bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An E-Commerce Business Model of Peer-to-Peer Interactions among Consumers
Authors: Agnew Jason , Sindhav Birud
Published: February 2011

E-commerce facilitates not only consumer-to-company interaction, but also consumer-to-consumer interaction. In earlier years, text-based message boards characterized the community nature of these consumer gatherings. Now, advanced technology and higher bandwidth allow use of images and video as integral parts of sites such as facebook.com or youtube.com. Unlike the earlier era of dotcom bubbles, the high valuation of these sites is reflected in their capacity to generate revenue—not only do they boast high visitor numbers, but a higher extent of much desired “stickiness,” too. Organizations look at these new “water cooler” places with interest as they may have some implications for the e-commerce strategy of a firm. Since social networking is an emergent phenomenon, much of the research is in the exploratory stage. A case study was conducted to examine how a firm, Eliterecruiting.com, which provides a social networking platform to football fans, integrates the virtual community in its business model.
Building a Knowledge Management System in a Design Firm
Authors: Mezher Toufic , Abdul-Malak M.A. , Khaled Mohamad , El-Khatib Ibrahim
Published: February 2011

Knowledge management represents a strategic vision for developing an organization’s performance and its likelihood of success in dealing with future challenges in its industry. The case starts by discussing the importance of knowledge management in improving the competitive edge of firms in general and of consulting firms in particular. Then, the case discusses the process of building a knowledge management system in the structural engineering department at a leading engineering design consulting firm, based in the Republic of Lebanon. The knowledge, both tacit and explicit, needed during the design phase is identified and mapped according to the adopted design process, and an expert system was built to capture some of the tacit knowledge needed in the conceptual design stage of the process. In addition, an intranet Web-based knowledge management system was developed with the aim of helping diffuse both explicit and tacit knowledge.
Decision Point
Authors: Codone Susan
Published: February 2011

In the defense industry, quality training is key to the military success of our troops. Increasingly, more training is developed for delivery in an online format, as “e-learning”?a convenient and cost-effective alternative to instructor-led training. With a learning management system such as the U.S. Navy uses, courses developed by contractors are posted into its database and accessed by naval users across the world. The Defense Source Company is an industry leader in defense products and services, including training. There are two divisions that provide such training, but there are differences in orientation and infrastructure that muddy the situation when developing training. This case provides an overview of this defense contractor with two related divisions that both offer similar resources. Readers are challenged to understand the infrastructure resources of both divisions and to decide what should be done with them for the ultimate success of the company.
Learning in an Inclusive Multi-Modal Environment
Authors: Graham Deryn , Benest Ian , Nicholl Peter
Published: February 2011

This paper examines recent research in interaction design for inclusive learning and the development of ideas for further research into building an environment facilitating inclusive multi-modal learning. In this paper, the authors give a summary of the findings of the original case study on improving interaction design for teaching visually impaired students. The paper then describes and discusses further work on evaluating current assistive technology products, with conclusions being drawn on future research.
Using Trigger That Instant Messaging to Improve Stakeholder Communications
Authors: Richardson Joan , Corbitt Brian
Published: February 2011

This case describes the key issues when an instant messaging prototype called TriggerThat was piloted and reviewed in a university environment. Short Messaging Service (SMS) was a popular technology amongst students and had previously been used in the university sector to push information to students (McCrindle 2006). This prototype and pilot conducted provided a more flexible use of SMS technology, enabling two-way push-pull SMS information transfer between academics and students. The push facility was used by academics to send assessment reminders, marks and alerts to their classes. Students were given the option of registering into TriggerThat to enable receipt of SMS reminders for information available on the university intranet. Surveys and focus groups were used to provide a comprehensive description of student uptake and usage of the technology. Review data and project documentation was used to create models to predict uptake and usage costs. Through the use of role plays in focus groups, which included all stakeholders, upgrades to system features, such as trigger words, were recommended. This case describes the experience of piloting SMS in the university setting and includes the functionality and tested trigger words used.
Determinants and Antecedents of Relationship Marketing Orientation
Authors: Abdelkader Ahmed , Jackson Howard , Cook John
Published: February 2011

This study investigates the extent of Relationship Marketing Orientation (RMO) in the banking sector of Egypt. The need to deliver a superior value to bank customers has assumed paramount importance as competition intensifies at a fast pace and local consumers become more demanding. This study attempts to answer whether the bank’s ownership style will influence the extent of the bank’s relationship marketing orientation. This empirical study of 32 Egyptian banks is based on the antecedents and determinants of RMO elected from the literature. Findings suggest that different ownership of a bank may exert a different emphasis on RMO. The study reports that RMO is determined by ten antecedents of relationship marketing.
Consumer Demand in the Egyptian Market of University Education
Authors: Shahin Amany I.
Published: February 2011

