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HCL Notes, used by users worldwide, has a wide range of use cases that cater to various functions within an organization. Users rely on …
Overview
What is HCL Notes?
Notes from HCL (formerly from IBM, acquired by HCL in late 2018) is a collaboration platform based on the Lotus platform.
Recent Reviews
Popular Features
- Notifications (10)9.090%
- Mobile Access (10)8.080%
- Task Management (9)7.070%
- Chat (10)6.060%
Pricing
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What is HCL Notes?
Notes from HCL (formerly from IBM, acquired by HCL in late 2018) is a collaboration platform based on the Lotus platform.
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Product Demos
How To View Emails as Conversations and Original Message in HCL Notes
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05 NCUG Spring Seminar 2021 - DOMI: Create meetings in HCL Notes for Teams, Zoom, WebEx and Sametime
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What is HCL Notes?
HCL Notes Competitors
HCL Notes Technical Details
| Operating Systems | Unspecified |
|---|---|
| Mobile Application | No |
Frequently Asked Questions
Notes from HCL (formerly from IBM, acquired by HCL in late 2018) is a collaboration platform based on the Lotus platform.
Reviewers rate Internal knowledgebase and Integrates with GoToMeeting and Integrates with Outlook highest, with a score of 10.
The most common users of HCL Notes are from Enterprises (1,001+ employees).
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Reviews and Ratings
(92)
Community Insights
TrustRadius Insights are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, 3rd-party data sources. Have feedback on this content? Let us know!
- Business Problems Solved
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- Recommendations
HCL Notes, used by users worldwide, has a wide range of use cases that cater to various functions within an organization. Users rely on HCL Notes for essential tasks such as managing emails, sending meeting invites, booking meeting rooms, accessing the company intranet, and sharing templates. The platform also serves as a reliable tool for leave management, notebook entry, creating to-do lists, and raising IT issues. With these diverse functionalities, HCL Notes standardizes processes across regions, facilitating fast and efficient global communication within the company.
Internally developed Lotus Notes databases are widely utilized for storing infrastructure inventory, workflows, work queue for builds and audits. These databases are often integrated with ERP and ticketing systems, providing seamless integration with existing tools. Moreover, the robust workflow capabilities of HCL Notes have allowed organizations to replace paper-based approval systems with secure digital workflows that offer an audit trail and enhanced security.
Furthermore, HCL Notes is increasingly being used on mobile devices, with about a third of the organization utilizing its mail, calendar, and contacts features on their smartphones or tablets. It serves as a central hub for collaboration with its sidebar app for Sametime providing chat functionality, presence awareness, web meetings, audio/video conferencing. In addition to its collaborative features, HCL Notes also functions as a development platform where users can create departmental and multi-departmental apps that integrate seamlessly with various databases and platforms.
Notes is highly regarded for its quick development capabilities and easy integration with new releases. Its versatility extends beyond email and calendar functions; it serves as a reliable CRM system integrated with back-end accounting systems in some organizations. By leveraging HCL Notes' document management capabilities and internal workflow features, users can maintain an organized repository of client-specific details while saving time navigating through relevant information. The platform's user-friendly experience enables users to access critical data easily while enjoying enhanced security measures.
Overall, HCL Notes has proven to be a vital tool for organizations, offering a wide range of use cases and functionalities. Its seamless integration with existing systems, robust workflow capabilities, and mobile accessibility make it an indispensable asset for efficient communication, collaboration, and data management.
Seamless Integration: Users have found that HCL Notes can be easily integrated with other software platforms, such as Sametime chat, Concur, and Productivity Management System. This integration allows for seamless communication and access to various tools and resources.
Efficient Calendar Management: The calendar management feature in HCL Notes is highly praised by users. Once they accept a meeting invite, their calendar is automatically updated, and they can easily view all their meetings for the day or week. Additionally, users can book meeting rooms, and the availability of these rooms is visible to all employees, making it convenient for planning meetings.
Robust Database and Custom Applications: Users commend the strong database of HCL Notes which is extremely scalable and can handle thousands of users effectively. They also appreciate the enterprise-grade framework for developing custom database applications in HCL Notes. This simplicity of access makes it convenient for users while reducing administrative burdens.
Slow web browsing capabilities: Some users have experienced slow web browsing capabilities in HCL Notes, with extended connection and loading times for web content. Users have mentioned that links shared in HCL Notes emails often fail to connect and sometimes the web content is not visible, requiring them to manually copy and paste the link in another browser.
Unappealing user interface: Less tech-savvy users and new users have expressed their dissatisfaction with the unappealing user interface of HCL Notes. It is suggested that improvements should be made to make it more visually appealing and user-friendly.
Backward compatibility issues: The backward compatibility of HCL Notes can be problematic at times, causing cluttered menus and outdated options that are not commonly used by modern users. Navigating preferences can also be challenging for those transitioning from other email platforms like Gmail or Outlook.
Based on user reviews, there are three common recommendations for IBM Notes:
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Consider other software options before committing to IBM Notes. Many users suggest exploring alternatives such as Microsoft Outlook or Google software before deciding on IBM Notes. They believe that these platforms provide better user interfaces, more features, and a more modern experience.
