bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Cross-Disciplinary Learning in Virtual Teams
Authors: Schaffer Scott P. , Schmidt Therese M.
Published: May 2011

The prevalence of global software development and new product development teams is on the increase, and such teams face unique challenges (McDonough, Kahnb, & Barczaka, 2001). First, these teams often are comprised of individuals from different disciplines (software engineering, graphic design, instructional design/educational technology). Second, these teams often are required to communicate and share information virtually, since they are geographically dispersed. These challenges make management of such teams difficult, and very little is known about the conditions and factors that impact virtual team performance. While the task of overcoming these challenges is daunting, the benefits that an effective virtual and cross-disciplinary software development team can have are large. Cohen and Gibson (2003) state, “when organizations compose virtual teams with people from different perspectives and knowledge bases, innovation is more likely to occur” (p.8). In addition, the possibility of creating teams that are virtual allows an organization the opportunity to have the best people for a project actually work on the project, regardless of geographic location. Major questions related to the study of such teams include: Do virtual teams perform better, worse or the same as face-to-face teams? What makes one virtual team better than another? Are group dynamics fundamentally different in a virtual group than in a face-to-face group? Warkenton, Sayeed and Hightower (1997) found that face-to-face teams outperformed virtual teams, and the latter were less satisfied with the experience. Advances in asynchronous communication tools since this study may have improved the situation for virtual teams, but the question of what makes one virtual team better than another is intriguing. Ocker and Fjermestad (2000) investigated factors that distinguish high- vs. low-performing virtual teams. High-performing teams communicated more and more widely related to design decisions than did low-performing teams. Such teams summarized and reflected more often on processes and deliverables, and essentially mirrored face-to-face teams. Similar findings were reported by Baker (2002) in a study of the effects of technology on decision-making in such teams. Another key driver of virtual team development and success is the level of cross-disciplinary learning that occurs during the completion of a project. Fruchter and Emery (1999) define cross-disciplinary learning as the individual’s progression from a state dominated by discipline-centric thought to a state in which the individual understands the terminology and processes of another discipline. It is important to investigate how this learning can be supported and assessed.
Cyber Rhetoric and Online Ethos
Authors: St. Amant Kirk
Published: May 2011

Online media often create new communication situations. That is, few formal rules govern cyberspace exchanges. For this reason, participants in online forums must often develop “rules of engagement” as they interact. Research in computer-mediated communication (CMC), however, reveals certain discourse trends—particularly related to establishing one’s credibility, or ethos—emerge in these online forums. Such trends might have important implications for how to communicate in the increasingly global environment of cyberspace.
Cyberspace
Authors: Lepawsky Josh , Park Kyonghwan
Published: May 2011

Cyberspace is the geographies made possible by the adoption of computer technologies into everyday life. At first, this broad description and its emphasis on plural geographies may not seem intuitive. Yet, the breadth of this description is helpful when considering the massive variety of ways that computer-related technologies are unevenly incorporated into human life. The incorporation of these technologies is altering the scales and rates at which people can organize, intervene in, and understand human and nonhuman worlds (Hayles, 1996). Yet these processes are not universal. They differ from place to place and matter in different ways for different people as individuals and collective groups. Thus, cyberspace crosses numerous social, political, economic, and cultural boundaries (Haraway, 1991, 1997). The term cyberspace was first used by novelist William Gibson (1984), but the phenomena now described by it predate the term’s common use. It is difficult to understate the widespread resonance that the publication of Gibson’s novel and the popularization of the term cyberspace has had in terms of underwriting studies of cyberspace (Bukatman, 1993a, 1993b; Chesher, 1994; Stone, 1992). Often, the term is used interchangeably with specific technologies (especially the Internet and the World Wide Web) and their effects (e.g., Starrs, 1997; Starrs & Anderson, 1997; Warf, 2001; Warf & Grimes, 1997), not to mention being used in marketing strategies for the late dot.com industries and the so-called New Economy (Graham, 1998). With some important exceptions, early commentators took a techno-utopian stance toward cyberspace and saw what Bell (1973) called the postindustrial society and Toffler (1980) called the Third Wave finally coming to fruition. Gibson uses the term to both tell a story and provide a critical commentary about technology and society (Benedikt, 1991). The simultaneously conceptual and material relationships between technology and society are central to the concept of cyberspace. The plural geographies comprising cyberspace raise the issue of spatiality. The term spatiality is itself a complex and contested concept (Johnson, Gregory, & Smith, 1994). In a broad sense, spatiality refers to co-constitutive relationships between societies and their spatial organization. The concept informs a wide range of academic disciplines in the social sciences and humanities in what has come to be known as the spatial turn (Soja, 1989). While this idea may appear rather simple, it is a source of considerable philosophical and practical debate (Crang & Thrift, 2000; Gregory, 1994; Harvey, 1996; Lefebvre, 1991; Massey, 1994; Smith, 1990; Soja, 1996). With respect to cyberspace, research centers on how the incorporation of computer-related technologies into everyday life can change how human spatialities are organized, intervened in, and understood.
Draw to Participate in Virtual Communities
Authors: Baim Susan A.
Published: May 2011

