bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Reliability Issues of the Multicast-Based Mediacommunication
Authors: Hosszú Gábor
Published: May 2011

The multimedia applications generally support one-tomany group communication. Multicasting decreases the communication costs for applications, which send the same data to multiple receivers. Table 1 summarizes the types of the communication among the hosts. Currently, there is an increasing need for scalable and efficient group communication. Theoretically, multicasting is optimal for such purposes. Therefore, this technology is an emerging media dissemination technology, instead of the traditional unicast communication. It has two important types: the networklevel, namely IP-multicast, and the Application-Layer, host-multicast. In the former one, the data packets are delivered by the IP protocol, from one host to many hosts that are member of a multicast group. The routers run an IP-multicast routing protocol in order to construct a multicast tree. Along this tree, the data is forwarded to each host. Special IP addresses (224.0.0.0 - 239.255.255.255 address range) are used, which do not belong to hosts, but rather define multicast channels. In the case of Application-Layer Multicast (ALM), the hosts use unicast IP delivery, and the routers do not play any special role. Reliability is one of the most important features of all multimedia applications, independently from the multicast technology in use. This requirement is especially critical in the case of multicast, where the large volume of data is to be transferred, and correction or resending of lost data is even more difficult in time. In the multicast technology, the maintenance of the group membership information is also an important question from the point of view of the robustness of the so-called multicast delivery tree. The root of the tree is the sender, the leaves are the receivers, and the intermediate nodes are the routers in case of the IP-multicast. In the following sections, the reliability properties of different multicast technologies are overviewed.
Teleworker's Security Risks Minimized with Informal Online Information Technology Communities of Practice
Authors: Powell Loreen Marie
Published: May 2011

The advancements of technology have altered the way many small businesses operate in the United States of America (USA) (Butcher-Powell, 2006). Small businesses have been forced to embrace technology or lose valuable employees and business. As such, many small businesses have merged to wireless networks and adopted various forms of telework. Today, it is estimated that more than 60% of the workforce are teleworkers (Butcher-Powell, 2006; DecisionOne, 2002). While moving to a remote workforce is good for small businesses, it also places a substantial amount of security risks upon the small business. Butcher-Powell (2006) documented some of the security risks associated with corporations employing a remote workforce, indicating that teleworker’s lack of information systems and security training can compromise the corporation’s network. The study investigates one particular method for aiding teleworker’s: informal information technology communities of practice in cyberspace. One hundred and forty four teleworker’s were surveyed on what sort of IT-related activities they devote time to, how much problem-solving they attempt via technology discussion groups with respect to those activities, and their perceived community and organizational benefits to participating in such discussion groups. The study found significant differences in perceived value of technology discussion groups among teleworkers.
Trends in Telecommunications and Networking in Secure E-Commerce Applications
Authors: Eyob Ephrem
Published: May 2011

Telecommunications and networking, two prominent technologies of the information age, have enjoyed substantial investments from industry and government, resulting in unparalleled growth in the transmission of voice, video, and data over wired and wireless media. Since their inception several decades ago, these technologies and their business applications have progressed through several stages. Such progression commenced from the development of the primitive electronic funds transfer (EFT) in which funds could be transferred electronically, to the enormous variety of technologies available today. Several decades ago, the delivery of video, voice, and data was accomplished through three independent networks: television, telephone, and data networks, respectively (Panko, 2007). Today, a convergence of the three networks is occurring. For example, networking technology can deliver video, data, voice (through VoIP), graphics and other multimedia contents at considerable speed. Currently, there are many applications associated with telecommunications and networking technologies. They include electronic mail (e-mail), voice over Internet protocol (VoIP), and videoconferencing. Also, the Internet which was built on the world-wide telecommunications and networking infrastructure gave rise to many applications such as electronic commerce (e-commerce), electronic data interchange (EDI), and several other World Wide Web (Web) applications. Electronic commerce, which is the process of buying, selling, or exchanging products, services, and information via computer networks, has evolved and become an ever-booming enterprise. The advent of broadband digital subscriber line (DSL) and broadband cable has enabled the transmission of data signals through telephone and cable-television (cable-TV) networks. Moreover, broadband technology has made high speed Internet access very affordable for small businesses and individuals. It has also facilitated e-commerce by providing businesses and consumers easy access to the global information super highway. The fact that e-commerce transactions involve the transmission of personal and organization’s proprietary information over the unsecured Internet, make them easy targets for hackers. Therefore, security of electronic communications is a major problem that must be addressed by organizations that engage in e-commerce. This article presents the trends in telecommunications and networking; security problems confronting such technologies and related e-commerce applications; and the management of security issues associated with these technologies.
Ubiquitous Commerce
Authors: Galanxhi-Janaqi Holtjona
Published: May 2011

