Distributed Web document database and its supporting environment

In this paper, we propose a new Web documentation database as a supporting environment of the Multimedia Micro-University project. The design of this database facilitates a Web documentation development paradigm that we have proposed earlier. From a script description, to its implementation as well as testing records, the database and its interface allow the user to design Web documents as virtual courses to be used in a Web-savvy virtual library. The database supports object reuse and sharing, as well as referential integrity and concurrence. In order to allow real-time course demonstration, we also propose a simple course distribution mechanism, which allows the pre-broadcast of course materials. The system is implemented as a three-tier architecture which runs under MS Windows and other platforms.