Net 308 at OUA

Huddle is a secure, affordable, online project management tool that is fully customisable with a range of dashboard widgets and tools that can be turned on or off to meet a specific project's needs [1]. Users can upload large 2GB files and a team can be made up of an unlimited number of users [2]. Online conferences, or face-to-face meetings can be added to the dashboard's calendar and individual or group tasks can be added or allocated [3]. Huddle allows users to work on MS Word and Excel files online, with automated versioning and audit trails. Files can be set up with custom access (permission) levels according to the team leader's requirements. Automated emails can be customised to notify teams and team-leaders of calendar events, versioning and file changes [3]. Web conferencing and desktop sharing can be implemented via the live.huddle.net interface [4]. Huddle has provided a collaborative business solution for government, enterprise, IT, marketing, retail, manufacturing, charity and education sectors. Case studies from big and small companies attest to the benefits of using Huddle [5]. Toshiba, Nokia, UNICEF & Harvard University have enjoyed the benefits of using Huddle's collaborative capabilities and Huddle is free for registsered charities [6]. Huddle's intuitive, user friendly interface makes project collaboration easy, even for users with no prior experience in the field of project management, and its free iPhone application makes it even easier for users to contribute when they are out of the office [7]. -------------------------------- see References below

Box.net (2010) and Huddle.net (2010) seem to offer the same kind of features and all the sources seem reliable. Huddle offers a few more perks than Box.net, in that it has a dashboard with everything that needs to be done on one screen; this is vital for keeping employees in the loop and keeping productivity at its high. For a business that has multiple employees spaced out over a wide geographical rage, Huddle.net has a built in web conferencing aspect which allows everyone to view presentations as if they were all in the same room. Huddle.net offers features that are found in Box.net and Radvision's (2010) SCOPIA Desktop. Real world case studies offered by Huddle.net prove valuable when it comes time for that decision to be made on what product to use. This addresses how Huddle.net can be implemented into a running business, with minimal overhead and disruption. Both Box.net and Huddle.net allow for synchronous and asynchronous communication and collaboration. This is good for employees in different time zones or for those who are on the move. Prices of cause will vary depending on the size of the business and the services it offers. With a list of well accredited names on board, it seems Huddle will be best suited for an all-in-one online collaboration tool and is suitable for this project. References: Box.net (2010). Complete List of Features Retrieved March 30, 2010, from http://www.box.net/features/complete_list huddle.net (2010). Take the Tour Retrieved March 30, 2010, from https://www.huddle.net/take-the-tour/ radvision.com (2010). SCOPIA Desktop Video Conferencing Retrieved March 30, 2010, from http://www.radvision.com/Products/Video-Products/Desktop-Video-Communications/

Originally suggested by Meryl Olait http://groups.diigo.com/group/net-308-at-oua/content/user/merylolait on: 29/3/2010 .http://venturebeat.com/2007/11/13/huddle-another-online-collaboration-system-for-businesses/ This review is from VentureBeat; a site that covers news and profiles about innovation companies. According to this investment review in 2007, Huddle received US$4million from Eden Ventures; an investment company of "serial entrepreneurs with strong seed investment track record, creating business of lasting value." Huddle's mission statement is "to be the world's best online B2B collaboration platform" Huddle's target market is the corporate market with a impressive list of corporate customers; Boots, Panasonic, Nokia, Kerry Ingredients, Kia Motors and many more. Important features for companies will be Huddle's ability to store Microsoft Word and Excel documents as well as a online office on iPhone application , intranet, extranet, file sharing, team collaboration and project management tools even when they do not operate within the same firewall. Huddle won the Microsoft SharePoint 2010 Social Fest competition for "Leverage SharePoint into [your] existing product". http://techcrunch.com/2010/02/04/microsoft-sharepoint-socialfest/ Huddle received honourable mention in the ReadWriteWeb Top 10 International Web Products of 2009. http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/top_10_international_web_products_of_2009.php

Colaab is an online collaborative workspace where Health Practitioners, Recruitment Agencies, Event Managers, Retailers, Study Groups, Artists, Designers, Writers and Publishers can share, annotate and respond to images, videos, documents, audio and a wide variety of other files in real time [1]. Colaab has version tracking and audit-trail feedback allowing users to monitor creations, responses, edits and annotations immediately, without having to press the refresh button [1]. What makes Colaab distinctive from other online collaborative frameworks is the "DeepZoom" feature which allows users to instantly load a 50 mb file and then zoom right into one pixel of that file without any degradation of the image view [1]. Colaab has been tested on many of the popular web browsers and requires the web-browser plug-in; Microsoft Silverlight for its functionality [2]. Users can opt for the free 30 day trial and/or a tiered package that is priced to suit varying needs [1]. Secure (SSL) is available on the Ultimate 25GB package [3]. The Colaab dashboard has an intuitive, easy-to-use design and the tour is a great way to see the many features that this online collaborative tool has to offer [4]. Compared to similar products, Colaab is very highly regarded by reviewers [5]. For people interested in the background of Colaab, their development team have left a trail of information of what functionality that they wanted to create in their fast, lightweight, real-time "killer web app" [6]. see References below

Colaab provides users with a safe and secure environment to exchange ideas. Colaab is browser based, so no-downloading, and this makes the software very attractive. Along with DeepZoom, another strength Colaab has is the ability to create three "different levels of Workspace access (Organiser, Participant, Viewer) make controlling user permissions and privileges very easy indeed" [1]. Colaab suggests that the product is particularly useful for design projects that involve professions such as web designers, writers, architects, etc., that require communication and collaboration. This statement can be validated in a recent article concerning the art, media and design department of the University College of Falmouth. "Colaab is allowing us to enhance and develop these skills for a still more diverse cohort collaborating professionally across a range of disciplines within art, media, design and performance - be they on campus, in work or at home" [2].

