The deadline for session abstract submissions to MWLUG is this Friday, May 27. You have until 5pm that day to submit any session you like to present at the conference, which takes place in Austin August 17-19.
Even if you don’t plan to present, you can of course register for the conference. There is a limited number of seats, so don’t miss out on this conference!
Today I experienced some very good customer service, and that made me think about how important that is when it comes to how a company is seen by customers (current and prospective).
What happened was that I downloaded the latest version of Ytria‘s developer tools (scanEZ, toolBarEZ, viewEZ, designPropEZ and signEZ). I been using those tools for year, and was very excited when I found out they had just released a major new version. So I downloaded it as normal, installed it and then logged in to our account to get the new license keys. I then found out that the license had not been renewed last fall. I got the invoice and passed it on within my company, but somewhere on the way it got dropped.
So now I had the new version installed, but could not use it as I did not have any valid license keys. I found the old invoice, mailed Ytria and they told me that we could just pay that invoice and the license would be reinstated. They even gave me temporary license keys so I could get up and working even before that payment was sent out from our accounting department. I had not expected that, and this little thing really impressed me. I have always liked their tools and their customer service and support is excellent.
Then we have the opposite. Recently my wife broke her phone, a Samsung Galaxy Note5. She is dependent on it and uses it every day, not only for calls and internet but also to sign things with the pen (that’s the reason she got the Note). She contacted the insurance/replacement company AT&T is using for this kind of exchanges/insurance claims and started the process online. Then when she talked to them they told her that the Note5 was back-ordered and they did not knwo when they would get one in for her. They could not tell if it would be a day or two weeks. My wife was using her old Galaxy S4 temporary, and she was not happy to hear this. So we all switched our family plan (with 5 phones, a tablet and a hotspot) to T-Mobile withing a couple of days. We are even saving some money after switching (if you sign up for three lines you get one without any extra cost), plus we all got brand new phones (Samsung S7 Edge) with a “buy one get one free” offer. We also got a few other goodies (one VR headset and one year free Netflix per phone).
So in one case the company made an existing customer happy and gained long-term loyalty, in the other case the company lost a customer spending $400+ on their services and pushed us to a competitor.
PS. If you are a Notes/Domino developer or admin, Ytria will have a webcast on Wednesday, May 11 where they will demonstrate the new version and it’s features.
MWLUG ( Mid-West Lotus User Group) is a user group event that thakes place in different cities every year. They started in the Mid-west, hence the name, but in 2016 the conference will take place in Austin, TX on August 17-19.
Registration is now open, and the fee for this 3-day conference is only $75. Yes, you read that right, the conference is practically free. You just pay for your travel and lodging. So go ahead and register!
I was able to attend MWLUG for the first time 2015 in Atlanta, and Richard Moy and his team delivered a first rate event. I have no doubt that the 2016 conference will be at least as good. So if you can go, take this opportunity. I expect that there will be many excellent presentations again this year.
Earlier today Inhi Cho Suh, the General Manager of ICS (IBM Collaborative Services), was speaking at the user conference Engage in the Netherlands. There she announced the dates and new location of IBM Connect, the conference previously called Lotusphere and until this year taking place in Orlando, FL.
The dates are February 19 to 22 and the location is going to be San Francisco, CA. More details will emerge later this year. I hope that European attendees will still come, despite the little bit longer (about 2 hours longer) flights. I am excited about this move, I think this will work out well despite the changes.
Good-bye Florida, hello San Francisco!
Today (March 22) it is exactly 40 years since prinicipal photography started on Star Wars (later known as Episode IV – A New Hope) in Tunisia.
When it was released in Sweden at Christmas 1977 it was released with the age restriction 11 years and older (unless accompanied by a parent, then it was from 7 years old). Since I was 8 years old at the time and my parents were not interested in seeing the movie, I did not get to see it until years later. I did however borrow the book from the library and read it around that same time.
It was actually not until Return of the Jedi came out in 1983 that I was able to watch it. A movie theatre in Stockholm showed the two first movie as a double-feature with just a short break inbetween about a week or two before the premiere of the third movie in the original trilogy.
I was already a sci-fi fan at this time, and I was amazed by the adventures and the special effects on the movies. I even had some plastic models from the movies, for example an X-Wing and an R2-D2 model. I think I got them for Christmas in 1977 or possibly 1978.
I was of course excited when Episode I was coming out back in 1999, but I have to admit I was disappointed with the whole prequel trilogy. The latest installment, Episode VII, was okay. I did enjoy it and it will be interesting to see where Disney is taking this in the next few years. But the original trilogy is still the best, in my opinion.
A digital badge is an online representation of a skill you’ve earned. Open Badges take that concept one step further, and allows you to verify your skills, interests and achievements through credible organizations. And because the system is based on an open standard, you can combine multiple badges from different issuers to tell the complete story of your achievements — both online and off.
IBM Connect is not the only conference that you should attend if you are interested in the IBM collaboration/social platforms, there are many other spread out over different continents, and many of them are even free. You just pay your travel and hotel.
Next one up is Engage (formerly BLUG) arranged by Theo Heselmans and his team. This year it takes place in Eindhove, the Netherlands on March 23-24. There are less than 20 seats left for this free event with world class speakers, many of them are IBM Champions. Inhi Cho Suh, the new GM of IBM Collaboration Solutions, will be speaking at the Opening General Session together with Suzanne Livingston, Christ Crummey and Sarah Gibbons, all from IBM. There are five tracks with sessions, and if you look at the agenda I am sure you will find plenty to choose from. Theo always put on a great conference, I really wish I was able to attend! Update: there will be 43 IBM Champions attending, 33 of which will be presenting!
