Chapter 19: Real-Time Collaboration

Overview

One important enhancement to Microsoft Exchange Server is the addition of real-time collaboration capabilities. With the addition of Microsoft Exchange Conferencing Server and Instant Messaging (IM) to Exchange 2000 Server, you can quickly build real-time collaborative applications.

With Microsoft Exchange Server 2003, IM moves to the new conferencing technologies of Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2003 ”previously code-named Greenwich ”which are built on a different protocol from the IM system in Exchange 2000. Later in this chapter, I will cover the MSN Messenger object model and the Live Communications Server technologies. (I've updated the IM content from the second edition of this book to focus primarily on Live Communications Server rather than Exchange Server IM.)

Note  

"Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2003" (Live Communications Server) is the final release name for Microsoft's new conferencing technology. During beta phases it was called "Real-Time Communications Server 2003" (RTC). Although some of the code in this chapter uses "RTC," the name does not affect how the code operates.