Over the last decade, the Internet has emerged as an important channel for marketing products and/or services to consumers around the world. Interactive Web sites, advertising submitted to search engines, mass e-mailings, and a broad range of other innovative virtual-based marketing techniques are utilized to build interest in an organization’s current and/or future offering(s). Similarly, individuals use the Internet to seek out information, to buy and sell products/services, and to communicate with their friends, relatives and associates. Throughout the complex matrix that forms current Internet communications, an enormous number of “gathering spots” have developed in recent years where individuals and organizations, alike, can share common interests and meet differentiated user needs and wants. These “gathering spots” are called virtual communities.
An Electronic Auction Service Framework Based on Mobile Software Agents
Authors: Guan Sheng-Uei
Published: May 2011

With electronic commerce revolutionizing the traditional way of doing business, electronic auction service has been one of the many business models that were proven to be a success. The existence and development of numerous auction Web sites, such as eBay (www.ebay.com) and OnSale Inc. (www.onsale.com) have demonstrated the survivability of electronic auctions in online transactions. Considering some of the new forms of electronic auctions currently on the Internet, such as the “Get it together” network (www.accompany.com), where group bidding and negotiation is applied, it could be said that the definition of auctions is no longer restricted to that of its traditional meaning but also has been extended electronically. An auction may be an ideal way for a business to sell excess inventory and goods because it has attracted many of the common people that do not really participate in the real-world counterpart. However, current Web-based auction (e-auction) systems suffer from shortcomings in the following aspects: • Fairness and Friendliness: Different conditions of Internet connections, such as varying speeds, introduce unfairness among participating bidders. • Security and Privacy: The messages transmitted via the Internet are exposed to malicious attacks and may incur security problems. Also, in an auction, users may wish to be guaranteed privacy, for example, a bidder may not want to disclose his or her real identity until the auction closes and he or she is declared the winner. • Intelligence and Flexibility: It is important for an e-auction service to be intelligent to cater to the needs of potential auction customers who are not into the Internet. However, current Web-based auction systems require too much user intervention. Because the process can be tedious and risky for these users, they may not want to engage in e-auction services. Thus, it would be commercially profitable if intelligent assistance is provided.
Electronic Networks of Practice and Communities of Practice
Authors: Teigland Robin , Wasko Molly McLure
Published: May 2011

Recent advances in ICT have led to the emergence of online social structures where the primary purpose is knowledge exchange. Using computer-mediated communication technologies, such as newsgroups, listservs, and bulletin boards, an unlimited number of geographically dispersed individuals with diverse organizational, national, and demographic backgrounds share knowledge through helping each other solve problems, debating issues around shared interests, and telling stories of personal experiences (Sproull & Faraj, 1995; Wasko & Faraj, 2000). Individuals benefit from participation in this online knowledge exchange since they gain access to help and expertise that are often not available locally. While knowledge exchange in traditional face-to-face communities of practice within organizations has received considerable attention, we know much less about the dynamics underlying electronic networks and have yet to reach a consensus defining the phenomenon of interest. For example, online social structures focused on knowledge exchange are commonly referred to by numerous names: virtual or electronic communities, communities of interest, and online communities. Additionally, both practitioners and researchers tend to take a unitary view of both communities of practice and electronic networks, thus masking possible heterogeneity along a number of important dimensions. Yet without clear definitions of electronic networks, it is difficult to apply overarching theories that are both appropriate and generalizable, to compare across studies, and to build a coherent stream of research. Thus, this article’s purpose is twofold: (1) to define and describe the specific characteristics of one form of online social structure, an electronic network of practice and (2) to compare electronic networks of practice with communities of practice in order to highlight the roles of each for supporting learning and knowledge exchange focused on a shared practice.
Engaging Organisational Culture to Overcome Social Barriers in Virtual Communites
Authors: Huq Anzela
Published: May 2011

