Wikis can improve the utility of e-mail

Unified Communications This newsletter is sponsored by Hitachi Must-Read Whitepaper Cut the cost, risk, and complexity of your IT infrastructure without compromise by reading about the industry's first true blade server for enterprise data centers Network World's Unified Communications Newsletter, 07/10/07 Wikis can improve the utility of e-mail By Michael Osterman E-mail is a fantastically useful tool for many applications, but project management using e-mail as the primary communications vehicle could use improvement. Some of the deficiencies of e-mail for managing projects include the fact that only specified recipients are included on the distribution list for updates, and lots of ‘spammy’ messages are sent (e.g., the ‘Thanks!’ messages that are often sent via Reply All in response to delivery of a draft document or other message). A better way to communicate is through the use of a wiki, a permissions-based Web page or Web site that permits users to add various types of content, modify existing content, add Web links and perform other tasks. Wikis make it easier for groups to collaborate on projects and other work by improving the efficiency of communications between members of the group. Manage Insider Security Threats Experts say 75% of security threats come from inside your organization. Watch the latest Network World Editorial Perspectives Webcast today, "Security From the Inside," and learn which technologies and processes best protect your intellectual property and assets inside the perimeter. Click Here to View Using a wiki to manage a project, for example, anyone with access to it can view previous communications between participants and add content for everyone to see, allowing an organization to realize the benefits of ‘persistence’ of messages. Using e-mail for managing a project would restrict communication only to those individuals who had been copied on e-mails or who had received forwarded copies of messages. Replies would be sent to everyone, getting lost in many recipients’ mailboxes instead of being organized by date, subject, etc. in a single interface. From a purely functional standpoint, wikis not only make it easier to manage projects, but also can significantly reduce e-mail traffic in an organization. For example, instead of a message sent to 10 people, each of whom can respond back, generating up to 100 messages in response, a message or document can be posted to a wiki with reduced impacts on bandwidth and storage requirements. We’ve written a white paper on Web 2.0 issues and wikis, sponsored by Socialtext, that discusses the benefits of wikis and some of the key considerations in deploying them for your organization. You can download the white paper here.   What do you think? Post a comment on this newsletter

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Contact the author: For webinars or research on messaging, or to join the Osterman Research market research survey panel, go here. Osterman Research helps organizations understand the markets for messaging and directory related offerings. To e-mail Michael, click here. This newsletter is sponsored by Hitachi Must-Read Whitepaper Cut the cost, risk, and complexity of your IT infrastructure without compromise by reading about the industry's first true blade server for enterprise data centers ARCHIVE Archive of the Unified Communications Newsletter. BONUS FEATURE IT PRODUCT RESEARCH AT YOUR FINGERTIPS Get detailed information on thousands of products, conduct side-by-side comparisons and read product test and review results with Network World’s IT Buyer’s Guides. Find the best solution faster than ever with over 100 distinct categories across the security, storage, management, wireless, infrastructure and convergence markets. Click here for details. PRINT SUBSCRIPTIONS AVAILABLE You've got the technology snapshot of your choice delivered to your inbox each day. Extend your knowledge with a print subscription to the Network World newsweekly, Apply here today. International subscribers, click here. SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES To subscribe or unsubscribe to any Network World newsletter, change your e-mail address or contact us, click here. This message was sent to: networking.world@gmail.com. Please use this address when modifying your subscription. Advertising information: Write to Associate Publisher Online Susan Cardoza Network World, Inc., 118 Turnpike Road, Southborough, MA 01772 Copyright Network World, Inc., 2007