This study explores consumer demands in the Egyptian market of university education. Three aspects discussed are the value of university education in Egyptian culture, consumer perceptions regarding the quality of university education, and consumer preferences regarding the university education service. Results of the empirical investigation indicate that university education is highly regarded in Egyptian culture, however, consumer’s perception of its quality is moderate. Consumers prefer university studies in courses taught in the English language, universities in a nearby geographical location, governmental universities, and top class faculties. The study focuses on university education in Egypt and the authors hope to shed light on higher education in countries that share the same cultural characteristics. Many studies investigated higher education in different cultures, yet relatively few have considered it in an emerging nation. The present study addresses this gap.
Locally Square Distortion and Batch Steganographic Capacity
Authors: Ker Andrew D.
Published: February 2011

A fundamental question of the steganography problem is to determine the amount of data which can be hidden undetectably. Its answer is of direct importance to the embedder, but also aids a forensic investigator in bounding the size of payload which might be communicated. Recent results on the information theory of steganography suggest that the detectability of payload in an individual object is proportional to the square of the number of changes caused by the embedding. Here, we follow up the implications when a payload is to be spread amongst multiple cover objects, and give asymptotic results about the maximum secure payload. Two embedding scenarios are distinguished: embedding in a fixed finite batch of covers, and continuous embedding in an infinite stream. The steganographic capacity, as a function of the number of objects, is sublinear and strictly asymptotically lower in the second case. This work consolidates and extends our previous results on batch and sequential steganographic capacity.
A Model Based Approach to Timestamp Evidence Interpretation
Authors: Willassen Svein Yngvar
Published: February 2011

Timestamps play an important role in digital investigations, since they are necessary for the correlation of evidence from different sources. Use of timestamps as evidence can be questionable due to the reference to a clock with unknown adjustment. This work addresses this problem by taking a hypothesis based approach to timestamp investigation. Historical clock settings can be formulated as a clock hypothesis. This hypothesis can be tested for consistency with timestamp evidence by constructing a model of actions affecting timestamps in the investigated system. Acceptance of a clock hypothesis with timestamp evidence can justify the hypothesis, and thereby establish when events occurred in civil time. The results can be used to correlate timestamp evidence from different sources, including identifying correct originators during network trace.
Conditions for Effective Detection and Identification of Primary Quantisation of Re-Quantized JPEG Images
Authors: Sorell Matthew James
Published: February 2011

The choice of Quantisation Table in a JPEG image has previously been shown to be an effective discriminator of digital image cameras by manufacturer and model series. When a photograph is recompressed for transmission or storage, however, the image undergoes a secondary stage of quantization. It is possible, however, to identify primary quantisation artifacts in the image coefficients, provided that certain image and quantisation conditions are met. This paper explores the conditions under which primary quantisation coefficients can be identified, and hence can be used image source identification. Forensic applications include matching a small range of potential source cameras to an image.
Reversible and Blind Database Watermarking Using Difference Expansion
Authors: Gupta Gaurav , Pieprzyk Josef
Published: February 2011

There has been significant research in the field of database watermarking recently. However, there has not been sufficient attention given to the requirement of providing reversibility (the ability to revert back to original relation from watermarked relation) and blindness (not needing the original relation for detection purpose) at the same time. This model has several disadvantages over reversible and blind watermarking (requiring only the watermarked relation and secret key from which the watermark is detected and the original relation is restored) including the inability to identify the rightful owner in case of successful secondary watermarking, the inability to revert the relation to the original data set (required in high precision industries) and the requirement to store the unmarked relation at a secure secondary storage. To overcome these problems, we propose a watermarking scheme that is reversible as well as blind. We utilize difference expansion on integers to achieve reversibility. The major advantages provided by our scheme are reversibility to a high quality original data set, rightful owner identification, resistance against secondary watermarking attacks, and no need to store the original database at a secure secondary storage. We have implemented our scheme and results show the success rate is limited to 11% even when 48% tuples are modified.
Dealing with Multiple Truths in Online Virtual Worlds
Authors: Sablatnig Jan , Lehmann-Grube Fritz , Grottke Sven , Cikic Sabine
Published: February 2011

