This article presents an example of a customized team place component for IBM Lotus Quickr services for WebSphere Portal, Photo Book. This component uses both a Lotus Quickr document library for storing content and for rich desktop integration and Lotus Web Content Management capabilities for presentation on the Web with photo gallery and slideshow-style presentations.

The new U.S. Coast Guards Command, Control, Communication, Computers, and Information Technology (C4&IT) Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2008-2012 gives us a little insight into what's in store for Coasties on our electronic desktops.

Looks like Lotus Quickr is going to power the new Coast Guard Portal.

An objective in the CG-6 Performance Plan (Appendix A to the Strategic Plan):

Portal Consolidation
Deliver web-based data and applications via an enterprise Coast Guard Portal (CG Portal) that transcends any particular customer base. This organizational approach to consolidation of multiple portal platforms and disparate web-content delivery mechanisms will provide a single interface for information sharing with Active Duty and Reserve Personnel, Civilians, Auxiliarists, and the public. The CG Portal will serve as the single access point for enterprise content and Coast Guard applications, and a collaborative environment for information sharing between Coast Guard members and external industry partners. (Primary POC: CG-63/OSC)

Major Milestones

        * FY08 Q4: Deliver collaboration (Quickr and Sametime) functionality to all Active Directory users
        * FY08 Q4: Provide Quickr training and migration assistance to Microsite owners

While the full session is for CU attendees, it'd be mean of me not to share the list. So I'll be nice. My decision in choosing this topic came out of the experience I've had with the majority of Quickr customers who have deployed on their own, or even with assistance, and at some point faced tough decisions, ran into brick walls, or seen their deployments run amok. In some cases, my recommendations are just common sense responses to IBM's packaging or deployment choices that cause problems down the road (in other words, product problems). And while not every suggestion is for every operation, I'm confident that most of them will apply in any given company.

So without further ado:

10. If you just installed Quickr using an administrator's name from the directory, STOP. UNINSTALL. READ THE DOC AND START OVER.  This is perhaps the most common initial mistake and it causes numerous difficult-to-diagnose problems until the question is asked, answered, and the admin is trying to reverse engineer ten years of underlying authentication code to get themselves out of the jam.

Secunia Advisory:            SA31634            
Release Date:         2008-08-27

Critical:        
Less critical
Impact:         Cross Site Scripting
Where:         From remote
Solution Status:         Vendor Patch

Software:        IBM Lotus Quickr 8.x

Description:
Some vulnerabilities have been reported in IBM Lotus Quickr, which can be exploited by malicious people to conduct cross-site scripting attacks.

Input via unspecified parameters e.g. when creating a local group, adding a page using "Imported Page", in the WYSIWYG editors, in the html import functionality, and in the Rich text editor is not properly sanitised before being returned to the user. This can be exploited to execute arbitrary HTML and script code in a user's browser session in context of an affected site.

The vulnerability is reported in Lotus Quickr 8.1. Other versions may also be affected.

Solution:
Update to Lotus Quickr 8.1 Hotfix 15 or later.

Provided and/or discovered by:
Reported by the vendor.

Original Advisory:
http://www-01.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg27013341

The SNAPPS Quickr Templates at QuickrTemplates.com have been updated with various fixes and a new feature I’ll describe here. But first, a note on versions.

We elected to match version numbers with Quickr when 8.1 shipped, so 90 days ago when they were posted, our versions revved to 8.1. Now we also have fixes to the templates unrelated to the Quickr version number or hotfix level, so have taken our versioning out two decimal points - the new version is 8.1.0.1. If we have another release before IBM revs to 8.1.1 (or whatever’s next), our version will be 8.1.0.2. Clear? Good.

This workshop helps you gain the technical skills to solve these concerns using IBM Lotus Quickr. It is a new Web 2.0-based collaborative content offering designed to transform the way everyday business content such as documents and rich media is shared and to enable more effective team collaboration. You will use the included connectors that integrate with popular desktop applications such as Microsoft Office and Lotus Notes to help businesses manage information in a security-rich environment. We will cover Lotus Quickr services for Lotus Domino, which use similar concepts but a different user interface than the Lotus Quickr services for WebSphere Portal.

The intended audience is IBM Business Partners, but customers will be accommodated on a space available basis. Attendees can participate in the IBM Lotus Business Solutions Catalog entry offering and be eligible for no charge technical support for 90 days.

This workshop is offered in multiple formats: traditional classroom, virtual and self-paced. All are no charge and cover the same content.

