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The BSCW Shared Workspace System

The BSCW Shared Workspace System. OrbiTeam Software GmbH & Co KG. http://www.orbiteam.de/ Bonn, Germany December 2007. History. 1994: BSCW research project at GMD-FIT (now: Fraunhofer-FIT) First entirely web-based groupware system world-wide 1995: first public release (Version 2.0)

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The BSCW Shared Workspace System

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  1. The BSCW Shared Workspace System OrbiTeam Software GmbH & Co KG http://www.orbiteam.de/ Bonn, Germany December 2007

  2. History • 1994: BSCW research project at GMD-FIT (now: Fraunhofer-FIT) • First entirely web-based groupware system world-wide • 1995: first public release (Version 2.0) • 1995: public BSCW server, free of charge http://bscw.gmd.de (still in operation) • 1996: BSCW wins European Software Innovation Prize (ESIP ’96) • 1998: professional marketing and support by Spin-Off OrbiTeam • 1996 – today: numerous European research projects around BSCW(CoopWWW, CESAR, ITCOLE, CYCLADES, MILK, MOSAIC, COMIST, IPerG, ECOSPACE, CoSpaces...) • September 2007: release of BSCW 4.4

  3. Excursion: Groupware • software to support communication, cooperation and coordinationfor a group of people – across time and space • communication • messaging, conferencing • end-user centered • users are geographically dispersed or at same place • communication synchronous or asynchronous • cooperation – shared information spaces • joint synchronous editing • time-deferred (asynchronous) group cooperation • coordination • time scheduling, process planning • execution of group activities in compliance with causal and temporal dependencies

  4. „3C“-Classification document management shared workspaces decision support meeting support discussion forums cooperation communication project management workflow management time scheduling audio/video email chat/IM conferencing coordination

  5. Communication Tools • audio/video • convergence of telephony and Internet (VoIP) • examples: Skype, GnomeMeeting, Netmeeting • email • a „classic“, ubiquitiously available to just anyone • from text-only format to multi-media content • media flogged to death (?) • examples: MS-Outlook/Exchange, Mozilla Thunderbird • chat • text-based synchronous communication • indicates availability (Presence & Awareness and Instant Messaging systems) • examples: ICQ, OpenScape, AOL/Yahoo/MSN Messenger etc.

  6. Cooperation Tools • Document Management Systems (DMS) • central repository, individual access • document classification and search tools • examples: network drives (Samba), „classic“ DMS tools (FileNet, Saperion) • Shared Workspace Systems (SWS) • shared workspaces: shared information space • access to heterogeneous articfacts: documents, appointments, addresses,… • provides awareness about other users‘ actions • examples: BSCW, LiveLink, e-Rooms, SharePoint, Notes • discussion forums • originally text-based exchange of opinions, persistent to others • recent developments allow for multi-media contents • examples: classic forums (Usenet News), WiKis, Blogs • meeting support • in situ: meeting room equipment, support of team meetings and brainstorming • distributed: synchrone Kommunikation, shared whiteboard, application sharing • examples: MindMaps, SmartBoards, Web-Conferencing (WebEx, Netmeeting, Marratech, PlaceWare)

  7. Coordination Tools • project management • resource management, planning and tracing • coordination of miles stones and work packages • examples: Timeline, MS-Project / project server • workflow • structured processes • step-by-step directives following process definition • ranges from rigid processes to flexible, variable processes • examples: Aris, COSIMA, Prominant, X-Flow, Ultimus • time scheduling • appointments in private and shared calendars • negotiation of appointments • inspection of private calendars (free/busy time slots) • examples: MS-Outlook/Exchange, Lotus Notes, Schedule+

  8. BSCW – Shared Workspace System • BSCW – BasicSupport forCooperativeWork • document management, time management, coordination • supports team work by using shared workspaces • focus: document management in work groups • BSCW is … • platform for cooperation in distributed groups • generic tool, not a specific application • BSCW facilitates … • project work across sites • networking and exchange of knowledge • central document management • group management and group awareness

  9. BSCW – Shared Workspace System • BSCW – Basic Support for Cooperative Work • web-based groupware system • document management, time management, coordination • supports team work by using shared workspaces • focus: document management in work groups • platform for distributed cooperation • cooperation in closed teams • exchange of data with external partners • not just a „standard DMS product“ • BSCW supports project teams geographically dispersed • BSCW supports self-organizing work groups • BSCW provides extensive group awareness

  10. Where does BSCW fit? document management shared workspaces discussion forums cooperation communication ad-hoc workflows project management time scheduling email chat presence coordination