How does Colaab compare to other online collaboration tools? ProofHQ and ConceptShare are two alternatives, but what sets Colaab ahead? ProofHQ [3] offers clients a collaborative suite suitable for design projects and is also browser-based. "You upload a design, graphic or object you want feedback on. Next you set who can participate in providing feedback" [4]. ConceptShare [5] is another "application for sharing creative work, like photos and layouts. It's targeted at a niche of users (designers and their clients), but it could bring Web-enabled collaboration to a large number of people" [6]. So how does Colaab stand? Poole, a contributor of Web Worker Daily, suggests that "compared to the others... that serve a similar purpose, this app is far superior aesthetically. The UI is elegant and clean, with a rich interface thanks to Microsoft Silverlight 2" [7]. Whatever collaboration platform a company chooses, Colaab will definitely stand out in the designer's selection. References/Notes [1] Colaab.com features, http://colaab.com/Home.mvc/About [accessed April 9, 2010]. [2] Storm Ideas Blog, University College Falmouth to collaborate using Colaab, http://blog.stormideas.com/archive/2010/02/01/university-college-falmouth-to-collaborate-using-colaab.aspx [accessed April 9, 2010]. [3] ProofHQ, http://www.proofhq.com/ [accessed April 9, 2010]. [4] Stern, A., (2008). ProofHQ Offers Online Group Editing in a Blog or Browser, Center Networks, Article: August 26, 2008, http://www.centernetworks.com/proofhq-group-design-editing [accessed April 9, 2010]. [5] ConceptShare, http://www.conceptshare.com/ [accessed April 9, 2010]. [6] Needleman, R., (2007). Top 5 under the radar companies, CNet News, http://news.cnet.com/8301-17939_109-9701266-2.html?tag=mncol [accessed April 9, 2010]. [7] Poole, P., (2009). An Elegant Option for Collaborative Content Review, Web Worker Daily, http://webworkerdaily.com/2009/01/13/an-elegant-option-for-collaborative-cont

Web2 has seen the rise in online social networks like MySpace and Facebook, Ning is different because it allows you to create your own social network to share with a few people or with the world [1]. Project managers, activists, educators or anyone interested in starting-up an online community have the opportunity to create their own free Social Network with Ning [1] [2]. With your own Social Network you can share and discuss projects, form workgroups, collaborate and meet over any cause or topic of interest [1]. Members can ask to join a created Social Network, the administrator and network friends can invite other members to join [3]. Your Social Network can be a public, globally accessible network or it can be a private, select group of approved members only [3]. Ning is a feature-rich Social Network and with the Ning Apps directory, members can add extra functionality to their personal Ning page [4]. Ning network administrators can pick and choose from many features to customise the look and feel of their social network and their members' experience [5]. Your network's members can upload photos to their own photo gallery, they can chat, create conversation topics, upload videos and customise the appearance of their profile page [6]. The searchable Ning Blog [7] has a series of FAQ and help articles to assist new users and network administrators. Your Ning Network can be set up so it appears under your own domain name [8]. Since it commencement in 2005 Ning's co-founders Marc Andreessen (from Netscape fame) & Gina Bianchini have been the brains behind developing the platform for the 20 million visitors who currently use Ning today [9]. see References below

Ning is an online social collaboration tool which brings together networks of people with similar interests and passions [1]. Ning submits information into categories to ensure content is accessible for users. The categories include: sports, causes, education, art, politics, entertainment, networking and music [1]. It is about creating a customized social network and inviting people to join or joining social networks already created with topics of interest. Ning integrates different applications like blogs, wiki, forums, photo galleries and calendars [1]. Ning's main competitor in the online social network space is SocialGo with Facebook and MySpace offering a similar service however not as tailored and unique [2]. As at 12/11/2008 Ning had over 4 million visitors a month [4] after its launch in 2005. In a recent article, McCracken (2009) [2] revealed that Ning has announced it will no longer provide free networks, which means network creators will either have to switch to a paid plan or leave Ning and move elsewhere. It is a brave move and with other competitors offering a similar service for free, it will be interesting to see if creators will remain with Ning or move on. However as Ramirez (2009) [3] points out, according to the 'ownership rights' which is part of the 'Terms of Services', "Ning owns all right, title and interest, including, all intellectual property rights, in and to the Ning Technology". So depending on what Ning is to be used for, it is important to read the terms of service for any online collaboration tool. References [1] Ning: Create and Discover. Retrieved 16 April 2010 from http://www.ning.com/ [2] McCracken, H. (2010). Ning: No More Free Networks. Retrieved 16 April 2010 from http://www.pcworld.com/article/194379/ning_no_more_free_networks.html [3] Ramirez, N. (2009). Ning Review. Retrieved 16 April 2009 from http://www.thecommunityarchitect.com/2009/06/01/ning-review/ [4] Nations, D. (n.d.). What is Ning? Retrie

References continued .... [7] Ning Inc. (2010). 'Why You'll ♥ Ning'. Retrieved April 2, 2010 from http://about.ning.com/ [8] Ning Inc. (2010). 'Extend your brand by using your own domain'. Retrieved March 30, 2010 from http://help.ning.com/cgi-bin/ning.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=3640 [9] Parr, B. (2010). 'Ning CEO Gina Bianchini Stepping Down. Mashable - the social media guide'. Retrieved April 2, 2010 from http://mashable.com/2010/03/15/ning-ceo-gina-bianchini-stepping-down/

BigBlueButton is a brand new, free open source web-meeting platform ideally suited to Universities and Colleges for delivering Distance Education [1]. BigBlueButton runs on Mac, Unix and PC computers and desktop integration is available with VMWare, Ubuntu, Debian and RPM packages and Gentoo is currently in development [2]. BigBlueButton utilises 15 open source components and BigBlueButton's Demo shows how easily it supports video, chat and audio conferencing, PDF and PPT slide-sharing, and, Open Office Org files or Microsoft Office document sharing [3] [4] [5]. Three levels of users are moderator, presenter & viewers, the moderator can choose themselves, or others to be a presenter. The class presenter can share their desktop view with the rest of the class and directly message an individual student during a meeting [3]. The BigBlueButton site hosts a variety of tutorial demonstrations so prospective clients can become familiar with this feature-rich package [3]. The Demo page allows vistors to test run the product by joining a Demo Meeting [6]. Whilst BigBlueButton is an web-meeting platform for online conferences, the people from BigBlueButton do not provide hosting. Nevertheless BigBlueButton is easily downloaded and installed onto the education provider's own server space [7]. The package is coded with a clean, lean design that focuses on usability and multiple virtual classrooms can be run from a single BigBlueButton server [8]. Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada use BigBlueButton as a learning envrioment in their 'Systems and Computer Engineering' course [9]. see below for References

BigBlueButton is a web conferencing system that is specifically tailored for distance education [1], particularly for universities and colleges to allow high-quality e-learning [2]. It is open source and constantly under development. The system is Flash-based and allows sharing of slides, voice, chat, video and desktops [3]. Generally speaking, the system is well received; however there has been some criticism about the slowness of desktop sharing [4]. The system strongly utilises Open Source methodology by utilising existing apps and code to piece together and present a virtual classroom solution [4]. The use of Open Source can be positive in a corporate sense as it often has a large support community and the ability to conduct one's own development. BigBlueButton does not offer commercial hosting of its service, which is arguably why it is being pitched to universities (given access to considerable resources in the guise of students and IT staff) [5]. This may be a disadvantage in some respects; however a corporate organisation may consider this a better solution to wholly hosted applications, as a stronger level of control is possible. It has been reported that the developers are very hands on in regards to live demos of the product, which is comforting when trying to learn a new piece of software [6], however, the system is very new, which may deter some organisations from utilising until it is more proven.

