WHEN CLIENT-SERVER ISNT ENOUGH - COORDINATING MULTIPLE DISTRIBUTED TASKS

The rapid growth of computer networks and client/server computing has focused much attention on the development of groupware - computer software that supports cooperative work. Groupware is different from traditional software in that it allows a group of people to work together electronically. requires a distributed hardware environment (networked personal computers or workstations), and utilizes client/server computing to facilitate information sharing, dissemination, routing, and user interaction. Unfortunately, the traditional client/server architecture is inadequate for a distributed multitasking group environment because coordination involves interactions both within and across multiple applications. The authors have developed a prototype distributed multitasking environment, DEEDS (Distributed Environment for Electronic Decision Support), that differentiates between coordination functions specific to a particular application and those shared by all applications. DEEDS extends the client/server architecture to three levels: a groupware server, application servers, and application clients. The prototype features implementations of Talk for communication, Group Paint for collaborative design, and Electronic Meeting for group decision making. Because of its object-oriented groupware kernel, the architecture can be further refined to provide more applications. Future research will study additional applications to determine their idiosyncratic coordination needs and to elaborate the division of labor among different servers and clients.