Enterprise Communication Meets the World of Warcraft

I'm working on my Enterprise Virtual Worlds presentation and was filling in some detail on communication in game-oriented virtual worlds that I would like to share here as well. 

Enterprises are wise to look to gaming from time to time due to trends in:

• Outside-in technology: how consumer technologies such as blogs and wikis increasingly find their way into enterprises
• Emergent gameplay: the use of gaming technology in ways the original designer hadn't intended
• User experience lessons: UE improvements tend to filter from the competitive gaming market to generalized applications.  Gaming is an optional activity, so UE has to be at a high level when you want the users to pay you to use their systems rather than the other way around.

Communication is interesting to explore since the number of communication channels that enterprises use (and every information worker must now attend to) has increased a great deal over the past five years to include instant messaging, presence, websites, and blogs.  Getting enterprises used to the idea of "channels" and how to manage and select between them has taken some time and some pain.

I was quite impressed when all the methods of communication in World of Warcraft (which was released in November of 2003) are laid out. WoW communication is strikingly similar (and maybe more efficient) than enterprise communication technology in many areas.

It includes:

• Channels: Players can subscribe to communication channels such as /trade to receive ongoing chat on the channel, or unsubscribe.  Another example is in EVE Online, which has a "newbie" channel that can put new players in touch with others taking their first steps, but can be turned off once the player is more confident.
• Chat modes (IM): The variety of built-in IM modes goes beyond most enterprise IM implementations which rely on groups.  They are: /say (vacinity), /party (your group only), /guild (your broader community), /yell (all in larger region), /whisper (one person)
• Presence: Friends can be selected and you are made aware when they come online/offline, and location is displayed (a feature still on the cutting edge in the enterprise)
• Mail: Consists of normal mail, packages, and COD packages. The inbox is visited at WoW Postal Service facilities, which has the pleasant effect of isolating the player trying to accomplish objectives from the stream of email since they only check it periodically when they visit town.  Also, since email costs money to send (a few copper pieces), there is practically no spam
• Emotes: There are over 100 emotes such as /wave, /thank, /cheer, /dance, etc. It is amazing how fluid the use of emotes gets in the real game, such that they do not feel like a conscious effort to be funny, but rather a natural way of expressing oneself in group situations. 

-Craig Roth

(note: this entry is cross-posted from the KnowledgeForward blog)

Introducing Enterprise³

For some time now you've probably noticed our linking to a new sister blog titled Enterprise³. As we've grown from our original event of Portals, Content and Collaboration, our partners and participants have helped us to realize the unique combination of disciplines and expertise within an organization as they develop and manage a strategy for these unique tools in the enterprise. Now that we've established this corresponding blog we want to officially invite you to join us and subscribe to our feed as we shut down this PCC blog.

We’re welcoming you to our new service, Enterprise³. Companies are currently in the stage where they are releasing the second round of tools to be used in their enterprise. In the past, there has been a lot of confusion about the reasons for such functionality and this has often lead business leaders to move slowly or incorrectly as they invest and adopt in these new capabilities within their organizations. Therefore, this is a new stage in the evolution to the PCC community focused on in-depth perspective into the world of portals and collaboration within the enterprise.

As members of PCC we were focused on bringing you:

Seminars on scripted language
Workshops for developers
Intranet building 101
Out of box versus customized
Taxonomy for Taxonomists
Case Studies addressing technical failures

Now with our new focus of Enterprise³, our goal is to expand beyond these offerings and bring you:

Collaborative workshops for business users and developers
Seminars for business uses about IT agility
Business user ad customer driven portal project plans
Helping IT get ‘the buy in’ from upper business management for new tools
Social media hot topics like Second Life and Virtual Worlds seminars an dhow they apply to business users and business needs
Creating dynamic content
Aligning technology with business strategy
Portal user interface and design
Breaking the communication code between IT and business

As you've already seen, we've been building up the Enterprise³ blog with the same quality content that you find here. Beginning today, this will be our last post on this blog but you can join us on the Enterprise³ blog, where we hope you'll join us there and continue to actively participate as you have here. Thank you and we look forward to seeing you at Enterprise³.

http://enterprise-3.blogspot.com/

Subscribe to the feed here: http://feeds.feedburner.com/Enterprise3

Yahoo in serious talks with Time Warner

Earlier in the year, we reported about the possibilities that Yahoo approached Time Warner to become partners with AOL instead of being bought by Microsoft. According to a post at EWeek, that’s exactly what’s going on today. They reported that in the Wall Street Journal, the two companies were considering merging, and Yahoo would be folded into the AOL sector of Time Warner.