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Use IBM Notes only if there is a need for custom databases. Some users recommend using IBM Notes specifically for its ability to build custom databases that integrate with the email system. They believe that this feature sets it apart from other email platforms.
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Keep options open and explore different solutions. Several reviewers advise against relying solely on IBM Notes and encourage keeping options open by not getting locked into a single vendor's proprietary software. They suggest considering different platforms and not being hesitant to migrate to a different solution if needed.
Overall, while some users appreciate IBM Notes for its secure email services and custom database capabilities, many recommend looking at other software options with better user interfaces and more features before committing to the platform.
Attribute Ratings
Reviews
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December 19, 2022
HCL
Score 7 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
- It has helped me with getting a good and clear picture of my day at work and hence helped in improving my efficiency at work.
October 01, 2019
Convenient Platform For Global Organizational Management
- Positive impact on ROI as HCL Notes streamlined the internal process decisions and operations that otherwise would have taken long time to approve.
- Enables consultancy project planning and execution with global to be fast and easy, doesn't need to have frequent phone calls.
- No need to have multiple software systems as HCL Notes is very versatile.
- As an overall solution for email communication, it has been effective in so far as the licensing per client being very competitive!
- Having largely autonomous administrative control per datacenter has been valuable for expedience. Sites do not have to wait to enable features.
- Availability of qualified administrative personnel or the lack thereof has impacted management and deployment.
June 11, 2019
Lotus Notes Insights
- It had a positive impact in helping the tech team to view the requirements
- It served as an interlink between the Tech Team and the Client Team.
- Due to its slowness, it started having a negative impact.
January 14, 2019
IBM Notes is basic, but gets the job done
- 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.
March 16, 2018
IBM Notes: Decent interface, old school style
- Higher productivity
- Decreased efficiency at times due to slow program/difficulties with figuring out how to use the program
- better organization
September 28, 2017
Notes is dead! But not really - it can still benefit you!
- As we are a Partner, ROI is difficult to gauge as we use Notes not only for day-to-day work but also in R&D for customers.
- We are, however, able to relate to customers how Notes can best suit their needs due to how we have seen it meet our needs and the needs of other customers.
September 15, 2017
Strong Secure Email Collaborative Suite with Competitive Edge!
- Again I use it EVERY SINGLE DAY and HEAVILY rely on it!
- It's had an extremely POSITIVE impact on me and even a lot of my clients. I introduced it to some of them and they picked it up with minimal learning curve and really enjoy the convenience and really strong security of IBM NOTES.
- It's definitely a LOT more secure than the M$ competitor.
September 15, 2017
IBM Notes Review
- Huge win
- Savings on licensing costs, as several features are built into single system rather than deploying a whole army of servers
- Very difficult to find technical resources
- Unlike other suites of products, Notes is not resource hungry.
- Back-end servers are available on x86, x64, x128, along with several OS support such as Linux, Z/OS, Windows etc
February 17, 2016
IBM's Notes platform represents tons of ROI.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
- ROI for us has been extreme. In the late 1990's we automated dozens and dozens of paper-based processes and created workflows for activities that had never been formalized before. Additionally all those forms with their comments, etc. have been captured in a central place to serve as audit trails.
- Whenever we need faster access to data (mail or otherwise), it's quick and easy to deploy a new Domino server somewhere, setup replication of appropriate databases, and get the local Notes clients pointed to those resources. So that to me is positive ROI because it represents time savings based on user need.
- Tech. Support would claim a negative ROI in terms of supporting the Notes client, Notes updates, peculiar Notes issues, and users who complain about Notes. That is certainly true to a point. The Notes client is a much more complex piece of software than, say, Outlook. But we have to remember that Notes deployments are not just for Mail but many, many applications as well. In the end I'd say we might have 1 or 2 user complaints per month, typically around Calendar issues more than anything else.
February 25, 2015
IBM Notes & RAD
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
- Notes development environment will save a lot of time for any organization, especially for a small IT group with a lot of Applications and NO TIME/less resource.
- Notes is the best in Workflow application development and Security.
- The most disadvantage of Notes compared to other is the license/cost issue. Aslo, there is a need for lighter version of Notes/Domino for a lighter and faster internet pages/sites design.
- Education/Advertisement/Sale and Sale is very much need to improve by IBM.
- IBM needs to make a firm decision on which back end language to use in XPAGE (SSJS/Javabean/or JAVA)?.
December 22, 2014
Notes then and now
Score 4 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
- When we first started using it, and up until a couple of years ago, it really did improve efficiency and productivity. Customer service was always great to work with - they always seemed to be involved with our issues instead of reading from a script. They also usually had an answer for us very quickly.
February 06, 2014
What is IBM Notes doing?
Score 5 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
- Many companies/organizations have already moved the email platform from Domino/Notes to Exchange/Outlook; some smaller companies moved to the cloud,.
February 05, 2014
Notes basics
- Increased efficiency
- Consolidation of data
February 04, 2014
IBM Notes help me to be a better consultant
- Employee efficency internal communications.