What you will discover by attending

   * Features, functions and capabilities of Lotus Quickr
   * Installation, configuration and troubleshooting Lotus Quickr server
   * How to use and manage Lotus Quickr places with its activities and tools
   * Using Lotus Quickr connectors to integrate to other desktop applications and Lotus Sametime
   * Extending Lotus Quickr with composite applications
   * Creating Lotus Quickr templates for applications and teamspaces
   * Managing a Lotus Quickr operational environment

Highlights

   * Understanding the value to solution developers, service providers and users by Lotus Quickr
   * Architecture of Lotus Quickr
   * Supported platforms, databases, directories, servers and clients
   * Hands-on labs for installation, configuration, Lotus Quickr places, connectors for Microsoft Office and Lotus Notes, integration with instant messaging and Web collaboration, customization of themes and places, tools and administration functions
   * Integration with Lotus Notes, Lotus Sametime, IBM Lotus Symphony, Microsoft Office (without upgrade to Office 2007), Microsoft Windows (without upgrade to Vista), Windows Explorer, WebSphere Portal
   * Business oriented templates
   * Enterprise level scalability and performance
   * Extensible programming model
   * Content libraries, wikis, and blogs
   * Team collaboration services
   * Lotus Quickr administration functions and processes

The latest fix packages for Lotus Quickr 8.1 services for Lotus Domino are:

for Microsoft Windows

  * Hotfix 19: 8.1-Quickr-Domino-HF19-ENGLISH
  * Connector fix: 8.1-Quickr-Domino-Connectors-HF5

In this article, we give an example of how to build a customized search center using the IBM Lotus Quickr content services. In the example, the Lotus Quickr search service is used to get search results and the Lotus Quickr document services are used to retrieve detailed properties of the search results, which are then used to implement customized functions such as sorting, categorizing, and filtering.

This article demonstrates how to build up your own solution using Lotus Quickr content services; it includes an example of a customized search center.

To get the most from this article, you should already have an understanding of:

   * IBM Lotus Quickr
   * Representational State Transfer (REST) services
   * Web services based on SOAP
   * Atom syndication format
   * IBM WebSphere Portal
   * Java programming

Introducing EditLive! for IBM Quickr:

Ephox and IBM have partnered together to provide a rich text editing experience for Quickr J2EE and Quickr Domino users. EditLive! is the award-winning, HTML editor that has been successfully integrated with IBM Web Content Management for the past three years and it is now available for Quickr.

Increase the user adoption of Quickr with a powerful and easy to use rich text editor.



With EditLive!, business users can create sophisticated looking Quickr documents using the familiar interface of Word that includes advanced features such as track changes, tables, and lists. EditLive! for Quickr takes the pain out of online publishing and gives authors a familiar editing environment - ensuring widespread user adoption.

Create team space home pages, blogs and other Quickr HTML pages through EditLive!. Content authors can also create links to images and other documents within the Quickr repository. Finally, for those clients with Quickr and IBM Lotus Web Content Management deployments, Ephox will be providing integrated functionality enabling you to use Quickr assets within ILWCM through EditLive! for IBM WCM linking capabilities.

Key features of EditLive!:

    * Clean copy and paste from Word
    * Spell check as you type with thesaurus
    * Word-like track changes speeds up collaboration
    * Robust table and list editing features
    * Centralized style sheet controls reduce time wasted on formatting
    * Support for sections (DIVs) makes complex layouts simple
    * True WYSIWYG styles dropdown
    * Word-like format painter

Abstract
Recommended fixes to apply after an initial installation of Lotus Quickr 8.1 services for Lotus Domino.
 
Download Description
Interim fixes for IBM Lotus Quickr services for Lotus Domino are delivered using a consolidated hotfix. The latest fix download contains all previous fixes and replaces earlier packages. The hotfixes are numbered sequentially; therefore, the latest fix can be identified as having the highest fix number. Fixes can be obtained from the Fix Central site at the following address: http://www.ibm.com/eserver/support/fixes/fixcentral

The latest fix packages for Lotus Quickr 8.1 services for Lotus Domino are:

for Microsoft Windows

   * Hotfix 17: 8.1-Quickr-Domino-HF17-ENGLISH
   * Connector fix: 8.1-Quickr-Domino-Connectors-HF5


for AIX

   * Hotfix 17: 8.1-Quickr-Domino-HF17-ENGLISH
   * Connector fix: 8.1-Quickr-Domino-Connectors-HF5


for i5/OS

   * Hotfix 17: 8.1-Quickr-HF17-Domino_8.0.1-i5OS
     (Requires pre-requisite fix LQ01447, included in the Fix Central package if you select include prerequisites)
   * Connector fix: 8.1-Quickr-Domino-Connectors-HF5

 
Prerequisites
Lotus Quickr 8.1

Abstract
IBM Support hosted an Open Mic conference call on 26 June 2008 on the topic of installing and configuring Lotus Quickr 8.1 services for WebSphere Portal in a clustered configuration. Recordings of the Open Mic call are available for download.
 
Content
IBM Support hosted an Open Mic conference call to discuss installing and configuring Lotus Quickr 8.1 services for WebSphere Portal in a clustered configuration on Thursday, June 26, 2008.

Although this is documented in the Quickr InfoCenter, I thought that it was important for me to remember in the future.

