Many developments in GDSS and CSCW fields took place during a period
when the world of computing and communications was characterized by
proprietary systems and standards. Hence, most GDSS and CSCW systems
were not only platform
specific, but also restrictive in their ability to
communicate with other systems. While these systems cater well to the
needs of specific organizations or workgroups, they appear less
suitable for supporting global interactions among people engaged in
the collective pursuit of advancing a particular discipline. Even
recent groupware applications such as Lotus Notes are based on
proprietary standards. For example, while Lotus Notes can work over
wide area networks such as the Internet, the
end-users must all have Lotus Notes to be able to communicate with
each other. These systems are not ``open'' in the sense that it is not
possible for users with different applications to interact on a global
basis. Thus, we perceive the need for creating an open platform where
people can engage in information exchange and discussions without
being forced to use proprietary applications and data formats. By
virtue of being available on a world-wide basis with open client
applications like Mosaic and Netscape, the Web appears to be ideally
suited as a platform on which such a Collaboratory can be
developed. Depending on the file type, Web browsers can seamlessly
invoke other applications such as word processing and
spreadsheets. For example, using this feature, a user can make
available on the Collaboratory a spreadsheet file where s/he has
conducted some analysis to support his/her position on the returns
from IT investments. Other users can use Netscape to invoke the
spreadsheet application, modify the analysis and possibly obtain a
different set of results. In other words, a Web based Collaboratory
will enable users to reference and access virtually any type of
document created by commonly available applications.