Ubiquitous commerce, also referred to as “u-commerce” or “über-commerce,” is the combination of electronic, wireless/mobile, television, voice, and silent commerce. However, its full realization would bring something more than the simple sum of its components. Ubiquitous commerce can be defined as “the use of ubiquitous networks to support personalized and uninterrupted communications and transactions between a firm and its various stakeholders to provide a level of value, above, and beyond traditional commerce” (Watson, Pitt, Berthon, & Zinkhan, 2002).
Virtual Communities
Authors: Kontolemakis George
Published: May 2011

In recent years, computer-mediated communication has been the enabling factor for connecting people to one another and establishing “virtual relationships” (Igbaria, 1999; Johnston, Raizada, & Cronin, 1996). Virtual communities evolved as users of the early networks utilized them mainly for informal rather than business-related communication. These communities were not planned development in the sphere of computer networking. As this form of interaction increased, the users began to demand better and improved technology and functionality which would assist them in their interactions. “Virtual Communities describe the union between individuals or organizations who share common values and interests using electronic media to communicate within a shared semantic space on a regular basis” (Schubert, 1999). This was one of the first definitions of Virtual Communities. Nowadays, in considering companies that are building or trying to build virtual communities, it seems that the up-to-date definition of Virtual Communities is that these “involve establishing connections on electronic networks among people with common needs so that they can engage in shared discussions that persist and accumulate over time leading to complex webs of personal relationships and an increasing sense of identification with the overall community” (Hagel, 2007).
Web Design Concept
Authors: Rosenkrans Ginger
Published: May 2011

In 2005, the Internet became available to one billion people worldwide with about 845 million people using it regularly (Emarketer, 2006). The United States has one of the largest Internet populations with 175.4 million online users (Weisman, 2006). It is estimated the Internet is used by 80% of advertisers and it is projected that 90% of them will adopt the Internet for advertising by 2008. Effective Web site design is essential in online advertising and in attracting and maintaining consumers’ interest. Many organizations include a Web site as part of their advertising and media mix (Arens, 2006; Geissler, Zinkham, & Watson, 2006). Web design experts assert that interface features and designs influence a site’s traffic and sales. Although there are no definite guidelines for successful Web site designs, some important constructs related to effectiveness are (1) page design, (2) navigation, (3) color usage, (4) graphics and typeface, (5) content, and (6) online advertising (Arens, 2006; Kovarik, 2002; Song & Zahedi, 2005; Van Duyne, Landay, & Hong, 2003).
A Technoethical Approach to the Race Problem in Anthropology
Authors: Billinger Michael S.
Published: May 2011

Despite the fact that analyses of biological populations within species have become increasing sophisticated in recent years, the language used to describe such groups has remained static, thereby reinforcing (and reifying) outdated and inadequate models of variation such as race. This problem is further amplified when the element of human culture is introduced. Drawing on Mario Bunge’s work on technoethics, in which he asserts that technology should be subject to social and moral codes, this chapter argues that the ‘race problem’ should compel anthropologists to exploit technology in order to find workable solutions. One solution to this problem may be found in modern approaches to human skeletal variation using advanced computing techniques such as geometric morphometrics, which allows for the comparison of bone morphology in three dimensions. Coupled with more complex theories of social and genetic exchange, technologically advanced methodologies will allow us to better explore the multidimensional nature of these relationships and to understand how group formation occurs, so that a dynamic approach to classification can be developed.
Becoming a Digital Citizen in a Technological World
Authors: Ribble Mike
Published: May 2011

