Microsoft Groups is likely one of the most generally used collaborative instruments available on the market. The user-friendly instrument is right for builders looking for high-quality video conferencing and chat capabilities, wonderful 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 isn’t the one collaborative instrument of its variety. On this collaboration software program information, we are going to talk about the next Microsoft Groups options and embrace particulars on their options, professionals, cons, and pricing:
If you’re unsure whether or not or not you’re utilizing Microsoft Groups to its fullest potential, take a look at our Microsoft Groups Evaluation.
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 widespread with small groups who benefit from the familiarity of Google instruments.
Google Workspace Options
Google Workspace has a bit of little bit of the whole lot that can assist you collaborate. And, when you’ve got used Google merchandise prior to now, it’ll take little or no time or onboarding to get began with options like:
Google Chat affords direct messages and group conversations to share concepts and sync up. Google Meet affords on-line conferencing and video name capabilities.
If it’s essential share and retailer recordsdata, Workspace has Google Drive. And if it’s essential schedule and coordinate work, conferences, and so forth., there may be Google Calendar.
Google Workspace Professionals:
Google Workspace has the next professionals:
- Google familiarity
- A number of collaboration instruments
- Every part in a single spot
- Cloud-based
Selecting Workspace is a no brainer in case you already use different Google merchandise, as that familiarity is hard to beat. It provides builders tons of collaboration instruments in a single area to maintain them organized, and since it’s primarily based within the cloud, Google Workspace eliminates the necessity to obtain software program.
Google Workspace Cons
Regardless of its quite a few professionals, Google Workspace additionally has just a few 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 will have Web entry to run most of its options, and being primarily based 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 case you use Microsoft Workplace quite a bit, you can encounter compatibility points when changing some parts.
Google Workspace Pricing
Google Workspace provides builders 4 pricing plans to select from:
- Enterprise Starter: $6 per consumer, per thirty days
- Enterprise Customary: $12 per consumer, per thirty days
- Enterprise Plus: $18 per consumer, per thirty days
- Enterprise: Contact gross sales for pricing
The Enterprise Starter plan prices $6 per consumer, per thirty days. Go up in plans, and Google provides you extra video conferences, storage per consumer, and help. The Enterprise Customary plan, Workspace’s hottest providing, prices $12 per consumer, per thirty days. Enterprise Plus, in the meantime, prices $18 per consumer, per thirty 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 most likely affiliate Zoom with digital conferences for the reason that software program turned so widespread through the pandemic. And, whereas the Microsoft Groups various excels at these, Zoom affords rather more, together with:
- Workforce chat
- On-line whiteboard
- E-mail and calendar
- Digital working areas
Zoom’s digital conferences allow you to join with anybody, anyplace by way of 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 effectively for huddling and collaborating remotely with different builders, and Zoom additionally has added perks like file sharing, display sharing, closed captioning, real-time transcriptions, and VoIP calls.
Zoom Professionals
The Zoom collaboration instrument has the next professionals:
- All-in-one function set
- Straightforward to make use of
- Very good high quality
- Display screen sharing
When you want a collaborative instrument that has all of it, Zoom has you coated. Better of all, it takes little work to get going, even for newbies. Zoom’s high-quality audio and video are important for essential conferences, and its display sharing is a must have for distant builders.
Zoom Cons
Whereas Zoom has many options and professionals, it does have just a few notable cons:
- Safety
- Excessive worth
- Web connectivity
- Remark management
“Zoombombing” is a safety problem 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 should pay a reasonably penny.
Whereas Zoom affords 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 is probably not an enormous problem with builders’ calls.
Zoom Pricing
Zoom has 5 pricing plans that vary from complimentary to fairly expensive in case you go for its Zoom One choices:
- Fundamental: Free as much as 100 attendees with deadlines
- Professional: $149.90 per consumer, per 12 months
- Enterprise: $199.90 per consumer, per 12 months
- Enterprise Plus: $250 per consumer, per 12 months
- 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 might be 40 minutes max. The Professional plan affords longer conferences and cloud storage for $149.90 per consumer, per 12 months, whereas the Enterprise plan permits for as much as 300 attendees per assembly for $199.90 per consumer, per 12 months. Enterprise Plus and its cellphone, translated captions, and so forth., prices $250 per consumer, per 12 months, 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 provides 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 scale back decision time and the severity of outages and system failures, improve time to response by 90 %, and luxuriate in 4 instances extra info availability. Listed below are among the options that assist the collaboration software program obtain these targets:
- Actual-time collaboration
- Undertaking administration
- Technical instrument integrations
- Workflow automation
Builders can collaborate by way of Mattermost by way of audio and display sharing, channels, one-on-one messaging, crew 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 tasks, 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 Professionals
Listed below are just a few of crucial professionals of Mattermost collaboration instrument:
- Open supply
- Integrations
- Collaboration plus venture 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 flexibility to self-host versus counting on the cloud. And whereas different instruments on this checklist primarily deal with collaboration, Mattermost additionally throws in venture administration options as a bonus.
Mattermost Cons
Listed below are just a few of the cons of Mattermost value contemplating:
- Studying curve
- Developer-centric
- No video chat
- Lack of a calendar
In case you have non-technical members in your crew, they could have a troublesome time adjusting to Mattermost. It’s fairly technical and never totally user-friendly, however since it’s geared toward builders, this is probably not a difficulty on some groups.
The dearth of video chat places Mattermost behind different collaboration instruments, as does the dearth of a calendar, as each options are important to preserving everybody on the identical web page.
Mattermost Pricing
Mattermost has three pricing plans to select from. All supply self-hosted or cloud deployment choices:
- Free: Restricted options
- Skilled: $10 per consumer, per thirty days
- Enterprise: Contact gross sales for pricing
The Free plan affords safe collaboration for smaller groups. The Skilled plan, with its consumer administration and superior entry controls, prices $10 per consumer, per thirty days, whereas the custom-priced Enterprise plan affords superior compliance and high-scale deployment options.
How To Select Collaboration Software program
Choosing the right collaboration software program is a large resolution, as it could actually imply the distinction between staying on activity and in contact or miscommunicating and lacking deadlines. What does the best collaboration software program have? Take into account the next when select a collaboration instrument to your software program improvement crew:
- A mixture of a number of methods to collaborate (chat, video, file sharing, and so forth.)
- Consumer-friendliness
- Security measures to guard delicate knowledge
- Accessibility no matter machine or location
- Scalability to adapt to your crew because it grows
Closing Ideas On Microsoft Groups Alternate options
Microsoft Groups has loads of pluses in its favor, reminiscent of high-quality video conferencing, chat, file sharing, and so forth. Does that imply it’s the proper collaboration instrument for you as a developer? Not essentially, which is why you must also take a look at the Microsoft Groups options listed above, as all of them supply related performance and could also be a greater match.
Different Collaboration Instruments for Programmers
On the lookout for different collaboration instruments not featured on this checklist? Now we have a number of guides that may aid you discover collaboration software program that may let your groups collaborate and talk extra successfully: