Groupware

Groupware is a technology designed to facilitate the work of groups. This technology may be used to communicate, cooperate, coordinate, solve problems, compete, or negotiate. While traditional technologies like the telephone qualify as groupware, the term is ordinarily used to refer to a specific class of technologies relying on modern computer networks, such as email, newsgroups, videophones, or chat. Groupware technologies are typically categorized along two primary dimensions: 1.         Whether users of the groupware are working …

…structured interactions In addition to the benefits of groupware, another good reason to study usability and design issues in groupware is to avoid a failed design. Groupware is significantly more difficult to get right than traditional software. Typically, a groupware system can't succeed unless most or the entire target group is willing to adopt the system. In contrast, a single-user system can be successful even if only a fraction of the target market adopts it.