Outside the Cloud: Evaluating Web

Conferencing Tools
Email is great for one-one-one communications that aren’t time sensitive. Instant messaging is
better for time-sensitive communications, but it’s still essentially a one-on-one medium. When
you need to include more than two people in your communications, or when you want to give a
presentation to a group of people who aren’t all in the same location, a different communications
tool is needed. This new tool is called a web conference, and it’s a way to conduct live meetings
and presentations over the Internet.

In a typical web conference, each participant sits at his own computer in his own location. Each
participant’s computer is connected to the conference via the Internet, and each participant sees
the presentation on his or her screen, in real time.

A web conference can be one way, as when the presenter delivers some sort of PowerPoint-like
presentation, or two way, where each participant can join in and show the contents of their active
applications or desktops. Communication between participants can be audio only (via streaming
audio, VoIP, or traditional telephony) or include audio and video (typically using webcams).

Most web conferencing services are hosted on the vendor’s servers. You typically have to
arrange a conference in advance, and the hosting service will help you set everything up.
Depending on the vendor, this can be a costly service, viable only for larger organizations. Make
sure you check the price before you commit to using a particular service. What features can you
expect from a web conferencing service? Here are some of the most common:

Application sharing, where the presenter and participants can all access and use the same
application in real time. This is useful for smaller group meetings, when all participants are
collaborating on a project.

Desktop sharing, similar to application sharing, but with the presenter’s entire desktop visible
and accessible to participants.

File and document sharing, with individual files and documents open for all to edit, also useful
for group collaboration.

PowerPoint presentations, the core component of large presentations; the presenter gives a
PowerPoint presentation in real time, complete with slide transitions and animations, using audio
conferencing tools to narrate the presentation.

Presenter notes, which let the presenter take notes during the course of the conference for future
action.

Annotation, which lets the presenter mark up the document or presentation being shared or
given, typically by drawing or highlighting on the screen.

Whiteboard, which is a blank screen on which the presenter or participants can draw or
highlight objects.
Text-based chat, which lets participants discuss the presentation witheach other in real time.

Audio conferencing, which adds the spoken words of the presenter to a PowerPoint
presentation. With two-way audio, all participants can speak—assuming that they all have
microphones, of course.

Video conferencing, which puts a picture of the presenter in a corner of the conference webtop,
typically generated via webcam. With twoway video, conference participants can also show
pictures of themselves on-screen.

Polling, which lets the presenter ask questions of the audience.

Quizzes, which lets participants answer test questions, typically with results tabulated in real
time.

Some web conferencing systems will have all of these features; others will have a subset. Look
for services that offer those features essential to your particular needs.

Below is a collection of some the commonly used web conferencing tools;

WebEx
Cisco’s WebEx (www.webex.com) is perhaps the most-used web conferencing solution today.
Various solutions and pricing plans are available, for organizations large and small. Features
include VoIP support, integrated audio and video, application sharing, on-the-fly annotation,
meeting recording and playback, and so on.

Adobe Acrobat Connect

The Adobe Acrobat Connect (www.adobe.com/products/acrobatconnect) software and service
offers personal online “meeting rooms” for large organizations. For atleast $39/month (and up),
you get audio/video conferencing, screen sharing, whiteboard, and chat functionality.

Convenos Meeting Center

The Convenos Meeting Center (www.convenos.com) is a web-based conferencing service that
starts at $30/month. For that price, you get online presentations, file and document sharing,
whiteboard, polling (the ability to ask questions of your audience), and integration with Skype
for conference audio.

Genesys Meeting Center

The similarly named Genesys Meeting Center (www.genesys.com) offers similar features to that
of the Convenos service. Genesys gives you online PowerPoint presentations, file and document
sharing, chat, desktop video, whiteboard, and polling and E-Quizzes. Pricing is by request only.

Glance
Glance (www.glance.net) is a web-based conferencing service priced from $49.95/month. Its
main focus is easy-to-use screen sharing, with no client software necessary to install.
IBM Lotus Sametime
IBM’s web conferencing service is dubbed Lotus Sametime (www.ibm.com/ sametime/), and it
comes in several different versions: Entry, Standard, Advanced, and Unyte. The web
conferencing service comes complete with enterprise instant messaging, multiway chat, VoIP
and point-to-point video, and integration with most major desktop applications. Pricing varies by
size of company.

