Category Archives: Technology

Announcing the 2014 IBM Champions – I’m honored to be selected!

IBMchampion

They announced the 2014 IBM Champions for ICS this morning, but I wasn’t in my email yet when a colleague came by and congratulated me. Sure enough, as I looked at the list, I could not believe it… I WAS CHOSEN AS AN IBM CHAMPION!

Never in my wildest dreams would I think I would be on the same list as many of those that have been and currently are IBM Champions! I consider all of them as legends and heroes in this space.

I was honored to be nominated, and even more honored to be selected. Thank you to those of you that nominated me, and I hope to live up to the honor. Congratulations to to all of you (past and present) who have been selected.

I hope to see you all at IBM Connect 2014!

Nominations for IBM Champions are due tomorrow (October 15, 2013)

This is just a reminder to everyone (including myself) that nominations for IBM Champions are due tomorrow, October 15, 2013. If you haven’t done so yet, go to http://ibm.co/nominatechampion and nominate someone today. You can nominate more than one person, and yes, you can nominate yourself. (It’s a good idea to do that actually, because you know more about you than anyone else…)

Good luck!

On IdeaJam.net – Support Fingerprint ID system (Touch ID) as a device security method in IBM Notes Traveler

ideajam_logoOn IdeaJam.net, I posted an idea about using their Fingerprint ID system (which Apple calls ‘Touch ID security’) as a supported ‘device password’ when setting up an IBM Notes Traveler policy. Take a look and promote this idea here.

MWLUG 2013 Agenda Now Online and Hotel Discount Expiring

MWLUG 2013 Banner

 

MWLUG 2013 Agenda Now Online

We are three weeks away from the fifth Midwest Lotus User Group Conference. We are please to announce that the MWLUG 2013 Agenda is now online with over 40 technical and business sessions and workshops. If you are looking to hear some of the best speakers and presentations available within our IBM collaboration community, MWLUG 2013 is the conference to attend.

MWLUG 2013 Workshops

The MWLUG 2013 workshops will start on Wednesday, August 21, 2013 in the afternoon. For administrators, there will be an intense 2.5 hr Linux Workshop “Building Your ICS Test Environment with Linux” hosted by our one and only William Malchisky. For developers interested in creating and mastering Managing Beans, Mike McGarel and Devin Olson will be hosting a 2 hour workshop “Build a Bean”.

Starting on Thursday after the OGS, there will be two full days of technical and business sessions that include the following topics:

  • Application Development
  • Best Practices and Customer Business Cases
  • Mobility and Web Security
  • System Administration
  • Social Business

For a list of MWLUG 2013 sessions go to: http://www.mwlug.com/mwlug/mwlug2013.nsf/Sessions.xsp

 

MWLUG 2013 Brewfest Competition

Don’t forget to bring your favorite home brew or microbrewery beer and compete in the “MWLUG 2013 Brewfest Competition” that will be held on Wednesday afternoon after the workshops. The donation entry fee is $10 which will be donated to the Salvation Army – Oklahoma Tornado Relief Fund. Our sponsor Phora Group will match dollar for dollar.

Hotel Discount

The guaranteed online hotel discount of $139.00 for MWLUG 2013 will expire on August 1, 2013. After August 1, 2013, your will need to call the hotel to see if they have available rooms at the discounted rate. So don’t miss the opportunity to get these rooms at a guaranteed discount. Unfortunately, train car room are no longer available. To register for the hotel go to: http://mwlug.com/mwlug/mwlug2013.nsf/Hotel.xsp

Registration

MWLUG 2013 is 3 full days with additional events and workshops on Wednesday along with two full days of sessions on Thursdayand Friday. Thanks to all the MWLUG sponsors, this three full days of events, technical sessions, and workshops is provided to attendees at no cost with the exception of a $35.00 donation. The agenda for MWLUG 2013 is:

  • Tuesday – TLCC TackItOn
  • Wednesday – Special events, workshops, and Welcome Reception
  • Thursday – OGS, technical session and Thursday Evening Event
  • Friday – Full day of sessions and CGS

 

To register for MWLUG 2013 go to: http://www.mwlug.com/mwlug/mwlug2013.nsf/Register.xsp

 

TackItOn at MWLUG 2013

Then be sure to take advantage of the TLCC TackItOn day on August 20th. Paul Della-Nebbia will lead this full day session which is based on TLCC’s Rapid XPages Development using Application Layout and Dojo UI Controls self-paced course! all for $499.

For more information and to register for the TackItOn XPages Training day on August 20th go to: http://www.tlcc.com/admin/tlccsite.nsf/pages/mwlugtackiton

 

Crowne Plaza Grand Ballroom 

Crowne Plaza Hotel – Union Station
Indianapolis, IN

MWLUG 2013 will be held at the historic Crowne Plaza Indianapolis Downtown Union Station. The hotel is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and housed within America’s first Union Station. The Crowne Plaza Indianapolis Downtown is popular for its authentic Pullman train car rooms decorated after period personalities.

