Ben Shoemate's Notebook

IBM's Lotus Quickr/FileNet and Lotus Quickr/Content Manager bundles have now been upgraded to use the latest version of Quickr, 8.5.  The newest releases of FileNet (5.0) and Content Manager (8.4.2) are also included:

IBM FileNet Content Manager Collaboration Edition and IBM Content Manager Collaboration Edition offer you the integration between IBM's Lotus Quickr team collaboration and Enterprise Content Management (ECM) family of offerings.

IBM FileNet Content Manager Collaboration Edition V8.5 and IBM Content Manager Collaboration Edition V8.5 deliver updated versions of IBM Lotus Quickr 8.5, IBM FileNet Content Manager V5.0, and IBM Content Manager 8.4.2 to provide integrated end-to-end collaboration and ECM solution that allow users to:

• Easily move content to and from Lotus Quickr and IBM ECM repositories
• Benefit from enhanced integration between Lotus Quickr, IBM FileNet Content Manager, and IBM Content Manager, including new "direct connect" web-based component so users can natively display and interact with ECM content from within a Lotus Quickr place
• Search FileNet Content Manager and IBM Content Manager content from Lotus Quickr Web 2.0 user interface
• Use the Lotus Quickr connectors to interact with content in both Lotus Quickr, FileNet Content Manager, and IBM Content Manager software, providing access to these repositories as a natural extension of popular applications such as Microsoft Office, Windows Explorer, Outlook, Lotus Notes, Lotus Sametime, and Lotus Symphony

IBM FileNet Content Manager Collaboration Edition and IBM Content Manager Collaboration Edition both extend ECM services and function to a broader audience, while introducing collaborative tools to the content management environment helping organizations connect the right people with the right information at the right time.

IBM FileNet Content Manager Collaboration Edition and IBM Content Manager Collaboration Edition leverage new Web service components to provide integration between best-of-breed collaboration tools of IBM Lotus Quickr and IBM's ECM repositories.

The new release is available today.

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My comments:

1. These bundles have been well-received by customers looking for integrated collaboration and document-management solutions.  
2. Typically, larger enterprises already have document-management infrastructure, whereas these bundles are intended for those that do not have the back-end in place.  They typically score well in the mid-range organisations.
3. Both FileNet and Content Manager are considered best-of-breed by analysts, and tend to do well in competitive situations.  They have their own strengths and weaknesses, which sometimes leads to confusion in terms of which is the right solution for a given situation.
4. FileNet Content Manager P8 5.0 is a big step forward, with CMIS support, Content Federation Services (enables federated content to be moved from source repositories into P8 native storage) and more.
5. Lotus Quickr 8.5 is probably the most significant upgrade in the history of the Quickr/Quickplace product line.  It has received great feedback in every upgrade we've completed for customers.