An Overview of Online Collaboration Tools Lisa Wolfisch

An Overview of Online Collaboration Tools Lisa Wolfisch Rachael La. Porte Taylor SSD Internet Staff

"The original idea of the web was that it should be a collaborative space where you can communicate through sharing information. The idea was that by writing something together, and as people worked on it, they could iron out misunderstanding. " Tim Berners-Lee, 2003 2

Collaboration Tools l Instant Messaging l Collaboration Platforms l Weblogging Software 3

Instant Messaging l Real-time conversations – – Quiet Quick response Back channel communications New tools aimed at office communication l Conferences – – l Share files – l Virtual meetings Audio/video Instant feedback Build relationships by easing communication 4

Collaboration Platforms l l l Develop, communicate, and share information Web-based, scalable, connecting team members from Census Bureau and agency partners Archival of shared documents and threaded discussions allow tracking of evolution of particular topics 5

Collaboration Platforms l Other integrated features available through “Site. Scape” – – – Document management: shared documents with versioning Threaded discussions Calendars Instant messaging File sharing Online meetings 6

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Weblogs l Initially comprised of online journals maintained by individual authors l Contain a regular series of postings about a topic, dayto-day events, links to other sites and commentary l Adopted by corporations and agencies as a communication tool for customer relationships 10

Weblogs l l l l Allow for categorized, threaded discussions Multiple authors Document project issues A public record of progress, milestones Dated archives Distribution of content through RSS feeds Moveable Type, Blosxom, Radio User. Land 11

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