[1] BigBlueButton. (2010). BigBlueButton Blog. Retrieved April 21, 2010, from http://bigbluebutton-blog.blogspot.com/ [2] BigBlueButton. (2010). Homepage. Retrieved April 21, 2010, from http://bigbluebutton.org/ [3] Asterisk Exchange. (2010). BigBlueButton. Retrieved April 10, 2010, from http://www.asteriskexchange.com/listings/165 [4] SetupLinux. (2010). BigBlueButton: Web conference and meeting room review. SetupLinux.com. Retrieved April 10, 2010, from http://www.setuplinux.com/2010/04/bigbluebutton-web-conference-and-meeting-room-review/ [5] Byrne. (2010). Big Blue Button - An Open Source Video Conferencing Platform. Free Technology for Teachers. Retrieved April 10, 2010, from http://www.freetech4teachers.com/2010/03/big-blue-button-open-source.html [6] Lavolette, E. (2010). Push the BigBlueButton. Betsy's Eclection. Retrieved April 10, 2010, from http://betsylavolette.com/?p=928

Backpack by 37 Signals. Backpack is a product created by 37 signals which allows the user to store information, documents, discussion and schedules with your workforce in a secure online environment which is accessible all the time. 37 Signals states that "Over 3 million people use our web-based apps to get things done the simple way." One of the features of Backpack is its interaction with email. When file attachments are sent to Backpack they automatically update on your pages. The backpack pricing plan allows you to start out small and upgrade your package when your business grows. This allows flexibility in the pricing system to suit your business needs at any given time. Backpack can also work with other applications like Google Calendar and a variety of other devices such as iphone apps, third party desktops and widgets. The Backpack accounts are protected with password protection with SSL security that ensures your information is safe at all times. Backpack capabilities are described by Gomez de la Torre as follows "1. Important scheduling information 2. Shared and easily modifiable check list of things to do 3. Personal knowledge and experience of prior dealings with clients 4. Identification of files necessary for the meeting 5. Repository for other tacit knowledge" Backpack creates a powerful user interface which allows workers to be in touch and informed whether they are office based or mobile. Backpack has been reviewed by a number of sources some of which can be perused in the reference section. Richard Cobbett from Pc Plus sums up Backpack as "Backpack allows you to manage all your data across multiple PC's with ease. Backpack is hands-down the most flexible of the online organisation tools, and it just keeps evolving. " Further information can be found about Backpack at http://backpackit.com/

References: Cobbett, R. (2009, March 3). 37signals Backpack review from TechRadar UK's expert reviews of Other software. TechRadar UK | Technology News And Reviews. Retrieved March 31, 2010, from http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/software/utilities/other-software/37signals-backpack-34109/review De la Torre, V. G. (2005, December 8). Knowledge Management Systems Research Paper: Knowledge Management Systems and Web 2.0 Tools & Technologies. The University of Texas at Austin School of Information. Retrieved April 1, 2010, from www.ischool.utexas.edu/~i385q/archive/gomez_web2.0.pdf Intranet, Group Calendar, Small Business Organizer: Backpack. (n.d.). Intranet, Group Calendar, Small Business Organizer: Backpack. Retrieved March 31, 2010, from http://backpackit.com/ Kelly, W. (2007, July 1). PC Today Article - 37signals Backpack . PC Today - Your Mobile Computing and Wireless Authority. Retrieved March 31, 2010, from http://www.pctoday.com/Editorial/article.asp?article=articles/2007/t0507/24t07/24t07.asp&guid= Schmidt, A. (2006). PRODUCT PIPELINE.. Net Connect, 131, 18-19. Retrieved April 1, 2010, from the Business Source Premier database.

Backpack is quite similar to Microsoft's SharePoint Services in that it allows for files to be uploaded and shared in the one place; allows the sharing of information and calendar events (Backpack, 2010a). As Backup is hosted online and offsite, stress can be alleviated in the event of fire or theft. SharePoint on the other hand is stored on internal servers hosted by the business. This may incur an expensive fail safe back-up plan. It seems that Backup is more user friendly than SharePoint and will work well in an online collaboration environment. Both SharePoint and Backup allow for allow for a whole range of third party extras and add-ons (Backpack, 2010b; SharePoint Solutions, 2010). This allows businesses to customise their intranet and use the tools that work for them. 37signals, the company behind Backup, also design other products that help businesses achieve their goals, these include: Highrise, Basecamp and Campfire (37signals, 2010). Although 37signals offers that Backpack has the ability to add-in extras, they do not however take any responsibility in the event that something goes wrong. "Note: These apps and integrations are not endorsed or tested by 37signals. 37signals does not assume responsibility or liability for any issues caused by the use of third party products." (Backpack, 2010b). More importantly, solutions that allow users to read, reflect and collaborate also take more time than a conventional face-to-face meeting/ discussion. "Computer-Mediated Communication not only takes longer than a face-to-face communication, but they produce more ideas and produce greater opportunity for each person to participate." (Bordia, 1997, p99) This can be said for all solutions that offer users time to "think" on events that they have been asked to collaborate on. 37signals (2010). 37signals Retrieved April 1, 2010, from http://37signals.com/ Backpack (2010a). Backpack Retrieved April 1, 2010, from http://backpackit.com/ B

"Interactive website tools for distance learning, online tutoring, collaboration and fun. Add whiteboard, chat, games, message boards, VOIP and web conferencing to your website by simply copying a few lines of HTML code. Over 100,000 created!"[1] Groupboard.com is an online collaborative whiteboard used for educational, business conferencing and entertainment purposes. Groupboard.com offers free software for businesses or individuals to add to their websites. Basically, the whiteboard acts as a real time drawing board. The software is offered in three distinct formats: groupboard (simple), groupboard designer (advanced) and groupworld.net. Groupboard (simple java whiteboard): This applet allows for simple text messaging and voice conferencing. Groupboard suggests that this format can be used for "tutoring, distance learning, training, or simply for fun!"[2] The whiteboard can handle picture uploads that can be drawn over, which may be particularly helpful in teaching for both education and businesses. Groupboard Designer (advanced): This is an advanced version, as this whiteboard can be used to add extras to the drawing capability, such as mathematical signs for teaching or the symbols used when an architect is compiling a blueprint. Groupworld.net: This format advances the whiteboard again by adding voice/video conferencing and desktop sharing capabilities to strongly enhance the collaborative environment.

