This is my initial feedback after spending a few hours actively using HCL Domino Workspace. I may add some further observations as I continue to use it, but I wanted to share my first impressions at this stage.
Test environment: I am currently using the latest available version of Microsoft Edge.
Overall impression
Overall, I like the general look and feel of HCL Domino Workspace. I particularly like the global navigation bar at the top, which provides a clear and consistent way to access the different services.
The overall design feels clean and modern to me, and I also haven’t noticed any significant performance issues so far. HCL Domino Workspace feels responsive, which is definitely a positive first impression.
The main area where I see room for improvement is consistency and synchronization of UI state across the different services, views, and browser tabs.
1. Notifications are not synchronized across browser tabs
When a new email arrives, the notification badge, for example a red “1”, appears on the browser tab where the HCL Domino Workspace start page/homepage is open.
However, HCL Domino Workspace automatically opens each service in a new browser tab when I select it. For example, clicking Mail opens the Mail application in a new browser tab. This means that having multiple HCL Domino Workspace tabs open is a natural result of using the application and not necessarily a deliberate user choice.
If I then have multiple HCL Domino Workspace tabs open, the notification is not reflected in the other tabs, even though they all display the same global navigation bar.
Expected behavior: Since HCL Domino Workspace itself creates and uses multiple browser tabs for its different services, global notifications and status information should ideally be synchronized across all open HCL Domino Workspace tabs.
2. Mail notification is not synchronized with the Mail view
There is another interesting inconsistency when I am already working in the Mail service of HCL Domino Workspace.
When a new email arrives, the Mail view eventually updates and shows the new message. However, the Mail entry in the global application navigation does not show the corresponding notification/badge.
So there are effectively two different states being displayed at the same time. The Mail view knows about the new message, while the global navigation does not.
3. Different components update at different times
On the HCL Domino Workspace start page/homepage, when a new email arrives, the Recent Mail section updates first.
The actual notification indicating that a new email has arrived only appears approximately 15 seconds later.
This makes the different components feel slightly disconnected, as if they are being updated independently rather than reacting to the same event or state change.
4. File uploads do not automatically refresh the UI
When uploading a file in the Files section of HCL Domino Workspace, the upload itself works correctly and I receive a confirmation that the upload was successful.
However, when I am on the Recent page, the newly uploaded file does not appear automatically.
I have to manually refresh the browser, or navigate away and back again, before the file becomes visible.
From a modern web application/UX perspective, I would expect the UI to update automatically once the upload has completed successfully.
5. Recent Files on the start page/homepage behaves the same way
The same issue also occurs on the HCL Domino Workspace start page/homepage.
After uploading a file, the Recent Files section does not update automatically. The file only appears after a browser refresh.
So this seems to be a more general issue with keeping the different views of HCL Domino Workspace synchronized rather than being limited to the Files service itself.
6. Visual consistency of integrated services
One additional observation is related to the visual consistency of the integrated services.
I really like Huddo Boards and use it extensively throughout the day for many of my projects, both internally and externally. However, when Huddo Boards is accessed through HCL Domino Workspace, it currently feels somewhat visually separate from the rest of the experience.
This is particularly noticeable for me because I use Dark Mode in my browser. Huddo Boards appears to support Dark Mode, whereas HCL Domino Workspace currently appears to use a light theme. I may simply not have found the corresponding setting yet, but if HCL Domino Workspace does not currently support Dark Mode, this could be another area worth considering.
By comparison, the OnTime Group Calendar integration feels much more consistent with the overall look and feel of HCL Domino Workspace. Even though OnTime is also an external product, it feels much more like an integrated part of the overall experience.
I wonder whether it might be worth considering a visual/CSS update for Huddo Boards when it is accessed through HCL Domino Workspace, so that it adopts more of the HCL Domino Workspace design language while still retaining the Huddo Boards identity.
I don’t see this as an issue with Huddo Boards itself. I actually really like the product and use it a lot. Rather, it is about making the experience feel more cohesive when the different services are presented as part of one integrated HCL Domino Workspace application.
General observation / suggestion
More generally, I think HCL Domino Workspace would benefit from stronger real-time synchronization between its different services and UI components.
HCL Domino Workspace provides a common interface for several services, including Mail, Calendar, Contacts, Chat, Meetings, Files, Forms, Group Calendar, and Boards. I would expect relevant state changes to be reflected consistently across the different areas of HCL Domino Workspace.
For example, if I am currently working in Files or Calendar and a new email or Chat message arrives, I should ideally be able to see that notification immediately without having to switch to the Mail or Chat service first.
One additional thought is that the browser-tab behavior could potentially be configurable. Currently, selecting a service automatically opens it in a new browser tab. Personally, I would prefer to have the option to keep everything within a single browser tab and switch between the different services within that context.
If this approach were supported, I would also expect HCL Domino Workspace to preserve the state of each service. For example, if I switch from Mail to Calendar and then back to Mail, I would expect to return to exactly the same place in Mail where I left it.
This is definitely more of a personal UX preference than a general statement about user expectations, and I can imagine that preferences may differ across the user base. However, personally, I would find a single-tab experience very appealing because it would make HCL Domino Workspace feel even more like one fully integrated application rather than a collection of separate services.
I have only tested the synchronization behavior in detail with Mail and Files so far, so I cannot say whether the same behavior occurs across all services. However, I think it would be worth looking at HCL Domino Workspace as a whole in terms of event propagation, state synchronization, automatic UI updates, and the overall navigation model.
I will continue using HCL Domino Workspace and may add further feedback as I get more familiar with the different services and workflows.
