Microsoft Groups is among the most generally used collaborative instruments available on the market. The user-friendly instrument is good for builders looking for high-quality video conferencing and chat capabilities, glorious safety, and third-party app integrations. And, if you’re a fan of different Microsoft merchandise or are a .NET or C# programmer, that familiarity can actually assist too.
Whereas Microsoft Groups can preserve you and your colleagues on the identical web page, it’s not the one collaborative instrument of its form. On this collaboration software program information, we are going to focus on the next Microsoft Groups options and embody particulars on their options, execs, cons, and pricing:
In case you are unsure whether or not or not you might be utilizing Microsoft Groups to its fullest potential, try our Microsoft Groups Assessment.
Google Workspace
Google Workspace (previously G Suite) is a Microsoft Groups various that may assist software program improvement groups of all sizes collaborate to spice up productiveness. It’s significantly standard with small groups who benefit from the familiarity of Google instruments.
Google Workspace Options
Google Workspace has a little bit little bit of all the things that can assist you collaborate. And, if in case you have used Google merchandise up to now, it is going to take little or no time or onboarding to get began with options like:
Google Chat provides direct messages and group conversations to share concepts and sync up. Google Meet provides on-line conferencing and video name capabilities.
If you could share and retailer recordsdata, Workspace has Google Drive. And if you could schedule and coordinate work, conferences, and many others., there’s Google Calendar.
Google Workspace Execs:
Google Workspace has the next execs:
- Google familiarity
- A number of collaboration instruments
- Every part in a single spot
- Cloud-based
Selecting Workspace is a no brainer in the event you already use different Google merchandise, as that familiarity is hard to beat. It offers builders tons of collaboration instruments in a single area to maintain them organized, and since it’s based mostly within the cloud, Google Workspace eliminates the necessity to obtain software program.
Google Workspace Cons
Regardless of its quite a few execs, Google Workspace additionally has a couple of cons to concentrate on:
- Wants Web
- A bit fundamental
- Microsoft compatibility
- Safety
Google Workspace’s cloud-based existence is nice in some methods and unhealthy in others. You’ll need Web entry to run most of its options, and being based mostly on the cloud opens you as much as potential safety points.
In comparison with different collaboration software program, Workspace could seem a bit fundamental. And, in the event you use Microsoft Workplace quite a bit, you can encounter compatibility points when changing some parts.
Google Workspace Pricing
Google Workspace offers builders 4 pricing plans to select from:
- Enterprise Starter: $6 per person, per 30 days
- Enterprise Normal: $12 per person, per 30 days
- Enterprise Plus: $18 per person, per 30 days
- Enterprise: Contact gross sales for pricing
The Enterprise Starter plan prices $6 per person, per 30 days. Go up in plans, and Google offers you extra video conferences, storage per person, and help. The Enterprise Normal plan, Workspace’s hottest providing, prices $12 per person, per 30 days. Enterprise Plus, in the meantime, prices $18 per person, per 30 days, whereas Enterprise has {custom} pricing for its superior safety, help, and limitless storage.
Zoom
Zoom is an all-in-one communication and collaboration platform utilized by software program builders looking for a number of fuss-free methods to attach.
Zoom Options
Many in all probability affiliate Zoom with digital conferences for the reason that software program grew to become so standard in the course of the pandemic. And, whereas the Microsoft Groups various excels at these, Zoom provides way more, together with:
- Staff chat
- On-line whiteboard
- E-mail and calendar
- Digital working areas
Zoom’s digital conferences allow you to join with anybody, anyplace through face-to-face video. The net whiteboard promotes creativity and brainstorming, whereas the e-mail and calendar allow you to schedule and keep organized.
Digital workspaces work nicely for huddling and collaborating remotely with different builders, and Zoom additionally has added perks like file sharing, display screen sharing, closed captioning, real-time transcriptions, and VoIP calls.
Zoom Execs
The Zoom collaboration instrument has the next execs:
- All-in-one function set
- Simple to make use of
- Excellent high quality
- Display screen sharing
If you happen to want a collaborative instrument that has all of it, Zoom has you lined. Better of all, it takes little work to get going, even for freshmen. Zoom’s high-quality audio and video are important for essential conferences, and its display screen sharing is a must have for distant builders.
Zoom Cons
Whereas Zoom has many options and execs, it does have a couple of notable cons:
- Safety
- Excessive worth
- Web connectivity
- Remark management
“Zoombombing” is a safety concern that has plagued the collaboration software program, so preserve that in thoughts if you’re cautious of undesirable contributors becoming a member of in. To unlock a few of its high options, programmers must pay a fairly penny.