Recent trends in the technical development of information systems and their implementation have influenced academics to focus on specific aspects, particularly those systems that enhance and support organisational communication under physical limitations. The purpose of these ICTs is to bring together parties who are separated by those factors and allow them to collaborate and communicate for the purposes of their work without actually feeling the effect of time and distance. These tools have particular use for virtual organisations that operate in environments that are undefined physically in terms of space and time, yet allow information and knowledge to flow freely, therefore bridging the gap that is experienced by space, distance, and time. In traditional methods of face-to-face work, people are able to see and feel one another, factors that although may not seem so obviously important to begin with, are actually essential to cooperation and collaboration, because it is based on these physical cues that people begin to form the basic impressions and opinions upon which they base their trust of one another (Kreijns, Kirschner, & Jochems, 2003). Within the context of virtual work, particularly where people have never met, the basis for initial trust is missing and it seems that the success of working in virtual environments, or lack thereof, is fundamentally due to this.
Establishing and Sustaining Trust in Virtual Organizations
Authors: Wang Jing , Gwebu Kholekile
Published: May 2011

The past decade has seen dramatic changes in the modern organization with virtual organizations (VOs) becoming an increasingly common form of economic enterprise (Lucas & Baroudi, 1994). Much of this change has been accelerated by advances in information and communication technology (ICT) as well as a contemporary globalized knowledge economy. Virtualization allows organizations to transcend traditional organizational boundaries and the limitations of time and geographic dispersion to ultimately explore and realize opportunities that traditional organization forms could not possibly consummate. There is consensus among practitioners and scholars that trust plays an essential role in the development and survival of VOs, where vertical control, hierarchical authority, and formalized organizational procedures and policies yield to self-management. In such organizations trust acts as a substitute for traditional control mechanisms (Morris & McManus, 2002), it lessens transaction costs (Bromiley & Curley, 1992), it minimizes uncertainty and risk (Grabowski & Roberts, 1999), and it helps in conflict and friction resolutions (Jarvenpaa, Knoll, & Leidner, 1998). Although trust is pivotal in ensuring the existence and successful functioning of VOs, literature on trust development in VOs is relatively underdeveloped. It is therefore the intention of this article to enhance the understanding of trust development in VOs by examining then enhancing a key theory on trust in traditional organizations then applying it to VOs.
Government Applications of Virtual Communities
Authors: Baim Susan A.
Published: May 2011

Local, state and federal governments face a continuing need to supply increased amounts of information to their constituencies. Requests for information involve routine matters such as filing for a building permit, checking a property’s legal description, or looking up employment statistics. Requests for information can also involve more complex matters such as seeking advice on how to file income taxes, how to apply for government-sponsored loan programs and/or jobs, or ways to lobby lawmakers to advance a political point of view. In many cases, individuals are now looking to their governments to interact with them electronically, with the same level of sophistication, accuracy, and timeliness that they are experiencing from other online organizations. As a result, there is a tremendous incentive for governmental agencies to understand the Internet-based needs and wants of their constituencies and to respond to them accordingly. The use of efficient and effective virtual communities and interactive Web sites can assist in this process.
Implications of Virtual Schooling for Socialization and Community
Authors: Russel Glenn
Published: May 2011

This article discusses virtual schools. It examines reasons for their growth, and relates criticism and support of virtual schools to the purposes of schooling. In particular, the notions of socialization, values, affective objectives and the future needs of communities are examined. This article discusses the measurement and importance of values and socialization in a school system where virtual schools are valued, and concludes that more attention must be given to these issues as this schooling mode matures. Virtual schools are a variant of distance education whereby students use online computers for some or all of their schooling. Russell (2004) suggests that they may be categorized in terms of the amount of face-to-face interaction, as the range of virtual schools now available includes the following: 1. Those offering some virtual classes at conventional schools. 2. “Out-of-school” models, where there is no designated school building and students never attend a face-to-face class. 3. Mixed-mode examples, where students are expected to work online from home or elsewhere, but attend some face-to-face sessions such as sport or social activities. Variation can also be seen in the experiences offered to students in the online component of their course. Some schools, such as the Virtual Schooling Service in Queensland, Australia (VSS 2003), rely principally on synchronous interaction in the timetabled classes of conventional schools. Other schools, such as Florida Virtual School in the United States (U.S.), use asynchronous methods to enable greater flexibility. The Florida Virtual School uses the motto of “Teaching Any Time, Any Place, Any Pace” (Johnson 2004). The experiences that students will receive within the online component of their virtual schools also vary. An examination of virtual school Web sites and reports, including the California Virtual School Report (2000), Virtual High School (Kozma, Zucker, Espinoza, McGee, Yarnell, Zalles, & Lewis, 2000) and Florida (Florida High School Evaluation, 2002) indicate a range of environments. These include Web pages, chat rooms, online discussion groups and e-mail. In addition, some schools retain predecessor technologies such as telephone, post and audio and videotapes—or combinations of technologies that seem appropriate. It is difficult, if not impossible, to compare student experiences where the technological provision is so disparate
Information Navigation and Knowledge Discovery in Virtual Communities
Authors: Li Wenyuan , Ong Kok-Leong
Published: May 2011

