Communications Server 14 News

Microsoft Lync Server 2010, previously known as Communications Server "14", is already proving popular with a queue of early adopters forming.

A Microsoft spokesperson said: "More than 20 partners and over 100 customers have enrolled in early adoption programs to get an experience of the enhanced Lync features. And at least 20,000 seats will be active before the final product launches."

The product is at its final stage of testing with a Release Candidate now available for download.

Kirk Gregersen, senior director for Microsoft OC, said: "Lync 2010, previously known as Communications Server "14", will unify enterprise voice and allow instant messaging as well as video, web and audio conferencing all within the same back-end infrastructure."

Recently Microsoft has partnered with unified communications vendor Polycom, to offer VoIP and IP-based solutions as an alternative to PBX-style voice communications.

Microsoft will ship the final release of Lync Communications Server 2010 by the end of the year. They are renaming many of their products:

- Office Communications Online is now Lync Online
- Microsoft Office Communicator 2007 R2 is now Microsoft Lync 2010
- Office Communicator Web Access is now Lync Web App.

Right time for me to eat humble pie, my previous post about Communications Server "14" remaining nameless is wide of the mark.

Now I know that one of the beauties of blogging is that I could just change it or add an update. But I have decided to own my mistake - I feel it is only appropriate given the confusion that has surrounded CS14.

So we have Microsoft Lync 2010 and all of its benefits of IM, Enterprise voice, meeting capabilities and presence. The name Lync is meant to be a synergy of 'Link' and 'Sync' which reflects its ability to connect people in any way and from anywhere.

I just talked to an industry expert and he told me that this was an attempt by Microsoft to get back to the top of the tree as far as OS office and associated products are concerned.

He felt that the arrival of Communications Server is a return to the days of having fully reliable Microsoft products that do exactly what they say on the tin.
Many people in big business has been forced to drift away from MS products and then lose time and money learning how to use them.

And yes he believed that office workers will be weaned off expensive and time-consuming conferences now that web, audio and video-conferencing will be so easy.

There is more information about Microsoft Lync 2010 and how to download the release candidate here.

I saw this post recently which suggested that Communications Server by Microsoft would bring about the end of the face-to-face meeting as we know it.

Because it acts as a unified conferencing client which can deliver perfect audio, VoIP and video quality as well as presence information, many people are excited about the release of communications server.

It is the ultimate unified communications product can coexist with Office Communications Server and route all of your communications to one inbox.

There is a single number for Office Communicator and your mobile phone, Instant Messaging with Windows Live, Integration with third party PSTN audio conferencing services and common call controls such as Unified voicemail.

But I would be interested to see if anyone thinks that communications server will mean that meetings are no longer necessary?

This morning I had a look at one of my favourite Communications Server sites by Chris Norman to find a very handy guide to web conferencing straight from your browser with Communications Server "14".



The picture above shows how you can have someone waiting (in this case Donald Duck - I bet he's getting mad) but ready to join a meeting even if they are not an administrator. This is known as lobby functionality and it gives you complete control over your web conferencing.



Now DD is in the conversation, though it is always hard to understand a duck, even with crystal clear audio and video. Notice all the nice options on the right hand side for sharing Powerpoint presentations and more.



The web conferencing is taken one step further in this shot as Chris is actually sharing his screen with DD, as evidenced by the arrow.



Finally DD is opening firefox to check out audio meeting options. Fantastic stuff VoIPNorm!

To take on the forthcoming Microsoft OCS 2010 product, Google has come up with business docs which it says are cheaper and easier to use.



Speaking at a conference on cloud computing, Google was forthright in suggesting their apps suite could do a better job than Microsoft.

Anil Sabharwal, the product manager of Google Apps, said: "When Microsoft comes knocking to say that you need to upgrade to the OCS communications server, you should know that you now have an alternative choice. Our apps suite is a viable replacement for the majority of users."

Google's software will only cost about £30 per year, which they expect to be much lower than what Microsoft charges for Office 2010. The Apps suite will offer opportunities for collaboration between colleagues, including better support for imported documents.

However, a Microsoft spokesman said they were confident they could offer something that Google couldn't in the field of cloud computing.

"Basic features like auto fill, document fidelity, the ability to share content across applications and cut and paste are all essential. It is very revealing that only after three years in the marketplace is Google adding the type of functionality that most people and businesses require."