Well I’ve done the download and got it up and running. It’s a large download as you need a WCS server available so that you can have credentials for logging in and also for deploying any applications you develop. The WCS install is the longest part but it’s a fully copy of WCS so you get to see what that’s like as part of the preview. As it’s a full WCS server you can also integrate it with your Domino LDAP server if you want.

I Haven’t done any development in it yet but I’ve had a quick look at the demo applications that come with it. The concepts from the Domino Designer are there in their basics with forms and views ( which are actually forms that list data so in a way you have a bit more control over the layout ), scripts and image resourses.

It’s a pity the provisioning server isn’t available so that we can have a look at the WorkPlace Rich Client on which it’s based. Having said that after I’ve finished reading the instructions and picking the sample apps apart I’d say that this should be of interest to current Domino developers, I appreciate it’s a beta and that it currently only runs on windows but I’m sure that theres a linux and mac version in the works as the rich client will be working on them also.

Over on the Inside Lotus blog Chris Reckling has hinted that next monday they are hoping to post a pre-release of the new IBM WorkPlace Designer.

I’m really looking forward to seeing WorkPlace Designer, after the preview at Lotusphere this year and hearing a few bits and pieces about it on some of the other blogs WorkPlace Designer will bring the Rapid Application Development environment from Lotus Domino into the WorkPlace product, we will be able to design components for WorkPlace with the same concepts that we use today.

This is an important step forward for the Domino world, if the WorkPlace Designer lives up to it’s word then we will start seeing more and more support from the Domino community for WorkPlace.

Hmm, a WorkPlace version of BlogSphere…  I wonder….