The papers included in this book draw from a rich empirical background, including studies in healthcare, homecare, software-development, architectural design, marine insurance industry and learning in university settings. They integrate different theoretical foundations and conceptual frameworks to further the understanding of cooperative work, build advanced conceptual frameworks, derive design implications for information systems and present new technological concepts for cooperative systems. This publication brings together researchers who contribute to the design of cooperative systems and their integration into organizational settings. Cooperative systems design requires a deep understanding of the cooperative work of groups and organizations, involving both artefacts and social practices. Contributions discuss topics such as: analysis of collaborative work situations; conceptual frameworks for understanding cooperative work; guidelines for designing cooperative systems; the influence of new technologies (mobile Computing, ubiquitous computing, etc.) on cooperation; expertise sharing and learning in cooperative work; communities and new forms of organization; innovative technological solutions and user interfaces and methods for participatory design of cooperative systems.
Special emphasis is on the issue of the "seamless integration of artefacts and conversations - enhanced concepts of infrastructure for communication". The emergence and distribution of cooperative systems has been accompanied by an increased communication workload. This is characterized by increased information exchange, message overflow, numerous interruptions of work, cognitive overload, or a dominance of virtual context. To alleviate and improve the situation, greater integration of conversational acts (e.g. message exchange) and documents is clearly required.