Microsoft dangles migration offers to Notes/Domino users

It's late January which means it's time for the annual IBM Lotusphere conference. It also means migration offers to Microsoft Exchange.

Microsoft has developed an updated suite of tools aimed at making it easier to move applications written for IBM's Notes client and Domino server to the latest version of Microsoft Office and Exchange Server.

The tools, which will be available for free within 30 days, include an administrative tool from migrating directory entries as well as application templates that work with SharePoint 2007, according to Microsoft.

Microsoft released SharePoint Server 2007 and Exchange Server 2007 businesses at the end of November last year.

Microsoft and IBM have been battling for the top spot for corporate e-mail and collaboration tools for several years.

At this year's Lotusphere IBM will discuss ways that social networking tools can be used in a corporate environment with the introduction of two new applications: Lotus Connections for social networking and Lotus Quickr for collaboration.

Microsoft's SharePoint 2007 and Exchange 2007 also incorporate support for many Web 2.0 technologies including RSS and wikis.