Mira Groupware

1. What is Mira Groupware - indeed, what is a groupware platform?
2. Why create yet another groupware platform?
3. When will the next version of Mira be released?
4. How can I help?

1. Q. What is Mira Groupware - indeed, what is a groupware platform?
   • A. A groupware platform allows users - developers, employees, friends, and other groups - to collaborate, communicate and work together in an “all-in-one” environment. In this environment, the members may share a calendar, discuss topics in a forum, communicate via instant messaging and private messages (which may be delayed and read when the recipient is next online), work together on files and documents using a selection of advanced version control technologies and do much more, all from within the same application. That is the power of a groupware platform, and is what Mira hopes to achieve - ease of collaboration and project management using these features and any others which the community may develop as optional add-on utilities.
2. Q. Why create yet another groupware platform?
   • A. The reason Mira Groupware was created was because of the sorry state of Open Source desktop groupware solutions. There are many excellent Open Source web-based groupware platforms which are adaptable to many different environments, but Mira's design will allow one fundamental advantage over these solutions: Mira will allow users to work on their documents offline and then synchronise their updates with the server when they are next online. This allows users to work on-the-go in a more flexible and organised way. If another user has also been working on the same file and has updated it since the other user got his copy and began to work on it offline, that is not a problem: Mira will flag up the conflict when the on-the-go user synchronises his copy and will allow someone - usually the Project Manager, but it depends on the Workspace's configuration - to resolve this conflict by merging the two files together. In summary, the aim is to create an Open Source desktop groupware platform which is more extensible, more feature-rich and easier to use than any other groupware platform, and which may be integrated into many applications (such as OpenOffice.org) with ease due to its open APIs and protocols.
3. Q. When will the next version of Mira be released?
   • A. Mira is still in pre-alpha stage. We plan to have a Beta version ready to be reviewed by the second quarter of 2008.
4. Q. How can I help?
   • A. You can help in many ways! If you are a developer interested in Mira GroupWare, we would love to hear your thoughts on how you think we should implement Mira. Most discussions go on Mira's Mailing List. If you are interested in contributing to Mira, please do let us know how you would like to help and, if you would like to take part in its development, which programming language you know and any prior experience. We are currently looking for committed C++ Developers of all skill levels.

Thank you!