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Recently, I have been testing a range of free collaboration tools (Microsoft's Shared View (public wait list), Live Messenger, Google Docs, Yugma, Skype and Unyte). I have also previously used paid services such as Webex, Live Meeting and Adobe Connect.
I have found the three critical aspects needed for a good online meeting with say 4 attendees to be:
Whilst many free tools meet some of these challenges, few get close to a complete solution. And when you try to use a mix of tools then bandwidth needs rise and the ability of each tool to manage available bandwidth fails!
On the basis that one of the participants may have limited bandwidth - say 500 effective kbps- then I have found it unrealistic to try and run Voip, Webcams and Content sharing at the same time.
To overcome the bandwidth constraint, my recent online meetings have tended to reserve bandwidth for content collaboration and support calls with audio conferencing being provided by a dial up service (for the UK) like www.all-call.com.
We still have a little way to go before bandwidth and services is ubiquitous!
Office Live Small Business was upgraded yesterday by Microsoft. The entry level service is now free and greatly enhanced with the addition of business applications modules alongside a free domain and on-line web site design service.
Individuals and small professional service networks now have access to a powerful online tool that provides both a public facing web site and a secure password protected email, document management, applications and online marketing space that can be accessed from a browser. With support for the Firefox web browser the service is also now accessible by clients, associates and colleagues who may be on a Mac so is likely to attract a lot of interest from marketing and design professionals.
The service works easily alongside Office Live Workspaces (wait list in the UK) - an online space for sharing personal documents and data lists. It is also now integrated with Shared View - Microsoft's online collaboration and screen sharing tool.
Whilst their are many browser based solutions for web site design, emarketing, contact management, document management and online collaboration, none are currently as comprehensive as Office Live Small Business.
With the added option to access a range of standard business applications (e.g. project manager) for free or invest in building or buying your own custom applications, this is great step forward for the professional looking for a simple and cost-effective solution to work online.
Sure does. Microsoft gains access to Yahoo's content and community services (News, Video + Yahoo Groups , Yahoo Answers) and many professionals using Yahoo's Small Business services. Content and Community are critical parts of social network solutions based around Web 2.0 and will be key to online professional's networks. Yahoo gets access to Microsoft's strong profile in the professional services segment (Windows + Office software + Office Accounting 2008) and can use its capabilities in online services, content and community to strengthen the Microsoft Live offering. Together, they could provide the Professional 2.0 type services that currently exist in a fragmented market.
Whilst Yahoo provides strong search, webmail, messenger and content services (flickr and delicious), it does not have a online website development and workspace/application service like Office Live. Yahoo does have depth however in its Small Business website software and services that would enhance an Office Live offering. Also, having acquired Zimbra, an excellent messaging and collaboration solution, these services could be integrated into Office Live to make it a complete solution for the the online professional.
Together, there is the potential to create a Professional 2.0 offering which combines WebPresence (Site+Blog) , Collaboration, Business Services and Community.
In developing web2consultant.com (my Professional 2.0 website) I have used a wide range of (mostly) free Web 2.0 tools. These may be gadgets / widgets that can be easily embedded using copy and paste functions as HTML code on a web page, services that can be accessed in the browser, software or a combination of two or more of these elements.
Whilst many of these tools are primarily targeted at consumers / non business groups, their features are often ideal for what an online professional needs.
I have set up a Toolbox section on web2consultant.com to showcase these tools "in action" together with brief overviews of their key features and relevant set up tasks.
So far, I have showcased around 20 tools related to the following areas:-
Each of these tools gives the online professional the capability to extend and make more effective their online capabilities.
Take a look around the Toolbox and rate / recommend the great Web 2.0 tools you use.
One of the key aspects of Web 2.0 that will have a major impact on professional services is the advent of "software as a service" solutions that allow individuals to access easy to use and functionally rich applications directly from the browser.
Today, typical browser based solutions for online professionals are as follows:
With only a sign-on id and password, an online professional can now access a range of powerful tools which do not need version upgrades, data back up or technical support.
In practice, I have found that power users can become frustrated by the response times and lack of functionality in online versions of email clients, Excel and Powerpoint equivalents. Another limitation can be the multiple sign-on IDs needed to work with a range of clients and colleagues in different technical / software environments.
Despite these factors, "software as a service" gives you considerable options on how to work with clients, stay up-to-date and access info quickly.
Increased bandwidth, better integration and consistent performance across different browsers will only add to the potential of these solutions and the advent of Professional 2.0
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