Back in September, with the release of Atlassian Confluence 4.0, I thought the new text editor was one of the particular highlights of this major version update.

Now with the release of 4.1 this week, there are further improvements to the new rich text editor including:

• Build richer pages, faster with Autoconvert (it automatically embeds content like Confluence pages, YouTube videos, Skitch images, Flickr photo streams, Vimeo videos, and Google maps when you paste a link). 
• Enhance documentation with Image Effects (see the screenshot). 
• Make bulk changes to pages with Find & Replace.

As well as enhancements to Confluence, the fast pace of ongoing improvements to Team Calendars also continues.

Finally, don't forget to get your Confluence Origami Necktie, a fashionable quick-reference guide. Make it, snap a pic and share it on Twitter with the #confluencetie hashtag :-)

“build a Wiki and crowdsource ideas". It’s similar to Wikipedia. It involves the creation of an internet platform that enables managers and employees to add relevant information, and that information can then be edited and peer-reviewed.

Another idea is to “build an internal social network.” Employees can design their own profiles, upload images, provide useful links, add work-related content, and eventually “this will reduce the volume of email communication". In an era of email overload, that can only be a good thing.

Other than this article spreading the usual FUD about social media in the workplace (here is an alternative view), this is pretty simplistic advice for SMEs thinking about trying to proactively utilise Web 2.0 and social software.

Even large businesses struggle with the idea of creating internal Wikipedias - small businesses simply don't have the critical mass. However, there are some practical ideas (use cases) for enterprise wikis (like Atlassian Confluence):

• Managing Meetings.
• Project Management. 
• Reporting.
• Document Drafting and Commenting.
• Publishing and Maintaining Policies and Procedures.

With some tools you can even build simple forms and workflows, although the emphasis is really on uisng a wiki as a lean management tool.

The internal network is a better idea, but in a small business they don't necessarily need to know who each other is but rather what each person is doing and using streamlined methods for sharing information. Microblogging tools - like Yammer - or even instant messaging - using tools like Skype chat - can fill that need. Better yet, these tools are often optimised for smartphones too and younger staff will love using them.

With the right tool, some or all of these ideas above can be combined. For example, Google Apps.

The key themes that small business should be thinking about using social media internally for are:

1. Communication. 
2. Team work. 
3. Productivity. 
4. Information management.

For SME's with a consumer focus, they might also want to think about how the internal use of social media can connect to their external social media and traditional marketing activities. SMEs focused on B2B services can also create extranet wikis for collaboration with their business customers or even extend their microblogging tool to them, focusing on creating an extended private social network rather than an internal one.

This is a long anticipated play by Yammer to expand the foot print of its platform. I haven't had a chance to play with these new features just yet, so can't comment on the user experience or maturity of the new tools. However, I am wondering how this will affect Yammer's business model in respect to the enterprise and government sectors - the more it adds, the more chance that a purely viral deployment approach will bump into other enterprise applications and systems, which may result in the need for a more formal adoption and procurement approach.

UPDATE: Alan Lepofsky provides a more detailed review and point of view.

The much anticipated Socialtext 5 has been released - see this announcement post from Sarah:

This release sees a complete overhaul of the user interface, introduces a world-class rich text editor and a barrel-load of other features that make Socialtext more accessible, social and successful than ever before.

I have to say, the refreshed out of the box UI looks great!

It seemed that my keynote talk at KM Singapore helped to change some people’s thinking about intranets. Challenging the notion that they are old, dull sites containing policies, I generated new enthusiasm for what intranets can (and should) do. But the most controversy came during the question-and-answer session, where I found myself saying:

“Blogs and wikis are dead.”

I certainly understand James' sentiment here. I'm also sure some intranet managers will draw a sigh of relief when they read this, thinking they don't need to worry about this social stuff anymore. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth.

In fact, if we look at James' presentation it is full of refined examples of the software patterns that we call wikis and blogs... including REA Group (Jive), IDEO (ThoughtFarmer) and also Reynolds Porter Chamberlain (which integrates Atlassian Confluence along with a number of other platforms). I'm reminded that wiki is both a verb and a noun.

BTW I'm not aware of any leading enterprise 'wiki' that doesn't provide a rich text editor - even Atlassian are ditching wiki markup entirely in their upcoming version of Confluence.

There is no single cure for email overload and Inbox Zero doesn’t claim to perform miracles. At the end of the day it’s a system, and it’s nothing without your own personal input. It might work for you and it might not. It’s important to remember that productivity systems are subjective beasts and that can be their ultimate downfall or the reason for their success.

What works for you won’t necessarily work for me. And for that reason you can’t say wholeheartedly that Inbox Zero works or it doesn’t. That’s just like saying that having cornflakes for breakfast doesn’t work. It’s simply a matter of personal preference or taste.

I've always been critical about email 'diets', although I view more contemporary efforts by Luis and Geoff to eliminate email with great interest.

Years ago I recommended the following:

• Where possible, eliminate the root cause of the problem. 
• Take control of your own inbox by managing it appropriately. 
• Lead by example and practice better e-mail etiquette and style.

