This article is the fourth of a series of articles exploring specific aspects of groupware. The brief informational articles in this series discuss some of the technologies associated with groupware, as well as some of the characteristics of groupware. Some of these characteristics may go hand in hand with business collaborative needs. Other characteristics go beyond what some groupware providers have to offer. The purpose of these articles is to equip the groupware user or investigator with helpful knowledge about the product in order to enable more effective use or to lead the investigator to the groupware service he or she is looking for. This fourth article explores the ability of groupware to facilitate online collaboration.

Online Collaboration

Online collaboration consists of sending emails back and forth to edit and review attached documents, like market reports, budgets, contracts, and press releases. Most businesses go through this process very regularly with departments, clients, investors, and strategic partners.

In today’s fast-paced business world, businesses are constantly under deadlines, working tirelessly for their business and client needs. The challenge is in keeping up with all of the online collaboration going on. After all, online collaboration has become an ad hoc process, and document versions get saved in multiple email boxes and on multiple hard drives. When it comes time to merge document changes and create a final draft, many questions are left unanswered.

The market has recognized the need for groupware, or online collaboration software, to manage and track document changes. Using the right groupware will even enable businesses to manage ad hoc online collaboration, tracking all of the documents versions across multiple emails, hard drives, and servers. The who, what, when, where, and how are all answered, and businesses will have an organizational edge in the high-speed information age of business.

Online Collaboration Tools with Groupware

5,200,000 indexed pages are found under “groupware” in Google; 4,840,000 in Yahoo; and 955,263 in MSN Search. In order to find groupware for your business online collaboration needs, you need to be equipped with the knowledge of the tools your business needs in its groupware.

Digital Thread technology takes groupware to a whole new level and is the means of tracking document versions across emails, hard drives, and servers. Digital Thread literally threads the document versions together by tagging the metadata of an electronic document, so that no matter to whom it is sent or what changes are made, the data comes back to you. It creates digital signatures in your email, informing you whether you are opening the latest version of the document, and who saved it. As the process becomes more involved, and drafts have been sent back and forth between multiple reviewers multiple times, you’ll be able to access a version history. Version history is compiled by Digital Thread technology and provides a visual display of the genealogy of the document, from first draft to last. This also makes it possible to merge the changes as the final draft is compiled.

Groupware that can manage online collaboration and go beyond a simple electronic draft filing system to work the way 21st century businesses work.

Joe Miller is an online advertiser and author of informational articles on business software. More information on Groupware or Online Collaboration is available at NextPage.com.

Information technology has gradually taken over our lives. survey software has revolutionized survey methods, allowing surveys to be done for less cost, time and effort. From beginning to end, survey software is capable of doing all that can be thought of. It helps design questions, set answer choices, collects results and analyses them in numerous ways. With software like this in hand, newer ways of dispatching survey and collecting results are also being explored.

Online survey software is one of the fastest methods developed to deploy a survey. A further enhancement to this is email survey software, which is completely email supported. It has all technical features of Survey software: drop down boxes, color, font, the option to make questions mandatory, and the ability to create questionnaires and analyze results. Unlike online survey software, it does not require a web server to implement a survey. The survey, which is in HTML format, is received by respondents as a MIME encoded email or as an attachment. When the filled survey is submitted, it passes through a Compressweb Formmail gateway. The gateway composes a new email message, which is then sent back to the questionnaire sender. An emailing engine tracks responses and sends reminder emails. Documents, graphic and sound files can also be attached along with the survey for feedback from respondents.

The survey can be dispatched by various methods. A URL can be emailed to respondents and posted on a website. Survey popups can be added to existing websites and configured to reach users only once. HTML formats can also be created to add a survey to e-newsletters. The email survey software sends out blank surveys and receives completed ones through email. There is more saving on time, as this system rejects duplicated or forwarded mails. Emails are accepted from only those who have been selected. The system frequently checks the POP3 server or Outlook Express (whichever applicable) for survey replies and stores them.

