Distribution and interoperability in heterogeneous computing environments are the key requirements for state-of-the-art information processing systems. Distributed applications are making a critical contribution in many application sectors, such as office automation, finance, manufacturing, telecommunications, aerospace, and transportation. Users demand support for the construction, integration and management of their application systems as well as for the interoperability of independent application components. DAIS '97 provides a forum for researchers, application designers and users to review, discuss and learn about new approaches and concepts in the fields of distributed applications. DAIS '97 will especially focus on the interoperability between different applications and services, different implementations of the same and of different distributed platforms.