This is great news! I've been a big fan of Zimbra email for quite some time. If there is anyone who will free us from Outlook (not that I'm not a fan of Outlook 2007) it's Zimbra. Scribe is nice, but I like Zimbra much more from what I've seen. If you take away the need to scale in the Enterprise, this open source software solution simply blows Exchange's OWA (Outlook Web Access) out of the water. With the new Zimbra Desktop client Alpha launching, you'll be given the equivalent of Outlook Cached mode via a web browser. Which means you can basically catch up and respond to email without a connection. There are so many features that baked with Web 2.0 goodness (for lack of a better term) and the only thing that is a minus is the suite is a bit slower than you would like.

To run, all you need is an extra PC laying around the house in which to run a server. Just load it up with your favorite distro of Linux. I'd recommend OpenSuse 10.2. Just make sure you do a minimal install without Gnome or KDE.

To those of you who don't know much about Zimbra, I'll give you a list of reasons why you might want to check it out.

1. Opensource: Zimbra has an Open source version which is feature packed, albeit unsupported. If you are a techy running a small business this might be the version for you, although I think it's only 30 bucks a person a year for the next step up, Zimbra Network edition.

2. SIS: Zimbra utilizes something called Single Instance Storage. Let's say you have a company with 100 employees each with their own email address on your server. If each of your employees receive the same email with a large attachment this attachment, and the data in the email itself is only stored once on your email server. With Exchange (2003, 2007 has SIS I think), if you receive an email that is a meg, and the email goes to 100 employees, that is taking up 100 megs of storage on your server, no so with Zimbra.

3. Ease of installation:  Installing Zimbra is as simple as running a wizard, and setting up a few MX records on the Internet.

4. Ease of Administration: The Zimbra admin portal is as easy to administrate as using Active Directory Users and Computers with the ESM snap in. Error logging and server statistics are all baked into a centralized AJAX portal making your admin's day go by smooth.

5. Ajax Goodness - The features which are baked in, and especially those which you can easily install as add-ons (Zimlets) are just fantastic. If you receive a tracking number via email, just right click on it and you get a DHTML layer that pops up with the tracking status pulled directly from the right URL in the same window. If you get an address sent to you, right click to have it instantly appear in Yahoo! Maps beta. If you get a phone number sent to you, right click and call from your favorite VOIP client. Search for a flight, hotel or car with the Travel Agent Zimlet. Also, you can integrate all kinds of other useful and semi useful features such as a wikipedia search box and many more

6. Developers - This suite has almost hit critical mass as far as having an unsurpassed devoted developer support infrastructure. Open Exchange is the Opensource server of yesterday.

7. Themable - I could go on...

Check it out for yourself - www.zimbra.com