Over the past decade, advances in the Internet and media technology have literally brought people closer than ever before. It is interesting to note that traditional sociological definitions of a community have been outmoded, for community has extended far beyond the geographical boundaries that were held by traditional definitions (Wellman & Gulia, 1999). Virtual or online community was defined in such a context to describe various forms of computer-mediated communication (CMC). Although virtual communities do not necessarily arise from the Internet, the overwhelming popularity of the Internet is one of the main reasons that virtual communities receive so much attention (Rheingold, 1999). The beginning of virtual communities is attributed to scientists who exchanged information and cooperatively conduct research during the 1970s. There are four needs of participants in a virtual community: member interest, social interaction, imagination, and transaction (Hagel & Armstrong, 1997). The first two focus more on the information exchange and knowledge discovery; the imagination is for entertainment; and the transaction is for commerce strategy. In this article, we investigate the function of information exchange and knowledge discovery in virtual communities. There are two important inherent properties embedded in virtual communities (Wellman, 2001):
Mediacommunication Based on Application-Layer Multi-cast
Authors: Hosszú Gábor
Published: May 2011

Collaborating and media-handling applications demand efficient and scalable methods for media streaming and group communication; however, such mechanisms have still not been deployed widely in the Internet. Network-level multicasting (in the Internet it is called IP-multicast) gives a bandwidth-saving solution for the one-to-many and many-to-many group communication, since it provides an efficient network mechanism through which senders can transmit their information to a large number of receivers without having to send multiple copies of the same data over a physical link (Hosszú, 2001). The IP-multicast has been realized for research purposes on multicast-capable networks (so-called multicast islands) within the Internet, but wide-scale deployment has not been reached due to some unresolved issues. That is why recent efforts are in the development of multicasting protocols at the application layer instead of the network layer. Most of these Application-Layer Multicast (ALM) protocols address the case of a single-source streaming media to a large number of receivers in applications such as video on demand or live broadcast. In the following sections, the main properties of the ALM protocols are overviewed, then some typical ALM solutions and a new approach are presented.
Motivation in Online Communities
Authors: Waterson Patrick
Published: May 2011

The subject of how to encourage people to share their knowledge has long been a theme within the domain of knowledge management. Early studies showed that company employees, for example, are often reluctant to share their knowledge (e.g., Ciborra & Patriota, 1998). A number of possible reasons exist for why this takes place, including: lack of personal incentives to share expertise; an organizational culture that does not reward or encourage sharing; and lack of trust that shared knowledge will be put to good use (e.g., fear of exploitation). Research identifying these types of barriers to effective knowledge management is well established (e.g., Brown & Duguid, 2000); however, within the context of online communities it is more recent. The term “online community” tends to be applied in a general sense to refer to large-scale groups that regularly exchange information through mechanisms such as e-mail, weblogs, discussion lists and Wikis. These types of communities can take a variety of forms, some of which mix face-to-face contact with computer-mediated interaction (e.g., some types of “communities of practice,” CoPs), while others are more likely to be wholly online and involve people who have never met (e.g., “networks of
Representing Virtual Communities for Advanced Services
Authors: Sicilia Miguel-Angel , Sanchez-Alonso Elena
Published: May 2011

The Semantic Web vision described by Berners-Lee, Hendler and Lassila (2001) represents an approach to enhancing the current World Wide Web with machine-understandable semantics. The essential idea is that Web resources identified by Uniform Resource Identifiers (URIs) can be described by metadata with the purpose of enabling automated processing. The precision of logics-based description would allow for the creation of tools that do not rely on natural language processing as current search tools, thus ideally removing the problems associated with ambiguity and implicitness in natural language. Metadata requires shared semantics in the context of an open Web, so that the proliferation of descriptions and vocabularies do not end up in a Tower of Babel. Ontologies provide the support for the shared representation of such semantics, and ontology mapping procedures could resolve the issues of semantic interoperability in case of disparate representations over the same domain. Ontologies act as descriptions of semantic domains used to express metadata records according to previously agreed definitions. Based on the infrastructure provided by ontologies and semantic metadata, the Semantic Web vision rests in the provision of distributed functionality built on intelligent agents and Web services. Since a virtual community is no other thing than a phenomenon that takes place on the Web, its elements are thus subject to being described by Semantic Web metadata, so that community-specific Semantic Web functionality could enhance the communicational elements that are part of communities. A typical scenario for such functionality is that of a filtering service that delivers recommended resources for community members according to the interests shared by members with similar interests. Other scenarios may result in the adaptation of the shared space inhabited by the community members; for example, member lists may be reordered according to the strength of social relationships, or messages could be circulated according to the network of social relationships (Sicilia & García, 2004). The Semantic Web opens many perspectives to create richer environments for virtual communities, and some specific technologies have already been created to deal with some of the definitional aspects of communities. Here we sketch the main elements that should be taken into account in developing experimental applications of Semantic Web technologies to the specifics of virtual communities.
Virtual Community Sustainability
Authors: Chuang Ta-Tao
Published: May 2011

