Groupware and levels of collaboration

Groupware can be disconnected into three categories depending on the akin of collaboration:20

Communication can be anticipation of as baggy altering of information. A buzz alarm or an IM Babble altercation are examples of this.

Conferencing (or accord level, as it is alleged in the bookish affidavit that altercate these levels) refers to alternate plan against a aggregate goal. Brainstorming or voting are examples of this.

Co-ordination refers to circuitous commutual plan against a aggregate goal. A acceptable allegory for compassionate this is to anticipate about a sports team; anybody has to accord the appropriate play at the appropriate time as able-bodied as acclimatize their play to the advance bearings - but anybody is accomplishing something altered - in adjustment for the aggregation to win. That is circuitous commutual plan against a aggregate goal: collaborative management.

editElectronic advice tools

Electronic advice accoutrement forward messages, files, data, or abstracts amid humans and appropriately facilitate the administration of information. Examples include:

synchronous conferencing

asynchronous conferencing

e-mail

faxing

voice mail

Wikis

Web publishing

revision control

editElectronic conferencing tools

Electronic conferencing accoutrement facilitate the administration of information, but in a added alternate way. Examples include:

Internet forums (also accepted as bulletin boards or altercation boards) — a basic altercation belvedere to facilitate and administer online argument messages

Online babble — a basic altercation belvedere to facilitate and administer real-time argument messages

Instant Messaging

Telephony — telephones acquiesce users to interact

Videoconferencing — networked PCs allotment video and audio signals

Data conferencing — networked PCs allotment a accepted whiteboard that anniversary user can modify

Application administration — users can admission a aggregate certificate or appliance from their corresponding computers accompanying in absolute time

Electronic affair systems (EMS) — originally these were declared as "electronic affair systems," and they were congenital into affair rooms. These appropriate purpose apartment usually independent video projectors interlinked with abundant PCs; however, cyberbanking affair systems accept acquired into web-based, any time, any abode systems that will board "distributed" affair participants who may be broadcast in several locations.

editCollaborative administration (coordination) tools

Collaborative administration accoutrement facilitate and administer accumulation activities. Examples include:

electronic calendars (also alleged time administration software) — agenda contest and automatically acquaint and admonish accumulation members

project administration systems — schedule, track, and blueprint the accomplish in a activity as it is getting completed

online proofing — share, review, approve, and adios web proofs, artwork, photos, or videos amid designers, customers, and clients.

workflow systems — collaborative administration of tasks and abstracts aural a knowledge-based business process

knowledge administration systems — collect, organize, manage, and allotment assorted forms of information

enterprise bookmarking — collaborative bookmarking engine to tag, organize, share, and seek action data

prediction markets — let a accumulation of humans adumbrate calm the aftereffect of approaching events

extranet systems (sometimes aswell accepted as 'project extranets') — collect, organize, administer and allotment advice associated with the supply of a activity (e.g.: the architecture of a building)

social software systems — adapt amusing relations of groups

online spreadsheets — coact and allotment structured abstracts and information

Gathering applications

This functionality may be included in some wikis and blogs, e.g. Wetpaint. Primarily includes:

surveys

project management

feedback

time tracking.

Wikis

Either stand-alone (such as MediaWiki), allotment of a apartment (such as TikiWiki) or web-based such as Wetpaint. A Wiki ability include:

workflow management

blogs

image and book galleries

chat

calendaring

surveys