Virtual environments and online games are becoming a major market force. At the same time, the virtual property contained in these environments is being traded for real money and thus attains a real value. Although the legal issues involved with this virtual property have not yet been decided, they will have to be soon. It is foreseeable that the next generation of very large virtual worlds will carry the possibility of multiple truths existing at the same time. Under such circumstances, it will be impossible to physically protect virtual property. In order to protect virtual property, virtual environment systems will therefore have to conform to certain requirements. We analyze what these requirements are in order to either prevent cheating or at least prove a digital offence has transpired. Along with greater security, this will also simplify end user support, which is one of the major cost factors for online games.
Dynamic Structural Statistical Model Based Online Signature Verification
Authors: Chen Yan , Ding Xiaoqing , Wang Patrick S.P.
Published: February 2011

In this article, a new dynamic structural statistical model based online signature verification algorithm is proposed, in which a method for statistical modeling the signature’s characteristic points is presented. Dynamic time warping is utilized to match two signature sequences so that correspondent characteristic point pair can be extracted from the matching result. Variations of a characteristic point are described by a multi-variable statistical probability distribution. Three methods for estimating the statistical distribution parameters are investigated. With this dynamic structural statistical model, a discriminant function can be derived to judges a signature to be genuine or forgery at the criterion of minimum potential risk. The proposed method takes advantage of both structure matching and statistical analysis. Tested in two signature databases, the proposed algorithm got much better signature verification performance than other results.
Robust Near Duplicate Image Matching for Digital Image Forensics
Authors: Chennamma H.R. , Rangarajan Lalitha , Rao M.S.
Published: February 2011

Local invariant key point extraction has recently emerged as an attractive approach for detecting near duplicate images. Near duplicate images can be: (i) perceptually identical images (e.g. allowing for change in color balance, change in brightness, compression artifacts, contrast adjustment, rotation, cropping, filtering, scaling etc.), (ii) images of the same 3D scene (from different viewpoints). The requirements for identifying near duplicate images vary according to the application. In this paper we focus on image matching strategy that will assist in the detection of forged (copy-paste forgery) images. So far, no specific image matching strategy exists for this application. The state of the art methodologies tend to generate many false positives. In this paper we have introduced a novel matching strategy for pattern matching of key point distributions. Typical experiments conducted with real world images demonstrate success in near duplicate image retrieval for the application of digital image forensic. Proposed method outperforms some of the existing methods and is computationally efficient.
Evidentiary Implications of Potential Security Weaknesses in Forensic Software
Authors: Ridder Chris K.
Published: February 2011

Computer forensic software is used by lawyers and law enforcement to collect and preserve data in a “forensic image” so that it can be analyzed without changing the original media, and to preserve the chain of custody of the evidence. To the extent there are vulnerabilities in this software, an attacker may be able to hide or alter the data available to a forensic analyst, causing courts to render judgments based on inaccurate or incomplete evidence. There are a number of legal doctrines designed to ensure that evidence presented to courts is authentic, accurate and reliable, but thus far courts have not applied them with the possibility of security weaknesses in forensic software in mind. This article examines how courts may react to such claims, and recommends strategies that attorneys and courts can use to ensure that electronic evidence presented in court is both admissible and fair to litigants.
Source Camera Identification Based on Sensor Readout Noise
Authors: Chennamma H. R. , Rangarajan Lalitha
Published: February 2011

A digitally developed image is a viewable image (TIFF/JPG) produced by a camera’s sensor data (raw image) using computer software tools. Such images might use different colour space, demosaicing algorithms or by different post processing parameter settings which are not the one coded in the source camera. In this regard, the most reliable method of source camera identification is linking the given image with the sensor of camera. In this paper, the authors propose a novel approach for camera identification based on sensor’s readout noise. Readout noise is an important intrinsic characteristic of a digital imaging sensor (CCD or CMOS) and it cannot be removed. This paper quantitatively measures readout noise of the sensor from an image using the mean-standard deviation plot, while in order to evaluate the performance of the proposed approach, the authors tested against the images captured at two different exposure levels. Results show datasets containing 1200 images acquired from six different cameras of three different brands. The success of proposed method is corroborated through experiments.
Digital Image Splicing Using Edges
Authors: Weir Jonathan , Lau Raymond , Yan WeiQi
Published: February 2011

