jive software clearspace

jive software “clearspace” finally went beta, and is available for download.

first i came into contact with these guys through their IM server product. for an open-source tool it was surprisingly polished, had all the “enterprise” features i needed (flexible AD integration with a possibility of using multiple auth providers, TLS, gates to other IM systems), was self-contained for easy trial; it was stable (running on UX for almost a year without restarts), and scaled just fine for hundreds of users (after a gratifyingly viral adoption). also there was that intagible feeling that everything was just done right - directory structure made sense, startup was just as expected, it was built on familiar components - over time i came to trust these guys as competent developers that would not go astray in some pseudo-academic delusion, or succumb to ADD and play with some new tech of the day (snipsnap, anyone?).

i kept an eye on their blog ever since the initial announcement of “clearspace” product. it seems to address exactly the stuff i have been talking about for years - no stunning revelations, just a simple clean integration of IM/blogs/wiki/document management/forums/emails in an enterprise-friendly format that puts them all in context. this is not a slapped together CMS monster or behemoth of a sharepoint, but a collaboration tool that pulls together sensible implementations of all these existing forms of communication. this is something i talked about in an old school paper of mine; i also briefly talked about it here and here.

we’ll see if the product actually does all this stuff, but i would definitely dedicate some time to playing with it.