Groupware for the Macintosh : a complete guide to collaborative computing

412 Pages·1991·46.349 MB·English

by  Fraase, Michael

COMPUTERS/SOFTWARE (SPRING 1991)
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Groupware f o r
the Macintosh
A Complete Guide to
Collaborative Computing
Groupware f o r
the Macintosh
· A Complete Guide to
Collaborative Computing
Michael Fraase
BUSINESS ONE IRWIN
Homewood, Illinois 60430
The information in this book is distributed on an "As Is" basis, without warranty. Neither the
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©RICHARD D. IRWIN, INC., 1991
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or
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This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the
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From a Declaration of Principles jointly adopted by a Committee
of the American Bar Association and a Committee of Publishers.
Sponsoring editor: Susan Stevens, Ph.D.
Project editor: Karen J. Nelson
Production manager: Irene H. Sotiroff
Printer: The Book Press, Inc.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Fraase, Michael.
Groupware for the Macintosh: a complete guide to collaborative
computing I by Michael Fraase.
p. em.
Includes index.
ISBN 1-55623-521-6
1. Work groups-Data processing. 2. Business-Data processing.
3. Business-Communication systems. 4. Information technology.
I. Title.
HD66.F73 1992
658.4'036'028546-dc20 91-9949
Printed in the United States of America
1234567890BP87654321
Trademark Credits
All terms mentioned in this work that are known to be
trademarks or service marks are listed below. In addition,
terms suspected of being trademarks or service marks have
been appropriately capitalized. Use of a term in this work
should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trade
mark or service mark.
Apple, the Apple logo, AppleTalk, HyperCard, ImageWriter,
LaserWriter, Macintosh, and MacTerminal are registered
trademarks of Apple Computer Inc.
AppleCD, Apple Desktop Bus, AppleFax, AppleMouse, Ap
pleShare, AppleShare Print Server, A/UX, EtherTalk, Finder,
HyperTalk, LaserShare, LocalTalk, and MultiFinder are trade
marks of Apple Computer Inc.
Arts & Farces, the Arts & Farces logo, and Arts & Farces Re
view .are trademarks of Arts & Farces.
CheckNet, Liaison, NetAtlas, PhoneNET, Timbuktu, Tim
buktu/Remote, and Traffic Watch II are trademarks of Faral
lon Computing Inc.
CompuServe is a registered trademark of CompuServe Inc.
DataClub is a trademark of International Business Software.
Ethernet is a registered trademark of Xerox Corporation.
GatorBox and GatorShare are trademarks of Cayman Sys
tems Inc.
GoFER is a trademark of Microlytics Inc.
Grace LAN is a trademark of Technology Works Inc.
Inspiration is a trademark of Ceres Software Inc.
MacLink Plus is a trademark of DataViz Inc.
MacProject is a registered trademark of Claris Corporation.
MarkUp is a trademark of Mainstay Software.
Microsoft and MS-DOS are registered trademarks of Mi
crosoft Corporation.
Microsoft Mail is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation.
MORE is a trademark of Symantec Corporation.
NetUpdater is a trademark of MDG Computer Services.
NuB us is a trademark of Texas Instruments.
On Location is a trademark of On Technology Inc.
PC-DOS is a registered trademark of International Business
Machines Corporation.
Personal Server Network is a trademark of Information Pre
sentation Technologies Inc.
PostScript is a registered trademark of Adobe Systems Inc.
QuickMail is a trademark of CE Software Inc.
Retrospect is a trademark of Dantz Development Corp.
TeleFinder is a trademark of Spider Island Software.
Timeslips is a trademark of Timeslips Corporation.
UNIX is a registered trademark of AT&T Information Sys
tems.
Preface
Groupware, collaborative computing, and computer-sup
ported cooperative work (CSCW) are terms you'll be hearing
more and more in the next few years. They all mean the
same thing: using computers to work in a collaborative
workgroup setting. Groupware can be defined as a group of
technologies, techniques, and services designed to help peo
ple collaborate more effectively, productively, and creative
ly. Groupware can consist of hardware, software, services,
and support.
Computers have returned philosophy to an integrated part
of everyday life. When we work with computers we are
forced to ask questions about the world around us:
• What is tho~ght?
• What is intelligence?
• What is the mind?
• What is reality?
Groupware tools cause us to ask these questions from several
different viewpoints because they enable us to work collab
oratively, with others, beyond the normal constraints of
time and space that we have been taught to accept. These
tools allow us to collaborate with someone who is thou
sands of miles away, just as if he or she were in the next of
fice down the hall.
These tools let us try new things without the fear of failure.
The reason desktop publishing has become so successful is
because the computer gives us permission to fail. We try a
multitude of designs without having to "marry" ourselves to
any single idea until we reach one that we recognize is
''right." Then we can refine that design as never before.
Our abilities grow because the computer frees us to take new
risks without committing to the outcome. Our abilities grow
because the computer extends not only what we can do, but
also what we can imagine.
Groupware tools allow us to extend that willingness to fail
to the workgroup. Collaborations can be more fruitful with
the use of these tools, and the group process itself is rede
fined.
The tools and techniques described in this book will help
you collaborate more effectively by helping you manage in
formation-both shared and private-more efficiently.
Who Can Benefit From This Book
If you use a Macintosh in a workgroup setting, or if you col
laborate with at least one other person you can benefit from
this·book.
The most important development of our lifetime has been
the replacement of the second-wave, industrial economy
with one based on information and knowledge. Instead of
creating wealth with muscle, as we did in the industrial
economy, we now create wealth by manipulating symbols
by converting information into knowledge. More and more
we're doing this in workgroups rather than individually.
We all collaborate. Maybe you aren't part of a permanent
workgroup (and as the economy continues to shift, the no
tion ~fa "permanent" anything in the workplace will con
tinue to fade), but you collaborate with others nonetheless.
PageB Groupware for the Macintosh
I can think of no profession that is perceived as being more
solitary than that of the professional writer. This is a misper
ception, however, and this book is a good example. I wrote
it, and my name is on the cover, but it was anything but a
solitary effort. I spoke with literally hundreds of people dur
ing my research and writing cycles for this book. I worked
with an editor, a copyeditor, a promotion department, and
a service bureau to produce the camera-ready pages that you
hold in your hands. It was a patchwork of various collabora
tions, some of which endured throughout the project and
some of which were quite brief. In any case, this book would
not exist if not for those collaborations.
I suspect that your work environment has at least that much
in common with mine. If so, you can benefit from this book.
Navigating This Book
The chapters in this book were designed, as much as possi
ble, to be free-standing. Groupware for the Macintosh: A
Complete Guide to Collaborative Computing assumes that you
have an underlying knowledge of basic Macintosh tech
niques: launching applications, selecting objects, creating
folders, saving files, and the like. If you don't, refer to Ap
ple's excellent guides that came with your computer.
Chapter One, Introduction and Overview, provides a brief
overview of the underlying concepts of collaborative com
puting principles, technologies, and techniques.
Chapter Two, Driving Forces of Groupware, offers back
ground material on our shifting economy and why group
ware is an important issue for businesses and individuals
alike. An in-depth discussion of both classic and modern in
formation theory is provided, and the basic premises of
workgroup collaboration and the collaborative process are
explored.
Preface Page 9