Communication & Collaboration Tools
When organizing collaborative activities, especially online meetings with peers at various locations, choosing an appropriate technology will improve work efficiency and safety. Choose your collaboration software to fit the meeting type.
| Meeting Type | Recommended Software |
|---|---|
| Personal, adhoc, or instantaneous one-to-one communication and small group discussion. Suitable for colleagues who know the participants’ mobile number, SoftwareID (e.g., SkypeID), or email/EID. | Microsoft Teams |
| Pre-scheduled meeting with controlled participant list where “face-to-face” discussion is dominant, or annotation over shared document/screen is required. | Zoom |
| Pre-scheduled meeting with all participants having access to shared or arranged set of documents for collaborative works (sharing, co-editing, co-reviewing, brain-storming ideas, etc.) | Microsoft Teams |
Document Storage and Sharing
An important part of collaborative work is document sharing with yourself and others. Documents should be easily available but also secure. Protect files and devices using password or encryption as far as possible. Avoid using your USB drive, portable/home hard disk, or email for document storage and sharing. Instead, consider the following:
| Scenario | Type of Application | Recommended Software |
|---|---|---|
| Sharing documents (mostly) with yourself in multiple devices. E.g.: Enabling access to your work document on different computers (and possibly inviting others to access them as well) |
Share drive | OneDrive for Business |
| Working on a document together with a managed group of peers who are given full editing rights. | Collaboration tool |
Microsoft Teams |
Remote Computer Lab Services (Virtual Desktop Service + VPN)
Virtual Desktop Service provides secure access to Windows 10 desktop similar to a PC in the University's Computer Teaching Laboratories (i.e. Teaching Studios). Through the Virtual Desktop, you can access any software/applications on the Work Desk menu, including Windows applications such as SAS and IBM SPSS Amos even on Mac, iOS and Android devices. For off-campus connection, you must first connect to CityU Virtual Private Network (VPN).
The University has other IT Services and Resources which may help you carry out daily work. Please refer to the Services and Facilities page for more information. If you require any assistance, please contact the IT Service Desk at 3442-8340, via email to IT.ServiceDesk@cityu.edu.hk.