Whereas Zoom provides stable audio and video high quality, it requires a robust Web connection to take action. And controlling inappropriate feedback is hard on the platform, though that might not be an enormous concern with builders’ calls.
Zoom Pricing
Zoom has 5 pricing plans that vary from complimentary to fairly expensive in the event you go for its Zoom One choices:
- Fundamental: Free as much as 100 attendees with deadlines
- Professional: $149.90 per person, per yr
- Enterprise: $199.90 per person, per yr
- Enterprise Plus: $250 per person, per yr
- Enterprise: Contact gross sales for pricing
The Fundamental plan is free for as much as 100 attendees per assembly, however there’s a catch: Every assembly will be 40 minutes max. The Professional plan provides longer conferences and cloud storage for $149.90 per person, per yr, whereas the Enterprise plan permits for as much as 300 attendees per assembly for $199.90 per person, per yr. Enterprise Plus and its cellphone, translated captions, and many others., prices $250 per person, per yr, and Enterprise has {custom} pricing for its limitless cloud storage, full-featured PBX cellphone, and extra.
Mattermost
Mattermost was explicitly designed to assist technical groups and builders collaborate securely. The open-source Microsoft Groups various offers builders added customization, flexibility, safety, and reliability which will catch their eye over different collaboration software program choices on this information.
Mattermost Options
Mattermost claims it could actually assist groups cut back decision time and the severity of outages and system failures, improve time to response by 90 p.c, and luxuriate in 4 instances extra data availability. Listed here are a few of the options that assist the collaboration software program obtain these targets:
- Actual-time collaboration
- Challenge administration
- Technical instrument integrations
- Workflow automation
Builders can collaborate through Mattermost via audio and display screen sharing, channels, one-on-one messaging, group messaging, calls, syntax highlighting, and code snippet and file sharing.
Mattermost has Kanban boards to maintain improvement groups on the identical web page and handle initiatives, and it additionally integrates with widely-used technical instruments like GitLab and GitHub. Select Mattermost, and additionally, you will have time-saving workflow automation for recurring processes at your fingertips.
Mattermost Execs
Listed here are a couple of of a very powerful execs of Mattermost collaboration instrument:
- Open supply
- Integrations
- Collaboration plus challenge administration
- Self-hosting
- Developer-centric
The truth that Mattermost is open-source software program can result in higher reliability, flexibility, and safety. Its integration with GitHub, Jira, Jenkins, and different developer instruments is a plus, as is the power to self-host versus counting on the cloud. And whereas different instruments on this checklist primarily concentrate on collaboration, Mattermost additionally throws in challenge administration options as a bonus.
Mattermost Cons
Listed here are a couple of of the cons of Mattermost price contemplating:
- Studying curve
- Developer-centric
- No video chat
- Lack of a calendar
You probably have non-technical members in your group, they might have a troublesome time adjusting to Mattermost. It’s fairly technical and never totally user-friendly, however since it’s aimed toward builders, this might not be a problem on some groups.
The dearth of video chat places Mattermost behind different collaboration instruments, as does the shortage of a calendar, as each options are important to protecting everybody on the identical web page.
Mattermost Pricing
Mattermost has three pricing plans to select from. All provide self-hosted or cloud deployment choices:
- Free: Restricted options
- Skilled: $10 per person, per 30 days
- Enterprise: Contact gross sales for pricing
The Free plan provides safe collaboration for smaller groups. The Skilled plan, with its person administration and superior entry controls, prices $10 per person, per 30 days, whereas the custom-priced Enterprise plan provides superior compliance and high-scale deployment options.
How To Select Collaboration Software program
Choosing the right collaboration software program is a big choice, as it could actually imply the distinction between staying on job and in contact or miscommunicating and lacking deadlines. What does the best collaboration software program have? Think about the next when select a collaboration instrument in your software program improvement group:
- A mix of a number of methods to collaborate (chat, video, file sharing, and many others.)
- Consumer-friendliness
- Safety features to guard delicate knowledge
- Accessibility no matter system or location
- Scalability to adapt to your group because it grows
Ultimate Ideas On Microsoft Groups Alternate options
Microsoft Groups has loads of pluses in its favor, equivalent to high-quality video conferencing, chat, file sharing, and many others. Does that imply it’s the proper collaboration instrument for you as a developer? Not essentially, which is why you also needs to try the Microsoft Groups options listed above, as all of them provide related performance and could also be a greater match.
Different Collaboration Instruments for Programmers
In search of different collaboration instruments not featured on this checklist? We have now a number of guides that may provide help to discover collaboration software program that can let your groups collaborate and talk extra successfully:
