IBM Preps 'Mini' Middleware To Extend Workplace To Handhelds

A new Workplace Client "Micro Edition" will package key middleware facets of IBM's portfolio, said sources familiar with the company's plan. That layer of software--paired with server-side management and provisioning and the tiny Cloudscape database embedded in the new Lotus Workplace 2.0 client--is expected to bring even existing applications into a secure, manageable environment, they said.

"It's kind of the 'mini me' of important technologies for data synchronization and coordination," said one source, who requested anonymity.

The move, which would meld IBM's Pervasive Computing and Workplace strategies, is scheduled to be unveiled Monday in New York at an event hosted by IBM Software General Manager Steve Mills. IBM Lotus Software General Manager, Ambuj Goyal and IBM Pervasive Computing General Manager Gary Cohenn are also expected to participate.

An IBM spokewsoman couldn't be reached for comment Friday. Earlier this week, IBM declined to comment about the upcoming event.

The planned Micro Edition reflects IBM's attempt to establish Workplace as the repository bringing together legacy and new applications in a secure, server-managed environment. Much of that model was already disclosed with the news of Lotus Workplace last fall and in January.

The underlying infrastructure that IBM is expected to outline remains Java-centric, with WebSphere Application and Portal Server as well as SyncML-based, bidirectional synchronization and replication designed to move data efficiently between servers and clients. As Lotus executives already have said, all of the user-interface work is based on Eclipse, using open-source technology such as Simple Widget Toolkit (SWT) to allow existing applications to run with their familiar interfaces in new environments.

And while IBM is expected to soft-pedal a potential antiMicrosoft message--since it makes a lot of money on Windows-based implementations--the company will talk about how customers will be able to use IBM-supplied plugins to run Microsoft Office applications in a secure Workplace environment, sources familiar with the plan said. For those who want basic spreadsheet, word processing and presentation graphics functionality, IBM also will offer Workplace "editors" that will do the bulk of what users need for a fraction of the Office price (see story).

Industry observers say IBM's Workplace strategy is an attempt to depress the perceived value of the Microsoft Windows environment. Like its predecessor, Workplace 2.0--now in beta--runs on the Windows, Linux and Unix operating systems, and observers say IBM's goal is to make Workplace into a repository of componentized applications, both new and old.

Though not aware of the specifics of the upcoming Monday announcement, Blair Hankins, CTO at Ascendant Technology, an IBM/Lotus partner, said he's bullish on the overall Workplace game plan.

Workplace 2.0 adds open API support, enabling a VAR or an ISV to now be able to provide the kind of interface functionality familiar to Domino, Sametime and QuickPlace users--without having to worry about installing and managing separate messaging and collaboration servers.