Software engineering of collaborative systems

计算机越来越多地用于帮助人们进行协作。电子邮件已经变得无处不在，现在又有即时通讯和手机短信服务（SMS）等技术作为补充。wiki允许协作创建网站，支持协作项目。电子会议系统已经成为异地会议的流行替代方案，允许人们实时交谈和共享文件。现代个人数字助理模糊了电话和电脑之间的界限，支持无线连接电子邮件、日程更新、短信和语音功能。现代网络游戏允许成千上万的人在一个共享的持久环境中实时互动。像这样的工具很难构建。它们需要简单而强大的用户界面，使人们能够像面对面一样有效地协作。与此同时，协作系统建立在互联网之上，因此遭受速度不足和运行不可靠的后果。

Computers are increasingly used to help people to collaborate. Email has become ubiquitous, and is now complemented by technologies such as instant messaging and short message service (SMS) on mobile phones. Wikis allow collaborative creation of web sites, supporting collaborative projects. Electronic meeting systems have become a popular alternative to co-located meetings, allowing people to converse and share documents in real time. Modern personal digital assistants have blurred the line between telephone and computer, supporting wireless connectivity for email, agenda updates, SMS and voice functions. Modern online games allow thousands of people to interact in real time in a shared persistent environment. Tools such as these are difficult to build. They require simple yet powerful user interfaces that allow people to collaborate as effectively as when they meet in person. At the same time, collaborative systems are built on top of the Internet, and therefore suffer the consequences of its inadequate speed and unreliable operation.