Category: Collaboration software
Name of tool: Groove Networks 1.0
Company name: Groove Networks, Inc.
Price: free
URL: www.groove.net
Windows platforms supported: 95, 98, NT (SP 3 or better), 2000, Me
Quick description: A terrific way for workgroups to collaborate, with built-in security
Strom-meter:
**** = Very cool, very useful
Key features:
Pros:
Peer to peer file sharing and discussions
Easy to setup and use
Cons:
Works best on continuous Internet connections
Lacking address book imports
Not compatible with AOL Instant Messenger or other IM applications
Description:
Collaboration among remote workers usually means emailing or faxing
documents back and forth. Apart from the pain of trying to send large
attachments, there is another reason why this isn't a good idea: the lack of
security inherent in most Internet-based email and faxes.
There is a solution to this problem from a new company called Groove
Networks. And it is absolutely free of charge. The software, which presently only works on Windows, does for collaboration what Word did for documents. IT delivers a new set of services and defines a new era of computing.
Groove has lots of tools that come ready-to-use as part of its overall
application. There is a document sharing tool, a discussion/chat tool, a
tool to send instant messages (using its own system, not
compatible with AOL IM or any other IM system), and others including games
such as chess and tic-tac-toe. The idea here is that you make use of
whatever tools you need to collaborate with others.
And the best part about Groove is that security is built in. Documents are
sent over the wire encrypted. You need do nothing else to keep your private
information private. No settings to remember (or mangle); no switches to
setup. It just works. You can share your groove "spaces" (as they are called) with whomever you wish, and invite others to join you or uninvite them as your needs change.
Think of this software as a combination of the best things from Notes and
Napster. The Notes heritage is an obvious comparison, since Ray Ozzie is at
the heart of both products. The Napster comparison is apt because Groove
operates as a peer-to-peer service, meaning that there is no central Groove
server for you to setup. However, the company does maintain a central Groove
directory of users, in which you can opt to include as much or as little
information as you'd like.
Groove can replace a mixed bag of Internet tools. For example, I used to use
My Yahoo for keeping track of my personal calendar and contacts,
MyDocsOnline.com as a shared storage space for my critical documents, and
AOL Instant Messenger (IM) to communicate quickly with friends and
colleagues. Groove combines all three of these services into a single,
coherent system.
One of the best things I liked about Groove was the ability to share
information on my home and work machines. If you have ever left a copy of a
file that you labored on for hours on your home machine, you'll understand
the value of this. If your home PC is connected to the Internet via a
broadband connection, then you can leave your documents in the shared file
area of Groove and pick them up when you get to your work PC. There is
nothing to upload or download, it all just works without any action on your
part.
Speaking of continuous Internet connections, this is one weakness of Groove.
While the product does work over a dial-up connection, you'll probably want
to make the best use of it over higher-speed lines like DSL, cable modems,
or T-1s. There is a fair amount of information to be transferred, and the
slower connections will make it more frustrating to use. You'll also want at
least a 233 MHz Pentium with 64 MB of RAM -- and more RAM is better as
Groove is particularly memory-hungry.
All is not perfect: aside from a lack of compatibility with AOL IM, you
can't import an existing address book into the Groove address book, although
this feature is planned for the future.
But overall, Groove represents a great first step forward, towards a useful
collaboration tool for distributed workgroups. And its value will increase
as more people make use of it within a corporation.
Strom-meter key:
**** = Very cool, very useful
*** = Hey, not bad. One notch below very cool
** = A tad shaky to install and use but has some value.
* = Don't waste your time. Minimal real value.
Bio: David Strom is president of his own consulting firm in Port Washington, NY. He has tested hundreds of computer products over the past two decades working as a computer journalist, consultant, and corporate IT manager.
Since 1995 he has written a weekly series of essays on web technologies and
marketing called Web Informant. You can send him email at david@strom.com.
