Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cornell!uw-beaver!ubc-cs!alberta!atha!kevinc From: kevinc@cs.AthabascaU.CA (Kevin Crocker) Newsgroups: comp.groupware Subject: Re: Groupware Effects on Hierarchies Message-ID: <1984@aurora.cs.athabascau.ca> Date: 6 Jul 90 04:06:53 GMT References: <1990Jun24.130413.16511@zorch.SF-Bay.ORG> <2092@east.East.Sun.COM> <1990Jul1.210621.13137@zorch.SF-Bay.ORG> Organization: Athabasca University Lines: 77 Normally I wouldn't stick my neck into this discussion as I've not had any experience with groupware (alas the poor unfortunate soul!) but in the following message wex@sitting.pws.bull.com (Buckaroo Banzai) writes: >I've been looking at this issue with an eye to implementing some groupware >systems. One of the things I've been finding in talking with potential >users is that people really resent having something authoritarian-seeming >made explicit in the computer, even when they deal with it in real life. > >For example, Subject 2 was observed to have this interaction: > > Subject 2: "What are we doing about the XXX contract?" > Peer: "I've set up a meeting at 2. You'll get the agenda as soon > as the secretary finishes typing it up." > Subject 2: "OK." > >However, Subject 2 explicitly rejected the idea of having an electronic >calendar system which would allow his Peer to schedule this meeting >automatically, with him being able to remove it if he didn't like it. That, >he said, was "too authoritarian." > >Upon having it pointed out that the computer would simply be implementing >the now-informal procedure, Subject 2 ventured the opinion that "having the >interaction on the computer [made] it more authoritarian." > >Comments? > >--Alan Wexelblat It strikes me that the computer program is mimicing the real world in a too rigid manner. Although at the mid management level and above there may be a need for a peer or "other" to organize another's schedule book I think that Personal Communications Theory might put things into perspective. Everyone knows about "private space", "personal space", "group space", and "public space". The groupware concept may be infringing on a "computer private space" when it allows outsiders to alter the appointment schedule. I will try to use an analogy. I have three appointment schedulers, a private one, an office one, and a generic one. My wife has permission to alter all three but she better talk to me first about the private schedule prior to even attempting to book something in it. For the office scheduler, she can make suggestions by penciling in appointments and for the public one we both make appointments and then discuss how we will manage them. BTW, my wife is not my secretary nor in any way associated with my regular office work. My secretary only has permission to suggest alterations to my office scheduler and has almost pure freedom for penciling in pending appointments that are meta to the job but necessary. I take almost full control over my private scheduler, take much less interest in the public one except to make sure that there are no conflicts with either my private schedule of myu office schedule and lkewise with my office scheduler. Even though I work in a quite informal office and our subgroups and subinteractions are even more informal I would tend to highly resent anyone attempting to make an appointment for me in my private schedule without approaching me first to find out if I am willing to entertain the tenative appointment. I permit collegues and our secretaries to make such changes to my office scheduler with the caveat that if needs be the tentative appointment changes to suit me and the group. Just about everyone in this institution tries to make appointments on my public scheduler and when I can I fit things in, when I can't I apologise for missing the function. Any groupware product should respect these "spaces" because I believe that as we grow with our computers they become an extension of ourselves and should be treated as such. Just my rather long winded $0.02 worth. Kevin Crocker kevinc@cs.athabascau.ca -or- {alberta,...}!atha!kevinc -- Kevin "auric" Crocker Athabasca University UUCP: ...!{alberta,ncc,attvcr}!atha!kevinc Inet: kevinc@cs.AthabascaU.CA