A collaborative word processing system using a CORBA-based workflow framework

We present a prototype of a collaborative word processing system. The prototype allows multiple co-authors to edit the same document simultaneously while maintaining a consistent and updated version of the document. The prototype is built on a CORBA-based workflow framework in which the flow of the document components among the co-authors is governed by a workflow schedule that can, be adapted dynamically during execution. To facilitate resource locking and sharing, in the workflow framework, different types of resources are represented homogeneously as XML trees. This allows resources of different types and granularities to be combined and enables individual resources to be shared and manipulated at different levels of details.