My company is going away from supporting our wireless devices and instead is going to give us an allowance to go out and get what we want, and assume responsibility of the cost.

I thought this would be a great opportunity to get an iphone. I have an ipod touch and I love it, an iphone would blow my mind.

My company is kind of telling us that BlackBerries are the only thing that can connect to our server. I'm wondering how true this is since I found this in the FAQ on the company cellular policy

Quote :

"What if I want to connect a Smartphone to the corporate e-mail system? New customers desiring the features of a smartphone are encouraged to scan the BlackBerry approved device list and select one that meets their needs."

Quote :

"What about syncing my corporate e-mail to my PDA/Smartphone using mNotes? Existing Smartphone users still using the mNotes product are encouraged to begin an orderly transition to other platforms. I use my Smartphone to gain remote access to Caterpillar systems. What happens now? Smartphones used for remote system access should be reviewed. Smartphones used for remote access activities may have a BlackBerry solution in the Rove "Mobile Admin" software offering. Other offerings may exist for the BlackBerry platform. Check with your vendor for more information."

Here is my question:
Is it at all possible for me to get my Lotus Notes (version 7) email on my (future) iphone?

I found this article

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/18/AR2008031800975.html

And while it sounds like it could work, I don't know enough of the jargon to really understand how I could use it, how to acquire this iAnywhere thing and whatnot.

I need to make a decision within 2 weeks. I could wait it out a little longer with just a minutes plan for a few months while I wait for the new iphone but I'd like to at least know what my strategy is in 2 weeks and go from there.

Can anyone help me understand this? I really hate BlackBerries and I want to scream everytime I try to use one, I'm also annoyed that I feel like I'm being forced into one by the company. It is critical for me to have email quickly, right now I use an aircard but they're taking that away too so a wireless device I can send and recieve email on is the best option. (My previous boss wouldnt approve BBs for any of his reports so thats why I don't have one right now)

Anyway, I appreciate any advice/education you guys can offer!

3/30/2009 5:29:50 PM

I am participating in the trial that IBM is running right now internally. The app itself is cool but the implementation that IBM has blows. Way too much security for my flavor.

3/30/2009 5:50:29 PM

I've looked into IBM's offerings but they only seem to support the current Lotus Notes version (8.2)

My company just upgraded from 2 to 7 last year so I really don't think we're updating again for awhile!

3/30/2009 6:59:28 PM

The current official support from IBM is just webmail. They have a special layout thats used when you login from your iphone. Its really just a webpage, so no integration with the internal mail or calendar apps. There are 3rd party apps that are kind of hacked together, but you're not going to get any of the notifications and push like you would with exchange on iphone or with a blackberry. This will probably change when iphone os 3.0 comes out and the push api is opened up.

If your company allows IMAP access you could just do that. It would be mail only though and a real battery cruncher.

However, from this:

Quote :

"What if I want to connect a Smartphone to the corporate e-mail system? New customers desiring the features of a smartphone are encouraged to scan the BlackBerry approved device list and select one that meets their needs.""

It sounds like they probably wont support your iphone accessing their network. Probably due to security concerns. The iphone isn't anywhere close to secure as the blackberry.

[Edited on March 30, 2009 at 7:12 PM. Reason : q]

3/30/2009 7:10:39 PM

Ok, this is where I get a little confused...

I am allowed to access my email via "web notes" (is what we call it, im sure there are tons of names)

I go to a web address, enter my company log in just as I would if I was going to any internal website and it shows me my email.

I have an ipod touch and I have successfully read email that way but it seems so cumbersome to have to do all the time.

3/30/2009 7:42:13 PM

If your on Domino 7 they probably haven't upgraded your mail template, so theres no point in trying to use the webmail (Domino Web Access (DWA)). If you did have the 8 template you'd get a webpage that looks more like a normal iphone app. It has the same animations and menu style. Then you could just save your password.

However thats all irrelevent cause you dont have 8.

Until we see what comes out with the release of iphone os 3.0 its really not worth trying to get your notes mail on your iphone.

3/30/2009 8:03:48 PM

Just get a WM phone and STFU!

3/30/2009 8:27:29 PM

whats a WM phone?? lol

i think i am going to wait for the new iphone in june. just gotta hold out for 2 months

3/31/2009 12:01:28 AM

Windows Mobile. I recommend for right now the Palm Treo Pro, but the HTC Touch II (which will be sporting Windows Mobile 6.5!)is what you really need if you are looking for an iPhone. It will not be out until later this year, probably around the same time that iPhone 3.0 firmware releases. Youtube for HTC Touch II and HTC Diamond II.