At the root of this advice is that email is a communication tool that is often misappropriated as a collaboration tool. You can keep trying to fix your own inbox, but the problem is actually with everyone else using email.

The good news is that I hear more and more frequently how social business tools in the workplace do help to reduce email overload. We really have moved beyond marketing rhetoric.

I can even see it in my own work practices too - I use a combination of email (yes, its still there!), wiki, microblogging (enterprise microblogging and Twitter) and instant messaging. Of course, its the wiki and microblogging that make the critical difference, as they create a open plan workspace online where everyone can work out loud.

However, the root causes I identified originally still stand. Working out loud works best when:

• Everyone is working out loud (or at least 'in the room'). 
• People know why and understand how to work out loud. 
• Users are able to control how they consume the online open plan space.

Part of the reason for this is that its not simply about shifting communication that takes place in email to other channels. That would simply shift the location of the problem. Instead, we use different tools in the flow to deal with transient, situational and ambient communication and collaboration in different situations. See my Architected for Collaboration presentation for more on this.

Overall, this is a very different approach to the problem from the simplistic 'occupational spam' mentality. We eliminate the root cause of email overload, not the individual messages.

On a strictly personal front, I've noticed that the vast majority of personal email I receive these days comes in the form of notifications from other public social tools, subscriptions and automatic notifications (like my bank). However, the dynamic of personal use is very different from the workplace. In the workplace, we have the advantage of being able to choose the commons spaces where we will work out loud (assuming you are proactive about it).

Alex reminded me that its time again to announce the winners of what is now the fourth annual Intranet Innovation Awards from Step Two Designs. Of great interest to me was the comment in the media release the accompanied Alex's note about the awards, where they say:

There has also been a ‘tipping point’ for social tools. For leading intranets in 2010, basic social tools are no longer ‘nice to have’, they’re now standard. This includes site-wide commenting, the integration of blogs, micro-blogging, wikis, and social staff directories, and free-ranging contributions from all levels of an organisation, from the CEO down and frontline staff up.

If a site doesn’t have extensive social functionality, built in from the ground up, then it’s significantly behind the curve of intranet development.

I still think intranets are likely to continue on a slow burn towards being more social. However, the next battle ground will between those that simply add a sprinkle of social features versus those that that try to become truly social businesses, with social computing integrated through out their enterprise systems.

Things To Do

• Narrate your work. Talk both about work in progress (the projects you're in the middle of, how they're coming, what you're learning, and so on), and finished goods (the projects, reports, presentations, etc. you've executed). This lets others discover what you know and what you're good at. It also makes you easier to find, and so increases the chances you can be a helpful colleague to someone. Finally, it builds your personal reputation and 'brand.'
• Point to others' work, and provide commentary on it. When you come across something noteworthy, point to it and discuss why you think it's important. Chances are others would like to know about it. And include a link to the original source; people love links.
• Comment and discuss. Post comments to others' blogs, join the conversations taking place on forums, and keep the social media discussions lively. Doing so will let others hear your voice, and also make them more likely to participate themselves.
• Ask and answer questions. Don't just broadcast what you know; also broadcast your ignorance from time to time. Let the crowd help you if you're stuck. Most people and organizations are very pleasantly surprised by the amount of altruism unlocked by Enterprise 2.0.
• Vote, like, give kudos, etc. Lots of social software platforms these days have tools for voting or signaling that you like something. Use them; they help provide structure to the community as a whole and let people know where the good stuff and real experts are. They also make you more popular.
• Talk about social stuff going on at the company. Give a recap of the softball game, talk about plans for the holiday party, show how close the group is to its fundraising goal, and so on. Organizations are social places, and I think it's a shortsighted shame when E2.0 platforms are all business, all the time. However, it's often a good idea to give non-work stuff its own dedicated place on the platform so that people can avoid it if they want to.

I often equate introducing enterprise social software as like moving from individual offices to open plan. Its not just about changes to the physical space, but also the changes to workplace social norms that go with it.

As part of that process some people are going to say, I like the idea of a more social computing workspace...

...but what should I actually do in it?

Andrew McAfee does a nice of job of covering some do's, don'ts and also the grey areas. Focusing on the do's (see above) I think its all about positive, useful communication. But this doesn't mean it has to be all work work work.

As for the don't, here is another physical workspace habit we don't want to bring into the online social workspace.

I was recently asked what is a fairly frequent question... what's the difference between the popular social suite software options, aka enterprise wikis, which includes products like Confluence.

Personally I think one of the stand out features of Confluence is its rich text editor + macro capabilities. In some respects, if you aren't thinking about Confluence with this in mind, then really I'm tempted to ask why are you even considering Confluence. Confluence isn't just a wiki, its an enterprise social swiss army knife. Or as I like to think about it, its the social computing equivalent of the spreadsheet. :-)

However, it can be difficult for novice users to get into using macros and other advanced Confluence features. But this sneak peak of Confluence 3.3 from Matt Hodges really shows how its becoming easier and easier for anyone to become a Confluence wiki ninja and make existing ninjas even more productive.