The worlds of enterprise social networking and more prosaic digital collaboration continue to converge, though probably not as fast as you'd like.

That's just one of the conclusions from latest version of RSG's Enterprise Collaboration & Social Software Report, which contains updated evaluations for

• Atlassian Confluence
• IBM Connections
• Microsoft Yammer
• Oracle WebCenter / OSN
• TIBCO tibbr

Consult the report for detailed evaluations of 25 different offerings, but here is a sneak peek from our most recent updates.

Atlassian, most known for its bug tracking software JIRA, is not your typical enterprise software firm but it has a certain Aussie X-factor and is generally considered to be open and customer-friendly. Confluence, it's wiki + team collaboration software is reasonably mature, but does not cater much to social-networking oriented scenarios.

IBM Connections, originally a set of different independent applications thrown together, is evolving and the latest release does a much better job of unifying the overall user experience. Connections customers tend to fall into two categories: those who kick the tires and move on to alternatives after finding it's not for them; or, Big Blue loyalists who invest heavily in customizing the platform to obtain sufficient value success.

Microsoft has indicated that developing close integration between Yammer and SharePoint remains a priority for them. But we contend that enterprise customers should not shy away from exploring Yammer alternatives. Among other reasons, architectural concerns around integration persist, particularly if you are an on-prem SharePoint customer.

Oracle appears to have dialed down the ambitions for it's Oracle Social Network (OSN) product and seems largely content with socializing Oracle middleware and it's other enterprise applications.

High-flying social layer vendors may have lost some sheen, but TIBCO's tibbr has managed to seize momentum in the last few years and gain a fair bit of visibility in the marketplace. However, you'll find traditional collaboration features on the lighter side here.

Subscribers can grab the full latest report or individual chapters right away. Others can get a complimentary sample chapter here.