On April 11-13 you have EntwicklerCamp in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. This conference, which has been taking place for many years and I have heard much good about, is arranged by Rudy Knegt and the cost is €1499 for the three day conference. If you look at the agenda, you will see that there are sessions not only in German but also in English. Many of the sessions are presented by IBM Champions.
ICON US (formerly IamLUG) did not take place last year, but in 2016 Chris Miller and his team is back with a two day vertual conference. It takes place May 9-10 and you can register here. Seats (even if they are virtual) are limited.
Social Connections 10 is taking place in Toronto, Canada this year, June 6-7. Keynote speakers are Luis Suarez and Alan Lepofsky. As the name indicates, this conference focuses on IBM Connections. Early bird registration ends on April 1, and the cost is CA$229.00 while the regular price is $CA269.00.
Then there is MWLUG, this year taking place in Austin on August 17-19. Richard Moy and his team did a great job in Atlanta in 2015, and I am looking forward to this years conference. This is an “almost free” conference, the fee is $75 but don’t be fooled to think it is a cheap conference. Don’t miss out on some excellent content!
So go to some user conferences, be social and learn amazing new things!
When I attended IBM Connect 2015, I thought it would be the last time I got to attend the conference that for most of it’s running was called Lotusphere. I attended Lotusphere 1997 in Nice but from January 1998 I attended the conference at Walt Disney World Dolphin and Swan in Orlando every single year. After the 2015 conference the contract between IBM and Walt Disney World was up, and everyone expected the 20 year run to be over.
But something happened. IBM decided to do another IBM Connect in 2016, this time at a new location in Orlando, the Hilton. And people came. I have heard a number of about 2,200 attendees. Yes, just a fraction of what it was at it’s pinnacle, with 10,000+ attendees. But still more than previous years.
Dining tents during breakfast
The hotel and conference area was great. You still had to walk between conference rooms like in the Swolphin but you did at least not have to run over to another hotel. The dining tents reminded me of the first 10+ years of Lotusphere, but the food was a notch or two above when we were used to at Swolphin. And it was great to be able to sit outside and eat if I wanted to.
Pete Janzen and Martin Donnelly, both from IBM
The conference was great. There is always room for improvements, but in general the conference team had done a great job. The scheduling was better than in many years, I was able to attend a number of great sessions and I even liked the new simpler badges. The check-in process was automated, and I used a combination of the conference app and the printed conference paper to find my session. I actually liked that, even if I did miss the convenient little agenda booklet one kept in the badge holder.
I also did my first presentation at IBM Connect this year, a 20 minute Lightning Talk in the Expo Showcase Theatre. This was a bit of a challenge, as I had all the exhibitors right there, and the noise from everybody talking to the vendors made the presentation more difficult, both for the presenters and the audience. I hope that everyone that attended (thank you!) got something out of it.
IBM Champions got a lot of exposure
The IBM Champions were represented strong at Connect 2016, and we got a lot of exposure. Champions were featured on the screen before the opening session and also in many other places during the conference. Many sessions were also presented or co-presented by IBM Champions.
When it came to the sessions, I noticed a theme. For the last 4-5 years we have seen a massive number of sessions geared towards XPages. This year the big theme was Bluemix and integration between different services, including XPages. This is where the broad portfoilio of IBM really is beneficial, you can connect different systems with each other. Using Bluemix you can connect XPages to a SQL database or a Domino NoSQL-databas, you can throw in Angular.js or even cool new technologies like Node-Red and then use services from Watson to process your data. A year ago I felt a bit “meh” when it came to Bluemix, but after Connect 2016 I really want to sit down and start playing around with it and see what cool stuff I can do.
The Opening General Session (OGS) was split into two separate parts. It was not until after the 45 minute break we got to see demos and learn more about future plans from IBM. But there were no customer panels and the customer presentations were short, to the point and relevant. I actually really liked this format. Good job, IBM!
Lets talk a little about the vendor showcase. In 2014 the exhibit hall in Dolphin was way too big, and in 2015 it was moved to a very small and cramped room in Swan. This year IBM got it right. I was able to visit most of the vendors, and there was plenty of space to mingle with people as well as during the coffee breaks that took place in the Expo Showcase.
Vendor Showcase
So what are my suggestions for IBM Connect 2017, if IBM decides to do it again? Stay at Hilton, it was a very good location. Move the Lightning Talks to some place where it is less noisy and distracting. Update the badge holders with a pocket for business cards and perhaps even bring back the pocket agenda. Bring back the longer 2 hour jumpstart/master classes on Sunday. Otherwise I am very satisfied with how Connect 2016 turned out!
As I promised, I would post my IBM Connect 2016 presentation on my blog.
Presentation (PDF): {link}
Demo database (ZIP): {link}
You can also find the presentation on SlideShare.net.
To the right you see the database design, you want to look in the Agent section for the agents and in the Pages section for the HTML pages.
Note: You need to sign the database with an ID that have the proper rights. Otherwise the code will not work.
Enjoy!
Henning Schmidt have a great overview of the many social events going on at IBM Connect 2016, starting this Saturday with BALD (Bloggers Annual Lotusphere Dinner) at 3pm. If you are going to the conference, read the list here: http://www.schmhen.de/2016/01/26/ibm-connect-2016-reception-and-party-overview/.
Hope to see you in Orlando, it is now only 24 hours until I head to the airport for my flight.
