What is intraComm?

intraComm , a sever-client application composed of LAMP with client written by C#, is a new name for us and also is a new idea for communication and management of an organization.

To enhance efficiency of intra-organization communication

To enhance efficiency of intra-organization communication - we have designed the intraComm.

Email is the most commonly used in internet communication, but is such personal based and general communication tool also the most suitable for organization?

intraComm is specially designed for internal communication in organizations of different sizes such as corporations and companies. In an organization, the internal hierarchy, the responsibility and authority of members are usually clearly defined. With intraComm, different organizational members can easily be assigned with different level of user previlege to ensure secure and efficient communication. This is what general email systems cannot offer.

New ideas in communication
From Communication to Knowlege Base System - one of the most important functions of intraComm
The team spirit of the organization can be displayed on intraComm
Our expectations for intraComm

New ideas in communication

• intraComm is specially designed for organization. Information such as organizational hierarchy, names and posts of the members, their levels of privilege can be set in the system
• The concept of Notices: In intraComm, users are able to send messages to multiple users like posting of notices (ie only one copy of messages stored and allow designated readers to read the message). All functions offered by general email services are also available in intraComm
• There is no need to guess whether the message have been read by the recipients anymore. intraComm record the message status (read or unread) and the reading time in details. For example, when a user sends an urgent message, the sender could easily check who have yet read the messages and inform them by other means if necessary. Everything has a clear record
• Instant communication: Just like Yahoo Mail and Gmail, intraComm provides instant communication function.  Messages exchanged during an instant communication will be automatically saved
• Integration of emails into messages: Email function is vital for communications with external parties hence this is also included in intraComm. Emails can be integrated into intraComm messages easily.
  Moreover, intraComm can help a group of staffs to manage one email account eg info@yourcompany.com. Any mails to this account would auto forward to all staffs in the group and any mails send from this account would also auto forward to all staffs in the group
• Different kind of messages are available for different purposes:
  • Notice: enables users to send information to multiple users
  • Form: constraints users to input required information in a specific format. System administrator can design a specific approval process according to the rule in the organization for each form, such as Leave Application Form and Transportation Allowance Form
  • Task: NOT only let users to assign tasks to other users but also provide clearly defined work flow for better coordination. Requirements of works and required completion date (the Due Date) can be clearly defined in Task messages to avoid confusions. User is also required to submit a Task Report upon completion of the task
  • Event: allows users to remind oneself or other users of different events. Different dates like Remind Date, Start and End Date can be set in the Event. We also can send a serial of Periodical Events to oneself or other users at one click for reminding users of routines such as payroll for the next twelve months
  • Other messages include Calendar (state the events on calendar, ONLY has Start and End Date, no Remind Date), wiki Doc (allow a group of users to edit the message) and etc
  • Task and Event can be added to Notice to enhance work efficiency. This function is especially useful when organizing important campaigns. For example, when a user prepares for an exhibition, Task and Event can be of great use for reminding team members of the work arrangement and important dates
  • Today-related messages (eg today event, task), important messages and useful messages are automatically and systematically displayed after a user log on intraComm. (The send or readers can mark the message to be important/useful by some Tags)
• Posting messages according to different situation:
  • Scheduled Post: System will post the message automatically on the scheduled date
  • Event-triggered Post: User can set an event such as completion of work for triggering the system to automatically post the message
  • Delegated Post: User can write a message for other user to post, eg a manager can ask his secretary to write a message and post by himself
• Special features for international enterprises:
  • Support different languages: Traditional Chinese, simplified Chinese and English are supported and other languages can be installed very easily. Languages can be changed anytime during use
  • Support different time zones: Time stamps of messages are displayed according to the time zone of the viewer