The last decade has witnessed the remarkable transformation of social networks in which people communicate and associate with one another via the Internet. While the popular perception of the Internet is more of a communication medium, the ramification of the Internet is far beyond that. Its significance lies in its capability of keeping people connected. Since its inception, the connectivity enabled by the Internet allows scientists geographically separated to establish a virtual community (VC) in which they distribute research findings, discuss research issues and share research interests. The deregulation of the Internet in early 1990s kindled the booming of VCs with a variety of interests. Research in VCs has been extensive; nevertheless, no one single definition of VCs has been commonly agreed upon and accepted by researchers (Lee, Vogel & Limayem, 2003; Jones, 1997; Liu, 1999). For example, Hagel and Armstrong (1997) adopted the technological deterministic perspective and defined VC as a computer-mediated space that aggregated member-generated content and correspondences, while Rheingold (1994) placed emphasis on the on-going discourse and social-psychological elements. As the debate of definition continues, instead of proposing another one, several researchers adopted an approach to characterizing VCs as follows (Wang, Yu, & Fesenmaier, 2002): 1. Members share common goals, needs and interests 2. Members engage in repeated interaction and participation 3. Members have access to resources, including information, support and services 4. Members share social conventions, language and protocols. We follow this approach in the article. Research in VC has been conducted in various areas, such as marketing (Maclaran & Catterall, 2002) and tourism (Wang, Yu, & Fesenmaier, 2002) from different perspectives, such as sociocultural (Zucchermaglio & Talamo, 2003) and philosophical (Mowbray, 2001). It is generally agreed that the critical mass of participation is requisite for success of a VC (Hagel & Armstrong, 1997; Roberts & Fox, 1998). We contend that the critical mass of a VC depicts the status quo of the community, and might not be sufficient for its sustainability. Instead, we propose the concept of sustainability of VCs and discuss factors that may affect it.
Virtual Places
Authors: Champion Erik M.
Published: May 2011

Communities identify and are identified by not just the clothes they wear or by the language they speak, or even by the way they greet each other. Communities are often identified by where their activities take place, how they use spaces to construct meanings, and the traces left by their social interactions. These “trigger” regions are thus not just points in space; they are also landmarks, havens, homes, ruins, or hells. Communities, then, are identified and identify with or against, not just space but place. For places do not just organize space; they orient, identity, and animate the bodies, minds, and feelings of both inhabitants and visitors. Presence researchers have often cited and used, the sense of “being in a place” as a test of virtual presence. For example, Biocca (1997) says people feel present in real imaginary or virtual places. Slater (1999) says one aspect of presence is feeling that one is in another place, and not just viewing a set of images. Researchers often use the term “place” in their presence questionnaires (Lessiter, Freeman, Keogh, & Davidoff, 2000; Schuemie, van der Straaten, Krijn, & van der Mast, 2001; Slater, 1999). While much debate has centered on the meaning of virtual “presence,” there has been far less debate on a virtual “place.” Presence in virtual environments is often defined as the subjective belief that one is in a place even though the participant knows the experience is mediated by digital media (Slater, 1999). Yet presence can only be clearly defined when relating it to place, if place itself is clearly defined and understood. Place itself may mean many different types of location, the feeling that one is in or surrounded by a type or kind of location, or the intensity of that feeling of being in a particular place. One may well feel spatially surrounded, or be able to say an event happened in a certain position in a virtual environment without feeling that one was experiencing a strong or unique experience of place. To understand how and why people can feel a sense of presence then, we need to have a clear and appropriate sense of place. And if we do not have a strong sense of place, then perhaps we do not have a strong sense of presence. Many writers (frequently from architecture) have made the distinction between place and cyberspace, and suggested that virtual environments usually lack the former (e.g., Benedikt, 1991; Champion & Dave, 2002; Coyne, 1999; Johnson, 1997; Kalay & Marx, 2001, 2003; Kitchin, 1998). Given the premise that place is a necessary part of creating a meaningful virtual environment, the question is raised as to how we can best gain a sense of place via virtual environments.
Virtual Teams Classification
Authors: Wei Kangning , Wang Chingning
Published: May 2011

