Tailorable component architectures for CSCW-systems

Tailorability is generally regarded as a key property of CSCW systems, because cooperative activities provide for very dynamic and diversified requirements. Extensive tailorability has to be supported by the design of the system architecture. We investigate the value of component architectures for this purpose and discuss several design options for the questions raised by this approach. We propose a model of a component architecture, which supports tailoring activities by changing parameter settings of single components, changing the composition of components, and changing the implementation of components. Hierarchical composition of components allows for tailoring operations on different levels of abstraction and complexity. We introduce the concepts of tailoring constraints, tailoring constructs, and tailoring rights, which allow a controlled evolution of the system. Finally, we show how our approach can be employed to design a tailorable application