Domino V10 is probably the most anticipated and waited for development for the Domino Rapid Application Development platform is 10 years. After a long hiatus IBM and HCL have announced the release of the new version on October 9th 2018. Currently in beta – the platform previously known as Lotus Notes or more correctly Lotus Domino (for the server component) – there are a number of changes and additions that could change the way that the Domino platform is viewed. Indeed the roadmap is for a new regular release cycle with V11 in 2019.
So why should this matter to you ? Well – if you are looking for a robust and fully featured development platform for NOSQL data – then this is the original – the alpha – the one that started it all. It provided a platform for programmers and what they called Citizen Developers (power users who wanted to create applications without a lot of code) to put together applications that could securely store and manage varied data for organisations. Add to that the idea of replication which took care of the propagation of those applications and you have a platform that was way ahead of its time.
However the road to here has not been smooth. IBM highhandedly allowed the platform to languish before taking a diversion around modernising Domino web apps using a JSF based Xpages tooling which took the platform away from the core RAD ideal. A lot of developers moved to what they felt were more open and more likely to be around platforms but the truth is a good solution is hard to stop. I come across organisations regularly with Domino applications where the only problem is that they don’t have access to development or support due to the migration.
So will this change ? The answer is “I don’t know – but the potential is there to turn the corner”. Why do I say that – well based on the information coming out of HCL and the beta program as well as the approach IBM/HCL have taken to getting feedback about features and fixes needed through the Product Ideas Forum – the direction of travel has changed as well as the cadence. Going back to its roots may be the survival mechanism for Domino as what it really requires is a new generation of developers and Citizen Developers too – to push the product back to where it was.
Making the platform a viable KNOWN alternative to Couchbase and other NOSQL databases as well as a developer focused platform for the host of Javascript developers already skilled up is the way of the future. Expect a lot more articles between now and the formal release – the Future Is Bright – The Future is Yellow !!