To upgrade Quickr Server from Entry to Standard, just modify the value of QRD_InstallType in the Notes.ini to be 2 instead of 1.

That is about as simple an upgrade as I could ever imagine.

Nice one, Sean... ]]> http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dxcomments/quickr-entry-tip http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dx/quickr-entry-tip?opendocument&comments Tue, 1 Jul 2008 15:19:39 +0100 http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dx/lotus-quickr-redwiki-residency-announced lotus Quickr Blog (Stuart McIntyre) http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dx/lotus-quickr-redwiki-residency-announced?opendocument&comments http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dx/lotus-quickr-redwiki-residency-announced Lotus Connections and for Quickr too:

Lotus Remote Residency Wiki Project - Customizing Quickr 8.1, LO-Q803-R01

Benefits to Resident

Do you have experience working with and customizing Lotus Quickr? Do you have practical experience and techniques that you want to share for customizing and developing solutions using Lotus Quickr? Would you like to contribute your knowledge to a new wiki deliverable project? If so, we want you to join our virtual team.

By participating in this residency you'll gain hands-on, practical experience in working with and customizing Lotus Quickr 8.1. You will also interact remotely with other highly skilled residents, and members of the Lotus product management and development teams.

The ITSO in conjunction with Lotus is conducting this remote residency to create a new deliverable that uses wiki technology. Wikis are a relatively new Web browser-based technology that allows remote collaboration to create a new form of on-line document. You can be a part of this leading-edge effort for a new way of delivering quality technical documentation. Getting involved in this project will give you an opportunity to learn new collaboration tools and techniques, to learn more about leading customization techniques for Lotus Quickr 8.1. As with other ITSO residencies, you will be able to pass your knowledge to other IBM employees, business partners, and customers. Working alongside and exchanging knowledge with other highly skilled residents and some of the top experts in the IBM Lotus community, you will develop a competitive edge that will serve you well in successful customization efforts of Quickr 8. In addition, you will get recognition for being an author of this wiki!

******* Important consideration for this remote residency ***********
If you are interested in contributing, have the necessary skills in customizing Lotus Quickr, and have the drive and motivation to work on your own, then please apply. This is purely a remote / virtual residency, which means you will not need to travel to participate. The ITSO will not pay for any expenses incurred during your involvement with this residency.

Since this is a relatively short residency (July 28th - September 5th), you must commit to contribute at least 20 hours of your time per week. When you apply for this residency, we will contact your manager to ensure that your manager supports your participation in this residency. It is important to note that you will be working on a virtual team from your own location. We expect individuals who are involved in this project to make real contributions to this project. You will be expect to virtually attend all the various kickoff, status, and review meetings that will be scheduled on a North American time zone to make sure this residency stays on track and is able to deliver a quality technical document at the end of the residency.
*******************************************************************************

More details over at the RedBooks site.  Great that we've now got these two redwikis in plan for Connections and Quickr, well done IBM. ]]> http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dxcomments/lotus-quickr-redwiki-residency-announced http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dx/lotus-quickr-redwiki-residency-announced?opendocument&comments Tue, 1 Jul 2008 09:21:59 +0100 http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dx/is-quickr-fips-compliant quickr Quickr Blog (Stuart McIntyre) http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dx/is-quickr-fips-compliant?opendocument&comments http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dx/is-quickr-fips-compliant not just yet:

Currently, neither Lotus QuickPlace or Lotus Quickr 8.0 are FIPS compliant. Supporting FIPS-140-2 is an important priority for IBM that we are currently investigating for the follow-on release of Lotus Quickr.

(On a related note for the Lotus Domino server, support for FIPS is available with the Notes/Domino 8.0.1 release. For more details about what is supported for that product, refer to the Lotus Domino 8.0.1 Information Center.)

]]> http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dxcomments/is-quickr-fips-compliant http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dx/is-quickr-fips-compliant?opendocument&comments Fri, 27 Jun 2008 07:16:33 +0100 http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dx/versioning-in-lotus-quickr-8.1 quickr Quickr Blog (Stuart McIntyre) http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dx/versioning-in-lotus-quickr-8.1?opendocument&comments http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dx/versioning-in-lotus-quickr-8.1 Lotus does not support default form versioning in Domino Quickr 8.1, while it worked great in version 8.02.  An unsupported tip is to create an agent to update the standard forms like

1.  Open main.nsf in domino designer, create a new agent

Agent code
__________________________________
@SetField("h_VersionType"; "implicit");
SELECT @All

2.  then open the main.nsf in notes, click on forms on the left hand side, select the forms you want updated to this versioning type and run the agent.

This will turn on implicit versioning that we were able to get through the ini variable we used to use.  I set our template to have implicit versioning since that is what our users expect.

Great info, thanks Mark! ]]> http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dxcomments/versioning-in-lotus-quickr-8.1 http://www.quickrblog.com/blog/quickrblog.nsf/dx/versioning-in-lotus-quickr-8.1?opendocument&comments