From Communication to Knowlege Base System

• intraComm can act as an excellent message and file management system since all messages are stored according to a Tree Structure, similar to the file management system of Windows
• Files management of an organization: 
  • Files/Documents can be attached to Notice for viewing by other designated users (if the document is paper-based, convert it into electronic files by scanning). Users can add description/summary and keywords to the Notice and then place or link it to an appropriate location in the tree structure. Users can later search the files very easily according to the their name, sender, readers, contents, keywords and etc
  • intraComm can completely replace file servers but with even greater efficiency and flexibility. intraComm can help an organization to save a lot of money
• With intraComm, use of paper can be significantly reduced and even a paper-free office is possible. It can help to create a greener environment by using intraComm
• When more and more messages and information accumulate in intraComm, it can use as a Knowledge Base in the organization
• To enhance the efficiency of the Knowledge Base, the following functions are provided:
  • Links: For example, if a message can be classified under both Account Department and the Personnel Department, users can freely save the message under either subjects and then simply link the message under the other one. We can move or link the message by drag and drop, an easy way to classify our messages
  • Amending the posted messages
    • Unlike email, intraComm allows posted messages to be amended, including subject line, content, attachments, etc
    • When classifying messages, subject lines of the messages can be changed for better classification
    • Once amended, messages (including outgoing emails) will be resend to all designated users. This is extremely convenient when handling information that needs frequent updates such as proposals in drafting phase
    • Apart from amending, we can directly modify the content of message by a group of users for special type of message: wiki Doc and Folder
  • Tags - many email systems have tag function, but it is more powerful in intraComm
    • Private Tags and Common Tags: Private Tags in message can be seen by its reader himself only, while Common Tags can be seen by all readers
    • System Tags: intraComm has defined some tags eg ★ means important, for message with ★ tag will automatically be displayed when a user log on the system
    • User-defined Tags: Besides the System Tags, users can create their own tags using any symbols and character. For example, the △ tag can be used to indicate the price increase in quotations so that fluctuation of prices can be easily tracked by searching for the △ tag
• Messages can be retrieved by the search function with ease:
  • If keywords are added to a message, the message can be classified more accurately and it can also be searched more easily by users
  • Messages can be searched according to different fields such as the subject, content, sender, reader, keyword, attachment, tags and etc

The team spirit of the organization can be displayed on intraComm

• Share to reduce redundant work:
  • Users can share what they have done with others
    • Users can share Recipient Groups they created with other users of intraComm
    • Users do not need to classify their messages individually
    • Users can search message with keywords entered by other users
  • With things shared and its user friendly interface, even users with little computer knowledge can enjoy the convenience brought by intraComm
  • Giving greater authorities to users with more computer knowledge such as secretaries, more convenience can be achieved with more great things to be produced and shared
• intraComm facilitates new members adapting to the new work environment:
  • Users can define a Recipient Groups to represent a group of users, such as All Teachers in a school, for receiving message. This function will help users to save a lot of time if he/she has to send messages to a large group of recipients repeatedly
  • As information like post of members are already available in the system, defining a Recipient Groups is actually a very simple process. When a new teacher account is created in intraComm, the system will automatically send all messages previously sent to the All Teachers group to the new user in order to help he/she familiarizing with the new working environment
  • As messages are saved in server, when a member leaves the organization, it is more difficult for them to make copies of messages

Our expectations for intraComm

• For the leaders of organization - We hope intraComm can carry out the strategies of an organization successfully by:
  • reducing misunderstanding among members by channeling more effective and efficient communication
  • retrieving useful and relevant messages and information swiftly and accurately
  • strengthening the management of the organization for greater efficiency at very low cost
• For the developers - We hope that intraComm is not just a communication system with ample functions, but also a platform for the development of other systems since:
  • intraComm is free, open-source software and distributed under the GNU General Public License (GPL)
  • it has established the communication between database, server and work station. In intraComm, the communication between server and workstation is 128-bit encrypted, equivalent to the SSL encryption level for web pages
  • it has established hierarchy structure
  • it has established communication among users
  • it has established message management system including sending and receiving external emails
  • For the above reasons, intraComm is a framework infact. It can be an underlying platform for other systems, such as personnel management system, accounting system or even Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system