In todays changing global society, digital technology users need to be prepared to interact and work with users from around the world. Digital technology is helping to define this new global society. Being part of a society provides opportunities to its citizens but also asks that its members behave in certain way. This new technological society is drawing users together to learn, share and interact with one another in the virtual world. But for all users to be productive there needs to be a defined level of acceptable activity by everyone, in other words a digital citizenship. The concept of digital citizenship provides a structure for this digital society, by conceptualizing and organizing appropriate technology use into a new digital culture. Anyone using these digital technologies needs to understand the parameters of appropriate use so that they can become more constructive digital citizens.
Technoethics in Education for the Twenty-First Century
Authors: Gearhart Deb
Published: May 2011

Are we developing a (global) society where our youth think it is ok to copy and paste whatever they see on the Internet and turn it in for homework; where writing an English paper would include BTW, IMHO, LOL among other emoticons; where downloading a song or movie that they can pirate from the Web is perfectly ok? We would certainly hope not. However, theses concerns are just the tip of what is happening in our society. When looking at the social impact of technology in on our society it becomes clear the importance of instilling ethical behaviors and practices in the members of our society. Where is the best place to instill these ethical behaviors? This author contends it is within our education system but is our education system prepared to deal with the ethical issues being raised by our use of technology known as technoethics? Currently our education system is not. This chapter defines technoethics for education and provides suggestions for technoethics in our education system.
Engaging Youth in Health Promotion Using Multimedia Technologies
Authors: Norman Cameron , Guta Adrian , Flicker Sarah
Published: May 2011

New information technologies are creating virtual spaces that allow youth to network and express themselves with unprecedented freedom and influence. However, these virtual spaces call into question traditional understandings of private and public space and open up new tensions for institutions (e.g. schools and law enforcement) trying to maintain safe spaces. For adolescent health researchers, these virtual spaces provide exciting opportunities to study youth culture, but also challenge the utility of ethical guidelines designed for a non-networked world. At issue are tensions between the realities of ‘natural’ interactions that occur online, often in full public view, and creating ethical research environments. These tensions and issues will be explored within this chapter, through an overview of the Teen- Net project, a discussion of anonymity and confidentiality within social networking technologies and software (including Friendster, Facebook, and Myspace), and a discussion of ethical considerations for researchers engaged in adolescent health research and promotion.
Ethical Challenges of Engaging Chinese in End-of-Life Talk
Authors: Mei-che Pang Samantha
Published: May 2011

In Hong Kong, end-of-life practice ideally adheres to values that include respect for the patient’s selfdetermination and an understanding shared by and consented to by the patient, the family and the healthcare team. However, consensus about end-of-life care is seldom reached within this trio before the patient become critically ill or mentally incompetent. This chapter examines the customary belief, protectiveness in medical care, which hinders Chinese patients and families in their discussion of lifesustaining treatment; challenges the practice in question; and discusses the possibility of engaging frail nursing home residents in dialogue by using the “Let Me Talk” advance care planning program.
The Scholarship of Teaching Engineering
Authors: Haghi A.K.
Published: May 2011

In this book chapter, the authors summarize their retrospections as an engineering educator for more than 20 years. Consideration is given to a number of educational developments to which the author has contributed during his career in academia and the contribution made to engineering and technological education. Increasing emphasis is being placed on establishing teaching and learning centers at the institutional level with the stated objective of improving the quality of teaching and education. The results of this study provide information for the revision of engineering curricular, the pedagogical training of engineering faculty and the preparation of engineering students for the academic challenges of higher education in the field. The book chapter provides an in-depth review of a range of critical factors liable to have a significant effect and impact on the sustainability of engineering as a discipline. Issues such as learning and teaching methodologies and the effect of E-development; and the importance of communications are discussed.
The Ethics of Deception in Cyberspace
Authors: Rowe Neil C.
Published: May 2011

