CatalystOffice

By Kim Crowley

With the flagship product CatalystOffice, which went live in January 2008, Mathew notes that businesses, "get enterprise-grade service over the Web." An alternative to Microsoft Exchange, CatalystOffice is an online productivity and collaboration suite for managing and sharing documents, calendars, contacts, and email. The suite is accessible by an unlimited number of users at no additional cost. Several hundred beta users have signed up for CatalystOffice, with an average of five to 20 employees each.

Mathew predicts a bright future for CatalystOffice due to the growing popularity of Software as a Service (SaaS). In a SaaS model, a software vendor, in this case Catalyst, develops, hosts, and manages a Web-native application and the customer pays a subscription fee to use it. "We believe that 2008 is the year where people are becoming aware of SaaS," notes Mathew, adding that people are tired of needing to add upgrades, installing servers, and worrying about bugs. CatalystOffice allows users to manage key business functions and collaborate with the cost savings and peace of mind that can come with SaaS.

Hands On
Everything is integrated in CatalystOffice—a calendar, email, file sharing, contacts, alerts, instant messaging (IM), and collaboration. We can access email, manage appointments and contacts, and edit documents from the office or on the road.

The CatalystOffice suite has a login page customizable with our company logo and a distinct header.

CatalystOffice manages documents, backs them up, and offers a platform for collaborating and sharing them. Documents can be edited and saved online without downloading and uploading. Changes transfer to the server so the edited version is automatically saved there.

In the Team Space collaboration tool, we can define a shared space and give permissions to particular users. Using a straightforward, intuitive set of commands, we allow or deny access to business documents. We define who can view a document and how—read-only, edit, create, and/or delete. For example, resumes can be mapped to this space for viewing only by human resources.

CatalystOffice Sync allows us to move and synchronize current data with Microsoft Outlook.

Business contact information is accessed directly from CatalystOffice Contacts. Outlook-compatible vCards can be sent or received. Contacts can be imported or exported to and from CatalystOffice Contacts.

The IM feature allows for multitasking. For example, if a client asks a question on a phone call, we can simultaneously IM a co-worker without interrupting the call to get the answer.

Data is backed up automatically each day by Catalyst Web Services. SSL encryption provides additional data protection.

Specifications
CatalystWeb is both PC and Macintosh compatible. Windows XP or Vista, or Mac OSX operating system is required.

Users must have an Internet service plan. Firefox 2.0 or higher browser—a free application —is also required to support the Web applications.

Sun JVM 1.5 or higher—also a free application—is needed to take full advantage of CatalystOffice's online EasyEdit feature. This feature allows you to edit and save your files over the Internet.

JavaScript needs to be enabled, and pop-ups from CatalystOffice must be allowed. Pop-up blocker should be turned off in Firefox or set to just allow pop-ups just from CatalystOffice.

For optimal performance, Catalyst recommends that monitor resolution is1280 x 1024 pixels or higher.

CatalystOffice is POP3 compliant, so any POP3 compatible device is needed to receive email.

Live-person phone support is available at no cost, toll-free, 24 hours/seven-days-a-week.

Business Hub
Businesses operate in the office, at home, and on the road. A key necessity to help them thrive and survive is the ability to communicate and collaborate professionally, efficiently, and securely.

CatalystOffice creates a personalized hub that meets these needs. Users easily communicate with co-workers and clients, manage meetings, and manage documents from any location with this enterprise-level service.  BTE