Like all other forms of survey software, different versions of email survey software are available online with many vendors. Simplest versions with less features are available for trial at minimal or no charges. Advanced versions are available only with full payment options.

Survey Software provides detailed information on Survey Software, Online Survey Software, Email Survey Software, Free Survey Software and more. Survey Software is affiliated with Tax Preparation Software.

Patch management often presents conflicting demands on IT organizations charged with ensuring system security while optimizing system reliability and integrity. Because the time between discovering a system vulnerability and the emergence of an attack is declining, IT organizations are under pressure to apply patches before adequate testing, and without system downtime. A sound patch management strategy is a critical part of any secure enterprise.

Baseline the Environment:

Developing any patch management plan begins with a firm understanding of the current enterprise. Data must be gathered on the configuration of every server, workstation, and network component in the system. Such data is necessary when evaluating the risk and therefore the necessity of particular patches.

This baselining may be performed as part of a larger configuration management and risk assessment effort. Although data may be gathered manually, automated tools exist which will do the same work while also keeping the data current. Vulnerability scans can be used to discover services that should be removed or disabled.

Once data is gathered, machines should be brought to the same benchmark security risk level. For servers, an assessment must also be made of their criticality to the enterprise. Change control documents and procedures should be developed, particularly if server hardware and operating system maintenance is performed by one group while software application maintenance is performed by another.

Identify, Evaluate, and Plan:

Keeping current with system updates and patches can be overwhelming. Not only are there often many, but decisions about which are critical, which are merely useful, and which are unnecessary or even potentially harmful, must be made quickly.

Automated tools can make the identification and evaluation stage easier by monitoring the current patch status of the server or workstation (or scanning it on demand) and comparing the status with the ideal configuration for the system, producing recommendations for patch installation.

Perform Test Deployment:

Before deploying patches to the wider enterprise, deployment should be conducted in a test environment that mirrors the production environment. At a minimum the environment should represent all critical applications, and ideally, all enterprise platforms. If replication of the production hardware is not possible, at least patch compatibility with operating systems and applications should be tested. Test deployment should begin with the least critical servers first.

Deploy and Report:

New tools for patch distribution can greatly simplify deployment. Tools such as the Microsoft Systems Update Services audit the enterprise, download patches from a central database, and manage their installation. They may also analyze dependencies and provide rollback features. Patches can be advertised, downloaded, and installed by clients according to security settings determined by a group security policy. Such solutions exist for Windows as well as UNIX/LINUX systems; cross-platform patch management solutions are also available for heterogeneous enterprises. Enterprises without these tools can use login scripts or place patches on intranet sites for users to install themselves. Patching of mission-critical servers should be done manually during off-peak hours in case recovery is necessary.

Jonathan Coupal is the Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of ITX Corp. Mr. Coupal manages both the day-to-day and strategic operations of the Technology Integration Practice Group. Among Mr. Coupal’s greatest strengths are evaluating customers’ unique problems, developing innovative, cost effective solutions and providing a “best practice” implementation methodology. Mr. Coupal’s extensive knowledge and experience enables him to fully analyze client systems to recommend the most effective technologies and solutions that will both optimize their business processes and fulfill immediate and future goals. Mr. Coupal and his team build a high level of trust with clients, establishing ITX as their IT partner of choice.
Mr. Coupal holds certifications with Microsoft and CompTia, including MCSE, MCSA, Security+, Linux+ and i-Net+, and served as a Subject Matter Expert (SME) for the development of the CompTia Linux+.

About ITX Corp:

ITX Corp is a business consulting and technology solutions firm focused in nine practice areas including Business Performance, Internet Marketing, IT Staffing, IT Solution Strategies and Implementation, Technical Services, Internet Services, and Technology Research. To learn more about what ITX can do for you visit our website at http://www.itx.net or contact us at (800) 600-7785.