In this paper, the authors splice together an image which has been split up on a piece of paper by using duplication detection. The nearest pieces are connected using edge searching and matching and the pieces that have graphics or textures are matched using the edge shape and intersection between the two near pieces. Thus, the initial step is to mark the direction of each piece and put the pieces that have straight edges to the initial position to determine the profile of the whole image. The other image pieces are then fixed into the corresponding position by using the edge information, i.e., shape, residual trace and matching, after duplication or sub-duplication detection. In the following steps, the patches with different edge shapes are searched using edge duplication detection. With the reduction of rest pieces, the montage procedure will become easier and faster.
Automatic Re-Organization of Group-Wised Web Courseware
Authors: Tang Changjie , Lau Rynson W. , Li Qing , Zhang Tianqing
Published: February 2011

With the increasing popularity of the Internet, there is a growing demand for web-based education, which allows students to study and learn at their own pace over the Internet. However in order to improve the teaching quality, such systems should be able to adapt the teaching in accordance with individual students’ ability and progress. Focusing on this objective, this paper proposes a new method to construct group-wised courseware by mining both context and structure of the courseware to build personalized Web tutor trees. To this end, the concept of Web tutor units and the notion of similarity are presented. Five algoriths, including the Naive Algorithm for tutor concept tree and the Level-generate Algorithm to generate Web tutor units of K+1 levels, are proposed. Experimental results are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the new method.
The Essential Elements of Interactive Multimedia Distance Learning Systems
Authors: Maly K. , Abdel-Wahab Hussein , Overstreet C. M. , Wild J. C. , Abdel-Hamid A. , Ghanem S. , Farag Waleed
Published: February 2011

In recent years, we have seen the introduction and use of many distance learning systems. Some of these systems are characterized as interactive, which means the dominant mode of instruction is live or synchronous using networked multimedia technology such as audio, video and shared workspaces. In this paper, we present the common features and essential elements that should be implemented in such systems. Throughout this paper, we will use as a model and case study the IRI-h system (for Interactive Remote Instruction-heterogeneous) that we have developed and implemented in Java and have used to support distance learning at Old Dominion University.
Content Engineering Agent
Authors: Cheung B. S.N. , Hui L. C.K. , Yiu S. M. , Lee J. K.W. , Kwok L. K. , Leung Kenneth
Published: February 2011

With the advance in Internet technology, “e-learning” becomes an alternative means of learning and teaching, and is currently an active research topic in both IT and education professionals. However, to make “e-learning” an effective learning mode, besides technology, the issue of pedagogy and quality control are equally important. Most of the existing e-learning platforms and tools usually focus on the technology aspect without much investigation on the pedagogical issues and the quality control on the e-learning material. In fact, there is still a big gap between pedagogy and technology. The SPACE Online Universal Learning (SOUL) platform is designed to fill this gap and provide an effective e-Learning platform for e-course providers and students. In particular, the content engineering agent of the platform is designed for e-course development, which is based on the Task-Based Learning (TBL) curriculum development framework and is incorporated with the concept of Total Quality Management (TQM), a well-known technique in quality control. In this paper, we discuss the details of this content engineering agent and show how TBL and TQM are incorporated in the agent. As a remark, the content engineering agent has already been integrated in the SOUL platform, which is being used by more than 17,000 students and teachers. A preliminary evaluation on the usefulness of the Content Engineering agent has been performed and the result is positive.
Secure Soap-Based Web Services for Distance Education
Authors: Komathy K. , Vivekanandan P. , Ramachandran V.
Published: February 2011

The objective of this paper is to emphasize the need for an effective security model and its implementation for distributed applications. Online web-based education needs to share the resources dynamically, irrespective of the network and platform on which the services are deployed. A communication protocol called Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) provides a platform for interoperability, which holds the key for the reuse and integration needed for tomorrow’s sophisticated online learning. The requirements of a diverse population of learners can be met with a flexible system such as SOAP that provides education at anytime from anywhere. SOAP protocol does not include the security of the web transactions it carries and so it is the responsibility of any application to take care of the safety of its critical data being transmitted. This paper attempts to bring out a comprehensive security model based on cryptographic techniques for the distributed web services connected through a SOAP-RPC based communication network to safeguard sensitive information over the wire. The adaptive nature of this proposed security model, not only considers the protection of an entire web transaction, but also customizes the safety of any fragment of the transaction. This paper analyzes a possible and an alternate security mechanism to vendor-dependant technologies as applicable to the distributed services.
High Performance Publisher/Subscriber Communication for Adaptive, Collaborative Web-Based Learning
Authors: Lee Yugyung , Junginger Markus , Geller James
Published: February 2011