It is a considerable challenge for most of today’s organizations to cope with the rapidly changing business environment, such as global competition and technology revolution (Townsend et al., 1998; Walker, 2000). In response to these changes, organizations must be more dynamic in their organizational operations and adopt innovative approaches to survive and compete effectively (Arnison & Miller, 2002). One of the successful ways is to establish “virtual teams” as organizing units of work. Virtual teams are groups of geographically and/or organizationally dispersed workers assembled together mainly by information and communication technologies (ICT) to accomplish one or more organizational tasks (DeSanctis & Poole, 1997; Townsend et al., 1998). Recent research has studied a wide range of potential benefits virtual teams offer to organizations, but implementations of virtual teams in organizations will be at risk if organizations fail to address many challenges faced in virtual context (Powell, Piccoli, & Ives, 2004). One of the fundamental questions is to understand the nature of virtual teams. Specially, what kind of virtual teams is the best fit with this organization and task? As Bell and Kozlowski (2002) point out, “the literature has tended to treat virtual teams as a single ‘ideal’ type, yet there are several dimensions or characteristics that vary among and distinguish different types of virtual teams” (p.16). This article underlies four conceptual dimensions that distinguish different types of virtual teams from the literature review. The combination of these dimensions yields many possible types of virtual teams. We hope this classification could provide basic information for further research in virtual teams.
The Determinants of Web-based Instructional Systems' Outcome and Satisfaction
Authors: Eom Sean B. , Ketcherside Michael A. , Lee Hu-Hyuk , Rodgers Michael L. , Starrett David
Published: May 2011

Post-secondary distance education via the Internet is now commonplace. Tremendous advances in information technology have allowed colleges and universities to offer Web-based courses as a way to meet the growing demand for educational experiences from those who, because of distance from campus or scheduling conflicts, would otherwise not be able to take courses. This chapter develops a model explaining the relationship between two dependent variables (the perceived student satisfaction and learning outcomes) and six independent variables based on two statistical tools: correlations and structural equation modeling. The findings indicate that student self-motivation toward Web-based courses has a strong impact on the level of interaction; the perceived student satisfaction has a direct link to the learning outcome in Web-based courses; and higher levels of student self-motivation toward Web-based courses can lead to greater learning outcomes.
Assessing the Effectiveness of E-Learning
Authors: Kwisnek Vincent F.
Published: May 2011

This chapter presents the author’s experience with the assessment of e-learning’s effectiveness. It begins by defining e-learning, then identifies its strengths and weaknesses, and poses suggestions for enhancing e-learning’s effectiveness. The main thrust of the chapter centers upon the author’s experience as an e-learning developer and the pilot study he conducted to assess the effectiveness of an e-learning course he developed and deployed. The results of this pilot study are presented, and the author’s comments regarding the results of the pilot study are also presented. This chapter concludes with a look at the future of e-learning. The author hopes that a better understanding of e-learning’s strengths, weaknesses, and potential will enable others to develop and deploy more effective e-learning and more effective e-learning initiatives.
Presenting Large and Complex Information Sets on Mobile Handhelds
Authors: Karstens B. , Rosenbuam R. , Schumann H.
Published: May 2011

The opportunity to access information at any time and any place caused a boom in the development of small mobile devices in recent years. Due to their application, these handhelds become smaller and handier, which leads to new challenges in human-computer interaction. Due to limited resources of these devices new paradigms for information presentation and interaction facilities are needed. We take this into account by applying concepts for interaction and display of information from the field of information visualization to mobile pocket-sized devices. We focus on concrete problems caused by presenting huge images and large hierarchies in such environments. Moreover, we introduce an effective technique for browsing the World Wide Web via mobile handhelds. The presented techniques offer an improved support in navigation, orientation and interaction that enables the user to browse, interpret and handle presented information much more easily.
Integrated Domain Model for Digital Rights Management
Authors: Luoma Eetu , Tyvainen Pasi
Published: May 2011

Digital Rights Management (DRM) is an issue of controlling and managing digital rights over intellectual property. It has recently broadened its scope from being merely a content protection concern to description, identification, trading, protection, monitoring and tracking of rights over tangible or intangible assets. In our study we found out an essential problem of the domain: lack of models on an appropriate level of abstraction needed to support research and system development. Modelling, identifying and describing the core entities enable the rights management functionalities. This chapter contributes in recognizing the principal entities and providing detailed description on current identification and description matters and solutions. Our analysis results in the remark of distinguishing the evolution stages of digital content and separating the different offers and agreements through which the rights are traded between the value chain participants. Based on the depiction of the domain model, this chapter additionally gives insight into the future trends and issues on the DRM domain.
Rates of Change in Ad hoc Networks
Authors: Yasinsac Alec
Published: May 2011