Microsoft Office Live

Meeting Microsoft Office Live Meeting (www.office.microsoft.com/en-us/livemeeting/) is a
hosted service available in two versions (Standard and Professional). You get audio/video
conferences, a PowerPoint viewer, integration with Microsoft Outlook, application and desktop
sharing, and the like. Pricing is on a peruser basis, with volume licensing available.

Zoho Meeting
Last but not least, Zoho Meeting (meeting.zoho.com) is, for now at least, a free web
conferencing service. It includes the expected features, including application/desktop sharing,
chat, and Skype integration, as well as remote PC control.
CLOUD COMPUTING ON SOCIAL NETWORK
In the Cloud: Evaluating Online Groupware

When it comes to collaborating with a group of people who may or may not share the same physical
location, one naturally turns to the web. When all team members have access to the Internet, why not
use the Internet to connect the members of the group—to enable communication, file sharing, and the
like? For larger businesses, a social network group probably won’t suffice. What you need instead is a
collection of web-based collaborative tools that help your team members not only communicate with
each other but also manage their group projects.
This type of solution is commonly known as groupware, and when it’s based in the cloud it’s called
online groupware. In a nutshell, groupware is collaboration software for workgroups. Online groupware
does away with the physical constraints of traditional groupware, letting members from throughout an
organization, in any location, access group assets. What does this mean? In practicality, online
groupware typically includes some or all of the following tools:

• File and document uploading and sharing

• Web calendar

• Task/project manager

• Message boards

• Text-based chat rooms / instant messaging

• Wiki-like collaborative pages

• Blogs

Why use online groupware? First of all, it puts all your group communications (and, in some cases, files)
all in one place—and that one place is accessible to group members in any location, as long as they have
an Internet connection. Second, groupware makes it easier to communicate, which should reduce the
number of meetings and conferences calls, as well as your email traffic. Finally, all this should increase
your group’s collective and members’ individual productivity. It’s as simple as that. For example,
suppose you’re managing a community not-for-profit group. You can use online groupware to connect
other managers and volunteers across the community. You can share plans, proposals, and other
documents with all members, and use the groupware to solicit and receive proposals and invoices from
suppliers. And, best of all, you can do this from your own computer, which means fewer phone calls, car
trips, and unnecessary meetings— all of which translates into less time involved and fewer expenses,
both of which are important for charities. So read on to learn about some of the most popular online
groupware applications. AirSetAirSet (www.airset.com) provides a cloud-based website for your group.
Your AirSet site can include group announcements, a web calendar, contact list, task list, instant
messaging, wiki for collaborative publishing, blog, file sharing and online storage, photo albums, and
music playlists. And with all these tools, when one person in the group makes a change, everyone else
sees the updated information.

ContactOffice

ContactOffice (www.contactoffice.com) is a web-based data management system that lets you share
emails, contacts, tasks, appointments, and documents with other group members. You can create
internal or intercompany groups; the latter helps you communicate with customers, suppliers, and other
people outside your immediate office. You also get a web-based calendar, address book, message
forum, and real-time chat.
Google Sites

Google Sites (sites.google.com), formerly known as Jotspot, lets you create a group web page (hosted by
Google). This page is completely customizable with your choice of file uploads, group announcements,
task/project management, mailing lists, group calendar, and the like. Google Sites also integrates with
Google’s other online apps, including Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Docs, and Google Talk. And, as
with most things Google, it’s completely free.

Huddle

Huddle (www.huddle.net) is a hosted environment that combines online collaboration, project

management, and document sharing, using social networking principles. You create a network of
collaborative team workspaces, managed from a central dashboard. You can then take advantage of
Huddle’s online file storage, project calendar, RSS and email notifications, whiteboard, wiki, and other
collaborative tools.

