Collaborative learning systems in Web-based environments are attracting a good deal of of interest in the education and CSCW communities. The authors describe one such system, “sTeam,” in this paper. The paper falls into three main divisions: a discussion of general and theoretical concepts that are considered relevant to cooperative learning; a discussion of the history and features of MUDs (Multi-User Domain/Dimension) and MOOs (object-oriented MUDs), and their role in collaborative learning; and a detailed description of the philosophy, structure and features of “sTeam,” and how these features can be used in cooperative learning.

The stated aim of the paper is to bridge the gap between the authors’ underlying theoretical ideas and their practical implementation of an open and flexible client-server structure.” In other words, this is a “systems” paper. There is a good deal of detail about the “sTeam” system, sufficient to help others who are planning to construct Web-based collaborative learning systems. However, the paper lacks examples of the use of “sTeam” in a real-life learning context. Such examples--or, preferably, extracts from a transcript of “sTeam’s” actual use--would have helped to explain how the theoretical concepts discussed in the earlier part of the paper are manifested in systems that are built and used.