Ad hoc networks are inherently dynamic, with nodes entering, moving around, and leaving the network, often for short duration membership. This property of dynamic restructuring limits functionality and greatly complicates security. Here, we establish a foundation for analyzing ad hoc network functionality or security properties relative to their dynamic nature. The essential structure in any network is the links between nodes. Thus, our approach turns on measures of link availability to define network properties that govern functionality. In this chapter, we systematically address issues associated with changes that occur in ad hoc networks. We consider the functionality impact of change and address bounds on optimization that exist when change rates are high and provide definitions that allow reasoning about limits on functionality resulting from increasingly dynamic link activity.
Broadcast Data Placement over Multiple Wireless Channels
Authors: Katsaros Dimitrios , Manolopoulos Yannis
Published: May 2011

The advances in computer and communication technologies made possible an ubiquitous computing environment were clients equipped with portable devices can send and receive data anytime and from anyplace. Due to the asymmetry in communication and the scarceness of wireless resources, data broadcast is widely employed as an effective means in delivering data to the mobile clients. For reasons like heterogeneous communication capabilities and variable quality of service offerings, we may need to divide a single wireless channel into multiple physical or logical channels. Thus, we need efficient algorithms for placing the broadcast data into these multiple channels so as to reduce the client access time. The present chapter discusses algorithms for placing broadcast data to multiple wireless channels, which cannot be coalesced into a lesser number of high-bandwidth channels, assuming that there are no dependencies among the transmitted data. We give an algorithm for obtaining the optimal placement to the channels and explain its limitation since it is computationally very demanding and thus unfeasible. Then, we present heuristic schemes for obtaining suboptimal solutions to the problem of reporting on their implementation cost and their relative performance.
Extensible Platform for Location-Based Services Deployment and Provisioning
Authors: Spanoudakis Manos , Batistakis Angelos , Priggouris Ioannis , Ioannidis Anastasios , Hadjiefthymiades Stathes , Merakos Lazaros
Published: May 2011

Location-based services can be considered the most rapidly expanding field of the mobile communications sector. The proliferation of mobile-wireless Internet, the constantly increasing use of handheld, mobile devices and position-tracking technologies, and the emergence of mobile computing prepared the grounds for the introduction of this new type of services with an impressively large application domain and use range. The combination of position-fixing mechanisms with location-dependent, geographical information can offer truly customised, personal communication services through the mobile phone or other type of devices. In this chapter, motivated by the technology advances in the aforementioned areas, we present a generic platform for delivering Location-based services (LBSs) to the nomadic user. The platform features a modular architecture, which can be easily extended. Although the overall architecture of the platform is discussed, the focus is on the technical specifications, the design, the functionality, and the prototype implementation of its central component, the kernel. The kernel is responsible for coordinating communication with the various pluggable components in order to provide the full range of operations involved in the LBS delivery chain (i.e., from initial deployment to invocation, execution, and delivery of results).
Visualization, Estimation and User Modeling for Interactive Browsing of Personal Photo Libraries
Authors: Tian Qi , Moghaddam Baback , Lesh Neal , Shen Chia , Huang Thomas S.
Published: May 2011

Recent advances in technology have made it possible to easily amass large collections of digital media. These media offer new opportunities and place great demands for new digital content user-interface and management systems which can help people construct, organize, navigate, and share digital collections in an interactive, face-to-face social setting. In this chapter, we have developed a user-centric algorithm for visualization and layout for content-based image retrieval (CBIR) in large photo libraries. Optimized layouts reflect mutual similarities as displayed on a two-dimensional (2D) screen, hence providing a perceptually intuitive visualization as compared to traditional sequential one-dimensional (1D) content-based image retrieval systems. A frameworkfor user modeling also allows our system to learn and adapt to a user’s preferences. The resulting retrieval, browsing and visualization can adapt to the user’s (time-varying) notions of content, context and preferences in style and interactive navigation.
Tracking and Tracing Applications of 3G for SMEs
Authors: Fraunholz Bardo , Unnithan Chandana , Jung Jürgen
Published: May 2011

With dynamic growth and acceptance of mobile devices, many innovative business applications are beginning to emerge. Tracking and tracing seems to be one of the popular applications which many organisations have initiated, often facilitated by location based services provided by mobile network operators. However, there are many issues associated with the provisioning of this application with current technologies and business models. Small and Medium-size Enterprises (SMEs) that make up a significant segment of businesses worldwide do not yet seem able to benefit widely from these services. In this chapter, we initially review current technologies/ applications and the issues associated with them, drawing from research and the experiences of a long term ongoing action research project with SMEs in the trade sector. Subsequently, we explore the opportunities offered by 3G services/business applications to SMEs, and provide a broad critical outlook on future opportunities for SMEs to benefit from 3G services.
Recent Development in WLAN Security
Authors: Pulkkis Göran , Grahn Kaj J. , Karlsson Jonny , Martikainen Mikko , Daniel Daniel E.
Published: May 2011