The inability of current Internet-based learning systems to deal with different kinds of learners and the high cost of developing a new learning system are well-known problems in e-learning. To overcome these problems, we have designed a learning middleware suite, called the Collaborative and Sharable Learning (CoSL) system. CoSL is a tool set for building e-learning systems and for developing course materials for an e-learning environment. Given the geographic distribution of the components of a Web-based e-learning system, it is crucial to support fast communication between providers and consumers of e-learning course materials. In this paper, a high performance Publisher/Subscriber communication system has been designed for real-time communication between participants. CoSL allows us to build and manage global real-time learning systems in a distributed and heterogeneous environment.
Towards Open Standards
Authors: Qu Changtao , Nejdl Wolfgang
Published: February 2011

In this paper we present the evolution of a collaborative courseware generating system that is featured by XML-based course structure representation, JSP-based dynamic courseware presentation, and WebDAV-based collaborative courseware authoring. While the first system implementation employs a proprietary design using a self-defined XML DTD to represent the course structure, the second and the third system implementation take an open-standard-oriented approach, which are respectively SCORM 1.1 and SCORM 1.2 conformant. In the latter two implementations, all learning resources contained in an existing Java course are re-designed according to the SCORM 1.1 and SCORM 1.2 Content Model and further annotated with corresponding SCORM metadata. In addition, the course structure is re-constructed utilizing SCORM 1.1 Content Structure Format and SCORM 1.2 Content Packaging Specification. The evolution of the collaborative courseware generating system is motivated by our efforts to improve the reusability and interoperability of learning resources.
Web-Based Interactive 3D Visualization for Computer Graphics Education
Authors: Yang Li , Sanver Mustafa
Published: February 2011

Instead of developing web-based course material using an off-the-shelf web authoring tool, we believe that a better way to show principles and techniques in computer science is to have the related algorithms running “live” in the background and to allow students to interact with them within a web browser. We have chosen computer graphics as an example course because of its demand for visualization and its technical challenge for 3D rendering. This paper presents a set of web-based demos designed to demonstrate computer graphics concepts and OpenGL functions. We have ported to the web the popular Nate Robins’ OpenGL demos. We have also developed our own demos to address pedagogical aspects of computer graphics education. The main idea of the approach is to put a real-world scene and a rendered result side by side together with a set of OpenGL functions to produce the rendered result from the real-world scene. Animation, user interaction, manipulation, and virtual navigation are supported in the sense that the order of the functions and the parameters of each function can be changed interactively and such changes will be reflected immediately in the rendered result. The demos are written by using Java and GL4Java, an OpenGL Java binding to ensure the deployment on the Web. The result is a set of web-based interactive tutorials with rich visualization driven by underlying algorithms to demonstrate the subject principles and techniques. Although the contents of these demos are specific to computer graphics, the presented methodology represents a generic approach which is discipline/course independent and can be applied to various other courses.
Privacy and Security in E-Learning
Authors: El-Khatib Khalil , Korba Larry , Xu Yuefei , Yee George
Published: February 2011

For a variety of advantages, universities and other organizations are resorting to e-learning to provide instruction on-line. While many advances have been made in the mechanics of providing on-line instruction, the needs for privacy and security have to-date been largely ignored. This paper examines privacy and security issues associated with e-learning. It presents the basic principles behind privacy practices and legislation. It investigates the more popular e-learning standards to determine their provisions and limitations for privacy and security. Privacy requirements for e-learning systems are explored with respect to the “Privacy Principles.” The capabilities of a number of existing privacy enhancing technologies, including methods for network privacy, policy-based privacy/security management, and trust systems, are reviewed and assessed.
A Distance Learning System for Delivering Appropriate Studying Materials and Stimulating Learner Volition
Authors: Barolli Leonard , Koyama Akio
Published: February 2011

In this paper, we propose an agent-based personalized distance learning system for delivering appropriate studying materials to learners by judging learners’ degree of understanding.The main elements of our proposed system are the agents, which play the role of teacher. Based on the learning history they analyze the understanding degree of learners. To evaluate the proposed distance learning system, we carried out three experiments and a questionnaire investigation. The evaluation results show that by making groupings of learners, the agents can decide what kind of materials should be given to learners. Furthermore, we improved the system by adding new features such as mental action of color and the competition with other learners. The evaluation results show that an improved system can increase learning efficiency.
Using Virtual Instrument to Develop a Real-Time Web-Based Laboratory
Authors: Chu Kin C.
Published: February 2011