  11. Use BSCW to cooperate and to coordinate your work • as a Document Management System • central repository, individual access • hierarchical folder structure plus search tools • as a Shared Workspace System • shared workspaces: shared information space • System bietet shared workspaces: gemeinsamer Informationsraum • access to various artifacts: documents, appointments, contacts, links,... • management of membership and access rights • as a mediator • awareness of group activities: who did what when and how? • extensive notification functions • as a coordinator • time scheduling – coordination of appointments • group calendars • flow folders for simple and sequential processes • planning and execution of complex business processes

  12. BSCW improves team work by… • employing only wide-spread technology (Web) • facilitating usage across organizational boundaries • quick start-up, ad-hoc usage • self-organization and group awareness • group management and access control • improving exploitation of existing knowledge(Knowledge Management) • support of flexible organizations (virtual teams)

  13. Functionality – Whats‘s in BSCW? • Document Management • including version management and locking mechanisms • document editing • direct editing of Web and MS Office documents • self-organized group management • Benutzer können neue Benutzer einladen • fine-grained access control • by a flexible role concept and pre-defined default roles • coordination of business processes • electronic flow folders granting sequential access to documents • ad-hoc, ‚user defined‘ workflows to coordinate business processes • shared management of appointments

  14. What else is in BSCW? • polls and discussion forums • annotations and rating of documents • event history of user activities • email notification of activities in shared workspaces • distribution of documents via email • synchronization of central server and local workstation • document conversion and archiving • mobile access via PDA and mobile phone • archiving of shared workspaces into standard formats, e.g., zip • interfaces to email, fax, SMS and synchronous communication tools • support of standards, e.g., LDAP, XML-RPC, iCal, vCard, SSL, WebDAV, X.509

  15. How does BSCW work? • access to central BSCW system • from local workstation using standard Web browser (z.B. Internet Explorer, Firefox) • authentication using user name and password • no additional software needed • access to documents • upload and download via browser • documents reside on central BSCW server • multiple object typescan be stored

  16. adaptableinterface contextualized menu based control self-organizing groups contacts folder hierarchy documents access control eventindicators User Interface

  17. Shared objects in BSCW document note URL (Link) folder search folder calendar discussion forum email project flow folder task community poll contact list document set

  18. Main Functionality - Overview • Document Management • communication via blogs and discussion forums • access control and membership management • awareness & event notification • coordination support

  19. Document Management • shared workspaces • basic means of organization • documents structured hierarchically • folders grant access to one or several members • document access • document upload using Web browser • built-in 'drag and drop' upload feature • alternative using 'Web Folders' (WebDAV access) • access control • roled based access control model • manager defines roles • members are invited to workspace with specific role

  20. Document Management • shared workspaces • documents structured hierarchically • folders grant access to one or several members • attributes of documents • edit document attributes • add individual annotations and ratings • simple upload of documents • drag ‚n‘ drop documents

  21. Document Management via BSCW • document attributes • meta data (name, description etc.) • tags (≥ version 4.4) • search for meta data • version management [1.0] • replace or revise documents • older versions remain in system • document locking • locks prevent conflicts of concurrent access • lock can be set by user before s/he edits document • coordinated access • access control and roles • final documents can be ‚frozen‘

  22. Tags – Information in Context • tags • keywords of documents • pinned on documents like labels • tags in BSCW • pin tags on documents, folders or blog entries • tags are displayed in folder views • search for related documents using tags

  23. Alternative Access to Documents (via WebDAV) • integrated into MS Windows • open shared workspaces as ‚Web Folder‘ • access content using standard file explorer • upload document by copy and paste or drag ‚n‘ drop • directly open document by double clicking it

  24. Document Upload • via „web folder“in file explorer (WebDAV) • via dedicated upload application(BSCW Desktop)

  25. Document Editing • standard web editing: download, edit, upload • download (and lock) document from BSCW • edit on your PC, e.g., using MS-Word • upload document, replacing it or creating new version • integrated editing • integration of MS Office in MS Internet Explorer • directly edit document using integrated „edit“ action in BSCW (simple edit cycle requires WebDAV) • direct editing • directly edit web documents (HTML format) in BSCW • prepare set of documents as website folder • Wiki-like, document centered

  26. Website Folder • „mini website“ in BSCW • collection of linked documents • direct editing of documents in web browser • integration of BSCW system functionality into web documents(e.g., date of last change, links to event history,...) • adapted view of BSCW folders • a website folder is presented in two ways • as list of objects (default BSCW view) • web view (adaptable, same for all workspace members)

  27. Website Folder • web view defined by • layout template • layout template defines general appearance • all web documents (=HTML pages) in website folder are displayed using layout template • index page • index page is entrance (=home page) into folder • content • document collection = set of editable documents • adapt documents using Wiki-like syntax • comfortable editing by integrated HTML editor tool • add BSCW elements and links to other pages • format content and design attractive look and feel

