Tuesday, August 29, 2006

Zoho - An Impressive Suite of Web 2.0 Apps

Zoho - Affordable software for individuals, small & medium business

I just came across Zoho today, and they have assembled an impressive list of Web 2.0 apps, most of which appear to be free or low-cost. The first application that I have used is Zoho Projects, which is a free project management tool that seems pretty decent (you sure can't beat the price). I was able to create a project plan for a demo platform that I'm working on in less than five minutes--try *that* in MS Project! Curiously, Zoho Projects does not appear in the list of Zoho apps--perhaps it's in beta and they're limiting access to people who come across it (like me).

Upon further investigation, I discovered that Zoho is actually a product of AdventNet, whom I worked with quite a bit as an industry analyst. AdventNet has quite a collection of enterprise management, security, database, software testing, and now collaboration/CRM (Zoho suite) products--they have been very busy! AdventNet got their start years ago by creating an SNMP toolkit that is embedded in many systems management products today.

I plan to try out the other online Zoho tools, which include an office suite (replete with a word processor, spreadsheet, collaboration software (email client, calendar, etc), chat client, presenter, planner, and even a CRM tool--quite an impressive list. Virtually all of them are 100% free with the exception of Zoho Virtual Office (the Outlook-like app), which is free for up to 10 users, and Zoho CRM, which is free for up to 3 users. I have not been able to find pricing for Zoho Project, but my guess is that it is free for up to a certain number of users.

In addition to the office tools, Zoho also includes a set of management tools, including a Website monitoring service (100% free!), a survey tool, and a tool for evaluating candidates--the latter is free for up to 25 candidates. Incredible.

This is by far the most complete set of apps that I've found in one place--rivaling what Google is trying to assemble with Writely, et al. Kudos to the AdventNet team for creating all of these apps, and for making most of them completely free!

Monday, August 28, 2006

WikiCharts � Top 100 � 08/2006

WikiCharts � Top 100 � 08/2006

Cool new tool that shows which Wikipedia pages are accessed the most.

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

WikiMapia - Cool Web 2.0 Mashup

Today I discovered a very cool Web 2.0 mashup that combines Google Maps with Wiki functionality, allowing people to tag places all over the world, adding their own comments and information. I heard about them as they recently announced that the millionth place had been tagged, indicating (to me, anyway) that they are "for real".

To try them out, I tagged the two fishing camps that I visit every year: Davin Lake Lodge and Wathaman Outpost (their commercial website is at http://www.davinlake.com) . To view the tags I created, click on the boxes, and if you've visited their camps, feel free to add to my entries (anyone can edit any of the listings--the beauty of Wiki!).

I also recently added a WikiMapia entry for my company, Proxima Technology, which is about to relocate its UK headquarters to an awesome office, called the New Lodge, near Windsor.

Cool stuff!