In this study, an online experiment was developed for sub-degree students at remote locations to control and obtain real-time measurements or experimental data. Online video is set up for better visual impact of what is going on in the remote site. The intention of this Web-based laboratory package is to make the experiment more interactive, attractive, and easily accessed. Background knowledge is included for better understanding of the theory behind the experiment and gives an overview of the operation of the remote controlled software used in this remote laboratory. Multimedia elements including sound, video, and animation are added for better explanation and easier understanding of software as well as basic theory for this remote laboratory. This remote equipment control and monitor was added as a supplement laboratory to a class of engineering students. Positive feedback from students was obtained through questionnaires and interviews. These results throw light on doing remote laboratory through the Internet and direction for improvement.
Developing a Knowledge-Based Videoconference System for Non-Expert Users
Authors: Imai Shintaro , Kitagata Gen , Konno Susumu , Suganunia Takuo , Kinoshita Tetsuo
Published: February 2011

We present a design and implementation of a Flexible Videoconference System, FVCS. FVCS aims to reduce the botheration of the users under operational environments with insufficient computational resources, such as the Internet environment with the small-scale computers at home and offices, by embedding flexibility into the conventional videoconference system. In this paper, we propose a design and implementation of FVCS with knowledge-based multiagent framework. We implement some kinds of prototype systems of FVCS with different types of knowledge embedded in the agent. We also perform some experiments using the prototype systems to evaluate the adaptability of the systems in response to the observed operational situations. From the results of the experiments, the adaptability is influenced by knowledge of agent, and we conclude that the knowledge-based design and implementation is reasonable for construction of FVCS.
Open Multi-Agent Systems for Collaborative Web-Based Learning
Authors: Lu Hongen
Published: February 2011

Web-based learning plays an important role in the modern teaching environment. Many Web-based tools are becoming available in this huge marketplace. Agent technology contributes substantially to this achievement. One of the fundamental problems facing both students and education services providers is how to locate and integrate these valuable services in such a dynamic environment. In this paper, I present mediator-based architecture to build open multi-agent applications for eLearning. An agent services description language is presented to enable services advertising and collaboration. The language exploits ontology of service domain, and provides the flexibility for developers to plug in any suitable constraint languages. Multiple matchmaking strategies based on agent service ontology are given to help agents finding appropriate service providers. The series of strategies consider various features of service providers, the nature of requirements, and more importantly the relationships among services.
Methodologies to Determine Class Sizes for Fair Faculty Work Load in Web Courses
Authors: Zuckweiler Kathryn M. , Schniederjans Marc J. , Ball Dwayne A.
Published: February 2011

This paper presents two modeling approaches that can be used to determine student class sizes for instructors who teach Web-based courses. The methodologies act to provide assurance to faculty that they will not have to compromise quality of instruction when teaching a Web course, nor have to sacrifice time away from research or service activities to develop and manage a Web course. These methodologies will also help department chairs plan student class size limitations to achieve “fairness” in asking instructors to adopt and teach Web courses at their universities. The models are applied to actual Web course experience at a university to demonstrate their practicality. Results of the application revealed faculty processing efficiencies that are inherent in offering Web-based courses and efficacy of the modeling approach.
Interactive E-Learning
Authors: Ghaoui Claude , Janvier W.A.
Published: February 2011

This paper introduces the concept of improving student memory retention using a distance learning tool by establishing the student’s communication preference and learning style before the student uses the module contents. It argues that incorporating a distance learning tool with an intelligent/interactive tutoring system using various components (psychometric tests, communication preference , learning styles, mapping learning/teaching styles, neurolinguistic programming language patterns, subliminal text messaging, motivational factors, novice/expert factor, student model, and the way we learn) combined in WISDeM to create a human-computer interactive interface distance learning tool does indeed enhance memory retention. The authors show that WISDeM’s initial evaluation indicates that a student’s retained knowledge has been improved from a mean average of 63.57% to 71.09% — moving the student from a B to an A.
Integrating Personalization in E-Learning Communities
Authors: Rigou Maria , Sirmakessis Spiros , Tsakalidis Athanasios
Published: February 2011

Web-based learning environments give e-learning new potential by enabling personalized, interactive, just-in-time, current, and user-centric learning tools. In this work, we present the architecture, design, and implementation of a Web-based learning environment that can be used to build and support online learning communities. New material can be uploaded and positioned through a simple Web interface that also allows for account management, definition of topic associations (that lead to the production of recommendations for further reading), and a set of additional explicit and implicit adaptations produced dynamically for personalizing the overall learning experience. Online learning communities may greatly benefit from incorporating adaptive features that take advantage of the knowledge and experiences of community members and use it to better serve each individual depending on personal preferences, goals, and needs, as well as the history of community activity.
The Next Generation of E-Learning
Authors: Lee Chye Seng , Tan Daniel TiongHok , Goh Wee Sen
Published: February 2011