Groupboard is an online whiteboard tool that can be used by educators, students, designers and anyone with a collaboratve project or task [1]. The Groupboard whiteboard can be added to a website and the Groupboard iPhone Applet allows for connectivity to the whiteboard via the iPhone [1]. Other online whiteboard collaboration tools include Virtual Whiteboard [2], Dabbleboard [3] and Vyew [4]. Virtual Whiteboard limits the length of time that a whiteboard is available for and their is a limit of four users per 15 minute collaboration session [2]. Dabbleboard's free package offers a whiteboard with unlimited users but they do not offer a website embedding option like Groupboard [3]. Vyew is a feature-rich online whiteboard application from the big-end of town. Vyew's customer page lists many positive testimonials from multi-national corporations, large educational institutions and collaboration tool reviewers [5]. Vyew does not offer a website embedding option like Groupboard. TechCrunch's review of Groupboard attests to its reliability and usefulness as a whiteboard tool [6]. Groupboard is free to use, offering good value for smaller educational groups or low-end designers. Groupboard is a relevant addition to this collaboration tool list. see References below

References [1] Groupboard. (n.d.). 'Groupboard: free online collaborative whiteboard and chat'. Retrieved April 3, 2010 from http://www.groupboard.com/products/ [2] Foster, T. (2010). 'Virtual Whiteboard'. Retrieved April 3, 2010 from http://www.virtual-whiteboard.co.uk/home.asp [3] Dabbleboard Inc. (2009). 'Dabbleboard - Online whiteboard for drawing & team collaboration - Interactive whiteboard software'. Retrieved April 3, 2010 from http://www.dabbleboard.com/ [4] Simulat Inc. (2010). 'Vyew - FREE Anytime Collaboration and Live Web Conferencing'. Retrieved April 3, 2010 from http://vyew.com/site/index3 [5] Simulat Inc. (2010). 'Customers - Vyew'. Retrieved April 3, 2010 from http://vyew.com/site/customers/testimonials/ [6] TechCrunch. (2010). 'CrunchBase - Groupboard'. Retrieved April 3, 2010 from http://www.crunchbase.com/company/groupboard

Slideshare is the worlds largest community for sharing presentations online with over 25 million users a month. Users can upload powerpoint and keynote presentations, and word and PDF documents. Presentations can be commented on, bookmarked and shared and it is a great way to learn from others [1]. Businesses can upload presentations or documents to share ideas amongst the organisation and also generate leads due to the viral nature of the platform. Slideshare is linked with many other platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter [2]. Search engines will index the information in the presentations and it will enhance search engine ranking [3]. Presentations can also be made private and only accessible to members within your organisation [2]. Slideshare is being used by many businesses to market their products or services using the platform as a lead and traffic generation tool by either highlighting your business or directly generating leads through Slideshares LeadShare or Adshare tools designed specifically for business. There are no upfront costs and you only pay when leads are generated[1]. Slideshare also has its own branded channels for afee. The business channel allows businesses or organisations to customise its own microsite targeting the professional community. Here you can showcase eBooks, webinars and presenations while capturing leads and targeting a specific audience. Each microsite is a customised project for Slideshare and can be worked into an organisations budget [4]. [1] Slide Share Inc (2009). Slideshare. Retrieved 16 April, 2010, from http://www.slideshare.net/about [2] Learning Tools (2010). Top 100 Tools: Slideshare. Retrieved 19 April, 2010, from http://www.c4lpt.co.uk/Top100Tools/slideshare.html [3] ZenDesk (2010). SlideShare Forum. Retrieved April 19, 2010, from http://slideshare.zendesk.com/forums [4] Slideshare (2010). Slideshare Branded Channels. Retrieved April 19, 2010, from http://www.slideshare.net/channel

One of the attractive features of Slideshare is the ability to not only upload presentations for online display, however by using their Leadshare application you can collect and update customer contacts. Leadshare also allows the user to link the presentation to the business contact details. Slideshare can be embedded in your web page, blogs and social networks at no extra cost. Kelly, (2010) explains that Slideshare has a number of additional features which enhance its use. These include presentations that have audio tracks known as 'Slidecasts' and a plugin which allows presentations to be uploaded directly from the Powerpoint tool. It also has plugins to allow access from networking services such as Facebook and Linkedin. Slideshare as demonstrated by Mullen, (2009) is a great way of presenting information. Mullen states "Increasingly Slideshare is being used as a tool by conference organisers to make PowerPoint presentations available to anyone unable to make the conference in person." PcWorld recently reported on Slideshare's new service called Channels which will allow companies to create a microsite. Perez (2010) states that "Companies can be a sponsor of a Channel focused on a specific topic, like virtualization, or they can create a Channel just for their brand." Perez reports that this service adds to two other marketing services of Slideshare's, which are Adshare and Leadshare. Slideshare is an effective way of sharing and be able to show your presentation to a wide audience. As stated by Slideshare "Anyone can view presentations & documents on topics that interest them. The site is growing rapidly with over 25 million monthly visitors."

References: About Us. (n.d.). Upload & Share PowerPoint presentations and documents. Retrieved April 17, 2010, from http://www.slideshare.net/about Kelly, B. (2010). Slideshows. STRIDE Handbook 8 on E-Learning (pp. 106-109). India: India Gandhi National Open University. Mullan, J. (2009). Should we be more Social? Law Librarians and Social Media. Legal Information Management, 9, 175-181. Retrieved April 17, 2010, from the Cambridge Journals database. Perez, J. C. (2010, February 3). SlideShare to Let Companies Sponsor 'channels' on Its Site - PCWorld Business Center. Reviews and News on Tech Products, Software and Downloads - PCWorld. Retrieved April 17, 2010, from http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/188442/slideshare_to_let_companies_sponsor_channels_on_its_site.html Slideshare LeadShare FAQs. (n.d.). Upload & Share PowerPoint presentations and documents. Retrieved April 17, 2010, from http://www.slideshare.net/business/leadshare/faqs

Although a blog would not normally be considered as an online collaborative tool, Posterous have developed a front-end engine which makes it very simple and easy for multiple contributors to post to a single blog just by emailing their content to a single email address. Contributors are not required to register as members and the service is free. [1] [2] The subject of the email becomes the title of the post, and the body and attachments of the email become the content of the post. You can post text, photos, music, video, documents and all kinds of files, just by attaching them to the email. Posterous formats it all nicely for you creating picture galleries for multiple images, drops music into mp3 players, video into a flash player and attaches download links for documents. It even resizes large file sizes to make them more web friendly. [1] What sets Posterous apart is its ease of use by allowing contributors to just email their contributions. This opens up the collaboration process to less technically savvy users in a non threatening way. It also does not restrict the size of the posts so they can be as brief or as lengthy as necessary or desired. Setting it up is also quick and simple. As blog owner, you can attach a security password to the blog and nominate the contributors that will take part. Each contributor is invited to post and is notified by email when anyone else has posted something. It makes blogging as easy as email. And by providing access to multiple users in such a simple way, it becomes a central repository for ideas, images, audio, video, stories which is accessible by all. [3]