  28. Website Folder: Example

  29. Document Management • application areas • document repository in shared workspaces • storage of ‚final‘ documents • shared access to ‚living‘ documents • shared document editing • coordinated editing of documents(under version control) • document collections using website folders • e.g. minutes, shared glossaries, FAQs,... • limitations • editing of documents requires special editors, e.g. MS Word

  30. Main Functionality - Overview • Document Management • communication via blogs and discussion forums • access control and membership management • awareness & event notification • coordination support

  31. Discussion Forums • discussions • contain Notesnote = subject + text • independent objects in a workspace (forum) • comparable to short messages on a white board • can be attached to documents (lilke post-its) • only workspace members can read and annotate notes • discussion threads • notes referring to other notes • view can be customized to display threads • members may… • create notes, read notes • reply to notes • attach documents and links to notes

  32. Blogs – Online Diaries • blog = web log • personal website • Internet: diaries or blogs related to a particular subject • displayed in reverse chronological order • blogs in BSCW • create and publish blogs • blogs can also be edited cooperatively • blog entries can be annotated by BSCW users • blogs are integrated into BSCW (≥ V4.4) • customizable views

  33. Blogs – Online Diaries

  34. Synchronous Communication – Online Status & Communication Tools • display online status (≥ BSCW 4.4) • who is currently available and online? • displayed in a BSCW workspace:active/all members • configurable contact attributesfor direct communication with other users • e.g., Instant Messaging • via menu: „Change Profile“ • contact details on user‘s info page

  35. Communication via Blogs & Forums • application areas • forums: informal coordination in a team • e.g., to prepare decisions and to form opinions • blogs: document processes in project context • e.g., as a project diary • online status: directly contact team • limitations • blogs & forums: asynchronous communication (time deferred) • online status: integration of external (synchronous) tools (no integrierted chat tool in BSCW!)

  36. Main Functionality - Overview • Document Management • communication via blogs and discussion forums • access control and membership management • awareness & event notification • coordination support

  37. Access Control • secure access to data • user name and password (login) • encrypted data transfer (SSL, optional) • authentication using X.509 certificates (optional) • self-organization • membgers invite new members • workspace manager controls access • roles and access rights • access rights defined by roles which members are assigned to • inviting member assigns role to new member • scope of roles: systemwide or for a workspace only • pre-defined roles • manger, member, restricted member • additional pre-defined roles possible

  38. Invite New Workspace Members • invite other users and define their role in shared workspace • invite • registered users • new users(via email) • new users • register with BSCW

  39. Changing and Assigning Roles • each role can be changed individually • each member of a workspace can be assigned a different role or additional roles

  40. Member Management • personal address book • management of BSCW users • automatically updates when new users are invited • makes finding and inviting new users easier • direct access to contact data of users • workspace members • list of authorized members • displays role(s) of members • easy adding or removing of members

  41. Member Management • workspace members • list of authorized members • displays role(s) of members • easy adding or removing of members

  42. JohnDoe (manager) WandaWoe (member) WandaWoe (manager) TimToe (member) workspace X documents contracts ... offers workspaceY documents templates letters Member Management – Example • workspace members • members are invited to „main (upper) folder“ • members are granted access to entire folder sub-structure • members hold role(s) • individual views on structure • each user only perceives „his/her“ workspaces • new workspaces appear in personal home area ...

  43. Access Control & Member Mgt. • application areas • set-up of team spaces (shared workspaces) • invitation of external partners • management of access rights based on roles • limitations • workgroups are tightly coupled with workspaces(basic concept of BSCW)

  44. Contacts • manage shared contacts • special folder „contact list“ • contact list contains contact data • one entry per contact person (not the same as list of „workspace members“!!!) • contact data • personal data (name, telephone, address) • easy to edit • categories (e.g., personal, business) • import/export • via vCard format („name.vcf“) • transfer to/from MS-Outlook

  45. Main Functionality - Overview • Document Management • communication via blogs and discussion forums • access control and membership management • awareness & event notification • coordination support

  46. Awareness & Notification Features • goals • information about activities in your workspaces • reminders about important appointments and re-submission of documents in the future • history of events on all objects (who did what and when?) • advantages • increased transparency • easier coordination at less costs

  47. Event History • information about activities • events record activities • changes in system are signalled • processes can be permanently tracked via event history • changes/events can be confirmed individually • events contain • date and name of user • more details (e.g., where an object originally came from) • event icons: new object changes made to object object was read changes in sub folders

  48. Notification of Changes • BSCW provides awareness by • daily/direct email messages • event history • RSS feed

  49. Activity Tracking: BSCW Monitor • Monitor Applet • additional tool • in separate window • displays informationon • active users • current events • advantages • supplies up-to-date information • enables direct reaction

  50. Reminder Features • reminders of appointments • remind yourself or all participants • re-submission of documents • re-submit document at certain points of time • users receive email messagecontaing link todocument

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