Signals offers a suite of web-based collaboration applications. All applications are mobile-optimized.
Basecamp - Project Management
Highrise - Contact Management
Backpack - File/Information Sharing
Confluence is a commercial wiki product used by many universities, open source software efforts, etc. It is a product of Atlassian, and provides rich and flexible editing capabilities and a plugin environment to extend the features of the wiki. There is an extensive range of plugins. Many organizations use it for documentation, group collaboration, project or course sites, knowledge management, internal web sites, etc. It supports a range of access control options for supporting anything from private to group to open-to-the-world access for viewing and editing.
Dropbox is an on-line file storage and sharing service. 2GB of Dropbox is available for free, with subscriptions up to 100GB available. Shared folders allow people to work together on the same projects and documents.
Dropbox files are also available off-line, and folders can be synced between multiple computers and mobile devices. Dropbox therefore can be used as a backup mechanism for important files, although it is by no means a complete solution.
Drupal is a open source CMS (Content Management System) for websites. Drupal enables webmasters to create professional websites with a minimal amount of specialized coding or systems support.
EtherPad is a collaborative, web-based text editor that supports concurrent document changes, versioning, and built-in formatting for a group of people. Etherpad makes it easy for people to simultaneously type, in real-time, on one document. Each author enters their name and selects a color - as they type, text shows up as a color. A collaborative "pad" can be created by anyone, and each pad has its own URL. It is possible to set up password protected pads.
Google Docs provides for web-based creation, editing and management of:
spreadsheets
textual documents
presentations
forms
graphics
Users can upload and download documents in different formats, and Google Docs can be used as a basic migration tool between them. The tool allows collaborative real-time editing by multiple users of the same document. It also allows users to share collections of documents with others. Different permission levels can be assigned to documents, restricting access to individuals, groups, or open to the public.
Google Groups supports the creation of discussion forums for virtual communities to share information via the internet. It is a free mailing list service and can provide open access. Groups can be open or closed. Users can be anonymous. Posts can be made through the web browser or by sending email. It also provides a variety of group management functions. Google Groups archives past posts/emails.
Google Public Data Explorer provides an interface for exploring, visualizing and sharing large datasets. Its interactive visualization tools enable changes to be tracked over time. Although primarily intended to enable non-specialists to interrogate public datasets, users can also upload their own data after describing them in Datset Publishing Language (DSPL). The tool is in beta form.
Google Sites is a software technology created by Google that enables you to quickly create a collaborative website. Multiple people can work together on a Google Site to add file attachments and new, free-form pages and content. Google Sites uses an editor for creating content that is very much like editing a document. Creators of a Google Site have control over who has access (via Google accounts), or a Google Site can be published so that it is accessible to the public.
Joomla! is an open source content management system (CMS). Joomla! provides a structured website that enables users to create and edit various types of web content without requiring in depth technical knowledge of web authoring or programming languages. Novice users can create web pages and add basic text and graphics to them with only a minimal introduction to the system; they can also take advantage of Joomla! “components,” which are preformatted data templates that provide added features and functionality to web pages.
Skype is VOIP and instant messaging software that allows voice and chat communication between computers and phone systems via the internet. Direct computer to computer via the internet is free of charge, and computer to phone connections via the internet have a relatively small fee. Additional features include video conferencing and file transfer. Acquired by Microsoft in May 2011.
Webex is a proprietary web collaboration and meeting environment. WebEx allows users to host and join web video- and tele-conferences. WebEx requires client-side Java, a browser, and a plugin, but once installed, users can host and join meetings with a browser and no additional software. WebEx web conferencing allows any user to become the "presenter" can share an application or their entire desktop over the web with other meeting participants.
WordPress is an open source content management system (CMS). It provides a structured website that enables users to create and edit various types of web content without requiring in depth technical knowledge of web authoring or programming languages.
Novice users can create web pages and add basic text and graphics to them with only a minimal introduction to the system; they can also take advantage of WordPress plugins, widgets, and themes. WordPress can also be used simply as a blogging tool.
Zotero is an open source reference management software which manages bibliographic data and related research materials (such as PDFs). On many websites such as library catalogs, PubMed, Google Scholar, Google Books, Amazon.com, Wikipedia, and publisher's websites, Zotero shows an icon when a book, article, or other resource is being viewed. By clicking this icon, the full reference information can be saved to the Zotero library. Zotero can also save a copy of the webpage, or, in the case of scientific articles, a copy of the full text PDF.
