Hi All, I’m doing some consulting and the shop I’m at is at R6.5.5. They were suppose to be going to Outlook (ugh!) but that has been put on hold for at least a couple years if you can believe it. So I’m telling them we need to go to 8.0.2 but as it turns out one of the VIP’s doesn’t want us to use 8.0.2 because he doesn’t want the end users to see the Cooooooool Stuff Notes does and is afraid to give out functionality in Notes that we will lose when we go to Outlook. So, for now, we are doomed to just upgrade to 7.0.2 I guess. My immediate boss knows that I am an ardent Notes guy and asked me to put together a comparison of 7.0.2 to 8.0.1. I’ve been out to the www-12.lotus.com/ldd/doc site where it has the readme’s for the 2 clients but the information out there is kind of dry. I need the definitives like what is the advantage of 7.0.2 over 6.5.5 and the advantage of going to 8.0.1 or 8.0.2. Also, we will more than likely be adding ST and definitely adding webmail. Now I know off the bat that webmail is much nicer in 8.0.1 than 7.0.2. I just left a shop were we migrated to 7.0.2 and then we were testing 8.0.1. I currently use the 8.5 Beta myself and it is much nicer than the 7.0.2 webmail client. So if anyone could guide me in the right direction that would bolster my case for upgrading and rolling out 8.0.x.
Subject: OK, here goes R8 Basic vs R7
In no particular order…
Display unprocessed (new) meetings. Shows meetings that have neither been accepted nor declined in your calendar
Real time spell check. Nuff-said.
New compression, gain 7-20% decrease in NSF sizes (Darren Duke Blog Zone). Free disk space!
Improved Out of Office functionality. Now OoO’s can be sent immediately.
Message Recall.
So, even without “Standard” there is still a lot to like about “Basic”.
Subject: Need informational help promoting Notes 8 vs 7 Deployment - Notes 8 basic configuration as a deployment weapon
because he doesn’t want the end users to see the Cooooooool Stuff Notes does and is afraid to give out functionality in Notes that we will lose when we go to Outlook 
Notes 8 basic configuration as a deployment weapon
http://edbrill.com/ebrill/edbrill.nsf/dx/notes-8-basic-configuration-as-a-deployment-weapon
Clever strategy, but it overlooks one other option, one which I explored with a customer over lunch the other day. Customers can upgrade today from Notes 6.5 to Notes 8, and simply run the basic configuration of Notes 8 on those machines that can’t support the standard configuration…or run basic until they are ready with training or testing to flip the switch to standard configuration. And, as I blogged last week, there’s now both a command line switch as well as an .INI parameter – one that can be pushed down through policies – that will toggle a desktop installation between basic and standard configuration. Notes 8 basic configuration has the same hardware requirements as Notes 6.5, but adds some new features – and a single step upgrade path to Notes 8 standard configuration.
JYR
Subject: Response
If the worry is that management doesn’t want users to see the things that notes can do that outlook cannot, I think that speaks for itself. Why is there still a push to move to Outlook at the point where you make the realization that you will be losing features and paying more money to do it. I would also recommend 8.0.2 over 8.0.1 just because it contains all the same features as 8.0.1 but loads in half the time.
Subject: Response to Jon
This is a state agency and the mandate is Outlook/Exchange. I guess Microsoft owns the government or IBM doesn’t know how to market to the government as far as Notes goes. The other part is Sharepoint has been implemented here and the mandate is to use it. Why I don’t know. It doesn’t do anything Notes can do and it definitely is not easy to configure and use. Notes R2 was better as I remember. Hey I’m just a consultant with absolutely no pull at all.
Subject: you may try soime simple economics, too…
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way longer time, until it will run out of support.
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Basic and Standard allows both, low load low training for most of the folks, and extended technolgy without big server updates, when usefull for projects.
actually if you can, I would go 8.5, the multiple parallel Calendars seam to catch a lot of interest, anywhere.
Subject: RE: you may try soime simple economics, too.
Yeah I hear ya! I’ve actually suggested that but that was way over the top or to NEW or something. I have been beta testing 8.5. It seems stable and I like the interfacing etc. Although, I just upgraded to Firefox 3 and it blows up again trying to do attachments over the web. But I digress…