When you’re required to collaborate electronically with a distant colleague, collaborative software (much of it available for free) can be very helpful in bridging the distance. Collaborative software is a tremendous growth industry with hundreds of products, and this tip will not attempt to address all the different corporate-produced, big-money groupware packages. Instead, here are some basics you can expect from the dozens of packages that are available for free, such as Microsoft NetMeeting, AOL Instant Messenger, Windows Messenger, and Yahoo! Messenger. From these packages you can expect the following basic functionality:

The free software packages listed in the paragraph above (except for NetMeeting) are instant messaging (IM) programs specifically designed for chatting. By default, NetMeeting starts with an audio/video connection and the IM programs start with text chat, but both programs have the same basic capabilities. In Windows Messenger, for example, you can start a video chat by simply selecting Actions --> Start a Video Conversation. And an audio chat, which saves you the cost of long distance, is just as easy.

The "whiteboard" function built into all of the software packages listed above allows collaborators a shared space in which they can write, doodle, and draw while simultaneously chatting. Starting the whiteboard is an easy process; in Windows Messenger, for example, you simply select Actions --> Start Whiteboard.

Application sharing, on the other hand, allows you to share entire application windows with your colleagues. For example, if you were working collaboratively on a document and were online chatting with your colleague about changes you had made, one of you could choose to share your version of the document. You could then simultaneously work on the document and agree more quickly on the exact wording you wanted. Then, after editing the file, you could use file sharing to transfer the finished document to your collaborator.

You can use the file-sharing function in each of these programs to transfer files directly from your computer to your colleague’s computer. In Windows Messenger, for example, simply select Actions --> Send a File or Photo, and select the file you wish to transfer.