According to the Mercury News in the Silicon Valley, these talks have lead to the extension of time in which Yahoo is accepting nominations before the annual shareholder meeting.

We're getting ready to launch a new blog that looks at the broader issues of Enterprise 2.0, add it to your RSS feed now as we get it ready for our official launch:http://enterprise-3.blogspot.com/

The Fear of the Unknown

At The Content Economy, they recently posted about the fear that accompanied emails when they first came into existence in enterprises. Back then, bosses feared that productivity would be lost when employees spent all day emailing their family and friends. But, now, we see a common oversaturation of emails. And we have to ask ourselves if that is the best way to communicate through out the enterprise.

So much of what we focus on in this blog could be a great alternative, such as: blogs, wikis, instant messaging, web conferencing and social software. These also bring up worries and concerns about improper use of these technologies. We ignore what these tools could be used for. As the Content Economy points out, what would have happened if bosses feared employees writing poems when the word processor first came out?

We're getting ready to launch a new blog that looks at the broader issues of Enterprise 2.0, add it to your RSS feed now as we get it ready for our official launch:http://enterprise-3.blogspot.com/

Sharepoint Gets an Upgrade

Today, Microsoft is expected to announce that their new software services Search Server 2008 Express and the Silverlight Blueprint for Sharepoint are now available. This news came from EWeek.

Search Server 2008 is a new free service that will be available to download. The new software will include a new set of capabilities to help businesses connect wide ranges of information. Silverlight combines the interactivity of Silverlight with the next generation web applications development platforms. Silverlight BluePrint is described as:

It includes sample applications that combine Silverlight and SharePoint, detailed guidance and proven best practices, and new rich business data visualizations and interactivity.

The registered number of SharePoint users is 2,250, with many more expected to have used this software in the corporations that utilize this software. SharePoint has also crossed the $1 billion profit mark.

We're getting ready to launch a new blog that looks at the broader issues of Enterprise 2.0, add it to your RSS feed now as we get it ready for our official launch:http://enterprise-3.blogspot.com/

Eight Essential Components for Wiki Adoption

Earlier this week, Andrew McAfee and Dan Tapscott presented some of the key elements to adapting a wiki in the enterprise. Thy were summed up on this post at Wiki Patterns.

1. Tools are intuitive and easy to use – these are tools that are easy to use, this should be understood by the employees.
2. Tools are egalitarian and freeform – these tools are free to use and an outlet for work.
3. Borders seem appropriate to users – people will naturally understand the content that needs to be shared on the site, so the wealth of relevant information will be huge.
4. Patient and dedicated evangelists exist -- Experts are out there to help you easily adapt your wiki.
5. Effort has official and unofficial support from the top – Senior management will show their consideration by funding and understanding. Also, when they start contributing to the wiki.
6. Slack exists in the workweek -- Allow this time during the week for your employees to contribute to your wiki.
7. Top management accepts lateralization – Pure public content is being created by everyone, and it’s not edited first. It’s pure, whole valuable information being put out there for all your employees to gain a better understanding of work processes in your company.
8. There are lots of young people – This generation knows how to use the technology provided by the new age of internet and they won’t be afraid to use it. They’ll fully adopt the idea of the corporate wiki.

We're getting ready to launch a new blog that looks at the broader issues of Enterprise 2.0, add it to your RSS feed now as we get it ready for our official launch:http://enterprise-3.blogspot.com/

Move over SharePoint, Google’s got a challenge

The New York Times posted a blog today about Google’s latest venture. It was announced yesterday that Google has unveiled their own version of Enterprise 2.0 software. With the announcement of Google Sites, Google has unveiled a tool that incorporates email, calendars, excels, documents and presentation software. What should Microsoft be the most worried about? It can be free of charge. And who is the brains behind this project? Joe Kraus, who was behind the website Excite which experienced its peak a few years ago, is the developer of this software.

