The Media Culture 2020 project offered an opportunity to evaluate the tools and establish
processes for collaborative working, as documenting the planning process and providing a
shared repository for staff and student contributions before, during and after the workshops in
Tampere and Liepaja, was key to the projects success. The lead partner championed Google+
and associated applications (Google Docs and Google Drive) as the core tools for the process.
Google+ is a social network that allows you form “circles”, ideal then for distinguishing
professional groups from purely social groups. Its main strength however is the “Hangout”
feature which allows video conference calling for up to 9 participants. What makes Google
Hangouts extremely useful and appropriate for this particular task was its ability to integrate
Google Docs, screen-sharing and a streamlined ‘invitation to join’ process. Additionally, a
“hangout” can be saved to the YouTube platform for future referencing and even broadcast
live. These features were attempted and are discussed later.