Groupware software can be synchronous or asynchronous. Asynchronous applications include email, forums, collaborative software, and calendars. Synchronous applications include chat systems, meeting software, and electronic whiteboards. Both types have business and personal uses, including multiplayer games.
Groupware software can be classified based on whether or not users need to use the software at the same time. When users need to use it at the same time, it is called synchronous. If users can use it at different times, it is called asynchronous. Both types offer applications for business and personal use ranging from email to games.
Email is one of the earliest groupware applications. This application is asynchronous because users can send and receive emails at different times. Email saves a record of the communication, making it useful for documenting discussions and decisions. Mailing lists are an expansion of email designed for communicating with groups.
Internet forums, which frequently use open source groupware, are another asynchronous application. Users visit the forum at different times and can read and post messages. Forums also keep posts, although many forums allow users and administrators to delete or edit posts.
Many organizations implement collaborative software where documents move asynchronously from user to user, with each user contributing in some way. For example, a prospective borrower can fill out a loan application online and submit it. An employee of the loan company reviews the application and adds information. The loan application can then be directed to a higher level employee for approval. Once approved, the application is passed on to another employee to complete processing.
Calendars are a common example of asynchronous groupware. Users add events to their calendars at their convenience. This information may be made available to other users even when the original user’s calendar is closed.
In synchronous groupware software, users must be in the application at the same time to communicate. These software applications often serve people who are located in different places. Chat systems are synchronous groupware applications that can use text or video. Text chats have the advantage of easy search and review of content. Video more closely resembles face-to-face interaction and can allow users to read each other’s facial expressions and tone of voice.
Another type of synchronous groupware, meeting software, is designed to facilitate meetings of groups that are in different locations. This type of software might use video conferencing, computer screen sharing, or a combination of both technologies. Companies can install video technology in meeting rooms to accommodate this type of groupware.
Electronic whiteboards can be used for synchronous online conferencing. Users in different locations can write on the whiteboard and see what other users have written. These groupware software systems usually save a record of the whiteboard.
Groupware also has a place outside the corporate arena. Some types of multiplayer games are synchronous groupware software. Players in different locations enter the game and play against each other in real time.
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