Persistent Hybrid Workspaces for Application and Document Continuity
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing videoconferencing technologies lack the ability to provide persistent hybrid virtual collaborative workspaces where users can interact with applications and documents in a seamless, collaborative environment that persists over time and across users, with controlled access and permissions.
Innovation Solution
A video conference provider facilitates persistent hybrid virtual collaborative workspaces that allow users to interact with applications and documents, maintaining their state across user sessions, with user and application permissions, and supports various client devices including telephony devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If videoconferencing technology provides persistent hybrid virtual collaborative workspaces with application integration, then collaborative productivity and user experience are improved, but system complexity and infrastructure requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines videoconferencing, persistent workspace, and application execution capabilities into a unified virtual collaborative environment. The system merges real-time communication with document collaboration and application hosting, allowing users to access and interact with applications like Word and Excel directly within the videoconference interface, thereby improving collaborative productivity while managing system complexity through integrated architecture
Solution Approach 2:
The virtual collaborative workspace is designed as a multi-functional platform that serves multiple purposes: videoconferencing, persistent document storage, real-time collaboration, and application execution. This universal system replaces multiple separate tools (videoconference software, document management systems, application hosts) with a single integrated environment, addressing the productivity improvement while the modular design helps manage the inherent system complexity
2Loss of time
If the system maintains persistent state of applications and documents across user sessions, then user experience and workflow continuity are improved, but memory resources and system overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-loading and maintaining application states and document data in the virtual workspace before users need them. When a user joins a videoconference, their previous workspace state, open documents, and application contexts are automatically restored, eliminating the need for users to re-navigate or re-open files, thus improving workflow continuity while the server-managed persistence helps optimize memory resource utilization
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates and maintains copies of application states and document data in the virtual workspace memory, allowing multiple users to access and modify the same persistent data simultaneously. This copying mechanism enables workflow continuity across sessions and users, while the centralized server management of these copies helps optimize the distribution and utilization of memory resources across the system
3Adaptability or versatility
If the system supports multiple client devices including telephony devices, then accessibility and user reach are improved, but device compatibility requirements and system adaptability increase
Solution Approach 1:
The virtual collaborative workspace is designed as a universal platform that can be accessed from multiple device types including smartphones, tablets, laptops, and telephony devices. The system provides adaptive interfaces and communication protocols that work across different device capabilities, allowing users to join videoconferences and access persistent workspaces from any device, thereby improving accessibility while the standardized backend architecture helps manage the complexity of supporting diverse device requirements
Solution Approach 2:
The system adds the dimension of device-agnostic access by implementing responsive design and adaptive communication protocols that translate between different device capabilities and the core workspace functionality. This allows the same persistent workspace and application environment to be accessed from telephony devices with limited screens to full-featured computers, improving user reach while the abstraction layer manages the adaptability complexity
4Reliability
If the system implements user and application permissions for controlled access, then security and data protection are improved, but permission management complexity and access control overhead increase
Solution Approach 1:
The permission system is segmented into multiple hierarchical levels: user-level permissions, application-level permissions, and document-level permissions. This segmentation allows fine-grained control over who can access what resources, improving data protection while the modular permission structure helps manage the complexity of access control by breaking down the overall permission management into manageable, independent components that can be configured and enforced separately
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques for providing using software applications within persistent hybrid virtual collaborative workspaces are provided. In an example, a method establishes a virtual collaborative workspace characterized by or more virtual collaborative workspace resources and associated with one or more users to interact with other users or collaborative workspace resources within the virtual collaborative workspace. The method further receives, from a client device associated with a first user associated with the virtual space, an identification of an application to use in the virtual collaborative workspace. The method, based on the receiving, adds the application to the virtual collaborative workspace and configures the application to access one or more resources associated with the virtual collaborative workspace. The method further provides access to the application within the virtual collaborative workspace to at least a subset of the users associated with the virtual collaborative workspace.