Here is a video for the HTC Touch II, and watch it in High Quality!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOkZlsS_lFo

3/31/2009 8:06:53 AM

If your company is down with it, domino has their own push service and app for windows mobile. However, your company has to install the software on their servers.

3/31/2009 9:50:14 AM

You are screwed. Notes is horrible, and I would stay away from the iPhone anyway.

Wait on the Palm, try out the Blackberry and the G1. The iPhone is the worst PHONE I've ever owned, but all the other functionality keeps me from breaking my contract and moving elsewhere (for now).

3/31/2009 1:48:03 PM

The Palm Pre OS (WebOS) kinda scares me, because I don't know what will be compatible with it and what apps can I use to replace apps the apps that I use know. Windows Mobile is the best choice by for for something like this, then comes BlackBerry.

3/31/2009 1:51:51 PM

^^ why do you hate the phone part so much?

3/31/2009 4:32:39 PM

^^It will be the same as the iPhone, within 9 months the market will reproduce every needed app for the platform.

^The call quality is average at best, it drops calls constantly, service is flaky, contact management is very strange if you are using Exchange.

Phone calls drop every 3-5 minutes, everytime (I'm told this is some widespread issue with AT&T's 3G network).

About 40% of the time, when someone calls me, my phone doesn't have service, so it shows no missed call, and it can take 1-2 HOURS for the voicemail (if they leave one) to push to the phone.

3/31/2009 6:49:07 PM

^ I'd also rather wait until 2nd gen Pre/WebOS comes out unless this one just knocks my socks off. The Treo Pro is strong enough for right now.

3/31/2009 7:46:27 PM

As much as I love the iPhone

I have to agree with noen on most of his points. I, fortunately, used to very very rarely talk on the phone--I'm always texting or emailing through it which it does great (well, except lotus notes. But lotus notes sucks anyways lol.)

Lately though I've forwarded my work phone to my personal phone (iPhone) because I was so damn tired of carrying two phones around. Because of that I am getting literally 10-20x the calls I'm used to. It's rare that I get through a long call without at least being knocked off once and the delay between when it should start ringing (aka you notice the O.S. being so fucking slow it's unbearable) and it actually saying someone is calling is atrocious. After it does show they're calling, expect to wait another 5 seconds of hitting the accept button and "hello", "hello?", "hello", "hello!" 's before you actually start the conversation.

it's little shit..but it's f'in annoying and really driving me fucking crazy the last few days. esp considering I've hung up on the owner of where I work 3 times in 2 days. And this is all while I've been trying to convince him to let me switch to using my iPhone all the time instead of the work phone. Needless to say it isn't going well.

3/31/2009 8:30:05 PM

^ must be the network where ya'll are. I never have a dropped call, but I'm typically in the middle nowhere.

3/31/2009 9:05:44 PM

I've had it in Raleigh, Charlotte, Spartanburg, Myrtle Beach, Michigan..and just about everywhere in between.

3/31/2009 9:06:21 PM

^Yep, mine has been through the majority of the west coast, and southeast. It's been a consistently mediocre experience.

To date, the best phone I've ever owned was a Verizon branded LG fliphone. I don't even remember the model, but it had an INCREDIBLE camera on it (for being like .2mp) and it was a beast. Crazy long battery life, super reliable, and responsive.

4/1/2009 12:44:54 AM

hmmm this talk about bad call quality concerns me since i spend a lot of time on the phone

a lot of the guys at the dealership in houston use them, i'll ask them what they think of the call quality

also.. this may belong in the other iphone thread, but while were here...

will nike plus be on the new iphone software in june??

and can i tether the iphone (in june) to my pc for work and my mac at home?

4/1/2009 12:55:21 AM

^nike: almost definitely.

tethering: almost definitely, but it's going to cost a fucking arm and a leg to get the service (my guess is an additional 70-90 bucks a month)

4/1/2009 1:06:15 AM

paging rsxtypes to either confirm or deny noen and schpexnels criticisms of the iphone

4/1/2009 2:05:29 AM

I work directly with the support group within IBM that does this. PM me to discuss.

4/1/2009 8:17:20 AM

I should have also stated that I was using beta 1 of the 3.0 software. I'm upgrading now and will report back if that makes a difference.

4/1/2009 8:26:07 AM

whoa whoa whoa

i heard the tethering would cost $15 a month?!!?

4/1/2009 10:02:46 AM

it won't be $80 or whatever crazy shit noen is talking.

4/1/2009 10:07:06 AM

Yep, that was a shot in the dark guess.