[1] Administrator. (2006). Confluence. ITerating.com All software reviews and ratings Retrieved 14 April 2010, from http://www.iterating.com/component/content/article/385-wiki-engines/15924-confluence- [2]Attlassian. (2010). Confluence. Everyone on the same page Retrieved 14 April, 2010, from http://www.atlassian.com/software/confluence/tour/enterprise-wiki.jsp [3]Bailey, C. (2006). Confluence Vs Basecamp. Code Intensity Retrieved 14 April, 2010, from http://codeintensity.blogspot.com/2006/08/confluence-vs-basecamp.html [4]Yehuda, G. (2009). Confluence 3.0 = Enterprise Wiki +++. Gil Yehuda's Enterprise 2.0 Blog Retrieved 14 April, 2010, from http://www.gilyehuda.com/2009/06/02/confluence-30-enterprise-wiki/

Posterous is a blogging tool that allows groups to create a shared publishing environment that can easily be accessed via email to share text, photos, audio and video. This removes a major technology challenge from group dynamics, as any file type can be sent to Posterous via email and will automatically be converted to the most web efficient format, for uniform presentation and removing the technology hurdle from user experience [1]. Posterous allows users to log onto the system and then send an email, the text of which is posted attractively to a blog, and if an attachment is included (image or document), that is also posted; these postings can be mirrored automatically to Blogger, where they can be tagged 'writingmatrix' along with other identifiers [2]. [1] Hacker News, "Why I chose Posterous" http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=304102 [2] Stevens, V. "Engaging Collaborative Writing through Social Networking" Foundation Computing, Petroleum Institute, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates Available from: http://www.j-let.org/~wcf/proceedings/d-052.pdf

Comindwork software is a versatile online project management and implementation tool that allows organisations to record, maintain and share project information from a single location. It is fully customisable and integrates all of the features and capabilities necessary to manage and execute diverse project tasks, such as schedules, milestones, Gantt charts and project risks along with the management of tasks and issues. Comindwork's Project and Team Dashboards support effective communication through its collaboration and blog facility, regular Email Notifications and RSS, [2] Twitter integration ( http://twitter.com/comindwork ) plus comprehensive reporting and chart display for visualisation of a project's status.[1] Assistance for project managers is provided by the centralised storage that stores all the project artefacts in an organised way, making an overview available at any time. It is easy to link tasks, pages, discussions, people and results for a more effective view of the task organization and to allocate tasks efficiently within the team. Team members and clients can communicate informally, share ideas and useful tips through the project blog or discuss project requirements via the Wiki feature. [2] Clients have the ability to track project tasks and project progress status at anytime. They can see the next milestone and know what progress to expect. They are able to review and comment on the project and comments are tracked until they are purposely closed. Clients have full access to the features set up by the original organisation's account with Comindwork. However, if a client wants to add their own projects, they can upgrade their account and add their own customers, projects and users independent of the original company that opened the account with Comindwork. [3] ....................continued in comment

Comindwork is an online application that can be utilized by business for online collaboration. It offers a free service for smaller projects, with a pricing structure that then varies on your enterprises needs and demands. As such its flexibility can be fit in with any organizations growth. The interaction that can be achieved through Comindwork with clients is also a feature of this product. Allowing client's access gives you the ability to communicate effectively and quickly with them in a professional manner. Jay (2010) at Smashing Apps states that "It's simple and clear time tracker interface provides project managers with a quick overview on time management issues." Beckman (2010) states that "Comindwork combines over 250 project management related capabilities under one roof, yet does it with a web interface that is, by and large, a breeze to use. Some of the strengths of the service include traditional project management tools, knowledge management, collaboration tools, information sharing and versioning, and both agile and traditional waterfall management tools (e.g.: think Gantt)." Gunderloy, (2008) of WebWorkerDaily states "Comindwork includes bits of functionality that you might ordinarily find spread across multiple sites and services. As with just about any other project management software, it will track projects, tasks, team members, and deadlines, as well as the connections between them. But in addition, it includes time-tracking, issue-tracking, internal blogs, and svn-versioned file storage." Komssi et al (2009) states that "Software as a Service (SaaS) is accepted as one of the most important models in the service-oriented software business today". As a management tool using software as a service (SaaS), Comindwork is a good way of implementing employee and client integration.

References: Beckman, Z. (2010, February 4). Not a panacea, but trying: Comindwork is attractive | Rational Scrum. Rational Scrum. Retrieved April 15, 2010, from http://www.rational-scrum.com/2010/02/easy-to-use-project-management-tools/ Gunderloy, M. (2008, February 18). Comindwork Piles on Project Management Features . WebWorkerDaily . Retrieved April 16, 2010, from http://webworkerdaily.com/2008/02/18/comindwork-project-management-features/ Jay, A. (2010, January 8). Comindwork, The Most Customizable Suit Of Flexible To-Dos, Wiki, Emails - With Gantt Charts, MS Project And Workflows @ SmashingApps. Free and Useful Online Resources for Designers and Developers @ SmashingApps. Retrieved April 15, 2010, from http://www.smashingapps.com/2010/01/08/comindwork-the-most-customizable-suit-of-flexible-to-dos-wiki-emails-with-gantt-charts-ms-project-and-workflows.html Komssi, M., Kauppinen, M., Heiskari, J., & Ropponen, M. (2009). Transforming a Software Product Company into a Service Business: Case Study at F-Secure. Computer Software and Applications Conference, 2009. COMPSAC '09. 33rd Annual IEEE International, 1, 61-66. Retrieved April 15, 2010, from the IEEE Xplore database.

"Work better together on Acrobat.com" [1]. "Adobe has introduced Acrobat.com Workspaces, an extension to its online collaboration service that provides shared workspaces to enable teams to easily share project documents and other files when working on projects" [2]. Adobe is a major player in the field of producing solid software and it seems they too are joining the world of online collaboration by developing Acrobat.com Workspaces and more. Launched in 2009, Acrobat.com lets users "store and share documents, convert files to PDF, share their screen using Adobe ConnectNow, and create documents using online applications such as the Buzzword word processor and Acrobat.com Tables for spreadsheets"[2]. At the moment the paid prescription is available to North American customers only and some other regional Beta versions are available. Although this availability is a weakness, particularly at this stage for Australian clients, Adobe does offer a free alternative for everyone until the Workspaces are available widely. The alternative is a limited, but useful service; "Get an online workspace, five PDF conversions total, three person web conferencing, online office applications and forum-based support" [3]. One of the biggest strength's to the workspaces is the usability of the product and its fresh outlook. The product offers great potential for clients as regardless of what application you use to create a document; Acrobat.com Workspaces includes a PDF conversion which can make the final document industry standard.

