Office 365, Skype for Business - alternatives for Linux

blueorbit69 · 8 November 2016 20:01

I would like to start using Linux more for business. Our company uses Office 365 and Skype for Business for web conferencing. I have Libre Office, but need to find alternatives (outside of Windows on Virtual Box and Office 365 on the web) for the following:

Integrated Email, Calendar and Contacts which can sync with Outlook
Skype for Business (IM, web conferencing, voice calling, screen sharing)

Appreciate any help on this!

DLS · 8 November 2016 20:05

Hello @blueorbit69

I cannot help you with a Skype equivalent for business but I do believe that Nylas N1 would make a fine replacement for m$ outlook which you can find here: https://nylas.com/

Cheers,

Don_in_Vermont · 8 November 2016 20:34

Have you looked at Evolution. https://wiki.gnome.org/Apps/Evolution/

blueorbit69 · 8 November 2016 22:07

Seems like Evolution could be a good option. Would like to hear from people currently using Evolution as Outlook replacement for Office 365 in corporate environments. Any issues with sync for e-mail, contacts or calendar?

Thanks!

malwaredpc · 8 November 2016 22:41

Some suggestion… You will have to look for your own and select and try those that fit your needs:

Thunderbird + Lighting
Evolution

LibreOffice Collabora
More Stuff of LibreOffice
G Suite

Jitsi
Ekiga
Tox
Ring
telegram (no calling, yet)

Hopefully this will help.

BTW: You can use Skype on Linux too (I actually haven’t tried it in Linux)

blueorbit69 · 8 November 2016 23:01

Thanks for your response. Yes, I have Skype on Linux and it works well for personal communications. But I am looking for Skype for Business replacement, which is different and part of Office 365.

malwaredpc · 8 November 2016 23:51

Well, no idea of Skype for Business. You may want give Google G Suite a try.

lah7 · 9 November 2016 14:32

My work use Google Apps for Business, and Hangouts is what we use for IM and conferencing. It works on Linux too (or any with a web browser for that matter).

I use Thunderbird for connecting to Gmail via IMAP, and then have Google Calendar and Google Contacts as “web app shortcuts”, although it is possible to sync with Thunderbird.

Are you looking for open source programs specifically for Linux, or any service with Linux support (that may not be free)? Or are you hoping to move away from Office 365 altogether?

blueorbit69 · 9 November 2016 15:09

I use Gmail and Google services for personal communications, including Hangouts. All work great with Chrome. But for work, the entire company is using Office 365 and this is something that can’t change. So, in order for me to be able to use Linux effectively for work, I need replacement apps that will work with Office 365 (email, Skype for Business, etc).

Office 365 on the web works well, but need local apps for more advanced work. Libre Office seems like a good option for productivity apps and Evolution may be a good replacement for Outlook with email and calendar integration, but still need something to replace Skype for Business (voice, IM, web conferencing and screen sharing). Don’t mind paying for such an app or service, but prefer open source.

wolfman · 10 November 2016 08:38