Groupware (also kollaborative software) one calls a software for the support of co-operation in a group over temporal and/or spatial distance away. Groupware is the conversion of the theoretical bases of the computer-assisted group work (computer Supported Cooperative Work, abbreviation CSCW) into a concrete application. Occasionally also hardware components are ranked among a Groupware in addition.

Generally linguistic usage is applied the term Groupware usually only to very special systems for video conferences or for the contemporaneous treatment of documents ("Shared Whiteboards "), the definition enclosure however much more:

Prominent examples of Groupware are E-Mail-Clients (above all such with additional functionalities such as contact administration), Instant of measuringclose, Wikis, Workflow management systems (to the scheduling) and computer games, which are played over a network; further applications of examples are down.

System properties

A goal of Groupware is always the conversion of a group process, thus the transfer of a group of an at the beginning of into a final state.

Groupware can be classified according to different factors:

• 3K-Modell.
  • Communication. In which extent do the participants communicate with one
  • Co-ordination. In which extent are dates planned
  • Co-operation. In which extent on reaching a common goal one
• Place. Co-operation at a place finds (locally, e.g. Office) or over spatial distance away (distributes, e.g. between Berlin and Hamburg) instead
• Time. Co-operation finds contemporaneous (synchronously, e.g. Video conference) or deferred (asynchronously, e.g. E-Mail) instead
• Controlling of communication. Communication is steered consciously by the participant (explicitly, e.g. write a letter) or is necessary no pronounced actions (implicitly, e.g. Acceptance of a telephone
• Structure. The Groupware gives a flow diagram (, e.g. an agenda structures) or not (unstructured, e.g.
• Size. Co-operation in a large finds (e.g. Lecture) or small group (e.g. Seminar) instead

Central one of aspects of a Groupware are:

• Awareness. Many systems convert one or more forms of the Awareness (group realization), i.e. the software determines independently (implicitly) input data, in order to decrease to the user time and work.
• What You lake Is What I lake (WYSIWIS). The principle describes, which parts of an application are accurately directly represented with different users.
• Synchronisation and consistency preservation. The keeping of a uniform data condition (consistency) despite simultaneous accesses to the data, and/or the visualization of conflicts, where this is not possible.
• Floor control. The administration of system resources: Which participant may use straight which
• Session control. The administration of the participants themselves: Who may join the group, which role he

Architecture

Groupware is a distributed system, which makes the common treatment for a quantity possible of data or documents. It always converts therefore one of the following concepts:

• Central architecture. All participants (Clients) are connected with a central administration (server), over which entire co-operation is completed.
• Peer ton Peer architecture. Although all participants are connected by a network from servers, there is no central administrative instance as in central architecture.
• Hybrid architecture. Peer ton Peer architecture is supplemented around a central server, which serves however only the logging.

Examples of Groupware applications

An example of an Groupware application is the PIM software in such a way specified (personnel information manager). The research discipline, which concerns itself with the investigation of co-operation with computer aid, is called computer Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW).

The range of the programs is different. With most are contained project management, E-Mail, calendars and note book functions. Here arises however the question, which contains a Groupware of everything. Many Groupware of products do not make any more functions available than E-Mail, calendars and notes (so-called PIM software). Other solutions contain substantially more than only these basis functionalities.

Collaboration software is regarded also as substantial component of ECM Enterprise content management.

Admitted if product, which is called Groupware, is exchange4linux von Neuberger & Hughes, Wikis, Lotus Notes of IBM, FirstClass, Groupwise von Novell, Citadel, OpenGroupware.org, open XChange, Adarvo Themeware, Microsoft Exchange, Microsoft SharePoint technologies and BSCW.

Groove is a well-known and safe P2P-Groupware.

Since 2002 are developed at a free Groupware named Kolab. Kolab is servers/Client solution and by the firm tripartite group Erfrakon, Intevation and a Datakonsult on behalf was off arranged. On 25 July 2003 the project of the enterprises was successfully locked. There are a KDE Client and the possibilities of operating Outlook with prop. guessing eras Plugins as Client. Contrary to the following free solutions Kolab offers genuine Clients, which off-line can work.

One year later again on the Linuxtag 2004 was released of the company Skyrix the product of the same name after the model of OpenOffice.org under the name OpenGroupware.org than free software.

In the year 2005 the Kolab consortium (Erfrakon, Intevation and KDAB) on the Linuxtag in Karlsruhe communicated the release of Kolab 2,0.

Further free software are eGroupWare, phpGroupWare, PHProjekt and simple Groupware, which with the script language PHP was provided.

See also

• Personal information manager
• Further programs of the category Groupware

Articles in category "Groupware"

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