References/Notes [1] Adobe - tagline, https://acrobat.com/#l [accessed April 5]. [2] Robinson, D., (2010). Adobe adds shared workspaces to Acrobat.com, http://www.v3.co.uk/v3/news/2260392/adobe-adds-shared-workspaces, V3.co.uk. [3] Acrobat.com Workspaces, https://acrobat.com/#il=1&page=signup_only&su=1 [accessed April 5]. [4] Acrobat.com Mobile Workspaces, https://acrobat.com/features_mobile_access.html [accessed April 5]. [5] Adobe.com Workspace features, https://acrobat.com/features_online_office_applications.html [accessed April 5].

Placeholder interested in this for my work, so I'll comment after further research

Google Docs is a free application provided by Google in which team members can collaborate online for free. Google Docs offers the ability to create documents, spreadsheets and presentations online. Google Docs offers you the ability to share your documents with whoever you choose and has different settings depending on your needs. You can set the file to either be viewed by other people and or edited as well. One of the advantages of an application such as Google docs is that you have no need to download or upload data. Online storage also reduces the risk of loss of data due to computer crashes. Google Docs offers a number of export options and formats which you can save your files in. Google.com states that they offer "DOC, XLS, CSV, ODS, ODT, PDF, RTF and HTML formats." Online collaboration can take place in real time so that employees can automatically follow the changes and or contribute. Murray, 2010, Describes Web 2 applications such as Google Docs as "Web 2.0 technologies can be modified, remixed, adapted, and displayed in a multitude of variations, allowing for highly customizable workflows to be developed with little effort." Dekeyser and Watson state that "We found the interface to be very usable, effective, and efficient. In addition, setting up collaboration with colleagues proved to be exceedingly simple. We suggest that Google Docs is an excellent platform for ad hoc collaboration on document creation." Overall Google docs is an excellent option for a free collaboration tool that will allow you to operate anywhere. Google is currently improving Google Docs with new features such as being able to upload any file and language translation. Google States that "We're still working to make Google Docs a better place, and we're listening closely to your suggestions".

Commentary on specific collaborator features of Google Docs Google Docs is a great document editor and word processor alternative to Microsoft Word which makes collaboration on a document easy. Before the introduction of Google Docs, you were required to send documents around via email, hover over your colleagues back or ensure that only one of you were editing the document at a time and still require a method to ensure the document is going in the direction desired. Then Google Docs introduced the ability to have more than one person edit a single online document in much the same way as a wiki. You would edit, save, refresh, see and take into account your partners' edits who would then repeat the same process. Recently Google Docs has adopted a feature from another Google product, Wave, something that had been present in the Docs spreadsheet application for a while but absent from Google Docs Document, Presentation and Drawing. Google Docs introduced real time collaborative editing (Rochelle, 2010). Real time collaborative editing allows two or more people to work on a single document simultaneously and instantly see the changes each other is making (Rochelle, 2010). To aid this Google Docs integrates a chat feature (Rochelle, 2010) and comments. Chat allows real time communication outside the document but in the same window maintaining focus. Comments allow commentary on specific parts of a document to be made. Useful when you want to suggest a change but are not entirely sure or you dislike the change your colleague has just made. Unlike chat, the contents of comments stay put between edits, allowing notes be to left for when another person is editing the document.

Google Docs also integrates version tracking for documents allowing you to see which changes were made by who and when (Ross, 2009). The ability also exists to revert to previous revisions of a document (Google, 2010) in case you make a mistake or a decision does not pan out. These revisions are created during auto-save and when you specifically save (automatic on exit of a document). Google. (2010). Tools: Revision history. Retrieved April 21, 2010, from Google Docs Help: http://docs.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=92199 Gralla, P. (2010, April 22). Google Docs better; ready to take on Office? Retrieved April 22, 2010, from BusinessWeek: http://www.businessweek.com/idg/2010-04-22/google-docs-better-ready-to-take-on-office-.html Rochelle, J. (2010, April 12). A new Google Docs. Retrieved April 20, 2010, from Google Docs Blog: http://googledocs.blogspot.com/2010/04/new-google-docs.html Ross, G. (2009, August 10). Google Docs Review. Retrieved April 20, 2010, from Notebook Review: http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=5281&review=google+docs+review

For any enterprise that wants to provide a secure and scalable shared workspace for geographically disparate project teams then the EMC Documentum eRoom Family [2] of products release 7.4 provides an integrated solution that provides many benefits. The EMC website [1] provides an overview of the five components in their Documentum eRoom family that together provide a fully integrated system for online collaborative workgroups. The whole family comprises a suite of products that cover many of the areas that are out lined as essential features for successful enterprise online collaboration in the White Paper prepared by the Gilbane Group [3] Collaboration and Social Media-2008 [4]. Features such as (a) Secure shared workspace (b) Secure storage for shared rich content including, images, audio and documents, (c) Ability to run on intranet or secure hosted website that can run outside of the corporate firewall to allow external partners to join the group, (d) eRooms can be organised on a project basis each with their own workspace that can incorporate user access privileges, (e) Notifications and integrated IM and (f) Project management tools. The modules included in the Documentum eRoom Family include: eRoom - Web based collaborative workspace eRoom Enterprise - Combines the eRoom capability of a collaborative work space with the power of the EMC content management tools. eRoom Real-Time Services - Combines eRoom workspace with real time conferencing tools such as real time meetings, presentations and whiteboard sessions. eRoom Viewer -Team access to Microsoft Project Management tools. eRoom .Net - The functionality of the eRoom environment nut within a hosted web environment. References [1] EMC Corporation. (2010). EMC. Retrieved April 10, 2010, from EMC: http://www.emc.com/utilities/globalsiteselect.jhtml?checked=true [2] EMC Corporation. (2010). EMC Documentum eRoom Family. Retrieved April 10, 2010, from EMC: http://www.emc.com/products/family/er

Documentum eRoom provides a "web-based collaborative workspace for distributed teams" [1]. Additions to Documentum eRoom include real time services, collaboration management capabilities, Microsoft Project compatibility and a secure online shared environment. The eRoom Family of software has been a major player in the field of collaboration over the last ten years. EMC released a document about what they regard as their top 10 tips regarding what a SMB (medium to small businesses) should look for when considering web-based collaboration software. This document can be located at http://www.retrospect.com/assets/Top10_WebCollab_en.pdf. So how does EMC's very own software hold up these top 10 tips? DLA Piper Rudnick is mostly a US based law firm, forty offices, which required an easy and secure method to collaborate online. "The verdict: use of EMC's Documentum eRoom, a web-based collaboration platform that allows for secure information sharing" [2]. DLA Piper was deciding between Lotus QuickPlace and Documentum eRoom and stated that eRoom scored the battle because "eRoom's functionality and ease of use won out" [2]. EMC's top 10 tips echo this statement; "workspaces that are easy to manage" and "collaboration software should be flexible" [3]. However, even though eRoom has a proven history of being reliable software, they faced a new battle of collaboration-software competition.