In a short span of three years, the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore witnessed significant growth in the adoption of e-learning. With the use of professors-friendly e-learning applications, NTU has been able to achieve critical mass buy-in by the academic staff when the e-learning take-up rate achieved 85% of the existing NTU course curriculum. As NTU moves on to celebrate the third year of e-learning, measures were taken with the careful design considerations that aimed to “humanize” e-learning, that is, make e-learning interactive and engaging with active collaborations and student learning involvement. This includes the proliferation in the use of the video talking head format synchronized with the lecture presentation, live audio-video delivery, text chat and document annotations of a lecture presentation and delivery. This paper reviews the processes NTU adopted in adding the human touch to traditional e-learning projects and serves as a good case study for other institutions with a similar aim to achieve interactive and engaged online learning.
Virtual Experiment Environment's Design for Science Education
Authors: Shin Young-Suk
Published: February 2011

We present the educational possibilities of the Web based virtual experiment (VE) environments in the science education. As there are a lot of things that cannot be experimented with in the lab among the contents of experiment of science education, there are a lot of difficulties in the teaching-learning process. Therefore, we have developed virtual experiment environments on the Web designed to be compatible to the learner levels through level analysis in the learning contents. The students can select the learning level in the exploring step of learning cycle model: regular, advanced and remedial courses, according to the degree of their understanding or interest about the learning topic. The virtual experiment environments will support students to learn scientific phenomena and concepts focusing on: radiation balance, the earthquake waves, the earth’s crust structure, the movement of sea water, and solar system in the science field of middle school. The VE environments have been evaluated to the responses of learners on a Web. This study shows that the Web-based VE environments in science education can be effectively used as a virtual class.
An E-Learning System Based on the Top-Down Method and the Cellular Models
Authors: Fujii Norihiro , Yukita Shuichi , Koike Nobuhiko , Kunii Tosiyasu L.
Published: February 2011

As the broadband connectivity to the Internet becomes common, Web based e-learning and distance learning have come to play the central roles for self-learning, where learners are given much flexibility in choosing place and time to study. However, the learners still have to spend a lot of time before reaching the learning goal. This discourages the learners from continuing their studies and diminishes their motivation. To overcome this problem and to let the learners keep focusing on their primary interests, we propose a top-down e-learning system called TDeLS. The TDeLS can offer learners the learning materials based on the top-down (i.e., goal-oriented) method, according to the learners’ demands and purposes. Moreover, the TDeLS can distribute them to the learners through the Internet, and manage the database for learning materials. In order to share learning materials among learners through the Web, these learning materials are wrapped in XML with a specially designed vocabulary for TDeLS. We employed the cellular models that ensure the consistency among design modules and support a top-down design methodology. In this paper, we present the TDeLS for hardware logic design courses based on the cellular models. The primary goal is to design complex logic circuits in VerilogHDL, which is an industrial-standard hardware description language. This paper also presents the basic XML vocabulary designed to describe hardware modules efficiently, and a brief introduction to the structure and functions of the proposed system that implements the TDeLS.
Distance Education in the Business Aviation Industry
Authors: Raisinghani Mahesh , Chowdhury Mohammed , Colquitt Chris , Reyes Pedro M. , Bonakdar Nilofar , Ray Joseph , Robles Jose
Published: February 2011

The purpose of this research is to understand the expectations and behaviors of business aviation pilots toward online learning. The authors believe that the company able to offer an integrated, individualized and useful online training experience will gain a significant competitive advantage. To that end, the authors have researched and synthesized studies that are currently available and relate to this important future product. In addition, an exploratory survey of business aviation pilots and interviews with key aviation industry players are used to determine current attitudes and expectations toward online learning. The scope of this paper will be limited to exploring the niche market of business aviation pilots using the aviation training company CAE SimuFlite and their new SimfinityTM .technology. However, the authors consider the concepts discussed to be applicable to all business aviation pilots.
Using Ontology as Scaffolding for Authoring Teaching Materials
Authors: Yang Jin-Tan David , Yu Pao Ta , Chen Nian Shing , Tsai Chun Yen , Lee Chin Chin , Shih Timothy K.
Published: February 2011

