Dimdim

Very impressive software. Shame about the name. I mean, you go to the CEO and tell him to use dimdim! In the whole Web 2.0 naming scheme of things, Dimdim is one of the oddest.

Anyhow, I downloaded the free VMware version of the software, which had been created for VM player, so I had to recreate the disk for ESX. There is very little configuration that needs or even can be done. Just the name of an SMTP server, which is necessary to enable meeting invitations to be emailed out! Of course, you have have to disappear deep into the directory structure to find the dimdim.properties file and <FX: Shock, Horror> open an editor to change the value. </FX>

My company's requirement for collaboration software which Dimdim came very close to satisfying will almost certainly be mirrored by many other companies. In the current economic climate, travel budgets are restricted and the ability to "meet virtually" over the internet/internal WAN would be regarded as valuable. So a requirement to try and save money whilst still enabling staff in disparate geographies to communicate face-to-face

How did Dimdim fail, then? Simply put, it was insufficiently configurable. Perhaps this is a fault of the free version. If it is, it isn't demonstrated elsewhere on their website. There is no configuration into an LDAP or any other naming service. So your CEO (or more likely his PA) has to remember the email addresses of everyone he wants to invite.

Another fault is perhaps the lack of adequate documentation.

The purpose of downloading the free version was to assess whether the company should consider the Enterprise version of the software. The inability to integrate Dimdim into the company's infrastructure really did for it.

Which in a way I guess also goes to prove the point made int this infoworld article. A couple of years ago, I was certain that "cloud computing"/"software as a service" was about to take over the IT world. Two years later, I can still see its potential to be a real game changer. However, the rate of change seems to have slowed considerable. Google's roll-out of new features seems to have slowed. Perhaps they are concentrating these days on reliability, availability, security, uptime and scalability. Which can be no bad thing.

From the point of view of the company I work with, there is a distrust of hosting critical systems externally. My company has a large Chinese subsidiary. Everything, all transfers between the China and anyway else, has to be approved by Trade & Compliance and IT Security. The Chinese R&D department is on a completely isolated network - no access to the Internet at all. Consequently, despite the attractions of some of the cloud computing applications available, my company would almost certainly not be able to deploy them. Dimdim included.