One initiative is the Delta-V working group, which is developing ways to manage multiple versions of documents on a WebDAV server. Another group focuses on access control, developing ways to manage user accounts and privileges remotely. The basic WebDAV specification is widely supported in a range of software for Web authoring and content management, including commercial and open-source software and desktop and server products. One of the most active commercial supporters of WebDAV is Microsoft , which includes support in a number of its products, including Windows 2000, Office 2000, and Internet Explorer. The core release of the next major version of the server, the Apache 2.0, will have WebDAV support built in.
Developers say most of the available WebDAV-compliant products work together relatively smoothly.
However, some say there are still a few wrinkles to iron out. Bill Bumgarner, CFO at Web development firm CodeFab , says that though server implementations are relatively solid, desktop WebDAV clients aren't yet consistent enough in their behavior that WebDAV can be used as a replacement for FTP in large-scale deployments. Making it easier to edit Web sites and static pages is a boon to design and development teams, but WebDAV's impact is already spilling out beyond content management. Endeavors' model relies not on a single central work-group server but on a virtual shared workspace that resides on multiple servers running on individual PCs and handheld devices. The uses of WebDAV may go even further.