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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    HCL Notes

    Score3.5 out of 10
    N/ANotes from HCL (formerly from IBM, acquired by HCL in late 2018) is a collaboration platform based on the Lotus platform.N/A

    Nconnect

    Score8.5 out of 10
    N/ANconnect (formerly OnSemble Intranet) is an mployee intranet that keeps everyone connected, a digital workplace to make employees feel valued. It is designed to keep remote teams engaged, and acts as the culture champion for the organization.N/A
    Pricing
    HCL NotesNconnect
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    HCL NotesNconnect
    Free Trial
    NoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoYes
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeOptional
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Features
    HCL NotesNconnect
    Project Management
    Comparison of Project Management features of HCL Notes and Nconnect
    Feature
    HCL Notes
    6.9
    10 Ratings
    11% below category average
    Nconnect
    -
    Ratings
    Task Management7.09 Ratings00 Ratings
    Gantt Charts6.03 Ratings00 Ratings
    Scheduling8.09 Ratings00 Ratings
    Workflow Automation5.06 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile Access8.010 Ratings00 Ratings
    Search6.09 Ratings00 Ratings
    Visual planning tools8.03 Ratings00 Ratings
    Communication
    Comparison of Communication features of HCL Notes and Nconnect
    Feature
    HCL Notes
    9.2
    10 Ratings
    14% above category average
    Nconnect
    -
    Ratings
    Chat6.010 Ratings00 Ratings
    Notifications9.010 Ratings00 Ratings
    Discussions9.57 Ratings00 Ratings
    Surveys9.14 Ratings00 Ratings
    Internal knowledgebase10.06 Ratings00 Ratings
    Integrates with GoToMeeting10.03 Ratings00 Ratings
    Integrates with Gmail and Google Hangouts10.02 Ratings00 Ratings
    Integrates with Outlook10.05 Ratings00 Ratings
    File Sharing & Management
    Comparison of File Sharing & Management features of HCL Notes and Nconnect
    Feature
    HCL Notes
    7.6
    9 Ratings
    6% below category average
    Nconnect
    -
    Ratings
    Versioning9.04 Ratings00 Ratings
    Video files6.05 Ratings00 Ratings
    Audio files6.05 Ratings00 Ratings
    Document collaboration8.08 Ratings00 Ratings
    Access control6.08 Ratings00 Ratings
    Advanced security features8.08 Ratings00 Ratings
    Integrates with Google Drive10.02 Ratings00 Ratings
    Device sync8.05 Ratings00 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    HCL NotesNconnect
    Small Businesses
    Flock
    Score9.5 out of 10
    HCL Connections
    Score9 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Troop Messenger
    Score9.8 out of 10
    HCL Connections
    Score9 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Cisco Business Edition 7000 (discontinued)
    Score9 out of 10
    HCL Connections
    Score9 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    HCL NotesNconnect
    Likelihood to Recommend
    7.0
    (16 ratings)
    8.5
    (5 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    1.7
    (5 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Usability
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.5
    (2 ratings)
    Availability
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Performance
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Support Rating
    9.0
    (2 ratings)
    8.9
    (3 ratings)
    Online Training
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    HCL NotesNconnect
    Likelihood to Recommend
    HCLSoftware
    I often work with teams from other country and regions, hence HCL Notes is a very useful platform for internal company management operations. It standardized organisational work standards in most of the offices worldwide. HCL Notes also enables chat with other team around the world that I find very helpful when initiating conversation or just want to have a quick update rather than sending emails and waiting for replies. However, HCL Notes is not very efficient in web browsing and user still need to use other internet service providers.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Ncontracts
    OnSemble is solving a lot of problems that our organization had prior to its implementation:
    • We can track communication readership.
    • We can engage with our fellow teammates through chats and recognition.
    • We have a central location for all job-related links.
    • We are just now delving into adding departmental pages so folks can communicate within their teams.
    I'm not sure of a scenario where OnSemble wouldn't be appropriate - if you have a company that needs to centralize communication, documentation, and share ideas, it's an excellent choice.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    HCLSoftware
    • It has a really strong and robust database that's extremely scalable and holds up well to thousands of users and many different environments.
    • It has a really good enterprise-grade framework for development custom database applications
    • All of the custom database applications along with the email all have a nice uniform look and feel so their easy-to-use.
    • I really like how it's developed and supported on every client OS (Windows, OSX, Linux)! The competitors definitely do NOT offer this (M$).
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Ncontracts
    • powerful, yet simple to use, document management for sharing
    • custom help desk form creation/submission with targeted audience
    • integration friendly with document types (e.g., xls, pdf, doc, etc.)
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    HCLSoftware
    • Notes' backwards compatibility sometimes gets in the way. Menus are cluttered with extraneous, outdated options and features that modern users will never use, and Preferences are often difficult to navigate for those coming from Gmail or Outlook. We have greatly simplified this via Policies, but users still find it daunting to go through all the options that are available.
