The complexity of groupware development is still an issue. One reason for this is the socio-technical dimension of groupware. Groupware designers do not only have to address technical issues (as in traditional software development) but also consider the social group processes that should be supported with the groupware application. Some examples for issues in groupware development are:
- Persistence is needed in some sessions. Chat and voice communications are routinely non-persistent and evaporate at the end of the session. Virtual room and online file cabinets can persist for years. The designer of the collaborative space needs to consider the information duration needs and implement accordingly.
- Authentication has always been a problem with groupware. When connections are made point-to-point, of when log-in registration is enforced, it's clear who is engaged in the session. However, audio and unmoderated sessions carry the risk of unannounced 'lurkers' who observe but do not announce themselves or contribute.[16][17]
- Until recently, bandwidth issues at fixed location limited full use of the tools. These are exacerbated with mobile devices.
- Multiple input and output streams bring concurrency issues into the groupware applications.
- Motivational issues are important, especially in settings where no pre-defined group process was in place.
- Closely related to the motivation aspect is the question of reciprocity. Ellis and others [18] have shown that the distribution of efforts and benefits has to be carefully balanced in order to ensure that all required group members really participate.
One approach for addressing these issues is the use of design patterns for groupware design.[19] The patterns identify recurring groupware design issues and discuss design choices in a way that all stakeholders can participate in the groupware development process.
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