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Free Software to Streamline Chats within the Business Community

Free Software to Streamline Chats within the Business Community

Vote: (1 votes)

Program license: Trial version

Developer: Atlassian

Version: 4.29.4.1661

Works under: Windows

Also available for Android Mac

Vote:

Program license

(1 votes)

Trial version

Developer

Version

Atlassian

4.29.4.1661

Works under:

Also available for

Windows

Android Mac

Pros

  • Presents all the information you need in a smartly laid out and intuitive interface
  • Offers a huge number of communication options

Cons

  • Currently being phased out
  • Variety of integrations pale in comparison to Slack

HipChat is an integrated communications solution designed for businesses, and it combines chat, instant messaging, voice communications, and cloud-based file sharing into a seamlessly integrated platform. If that sounds familiar, it should. HipChat offered most of the same services that Slack does before the latter broke out onto the market, and while it hasn't managed to keep pace with its more popular spiritual sibling, it's still an impressive piece of software.

HipChat is built primarily for use by businesses, and its main claim to fame is how it's managed to segregate the different chats to different departments while still making it easy to facilitate the sometimes complex communications necessary for large, modern businesses. The interface is eminently simple. A panel on the right provides users with a list of all the chat rooms that they're a member of, and beneath that is a list of all the members in your currently selected team. The middle section serves as the dashboard for your currently selected team, while a panel on the right keeps track of all active members. It's a smart system that lets you access all the vital information you need with a glance and makes it easy to dig deeper into the conversations.

The chat system is versatile, making it easy to put together groups covering everything from technical conversations for specialized teams to company-wide workplace bulletins. There are also a wealth of administrative options, so managers have a lot of control over who has access to what. The rooms themselves are easy to join, and they come accompanied by a huge library of emoticons you can use to create more personalized experiences. The interface for this center panel is especially clever, as it folds all of the functions of HipChat into one interface. Rather than make you navigate through layers and layers of menus, it serves as something of a virtual bulletin board or social media wall and folds everything from voice messages to file uploads to chat conversations in one place. While it can't hold its own against Slack in terms of integrations, it's no slouch in this department either. Notable integrations include ZenDesk and Asana.

Unfortunately, HipChat is no longer being actively updated. The software was eventually replaced by its successor Stride and later folded into Slack. While the feature set is rather impressive, it's no longer being supported. While it can be an interesting curiosity for internet historians or a tool for individuals who don't care about software staying up with the latest trends, don't expect for it to continue to stay competitive with the leading business chat platforms on the market today. HipChat is scheduled to be discontinued entirely over the course of 2019, as present users are transitioned to the existing Slack platform.

Pros

  • Presents all the information you need in a smartly laid out and intuitive interface
  • Offers a huge number of communication options

Cons

  • Currently being phased out
  • Variety of integrations pale in comparison to Slack