CRPC-TR97693							April 1997

Title: Webs of Archived Distributed Computations for Asynchronous 
	Collaboration

Authors: K. Mani Chandy, Joseph Kiniry, Adam Rifkin, Daniel Zimmerman

Abstract:
We identify the mechanisms needed to construct archivable webs of 
distributed asynchronous collaborations and experiments. The 
distinguishing feature of our approach is that the component tools, 
software, data, and even participants are distributed over a worldwide 
network. We perform a requirements analysis of an infrastructure that 
supports such applications, and present the Caltech Infospheres 
Infrastructure as a prototype that satisfies the requirements identified. 
In describing this prototype, we highlight the useful mechanisms 
provided, present an algorithm for using the Infospheres Infrastructure 
to perform asynchronous global snapshots for archiving, and suggest 
future areas of exploration.

Key Words: distributed systems, archiving, transactions, distributed 
	sessions, global snapshots, asynchronous collaboration, world wide web, 
	infospheres, components, composition