This chapter is a topical overview of wireless local area network security evolution. WLAN security threats are surveyed. Covered standards include 802.11/WEP, 802.1X/EAP, 802.11i/WPA and 802.11i/WPA2. Special attention is given to user authentication schemes and to protection of data communication. WPA is also compared with the present WLAN security protocol WEP. Other covered issues are available WPA supported technology and open source WLAN security software. A WPA secured WLAN test network is described and tested. A WLAN designed according to the new security standards is a real alternative to a secure enterprise LAN and also a reliable platform for e-commerce. Finally, WLAN security management and current research related to WLAN security are surveyed.
Security, Privacy, and Trust in Mobile Systems and Applications
Authors: Cremonini Marco , Damiani Ernesto , De Capitani di Vimercati Sabrina , Corallo Angelo , Elia Gianluca
Published: May 2011

Mobile systems and applications are raising some important information security and privacy issues. This chapter discusses the need for privacy and security in mobile systems and presents technological trends which highlight that this issue is of growing concern.
Visions for the Completion of the European Successful Migration to 3G Systems and Services
Authors: Chochliouros Ioannis P. , Spiliopoulou-Chochliourou Anastasia S.
Published: May 2011

Mobile communications are fundamental to business operations, individual lifestyles and the welfare of the European economy. The proposed work aims to investigate some among the current technical, business, financial, and regulatory visions associated with the effective evolution of third generation (3G) networks and services, in particular to fulfil the great market realities, the expectations and 3G’s significant potential in building the EU Information Society. The work depicts data related to the current state of play for 3G communications in Europe, with specific emphasis given to the underlying technologies and probable standardization options (both for network and terminal equipment). Wireless mobile technologies are a major driver to realize the way forward to a knowledge-based economy, in terms of consumer demand, productivity, competitiveness and job creation. Under suitable terms, this may create enormous potential and significant investment incentives, for the full recovery of the wider ICT sector. 3G is likely to play a key role in providing widespread access to the Internet and to interactive services, thus maximizing consumer choices and providing flexibility for the market itself. Furthermore, we evaluate the related EU regulatory perspectives, to support innovation, competition, legal certainty and proportionality, the consolidation of the Single Market and the removal of technical barriers to international trade.
Video Biometrics
Authors: Vatsa Mayank , Singh Richa , Gupta P.
Published: May 2011

Biometrics is a fast, user-friendly personal identification with a high level of accuracy technology. This chapter is highlighting the biometrics technologies that are based on video sequences viz. face, eye (iris/retina), and gait. The basics behind the three video-based biometrics technologies are discussed, along with a brief survey.
Knowledge in Innovation Processes
Authors: Paukert Marco , Niederée Claudia , Hemmje Matthias
Published: May 2011

The success of industrial and scientific research has always been dependent on new discoveries and innovations, but tighter budgets and increasing global competition push the pace with which innovation must happen nowadays. Bringing new products to the market before competitors do constitutes a crucial competitive advantage for many companies and organizations. Accelerating discovery and innovation is increasingly dependent on the use of advanced information and knowledge technology for building environments that support the innovation process systematically and efficiently (cf. Specht, Beckmann, & Amelingmeyer, 2002; Amidon, 2002). Such environments depend on a number of advanced knowledge management technologies and have to adapt to the wide variety of innovative practices, innovation cultures, organizational context, and application areas where innovation takes place. It is essential that the functionalities of such are aligned with the needs of innovators and their context.
Knowledge Management Success Models
Authors: Jennex Murray E.
Published: May 2011

Alavi and Leidner (2001, p. 114) defined knowledge management systems (KMSs) as “IT-based systems developed to support and enhance the organizational processes of knowledge creation, storage/retrieval, transfer, and application.” They observed that not all KM initiatives will implement an IT solution, but they support IT as an enabler of KM. Maier (2002) expanded on the IT concept for the KMS by calling it an ICT system that supported the functions of knowledge creation, construction, identification, capturing, acquisition, selection, valuation, organization, linking, structuring, formalization, visualization, distribution, retention, maintenance, refinement, evolution, access, search, and application. Stein and Zwass (1995) define an organizational memory information system (OMIS) as the processes and IT components necessary to capture, store, and bring to bear knowledge created in the past on decisions currently being made. Jennex and Olfman (2004) expanded this definition by incorporating the OMS into the KMS and adding strategy and service components to the KMS.