Abstract

Middleware for supporting the programming of distributed systems has been proposed since the beginnings of Internet. Various approaches have been implemented to support different ways of communication, architecture, and data sharing. A schema called MatchMaker intended for developing applications requiring a replicated architecture, dynamic and partial synchronization is introduced. Two implementations of MatchMaker are presented: one based on Java RMI distributed objects for synchronizing applications running inside a local area network or networks without proxies, firewalls or NAT addresses, and the other one for applications in a restrictive environment. MatchMaker has been successfully used for developing many applications supporting collaborative distributed learning. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2007.