Simple groupware - Online and client-server solutions

Simple groupware
It is a category of software developed to help groups of employees and project teams to work together by contributing to the information exchange among group members who may be located in the same or several offices. Such a solution is a useful mechanism for sharing information, defining the project workflow and managing business processes, so users can complete tasks and processes step by step in an efficient manner. The best groupware solutions let every user be responsible for the next step or action by initiating notifications automatically after some changes have been made.

Online
Often, users of simple groupware collaborate on the same project, although the best packages offer functionality for sharing information throughout the entire company by using Internet. Those solutions that establish user collaboration and information exchange via Internet are called web-based or online software . It allows using an internet browser to access information stored on web servers. Usually, web-based easy solutions don't suppose installing any application modules or components because the heart of online groupware is stored on web servers of the provider. Users of web-based packages have to pay a regular fee to get access to the web services.

Client-server desktop
Those solutions that allow users to connect a corporate database through local area network or virtual private network as well as through Internet are called client-server desktop groupware . Such solutions store the corporate database on a dedicated server or any PC that can be located in the company's office. Client-server desktop programs makes it easy to access corporate data, share the workflow and protect information because the corporate database is quite near to the system administrator or the manager. However, as the most of client-server small business prorgams are easy in use and don't require special computer knowledge and experience to manage the database, it won't take a long time and hard efforts from the system administrator to configure and run a client-server based easy solution.

VIP Task Manager is a simple groupware solution based on client-server technology that can suit requirements of the most particular users who want to establish real time collaboration among employees. This product can be applied to run projects (VIP Task Manager as a project management groupware solution) as well as to manage business activities (VIP Task Manager as a small business groupware solution).

Read also a new article about process management - project management client-server software for Windows