Nexo

Nexo (www.nexo.com) lets you create a free personalized group website. The site can include photos,
videos, forums, message boards, interactive calendars, polls, and to-do lists. Nexo targets its service to
family, friend, and community groups, although it may also function for some less-demanding business
groups.

OpenTeams

OpenTeams (www.openteams.com) is better suited for larger businesses. It offers team folders,
blogging, and wiki-like collaborative pages, all monitored via a customizable Navigator page. From here
you can keep track of key team members, organize resources with tags, participate in threaded
discussions, and monitor new content posted by team members. Pricing is on a per-user, per-use basis,
starting at $0.99 per user log-on day.

ProjectSpaces

ProjectSpaces (www.projectspaces.com) provides an online workspace designed especially for group

collaboration. You get an online document library, email discussion lists, task management, group
announcements via email and RSS, a shared group calendar, and shared group documents.

Teamspace
The final online groupware application is called teamspace (www.teamspace.com), with a lowercase t.
This application offers task and project management, contact management, an online calendar, message
forum, notice board, file sharing, text-based chat, and synchronization with Microsoft Outlook. Pricing is
on a per-member basis, with additional fees for storage space used.
COLLABORATING VIA BLOGS AND
WIKIS
Published byMarion HortonModified over 5 years ago

Presentation on theme: "COLLABORATING VIA BLOGS

AND WIKIS"— Presentation transcript:
1 COLLABORATING VIA BLOGS AND WIKIS

2 EVALUATING BLOGS FOR COLLABORATION

What is a blog?A blog is a kind of online journal that its author updates frequently with new
musings and information.In terms of organization, a blog is collection of posts or
messages.Multiple contributionsPrivate blog can be created for a groupCommunication and
collaboration between the group is the major task

3 blogger Blogger ( is Google’s blog- hosting community ,and with more than 8 million
individual blogs, the largest blog hosts on the internetBlogger dashboard is where we can
manage all our blog activity.We can posts and edit comments.

6 typepadTypePad (www.typepad.com) is quite similar to blogger.

We can customize your blog with a number of different designs and widgets, and you can select
multiple coauthors for your blog.Its not free, you pay anywhere from $4.95 to $89.5 per month

7 wordpressWordpress ( is another popular blog-hosting community.Its similar to both blogger

and typepad but its more customizable.We can choose from slidebar widgets and a private
members-only option.We can create multiple blogs and assign multiple authors.

8 A web widget is a software widget for the web

A web widget is a software widget for the web. It's a small application with limited functionality
that can be installed and executed within a web page by an end user.

9 Evaluating wikis for collaboration

A wiki is a website which allows its users to add, modify, or delete its content via a web browser
usually using a simplified markup language or a rich-text editor. Wikis are powered by wiki
software. Most are created collaboratively.Some - permit control over different functions (levels
of access). For example, editing rights may permit changing, adding or removing material.

10 Final method for group collaboration is the wiki

Wikipedia is, in essence, a giant online encyclopedia.Articles are written, edited and elaborated
on & by people of all typesFirst wiki was wikiwikiweb- the exchage of ideas between the
computer programmers.Private wiki invites all group members to create new pages on wiki site
and to edit any existing page

11 PBwikiPBwiki (www.pbwiki.com) offers various levels of wiki hosting

Small wikies are free, larger wikies are priced low as $4 per user per monthWiki creation is easy
and various templates are provided.We can also get online file storage to help you organize your
other documents as part of your wiki.

12 versionateVersionate ( offers hosted wikies designed for group colloboration.A versionate

wiki is business friendly provides sss-level security.Free(500mb storage), personal(2GB),
business(unlimited ,enterprise(unlimited)

13 Wikihost.org The wikihost.org site( provides free wiki hosting.Wiki creation is via the
GeboBebo engine, which offers a local database structure, user and right management.

14 wikispacesWikispaces ( claims to host more than 450,000 individual wikis.Standard features

include image and file uploading, widget and media embedding.A variety of hosting plans are
available from basic to private label premium($800/month)
15 zohowikiZohowiki ( this offers free wiki hosting complete with WYSIWYG editing,
versioning of wiki pages and the ability to publish wiki pages free.Wiki is managed from
dashboard page.