I was introduced to Basecamp, which is a project management
software, during one of our board meetings and wanted to find out more on how
it will benefit our team. Please click: http://ridz.sg/blog/2010/08/what-is-basecamp-and-how-i-use-it to read more
about this online collaboration.
I've been using Google Docs for many of our department
projects and wanted to break down the benefits of each here:
Google Docs:
- User creates a document (word processing,
spreadsheet, etc.) and the document "lives" in the cloud. - User invites other users and gives them certain privileges (read only, edit, etc.).
- The doc is always available since it "lives" in the cloud.
- Multiple people can be editing and/or viewing the doc at the same time - nice feature if two or more people are collaborating on a conference call and working on the doc at the same time.
- Users can export the doc to MSWord format, for example, if the user wants to get it onto their desktop.
- Feature set is good but is pretty basic - enough so that some users may not have all the cool features that they enjoy on their desktop apps.
- Biggest benefit is that many users can see and edit the document from many locations at any time since it's living in the cloud.
- Biggest downside is that some of the more advanced app features from desktop apps may not be available.
Basecamp:
- User creates their document on their desktop and uploads a copy to Basecamp.
- User can specify who can see and download the document.
- Users who want to work on a document download it to their desktop and then upload it again when they are done. Users can specify whether or not to send an email notification when a new revision has been uploaded.
- Basecamp allows you to see previous iterations of the document - all versions are stored permanently.
- Basecamp has tons of nice project management features: basic project calendar, allows you to set up and assign milestones to specific dates and people, alerts assignees when a milestone is imminent or is past due, assign To-Do's with deadlines to individuals, track hours worked.
- Stores threads of conversations (messages) in a central location so all project-related conversations are easy to find.
- Nice email notification features when changes are made to project components.
- Iterative storage of project-related docs.
- Available apps for the iPhone, Android, and Blackberry.
- $24/month pay as you go vs. Google Docs which are free, but if you are needing some project management features then the price is WELL worth it.
- Biggest upside: great project management features, very easy to set up and use, love the pay as you go (no long-term contracts), nice conversation thread management, nice email reminders.
- Biggest downside in comparison to Google Docs: If users need to collaborate and edit a document simultaneously someone will need to set up a webinar (free for up to 3 people using Acrobat Connect, though there are several other free and paid screen-sharing software apps out there).
I guess it ultimately comes down to preference
in choosing a platform that best works for your team.
