch to a Web browser interface.
Allowing wireless Domino applications to integrate with other wireless applications “makes a lot of sense” since wireless applications have evolved beyond messaging, said analyst David Marshak, with Patricia Seybold Group Inc.
But Marshak warned that the integration of IBM and Lotus businesses has been painful for many customers and partners.
“Is [merging Domino and WebSphere] the right thing to do? Yes. Am I fully confident that IBM will do it the best way? No,” said Marshak, in Boston.”