This article introduces mathematics ontology as a means of supporting teachers for authoring teaching materials. The purpose of this study is to conduct teachers to author a teaching material by using visualized domain ontology as scaffolding on a Content Repository Management System (CRMS). Although the domain ontology of mathematics at the secondary school level in Taiwan provides structured vocabularies for describing domain content, for those teachers who want to create a knowledge-rich description of domain knowledge, such as required by the “semantic Web, using ontology turns out to provide only part of the knowledge required. In the article, we examine problems related to capturing the learning resources or Learning Objects (LOs) on the CRMS. To construct ontology for a subset of mathematics course descriptions, the representation requirements by Resource Description Framework/Resource Description Framework Schema (RDF/RDFS) was implemented. Furthermore, a Visualized Online Authoring Tool (VOAT) is designed for authoring teaching materials on the Web. Finally, discussion and future research are addressed.
Conceptual Framework and Architecture for Agent-Oriented Knowledge Management Supported E-Learning Systems
Authors: Yau H.K. , Ngai E.W.T. , Cheng T.C.E.
Published: February 2011

In this era of information, traditional practices, technologies, skills, and knowledge are becoming obsolete at a much faster pace than ever before. This makes lifelong learning a necessity for everyone. An e-learning system is a promising solution to the demand for a flexible means of delivering knowledge to educate a large number of people over a vast area. Knowledge management systems (KMSs) are a fast growing area of research on the creation and sharing of knowledge. Agent-oriented software engineering is opening up a new horizon for the analysis and development of systems in an open, complex, and distributed environment. This article proposes a conceptual framework and architecture for the development of an agent-oriented e-learning system supported by knowledge management to provide a flexible, self-paced, and collaborative learning environment with the least constraints. The framework is based on the technologies of e-learning systems, multi-agent systems (MASs), and KMSs. The proposed system architecture consists of three levels: user level, domain level, and Web level. The system will provide all of the basic teaching- and learning-related support facilities, plus some enhanced features that are provided by the agents within the system. The system will also provide the facilities for capturing and sharing the knowledge created during utilization of the system. Finally, conclusions and the potential theoretical and practical implications of the proposed system are presented.
Teacher-Centered Production of Hypervideo for Distance Learning
Authors: Bochicchio Mario A. , Fiore Nicola
Published: February 2011

This paper introduces the main features of LEZI, a software tool oriented to the production of indexed videos (hypervideos), enriched with hypertextual and multimedia elements. In certain types of educational applications, the quality of educational content may compensate easily for a user interface limited to the essentials or a reduced set of multimedia features. Production of this kind of multimedia application can be high quality, even with short production cycles, at a very low cost. This work concentrates on this particular field with LEZI, a conventional conference/lesson that can be transformed effectively into a powerful multimedia product based on a very simple and regular structure. The authors hope that the LEZI environment, which does not require specific expertise in information technology, will allow the author of an educational multimedia product to work at a higher level than conventional authoring tools in a short time and at a low cost.
Development and Evaluation of a Keyword-Accessible Lecture Video Player
Authors: Yoshida Takahiro , Tada Kazuki , Hangai Seiichiro
Published: February 2011

It is desirable to build up a lecture video library to enable students to view past lectures at any time and from anywhere on their PCs. For this purpose, we have developed a lecture video player/maker system (Yoshida, 2002, 2003). In developing this system, we considered the usability for students and operability for teachers. The player includes a keyword access function, which enables the student to jump to scenes where one of the registered keywords was spoken. For this purpose, the maker realizes automatic index generation after continuous speech recognition of the whole lecture stream. In this paper, we discuss the structure and functions of an ideal lecture video player and the importance of the index corresponding to the scenes in which the related keywords are spoken. We also will present experimental results regarding keyword extraction from three lecture streams. Evaluations of the lecture videos and the player by students are also discussed.
Examining Instructional Design and Development of a Web-Based Course
Authors: Su Bude
Published: February 2011

This paper describes the design and development process of adapting computer mediated learning from a residential course to a World Wide Web-based course offered in the distance master’s degree program in Instructional Systems Technology at a large Midwestern university. A description of the Web-based course, findings regarding the adaptation process, the major changes in course components, student reactions to the Web-based course features, and its implications for designing and developing Web-based courses are discussed. Through examining the instructional design and development process of this graduate course, the researcher provides useful references for instructors who need to teach a Web-based course in the future.
Evaluating Learning Objects Across Boundaries
Authors: Li Jerry Z. , Nesbit John C. , Richards Griff
Published: February 2011

Learning object repositories and evaluation tools have the potential to serve as sites for interaction among different cultures and communities of practice. This article outlines Web-based learning object evaluation tools that we have developed, describes our current efforts to extend those tools to a wider range of user communities, and considers methods for fostering interaction among user communities. We discuss the recommendation of objects across community boundaries and approaches to mapping between languages, ontologies, and work practices.