MWLUG 2012 – My perspective

Last week, I was fortunate enough to attend the Midwest Lotus User Group (MWLUG) 2012 Conference, which was held in Pittsburgh, PA. I was also honored to speak at the conference this year. My presentation was entitled “How to Be a Domino Administration Superhero”. My slides and video can be found here.

I took ‘my pride’ (family) with me, as they didn’t really get a vacation this year due to my change of employers this year. In reality, my wife and kids really enjoy attending MWLUG… everyone that attends the conference are really nice to them, and it gives them a chance to see in person all of ‘Daddy’s Lotus friends’. My kids especially look forward to seeing Richard Moy… a quote from one of my kids, “He’s so nice!” – I agree!

We drove to Pittsburgh on Wednesday, and started bumping into friends even before checking in. The hotel, the Omni William Penn, is beautiful, and the staff was very nice. They even provided the kids milk and cookies each night, plus a ‘Kids Pack’ that normally cost $8 each for free. (That’s goes a long way to insure repeat business!) Once we checked in and unpacked, we ran to a nearby Arby’s for a quick bite, and then came back so I could attend the Welcome Reception. Thanks to Sherpa Software for sponsoring this! The beverages and hors d’oeuvres were very tasty! I visited some of the vendors that were in attendance and bumped into more and more friends, especially “Uncle” Devin Olson. After a quick walk and a cigar, a few of us went to the hotel bar, where I enjoyed more of everyone’s hospitality. Before I knew it, I was back in my room getting a few minutes of sleep.

On Thursday, I came down to get breakfast and attend the opening general session. Kathy Donatelli and Louis Richardson did an outstanding job! (Lindsay Patross spoke at lunchtime, and was great as well!) All of the keynote speakers kept me entertained and informed. Many times, you leave a keynote not getting anything out of it, but this was not the case for any of them! I hope to see them speak again. After the opening session, I attended BP102 – NOTES.INI Secrets, presented by my new friend, Jalpresh “JT” Tailor, which was had some overlap to the session I was presenting on Friday, but with more than enough differences to be informative. (I even took a few notes for my presentation. Thanks, JT!) Right after that, it was back to the main hall for lunch and Lindsay’s presentation. The rest of the day seemed a blur, but before I knew it, it was over, and I was back in my room tweaking my presentation for the next day.

On Friday, I got up early and lead a BOF (Birds of a Feather) for the Detroit Notes Professionals User Group (DNP), which unfortunately had only a couple of people attend due to the time and other BOFs going on at the same time. (It was noted that there was not a lot of people from the Michigan region at the conference, which is a shame.) Following the DNP BOF, I swallowed some more coffee, and then got ready to present my session. What started out as a couple of people turned into a full room. After my session, which was well received by those in attendance, I attended Kim Greene’s session, “Be a Domino Detective – Tackling Your Toughest Performance Issues”. If you have a chance to attend any session Kim gives, do so… you won’t regret it! Next, I attended a session on IBM SmartCloud for Social Business presented by Rupert Clayton from CDW. I honestly didn’t expect to get a lot out of it, but not only did I learn a lot, but there was some great discussion during the session. Due to a work commitment, I had to grab the pride and our luggage, and head back to Detroit early, but not before dropping off some gifts, courtesy of just a few of Michigan’s finest brewers.

I want to thank Richard Moy, Gregg Eldred and the rest of the organizing group that made MWLUG 2012 possible. There were over 180 attendees, and everyone seemed to enjoy it. I’ve organized conventions and other major events before, and it seems to be a thankless job, but believe me, I appreciate all of your efforts! I also want to thank the committee for selecting me to speak. I always enjoy speaking in front of people and sharing what I know. I hope to be able to do more of that in the future!

I also want to thank the sponsors of MWLUG 2012 who spent their hard earned money to give us a first class conference for next to nothing. Take a look at these companies, and check out their services. You will be glad you did!

I want to thank my employer and colleagues for allowing me to attend this conference. Without them, it would not have been possible.

I also want to thank my family for coming with me to this event and giving me the time prepare for my session and to meet up with friends (even until the wee hours of the night). I know that they had a great time in Pittsburgh, and know that they are already planning a trip back there soon. (Maybe this time, I can see the sights with them… LOL!)

Thanks go out to the conference hotel, the Omni William Penn Hotel, for treating my family with class. This hotel is beautiful, and that staff was very friendly and knowledgeable. If you are planning a stay in Pittsburgh, try to stay here.

Finally, thanks go out to those of you that attended the Detroit Notes Professionals BOF and my session. I hope that you got something out of it, and just remember that ALL OF YOU ARE SUPERHEROES!

Next year’s conference, MWLUG 2013, is scheduled for August 13-16, 2013, in Indianapolis, Indiana. I admit that a few of us were campaigning for the conference to come to Michigan (#MWLUGinMI), but I trust the committee with their decision making process. (It also doesn’t hurt to have Sam Bridegroom wanting to quarterback.) I’ve already got it on my calendar, and you should too! I hope to see you all there!