collaborative technologies: a ukoln perspective

A centre of expertise in digital information management

www.ukoln.ac.uk

Collaborative Technologies: A UKOLN PerspectiveBrian KellyUK Web [email protected]://www.ukoln.ac.uk/

UKOLN is supported by:

Contents• The UKOLN

Context• IRC at WWW 2003• Collaboration at

events• The challenges• Open discussion

Contents• The UKOLN

Context• IRC at WWW 2003• Collaboration at

events• The challenges• Open discussion

http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/events/meetings/ukoln-2005-02-02/http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/web-focus/events/meetings/ukoln-2005-02-02/

Permission granted to use networked applications to support aims of the seminar provided disruptions to others are minimised.

Permission granted to use networked applications to support aims of the seminar provided disruptions to others are minimised.


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Supporting UKOLN's Mission

Interested in computer supported communications (CSC) / collaborative work (CSCW) to support UKOLN's (and UKOLN's funders') mission:

• We support wide range of communities: HE (160+ HEIs), FE (400+), museums, libraries and archives, …

• Our funders need to support distributed bodies (JISC, JISC RSCs, HEIs, MLA, MLA Regional Agencies, etc.

• We run/participate in many events (conferences, workshops,..)

• We are engaging in distributed project work (JISC and EU funding)

• We have remote workers (currently in Leeds and Guildford) and split location on campus

• We have an interest in the application of other research interests in this area e.g. metadata, preservation, interoperability, standards, …

• We keep a watching brief on emerging networked technologies which may prove valuable to our users


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Collaborative Technologies At W3C Meetings / WWW Conferences Background:

• Bi-annual W3C AC meetings, often co-located with international WWW conference

• For past few years geeks + laptops + WiFi + enthusiasm = innovation

• IRC used for minute-taking. Valuable for clarifying technical issues, addressing language barriers, involving remote attendees, …

• At WWW 2003 IRC used to enhance the research process 'Real-time peer-reviewing', P Shabajee

• Speaker: Tim BL coined the term x• Tim on IRC: No I didn't• IRC discussion, Googling, …• Question Time: What I said was y


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Colston Symposium, BristolPaul Shabajee, ILRT gave a talk about use of IRC and Blogs

Paul Shabajee, ILRT gave a talk about use of IRC and Blogs

There was a (semi-unplanned) realtime display of the IRC dialogue alongside PowerPoint slides – and mixed reaction from audience

http://www.ilrt.bris.ac.uk/news/conferences/colston2004/programmehttp://www.ilrt.bris.ac.uk/news/conferences/colston2004/programme


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IM In Wider Community

IT Services dept. at X. discovered MSN Messenger was inadvertently on desktop

• Must remove it: it's MS; security risk; trivial, …• Must keep it: users love it; we'll get lynched

Subsequent email survey across community:"IM ... is 'here to stay' – an 'unstoppable tide'. Seen as part of youth culture, along with … SMS" Liverpool JMU

"Students will arrive familiar with, and expecting to .. use such tools. Email seen by younger people to be 'boring', 'full of spam', IM and SMS immediacy preferred" Bath

But:"Complaints raised regarding students hogging PCs .. Also case with email some time ago" Liverpool JMU

"APIs are known & therefore targets for hackers" London Met

"Some challenges in interoperability …" Bath


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UKOLN/UCISA Workshop

Event organised in Leeds, Nov 2004 aimed at exploring how CSC can be used to support T&L / research effectively and the challenges IT Services face:

• Case studies on Blogs (Morrison) and IRC (Shabajee)• Skype to allow remote user to listen to first talk• IM (Jabber rooms) for discussions• Wiki for collaborative note-taking in discussion groups• Some delegates also Blogged (at time / afterwards)

Avoided 'technolust':• AUP provided• Addressed appropriate application areas • Addressed deployment barriers

Event reports to be published in Ariadne and paper written (pre-print available)

Event reports to be published in Ariadne and paper written (pre-print available)


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Feedback

Wiki annotation tool useful in recording discussions – about use of IM and Wikis

IM

Wikis

NotesDelegates could:

• Read notes from other groups

• All? contribute• Update notes

prior to report (democratising)

(first happened)

NotesDelegates could:

• Read notes from other groups

• All? contribute• Update notes

prior to report (democratising)

(first happened)


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Beyond Experimentation

Issues:• There is a learning curve (tools, mental model,

concerns, …)• Differences in learning styles, disciplines,

research vs T&L, …• Age/gender issues? Cf. mobile phones report.• Clarification of purpose – what are we doing, why

are we doing it, do we all agree with what we're doing, …

• Deployment strategies: want to do it, understand vision, but tools are flawed and I've deadlines

• Need for safety net when experimenting

Surprising new-found respect for Robert Kilroy-Silk!Surprising new-found respect for Robert Kilroy-Silk!


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Related WorkOther work in UKOLN:

• Use of VRVS (Access GRID technology) (and TWiki) to support distributed RDN / DCC collaborative working A Powell, Ariadne 41

• Potential forFOAF SemanticWeb application(open Social Network format cf. Orkut, etc.) See Kelly & Dodds, IADIS WBC 2004

Key feature is data integration, not 'presentational fluff'

paper Ariadne article

NB. Lots of trust, data protection, … issues – possibly addressed by author-created information

NB. Lots of trust, data protection, … issues – possibly addressed by author-created information


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Research Issues

Some areas of interest:• Discovery: I gave you the information in email

(home/work account); on IM; in chatroom; on Skype; on Skype IM; in Blog; in Wiki; F2F; …

• Preservation: recording of potentially valuable academic discourse held in variety of applications; in-house / trusted third party / commercial third party; …

• Identifiers: need for persistent identifiers (independent of application, organisation and org. structure) for discovery, annotations, … - nb. identifiers for Wikalong annotations vary for different forms of URIs (foo/, foo/intro.html, …)

• …


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On The Horizon - PodcastingRSS:

• Lightweight news syndication standard(s) - simple way of getting third party content in Web pages, tickertape, …

Podcasts:• "Transmitters? We don't need no stinkin' transmitters"• RSS 2 application invented by Adam Curry & Dave Winer• Simple way of getting MP3 files on your iPod, …• Distribution mechanism, creation tool, cultural

phenomena, .. • Growth helped by Creative Commons licences

Applications:• Learning on the bus, train, … • Get in first & make the money / make an impact• Effect on society when

networking, digital recording, storage & access are pervasive

Wikicasting: phone no. and voice added to PodcastPodcast+GPS: location-based recording & listening. Cultural or social commentary on your location

Wikicasting: phone no. and voice added to PodcastPodcast+GPS: location-based recording & listening. Cultural or social commentary on your location

Crazy Ideas?


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Questions, Discussion, …

collaborative technologies: a ukoln perspective

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