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This article follows up on the Lunchtime Technology Taster from 13th June 2007 at the Institute of Education. It provides a quick introduction to collaborative online document editing, including links to further information.
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Contact the author: Tim Neumann
Collaborative Online Document Editing
Working with multiple authors on a single document has many challenges. These can be as simple as: where is the current version stored? Do we circulate each iteration by email? Or they can be as complicated as: how can I retrieve the comment from xyz on topic abc four versions ago? Cross-platform incompatibilities may add to the suite of problems, and occasionally you may meet colleagues who are unable or refusing to install the required software on their machines.
Collaborative online document editing may provide a solution. Unnoticed by many web users, some innovative companies have created systems for group editing of any kind of document - from typical office documents to online databases to flowcharts. Not only are these systems comparably easy to use, they also offer a high level of flexibility, good functionality, and they are usually free to use.
Is this article about Wikis?
No, or not yet. A wiki is essentially a complete multi-page, fully navigable, multi-author web site. This article, however, is more concerned with standard office documents from text to spreadsheets to databases. While there are many similarities, one main characteristic of wikis is usually absent from online document editors: a wiki markup language. This is referring to a special instructional syntax that tells the wiki system to perform defined actions. While wiki enthusiasts claim that wiki markup languages are simplistic and easy to learn, they actually may be quite intimidating for people who are less confident with technology. Online document editors on the other hand usually focus primarily on ease of use, and we can expect that this development will eventually find its way into wikis to make them more user-friendly for non-technologists.
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