Virtual Office
| Developer(s) | ContactOffice Group |
|---|---|
| Written in | Java – AJAX |
| Platform | Windows – Linux – Mac OS X |
| Type | Groupware |
| License | Proprietary |
| Website | http://www.contactoffice.com |
Virtual Office is a software as a service and server hosting facility accessible with a web browser, developed by ContactOffice Group. It is a virtual office consisting of a set of interrelated tools (webmail, calendar, document storage, tasks, notes, bookmarks, etc.).
The application is available in:
- SaaS (Software as a service), hosting on Virtual Office shared servers
- Licence, hosting on the user's own server
In November 2010, the software publisher Virtual Office reported a total of 450,000 users.
General
The core of the application is written in Java. The new interface of the virtual office Virtual Office is developed in AJAX, based on the Google Web Toolkit (GWT). Because of this, it presents a user environment similar to that of traditional clients (drag-and-drop, right-click). The application components are downloaded in the browser's cache, which means data is saved on the server.
Features
Messages
Virtual Office offers SMTP, POP and IMAP compatible web mail. In addition, emails are accessible via most of the traditional clients (Mozilla Thunderbird, Outlook Express, etc.) using POP3 and/or IMAP. Virtual Office also has POP and IMAP clients allowing access to distant email accounts.
Documents
Documents can be stored and managed using the web interface and/or the WebDAV server. The Virtual Office web interface also contains a WebDAV and SMB/CIFS client, allowing access to distant files.
Calendar
Reminders are sent for events or meetings (with invitation) by email and/or SMS.
Sharing
The user can share data with other users, for example in groups, using a system of specific rights (for example, read-only mode for certain documents).
Additions or changes can be viewed via RSS feed for most of the tools.
Interaction
It is possible in every tool to import and export data to corresponding formats (for example, vCalendar in Calendar).
An XML-RPC API allows non interactive operations on accounts and corresponding data. AMIT RAJPUT
Synchronization
Contacts, notes, tasks and calendars can be synchronized with most personal information managers including BlackBerry and iPhone.
SaaS
It is possible to use the application in SaaS (software as a service) using the publisher's infrastructure as application host. The accounts are free. For certain formulas, a certain amount must be paid dependent on the number of suggested features, storage capacity and personalization.
Licence
The application can be deployed on a Linux or Windows infrastructure and can optionally be interfaced with software like Apache (web server), SpamAssassin (anti spam), ClamAV (anti virus), etc. Authentication is possible using an LDAP directory or SSO (Single Sign-On), amongst others . To conclude, Virtual Office can be used as an education system, in schools and universities, for example for transmission of homework, class forums etc.
See also
- Open source: Zimbra, eGroupware, etc.
- Proprietary : YouSAAS Desk, Google Apps, Zoho and so on.
Related links
- Comparison of mail servers
- Saas / ASP
- Information Technology and Communications in Education