The problem that Google might face when it comes to the technologies is that the information stored within the program is not on companies personal servers. The software also has limitations and is not as precise as SharePoint, but, since the application is free, many companies can overlook that.

I think Google is targeting little businesses. Huge corporations can afford that millions and millions of dollars it costs to finance Microsoft products. They probably already have SharePoint and are using the product effectively. However, for the millions of start ups and tiny companies that cannot pay the fees associated with keeping the Microsoft Suite up to date, this is a decent alternative. I think these programs will grow slowing into a developing marketplace.

We're getting ready to launch a new blog that looks at the broader issues of Enterprise 2.0, add it to your RSS feed now as we get it ready for our official launch:
http://enterprise-3.blogspot.com/

Enterprise Social Networking Goes Mobile

Tailored applications of Myspace and Facebook has been available on mobile phones like the iPhone, Blackberry, and Treo for months, but LinkedIn was still missing from the picture. The latest article on eWeek announces the launch of LinkedIn Mobile apps that is now available for the iPhone; versions for the Treo and Blackberry will soon follow.

What took LinkedIn so long to tap into mobile networking? Clearly, the majority of business executives live with their smartphones, and yet the social networking site tailored to the enterprise trailed Myspace and Facebook in the race to create mobile versions. The iPhone can no longer be considered a consumer gadget, but an enterprise mobile device. It’s making collaboration that much easier within organizations again…

There are a few things that come to mind when thinking about what is next for the enterprise in regards to mobile devices:

1. How long will it take for other enterprise apps to join the bandwagon and create tailored mobile versions?
2. How will this affect the usage of enterprise apps in the corporate office as more and more enterprise apps go mobile?

Access to information has been made that much simpler while on the go. This is an exciting time for enterprise 2.0…

We're getting ready to launch a new blog that looks at the broader issues of Enterprise 2.0, add it to your RSS feed now as we get it ready for our official launch:

http://enterprise-3.blogspot.com/

Need a new personal assistant?

There’s a new Web 2.0 tool that can now effectively help you get rid of all the clutter you have sitting around your desk. Remindo is a web 2.0 tool that can essentially become your personal assistant. It includes a variety of tools that will help you organize your work day.

The front page, which is called the work page, is customizable. You can change the layout to include whatever you want. Widgets are available; news feeds can be imported as well as other tools to help you organize your day.

The address book is kept up to date automatically, and you can also sort your contacts into groups and further organize it. The third tool the website mentions is messaging service. The mail service alleviates spam while also allowing you to send mail to however many people you choose at one time.

Check out Remindo’s blog here. Is this a tool you will use in the future? And if you’re already using it, let us know that you think about it.

We're getting ready to launch a new blog that looks at the broader issues of Enterprise 2.0, add it to your RSS feed now as we get it ready for our official launch:http://enterprise-3.blogspot.com/

Mobile Web 2.0 for the Enterprise

Nowadays it’s hard to turn off your blackberry for a split second, even while eating dinner with the family. This tells us that blackberries and mobile devices have become a popular commodity amongst business individuals. As enterprise executives spend less and less time in the office, how will Web 2.0 applications adapt to this? The latest post on the Open Gardens blog touches on the process of implementing Web 2.0 features on mobile devices.

According to Ajit Jaokar, Mobile Web 2.0 means “harnessing collective intelligence through restricted devices.” How does Web 2.0 work though? It works sort of like an iPod...You retrieve data from your mobile device through a web backbone, configuring the service through a PC. I think this diagram just about sums it up…

Mobile users are capable of retrieving simple data now, but when will executives be able to view the latest presentation on YouTube or Flickr accounts from their blackberries. We are still a long way from where we want to be in terms of mobile Web 2.0, but we are slowly getting there.

We're getting ready to launch a new blog that looks at the broader issues of Enterprise 2.0, add it to your RSS feed now as we get it ready for our official launch:

http://enterprise-3.blogspot.com/