Staying Aware in Groupware Workspaces

This video illustrates several widgets that help people maintain awareness of one another in shared workspaces. Many real-time distributed groupware systems provide a shared space where participants can see and manipulate work artifacts; however, these systems present only a fraction of the information that is available in a face-to-face setting. As a result, people are less able to keep track of where others are working, what they are doing, and what they are going to do next. The widgets in this video demonstrate two approaches that can help to solve this problem. First, overviews can be used to provide a highlevel picture of the workspace and the locations and activities of the people in it. Second, detail views can show the particulars of another person’s work area, giving a closer look at their interaction with the workspace.