Although Documentum eRoom and the rest of the family can live up to the top 10 tips, it may however, suffer a loss at the nature of technology. eRoom lacks compatibility with Web 2.0 tools such as "blogs, RSS and wikis" [5]. In an effort to keep up with technology EMC created "Centre Stage: moving beyond collaboration" [4]. In addition, the popularity of Microsoft's SharePoint has increased competition between the two products with companies migrating from eRoom. With such competition, a free version called CentreStage Essentials was released: the"version is a "limited" release of CenterStage. It does include storing documents in folder and attachment boxes like in eRoom, plus a few other features. There is no charge for this version" [5]. eRoom might still be the best suited software for many businesses, but with technology advances happening continually, it may also mean that for any new businesses delving into new collaboration software it could be a good idea to read up on Microsoft's Sharepoint 2010 or CentreStage. References/Notes [1] Details from http://www.emc.com/products/detail/software/eroom.htm [accessed April 8, 2010]. [2] Chen, A., (2007). Law firm makes case for eRoom, http://www.emc.com/collateral/analyst-reports/0307-eweel-law-firm.pdf, eWeek: The enterprise weekly, Issue: March 28, 2007 [accessed April 8, 2010]. [3] EMC. Top Ten Tips for Web-based Collaboration in SMBs, http://www.retrospect.com/assets/Top10_WebCollab_en.pdf [accessed April 6, 2010]. [4] OpenVine, Migrating from eRoom to CentreStage, http://www.openvine.com/downloads/eRoomCenterStageMigration.pdf [accessed April 9, 2010]. [5] OpenVine Web Solutions and Consulting, experts in best eRoom practices, the eRoom blog, http://blog.openvine.com/?m=200905 [accessed April 9, 2010].

Virtual servers, Cloud computing and Software-as-a-service,(SaaS), are all pioneering new innovative value-adding utilities. Gmail, Hotmail, YouTube, are a few SaaS tools already known to most people, but now the Internet is exploding with collaborative services and applications. With peer pressure from Google's Google docs and other web-based software developers, giant software companies like Microsoft, Adobe, SAP etc are all launching into web-based applications. [1] Microsoft's (Light) Office app will be available for free with Office 2010.[2] Even hardware technology are pointing to "slim-down" operating systems like netbooks that have little data storage capabilities, no moving parts and only connects and rely on the internet [1] CRM, Customer Relations Management and ERP; Enterprise Resource Planning are the most popular applications that companies are taking up as web-collaborative applications. ***Now Engineering design are available in the cloud. SolidWorks CEO, Jeff Ray says the one prevailing advantage to all customers is cost. [4]

[1] Patrick Stafford 2009 How cloud computing could change your business and save you thousands. Retrieved on 4/4/2010 from:http://www.smartcompany.com.au/ [2] Lia Timson 2010 Word, Excel, Powerpoint-free on the web. Retrieved 4/4/2010 from: http://www.watoday.com.au/technology/ [3]SolidWorks website. Retrieved on 4/4/2010 from: http://www.solidworks.com/sw/products/free-cad-software-downloads.htm [4] Johnson, A. 2010. CAD moves to the clouds. Retrieved on 4/4/2010 from:http://www.manmonthly.com.au/Article/CAD-moves-to-the-clouds/514146.aspx

SolidWorks offers improved collaboration between CAD team members as they can share designs with one another and external partners. Another important feature is the SolidWorks User Group Network (SWUGN) [1]. The SolidWorks User Group Network is arrange geographically and offers users a valuable resource, the ability to network with local peers and partners helping businesses become more productive. It also connects global users, assisting them with improved understanding of SolidWorks features and SolidWorks related products. Users are able to network with peers to share experiences and technical queries and methodologies. [1] SolidWorks User Network Group, available from: http://www.swugn.org/swugn/benefits.htm

"Your information is one of your most strategic assets. You can count on EMC to keep innovating ways to store, protect, optimize, and leverage information, all with the aim of contributing to your ongoing success." (Joe Tucci, Chairman, President and CEO of EMC) EMC insignia is a company that provides IT solutions, support and training to a worldwide audience. Amongst the commercial side of EMC, they also provide valuable advice on many topics that can be discussed and used to enhance small and medium business (SMB) growth. The document in focus concerns EMC's top 10 tips for online collaboration for SMB's. These 10 tips may help SMB's in selecting what kind of collaboration software is best suited to the company. The document is in PDF format and located at http://www.retrospect.com/assets/Top10_WebCollab_en.pdf . A brief interpretation of the PDF is below, for the full article refer to the link immediately above. EMC's Top 10 Tips in Brief 1. Workspaces should be simple and easy to setup and manage. Workplace setup should be a quick process with limited IT involvement. 2. Avoid collaboration software that creates multiple points within workspaces. Locating a document should not be confusing or misleading. 3. Select the software that provides tools to deliver and work on assignments in real time. "Managers must be able to assign owners, create tasks, set milestones, establish deadlines, and track the progress of tasks" [1]. 4. Avoid collaboration software that requires workspaces to have custom coding or IT development. Instead, allow for software that provides an easy design.

5. Go for collaboration software that gives managers constant visibility across several projects. 6. Choose software that provides a secure way to manage external teams- including partners or suppliers. 7. Ensure the collaboration software has web-based workspaces so that geographic location and time zones do not become an issue. 8. The software must be secure and protection settings easily managed. 9. Keep in mind what level of internal workspace security is required - should permissions be at folder level or file level? Make sure the collaboration software suits the internal security levels of the business. 10. Collaborative software should be cost effective, consider company growth and tolerate a mixture of operating systems, various browser types and email clients. The strength of EMC's tips is that they can be applied to many web-based collaboration products on the market and are clearly suited towards SMB's. However, this implies that the list may not be extensive enough to relate to large firms. Overall, EMC's tips offer a starting point for what to look for when selecting collaboration software for businesses. References/Notes [1] EMC. Top Ten Tips for Web-based Collaboration in SMBs, http://www.retrospect.com/assets/Top10_WebCollab_en.pdf [accessed April 6, 2010].

