Collaborative document editing is widely used in many industries as a means of communication and transferring information to many sectors of the team. After searching and reading articles about collaborative document editing, I have come to an understanding that there are a lot of different online services to choose from. Every single editing document is essentially the same in its function, but there are variations to each one. Each business would choose one depending on how they collaborate, but each service has its problems. Although a great tool for collaborative teams it does need a little fine tuning.
A collaborative document editor is a software application that allows several people to edit files in different locations and different computers given they have the internet. There are two types of collaborative editors, being real-time and non-real-time. Real-time collaborative editors are the most effective in that allows the users to edit the same file at the same time.[1] A patent lodged to protect a collaborative system simply states it function as being:
“Document editor means for writing, editing, and displaying the document[2]”
Bottom line it can be referred to as “data sharing in group work[3]” from the title of a book describing the importance and significance of collaborative document editing.
There are many types on the market to choose from. Again I will stress the company or team should choose the one best supporting there task. The availability of Java applets on computers and the growing availability and speed of broadband has enabled a more powerful range of collaborative editing tools. The first free application was SubEthaEdit but crossed over to become a commercial product. Another popular online service is writely. Other real-time collaborative document editing softwares include; ACE, CoWord, GNU Emacs and Screen, Gobby, ICT, MoonEdit, Saros, Shared Page and UNA. There are many more available to collaborative teams, industries and businesses.
What I can see significant with collaborative document editing is that any industry with different departments can use this, there is endless possibilities for this application to be used in a business. For example I have found two accounts expressing there fondness for this service.
“Last week, I participated in a collaborative editing session using SubEthaEdit… the tool basically enables multiple people to edit the same text document in a networked environment in real-time… the effect is one of literally seeing multiple cursors on the page with everyone typing at once. It’s extremely cool.”
He goes on further to say the possibilities are endless like replacing face-to-face meetings all together with a collaborative editing session. There are some downfalls to the application; more than 8 people becomes too confusing, adding the function of an instant messenger apart from the document being worked on will allow clarity of the goal and the need of a project leader but compare it with the positives it does outweigh the negatives; reading the document after the collaborative session you can see the thought process, the environment encourages you to be your own, brainstorming becomes super-efficient, compared with face-to-face collaboration methods, there are less opportunities to get sidetracked.[4] The other example found expressed his praises for another entirely different application named PleaseReview.[5] This is fortunate because it allows Windows users to use it while SubEthaEdit can only be used with Macs.
It is my suggestion that further research should be investigated in Collaborative Document Editing. My suggestion is rooted from the possibility that it can be a great tool for our project. We have been assigned to use a wiki for our purposes:
“In groups of 5 use a Wiki as a portal through which to present the UT3 environment that represents your unbuilt architectural project. In each presentation use one of the themes of collaboration to bring specific aspects of your project into focus. For a particular presentation the Wiki will contain a written component of 1000 words (comprised of a carefully edited compilation of words from each students blog), a selection of 7 images and between 4 - 6 minutes of video footage. It will also contain links to reference material and other relevant contextual information.[6]”
Therefore finding a software that will suit our needs and the requirements of the task should be important. We also need to look at examples of teams using it and see what advice they propose needs to fine-tuned so the final result will be smooth and well put together.
[1] Arch1392 – Wiki, http://www.russelllowe.com/arch1392/brief/brief_wiki.htm, accessed on 31/03/08
[2] Collaborative Document Editing, http://allinthehead.com/retro/205/collaborative-document-editing, accessed on 26/03/08
[3] Collaborative Document Review Online: PleaseReview,
http://www.masternewmedia.org/news/2005/06/02/collaborative_document_review_online_pleasereview.htm, accessed on 26/03/08
[4] Collaborative real-time editor, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collaborative_real-time_editor, accessed on 26/03/08
[5] http://www.google.com.au/patents?hl=en&lr=&vid=USPAT5671428&id=a1YfAAAAEBAJ&oi=fnd&dq=what+is+Collaborative+Document+Editing+ , accessed on the 31/03/08
[6] Data Sharing in Group Work, http://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=4oVMJ1vi8lkC&oi=fnd&pg=PA477&dq=what+is+Collaborative+Document+Editing+&ots=TPGcF_8k8g&sig=cv6SRXmeOQN_tHG7KqVEY9IoFR0, accessed on the 31/03/08
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2 comments:
Hi Margaret, it would be great to see some video of you guys working on a collaborative document together; getting several cursers on the screen at once adding and modifying things. You also mention the need for a leader to manage synchronous work, how do you guys do it without a leader?
A video would be a great idea. I would have to get that off Priscilla. Collaboration through "Collaborative Document Editing" was a different way of doing work. I quite enjoyed it and could be utilized well with the right application, job and team. But i do have to admit that face-to-face meetings can't be beat at the moment. Because you really know what the people involved really think, everyone has an input. But having the opportunity to fiddle around with Google Documents allowed us to see how it can be used in the industry.
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