User-defined workflows in app-based collaborative workspace system

A computer-based online collaborative work system, comprising:

• a set of first subsystems being one or more computers executing corresponding programs, the first subsystems co-operatively providing a project oriented social network environment in which a plurality of system users collaboratively interact with user-defined application objects, the first subsystems including commenting, tasks and status subsystems providing corresponding multi-user functions with respect to the application objects, the application objects storing user data and user-determined application functions executed in the social network environment to display the user data and to interlink the application objects into project-scale organizations forming extended data sets of respective workspaces on which individual users are collaboratively working, the first subsystems being configured and co-operative to:
• display the application objects to a user using a first screen of a graphical user interface in which the user views, selects and initiates operations on the application objects;
• receive a selection of an application object from the user via the first screen;
• and
• in response to user initiation via the first screen, perform an object modification operation on the selected application object under control of the user, the object modification operation including an invocation of a workflow builder to create a new workflow for the selected application object;
• and
• a second subsystem being one or more computers executing a corresponding program, the second subsystem being a workflow subsystem including a workflow builder and a workflow engine, the workflow builder responding to user input via a second screen of the graphical user interface to create the new workflow for the selected application object, the new workflow being a cause-effect structure identifying a trigger that causes the new workflow to be executed and defining a user-specified automated action performed upon the selected application object in response to the trigger, the workflow engine performing workflow operations of (a) receiving system events including the trigger, (b) interpreting the system events as respective triggers and matching them with corresponding existing workflows, and (c) executing workflows based on changes made to the application objects as specified by the respective triggers, the workflow operations including, upon occurrence of the trigger, executing the new workflow to perform the user-specified automated operation upon the selected application object.