Online collaboration requires unique group dynamic solutions, the lack of physical presence and asynchronous communication involved can create chains of emails and long lists of data that require constant analysis. The MindMeister software works like a digital whiteboard that can be manipulated by multiple users and instantly updated to reflect changes.[1] Mind mapping allows individuals to communicate to the overall objectives of the group, in a non delegate manner. Mind mapping is a very powerful methodology for structuring your own ideas but also within workshops it can be a strong tool for both learners and trainers. [2] diagrammatically communicating words, ideas and images into group visual thinking. The software has a creative and simple graphical user interface can create a hierarchical structure that can be linked and rearranged around a central theme, intuitively arranging the brainstormed concepts and ideas into groupings and assists targeting and distinguishing goals and objectives. The non-linear format allows for the creative progression of ideas with a simple history timeline to keep project teams updated on latest changes to the map, changes can be sorted by individual contributions to see how a team reached an idea and the ability to link and share ideas in real-time facilitates multi-user planning, brainstorming and project management sessions, removing obstacles of geography and time. The iPhone applications and browser extensions incorporate this creative software into standard business practice and the open source software is REST-based API allowing for simple integration into other applications and the 256 bit data encryption means that data is secure.

References: [1] MindMeister available from http://www.mindmeister.com/ [2] Top 100 Tools, Centre for Learning & Performance Technologies available from: http://www.c4lpt.co.uk/Top100Tools/mindmeister.html/ [3] Programmable Web available from http://www.programmableweb.com/api/mindmeister/

Mind maps are useful in the generation of ideas particularly in a group situtation. For a mind map, a main idea is taken and starts in the centre of the page. Key words and images are worked outwards in different directions. All words and ideas have many other ideas and concepts [1]. A Mind Map is "the Swiss Army Knife of the Brain" [3] which helps to improve your learning and thinking skills by prompting the brain with cues to help it work the left and right side of the brain [3]. A mind map helps organise information and rather than completing it on paper an online version such as MindMeister can be used for group collaboration [2]. Mind maps can be created in real time and viewed as changes are made [2]. Mind maps can be used in an organisation to plan meetings, know more about your competition, plan accounts and plan projects [2]. With MindMeister, mind maps can be worked on off-line and synchronised with your account once you are back so you can work anywhere that doesn't have an internet connection [2]. Mind Maps are private by default but can be made public if you choose so that you can share maps with people within your organisation or all over the world. All changes to the maps are recorded in a history so that you can see who did what and when [2]. [1] Creativity Web (2007). Mind Maps. Retrieved 19 April, 2010, from http://members.optusnet.com.au/charles57/Creative/Mindmap/ [2] MeisterLabs (2010). MindMeister. Retrieved 19 April, 2010, from http://www.mindmeister.com/ [3] Buzan (2009). Maxamise the Power of Your Brain. Retrieved 19 April, 2010, from http://www.buzan.com.au/learning/mind_mapping.html

GoToMeeting is a service from Citrix that facilitates online meetings between multiple people. The service not only allows for audio chat, but also desktop/screen and file sharing (Citrix, 2010). The service supports up to 15 concurrent users in a single meeting. Similar services are available for larger presentations in the form of GoToWebinar and GoToTraining allowing for 100-1000 and 25-200 users respectively depending on the level of service subscribed. At the conclusion of a meeting, GoToMeeting offers the ability to see who attended the meeting and who did not. To protect the security of its subscribers, GoToMeeting and Citrix's other GoTo products use 128-bit AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) end-to-end encryption (Citrix, 2010). This ensures that all communication is only seen by the intended recipients. AES encryption is a proven encryption algorithm and the cipher approved by the NSA (an American intelligence agency) for storing information up to the SECRET level (and TOP SECRET if a 192-bit or 256-bit key is used) (CNSS Secretariat, 2003). GoToMeeting has several competitors. The main competitors appear to be Cisco WebEx and Microsoft SharedView (successor to NetMeeting). However, competition also exists with combinations of free tools that fill the same need once combined. For example, Skype coupled with TeamViewer could be used to accomplish much the same task although not nearly as easy to use in the screen sharing combined with audio conferencing aspect. Citrix. (2010). Features. Retrieved April 12, 2010, from GoToMeeting: http://www.gotomeeting.com/fec/online_collaboration Citrix. (2010). Security & Reliability. Retrieved April 13, 2010, from GoToMeeting: http://www.gotomeeting.com/fec/secure_web_conferencing CNSS Secretariat. (2003,

GoToMeeting is a "popular online meeting application" (Ramachandran & Beeram, 2009) that is used to "collaborate online, give presentations and for online training." (Ramachandran & Beeram, 2009) This easy-to-use application allows collaborating with anyone, anywhere, saving businesses time and money particularly with traveling expenses. (Business Wire, 2009) GoToMeeting is used by small and large businesses; with the ability to "host an online meeting with up to 15 people". (Online Meetings, 2010) For $US49 a month and an Internet connection, it can be operated on Mac or PC, and now on the iPad. An App for the iPad was created, due to the "need for more mobility in our work styles." (Citrix Online, 2010) This creates more opportunity to collaborate remotely, without the need to be in the office. Online meetings can begin with a simple click of a button. Members can be invited to join by phone or a link in an email or instant message. (How It Works, 2010) Members can join quickly and start collaborating, using their computers microphone and speakers or by calling in via telephone. (Ramachandran & Beeram, 2009) Some feature of GoToMeeting are listed below: * Display presenters screen - The presenters screen is shown, displaying the desktop, an application or document. The presenter can change the screen shown to view another members screen. This helps members visualize. * Drawing tools - encouraging interactive collaboration. Highlighting and drawing using the pen, highlighter, arrow or spotlight tool * Record Meetings - meeting can be reviewed at a later date. Recording can be posted on the company website for other employees to listen to. * Mouse and keyboard controls - can be given to other members in the meeting, allowing members to collaborate.

* Security features - Creating a safe and secure environment. "SSL-encrypted Web site, End-to-end 128-bit AES encryption, Automatic inactivity time-out" (Security & Reliability, 2010) GoToMeeting is a quick and simple meeting tool that is effective for small and large businesses and allows employees to collaborate with each other on a daily basis. Reference: Business Wire. (2009). Retrieved April 17, 2010, from http://www.gotomeeting.com/fec/images/pdf/caseStudies/GoToMeeting_GoToWebinar_cs_Business_Wire.pdf Citrix Online Launches GoToMeeting App for iPad. (2010). Retrieved April 17, 2010, from http://www.citrixonline.com/pr/pressRelease.tmpl?FileID=040210& SourceTemplate=expertcity%2Fpr%2FpressReleases.tmpl How It Works. (2010). Retrieved April 16, 2010, from http://www.gotomeeting.com/fec/web_meeting Online Meetings Made Easy. (2010). Retrieved April 16, 2010, from http://www.gotomeeting.com/fec/online_meeting Ramachandran, K. & Beeram, S. (2009). Supporting Enterprise-Grade Audio Conferencing on the Internet. Lecture Notes In Computer Science, 5448(2009), 143-152. Retrieved April 16, from SpringerLink database. Security & Reliability. (2010). Retrieved April 16, 2010, from http://www.gotomeeting.com/fec/secure_web_conferencing