    • The IBM Notes client for Windows & Mac is essentially the Eclipse Java development platform...so it is HUGE. Performance initially was very slow but IBM has done a good job of speeding things up. As IBM moves more toward cloud-delivered applications, this will not be as much of a problem.
    • Notes and Domino can be complex to manage for administrators who are more accustomed to ActiveDirectory, Group Policy, etc. Editing a notes.ini file to add a feature, or working with XML files by hand to create a SmartUpgrade kit can be daunting to those coming from more modern administrative roles.
    • Some users claim to "hate" Notes mail. While I have heard this less and less over the past 10 years, we have had 3rd party software offer plugins to Outlook and it's rare to see any for Notes.
    • The client update process should be automated more. I would like to see the Notes client update quietly and quickly more like an Adobe software update. If an update fails it should automatically try again without prompting the user over and over.
    • Notes multiple language spell checking is a downloaded add-on Java-based resource that has to be deployed in a convoluted way that is difficult for users to grasp. Therefore any foreign language spell check updates must be done individually per Notes client by IT, which is unfortunate. I would prefer to see that be a "live download" update option for users to get directly from IBM (don't make me download it and put it on my network).
    Read full review
    Ncontracts
    • Permissions - granting permissions at different levels for users is tedious - would like to see permissions simplified.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    HCLSoftware
    I've been in IT business and as a Programmer/Developer for 20+ years with too many programming languages experiences/back ground (C/C++/Visual Basic/Basic Program/Unix/COBOL/Java). Also with 18+ years with Lotus Notes/IBM Domino, I am still and always think Lotus Notes is the best RAD platform available!. When the time where resource is very limited and the expectation is very high and the turn around is too short, IBM Domino/Notes is the platform to use and it's the only choice available.
    Read full review
    Ncontracts
    No answers on this topic
    Usability
    HCLSoftware
    Easy to use for the user, most of the apps we developed, there is not much need for user training. Most of the times, we just do a demo to the users group and they can pick up from there.
    Read full review
    Ncontracts
    As a user: it's pretty intuitive and the only thing holding a user back from getting everything out of it is a lack of curiosity. As an admin: it's not super intuitive. The training and the setup process are crucial to be able to use and maintain the portal, and we still sometimes have questions.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    HCLSoftware
    I've been using the production for a very long time and very happy with it. Also, all the online resources and forums for notes is very friendly and easy/quick for getting help. I found out that compared to Microsoft or Oracle or any other platforms, IBM Notes online forum is the best I have seen.
    Read full review
    Ncontracts
    I have always been pleased with my experiences with OnSemble's Support team. First, they have a great library of articles to help me study and guide for many of my questions. But when I cannot quite comprehend, or I "run into the wall", I can be assured that I'll be contacted quickly with a pleasant voice to work through whatever my question/issue may be. Kudos to OnSemble Support!
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    HCLSoftware
    Implementation is easy and smooth if the requirement is well gathered/documented. Notes is a RAD platform, all projects in Notes is simple in the implementation step.
    Read full review
    Ncontracts
    No answers on this topic
    Alternatives Considered
    HCLSoftware
    Outlook has been considered for years as a replacement platform. Pricing and support staff made it prohibitive. Our long-time use of Microsoft Office productivity suite naturally led us to consider the adoption of Office365. A recent investigation told us that Azure Cloud services propel an O365 solution to the forefront. Early adopters in international divisions have paved the way for Azure and O365.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Ncontracts
    The software is easy to use, customizable, and intuitive to its users
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    HCLSoftware
    • Over the years, we have lost countless hours of productivity from the thousands of crashes we have experienced.
    • One benefit of IBM Notes is that it is very simple to train a new user on. Many people prefer and are familiar with Google tools, but those that use IBM Notes have very little trouble acclimating themselves.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Ncontracts
    • Streamlined documentation - positive impact.
    • Convenient calendar and access to timeclock - positive impact.
    • Hub for staff to gather everything they may need to successfully assist our members - positive impact.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    Nconnect Screenshots

    Screenshot of OnSemble connects your entire workplace to the central hub of truth, builds your culture, and inspires employee engagement.Screenshot of Every HR manager knows getting new employees started off on the right foot is mission critical. That's why OnSemble leverages role-based permission management system to control access to your software, files, and your critical digital infrastructure.Screenshot of In-house or hosted, we cover your full stack security and IT requirements. OnSemble is fast, flexible, and scales with your organization so that you have time to focus on more pressing work.Screenshot of OnSemble has everything a marketing team needs to put their culture front and center. Your portal is the first place employees see when they boot up their PC in the morning – make it reflect your organization's values, your branding, and your charm.Screenshot of OnSemble connects your entire workplace to the central hub of truth, builds your culture, and inspires employee engagement.