Known in the Notes world for Replic-Action (which I reviewed in the May 2002 issue of DominoPower at http://www.dominopower.com/issues/issue200205/replicaction001.html), CASAHL Technology Inc. has developed a new product called ecKnowledge (at http://www.casahl.com/ecKnowledge/default.asp). ecKnowledge is an application that takes information exchange to the next level. Using the strengths of Replic-Action, ecKnowledge provides a collaborative and information exchange application for companies, either B2B (Business to Business) or D2D (Department to Department).

Why ecKnowledge and not Replic-Action?
In preparing to write this article, I looked at the bigger picture and wondered why a Notes-centric company would use ecKnowledge rather than Replic-Action. When I posed that question to Harry Wong, President and CEO of CASAHL Technology Inc., he responded by asking me the question, "How would you synchronize data if your environment were something other than Notes?" To my surprise, the question stopped me cold. I just didn't know. However, it did get me thinking. How would I do that? Notes has been my environment for the past eight years. I've worked as a developer, an administrator, and an end-user supporter. To me, it boils down to, "Is there life outside Notes?"

Connections to ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), messaging systems (MQ Server), relational databases, and collaborative systems such as Lotus Notes and Microsoft Exchange/Outlook, and XML are all supported. While ecKnowledge can be installed to work with Lotus Notes, it doesn't require Lotus Notes to be a part of the IT environment.

How does ecKnowledge work?
ecKnowledge is a robust application consisting of two parts, the composer and the server. The composer, pictured in Figure A, is a user-friendly interface that sits on your desktop.

FIGURE A

The composer interface sits on your desktop. Click picture for a larger image.

It's used to create components, build jobs, and make schedules. In Replic-Action there were basically two jobs, either the defining of a replication or the performing of a real-time search. In ecKnowledge there are several types of jobs you can define in the composer.