But I wouldn't put it past em. My guess is it will be VERY close to the cost of broadband internet (in the 24-35 dollar per month range), maybe a little cheaper. 15 a month would have me sold

4/1/2009 5:32:30 PM

was kinda hoping rsxtypes would come in here and say whether what noen and schpexnel said was accurate

4/7/2009 2:20:32 PM

I should definitely update my post a little..

I was using the beta 1 of OS 3 firmware when I posted that. Since updating to beta 2 it is night and day better in terms of general speed and answering calls without being a royal pain in my ass. I haven't had any long calls to tell whether they'll still be dropped, though.

I know it used to happen a lot in places where I was switching between 3G and EDGE...

4/7/2009 2:39:01 PM

Noen, your iphone might be fucked up somehow.

My gf had the old Iphone here. It worked perfectly.

Then we moved to Australia, we both got iPhone 3Gs. Mine worked perfeclty and hers blew ass. Right next to each other hers would shower fewer bars. Hers crashed a lot, dropped calls, bad quality, etc. It was enough for her to say screw it and get a blackberry even though mine is still working perfectly today. I use it with an AT&T GoPhone card now and it works like a champ.

4/7/2009 4:05:32 PM

^I've been trying to get mine replaced for weeks now. Apple is a huge cockbag about QoS claims. Everytime I go in, they tell me it's a network issue and I need to call AT&T. AT&T then tells me it's the phone and to get it serviced.

The proverbial runaround. Of course, none of this (yet) gets me to a point where I can escape the 2yr commitment on the phone, but I'm about to start writing letters. So far the customer service of both companies has been piss poor at best (though I've never expected anything else from AT&T)

4/7/2009 6:27:01 PM

did you expect better of apple?

4/7/2009 10:50:21 PM

^^and that's exactly why verizon wireless turned down Apple when they were approached first. Apple's demands included (among many other outrageous conditions) that they be the only ones to provide service for the phone and that VZW wasn't allowed to do anything.

Verizon told them to pack sand as they wanted to be sure to maintain their customer service standards that lead wireless customer care in the JD Power rankings (AT&T is last place).

4/8/2009 3:09:36 AM

Per original topic, I sent a fairly length PM to NCSUWolfy with details. The short answer is there isn't a native Notes client for the iPhone at present time. You need a Domino 6.5 or 7.0 server to get web access, or, a Domino 8.5 server to get DWA ultralight (specially formatted web access for iPhone). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_Lotus_Domino_Web_Access .Other devices (Symbian, Blackberry, Windows Mobile) can use the same web access solution, or, there are native clients for each of those devices as well under different product names. And yes, that is the short answer.

[Edited on April 8, 2009 at 10:26 PM. Reason : apparently TWW still has a bug with periods and links 3 years later]

4/8/2009 10:21:54 PM

sort of off topic, but curious nonetheless...

Is there a way to get IBM internal mail to work with Outlook? I was able to get Outlook from ISSI but can't seem to get it to work with Lotus. Seems like there is a module, but it doesn't want to work.

Anyone doing this internally?

4/14/2009 11:41:50 AM

^ i'd be highly surprised - in the years i've been at ibm i've never heard of anything like that

not that i like the database setup by any means - but are you not tied to it due to various reasons?

4/14/2009 11:44:49 AM

actually I'm not, hence my desire to get off of notes if possible. I know it is possible to do, MS supports it and I tried to get it working yesterday, but I keep getting an error at the final part of set up. It would certainly make my life easier.

4/14/2009 11:51:44 AM

post the error

based on the session list for the ibm proxy ip - there are quite a few twwers that check tww from rtp quite often and seem to have enough free time to figure this out

4/14/2009 12:10:19 PM

lol

4/14/2009 12:29:33 PM

Seems to be choking on the server info. I downloaded a file from MS that supposedly connects to Lotus Domino. After that was installed, I was able to pull in my lotus mail file info, it asked for my password on my notes id, and then tries to log in. however, when it gets to the server info it dies.

it's pulling that info from my notes file I guess. (I know DICK about notes, so sorry if this isn't clear). It pulls the server in as "CN=D03xxxx/OU=03/OU=M/O=IBM"

At any rate, it won't complete the setup of the inbox.

4/14/2009 12:45:28 PM

IBM keeps their internal stuff fairly locked down. If you can get a business case justification approved by your manager, probably can get somebody to help you out. May also want to try / search the internal forums to see if anybody else has done this.

Otherwise, get Notes 8.0.2 if you want something more solid and stable. You'll need min. 2GB of RAM to be able to run it though and everything else though.

4/15/2009 11:07:43 PM