We examine the main ethical issues concerning deception in cyberspace. We first discuss the concept of deception and survey ethical theories applicable to cyberspace. We then examine deception for commercial gain such as spam, phishing, spyware, deceptive commercial software, and dishonest games. We next examine deception used in attacks on computer systems, including identity deception, Trojan horses, denial of service, eavesdropping, record manipulation, and social engineering. We then consider several types of deception for defensive purposes, less well known, including honeypots, honeytokens, defensive obstructionism, false excuses, deceptive intelligence collection, and strategic deception. In each case we assess the ethical issues pro and con for the use of deception. We argue that sometimes deception in cyberspace is unethical and sometimes it is ethical.
Historical Perspective of Technoethics in Education
Authors: Cortez J. José
Published: May 2011

Fundamental democratic principles and values that guide our social relationships have been important concerns in the evolution of this nation’s system of formal public schooling. With its increased use and reliance on advanced technologies, education faces some fundamental challenges that have potentially far-reaching implications for educational institutions, professional teaching strategies and practices, and student learning. This chapter explores the topic of technoethics as an applied field of ethics and research, viewed from a historical perspective of education in the United States and its embrace of technology. The underlying intent is to inform the readers’ understanding of the basic concepts of common good, citizenship, and democratic values that are the underlying precepts associated with the history of public schooling in the United States. Additionally, the author discusses the increasingly critical need for educators to address the social and ethical dilemmas associated with new technological developments and their application to educational settings.
Simulating Complexity-Based Ethics for Crucial Decision Making in Counter Terrorism
Authors: Andrews Cecilia
Published: May 2011

“Counter-terrorism refers to the practices, tactics and strategies that governments, militaries and other groups adopt in order to fight terrorism.” Counter Terrorism (CT) is a complex system driven by political, stress and time pressures that contribute to the enormous difficulty that involved people face in making sustainable ethical decisions. This chapter proposes a systems planning approach for enhancing the sustainability of crucial ethical decisions in CT. First, we describe the need for enhancing crucial ethical decision-making using some recent cases. Next, we evaluate the relevance and utility of a systems planning approach in providing such enhancements for CT. We develop the “ideal state” for tools and techniques to be used for crucial ethical decision-making in CT. We propose the POWER systems planning framework as a model for advancing towards this ideal state Finally, we consider how games and simulation could be used to envision and inform, aid synthesis of and support evaluation of decision-making through the POWER model.
Advances in Tracking and Recognition of Human Motion
Authors: Aifanti Niki , Sappa Angel D. , Grammalidis Nikos , Malassiotis Sotiris Grammalidis
Published: May 2011

Tracking and recognition of human motion has become an important research area in computer vision. In real world conditions it constitutes a complicated problem, considering cluttered backgrounds, gross illumination variations, occlusions, self-occlusions, different clothing and multiple moving objects. These ill-posed problems are usually tackled by making simplifying assumptions regarding the scene or by imposing constraints on the motion. Constraints such as that the contrast between the moving people and the background should be high and that everything in the scene should be static except for the target person are quite often introduced in order to achieve accurate segmentation. Moreover, the motion of the target person is often confined to simple movements with limited occlusions. In addition, assumptions such as known initial position and posture of the person are usually imposed in tracking processes.
Aesthetics in Software Engineering
Authors: MacLennan Bruce
Published: May 2011

It is commonly supposed that software engineering is—and should be—focused on technical and scientific issues, such as correctness, efficiency, reliability, testability, and maintainability. Within this constellation of important technological concerns, it might seem that design aesthetics should hold a secondary, marginal role, and that aesthetic considerations might enter the design process, if at all, only after the bulk of the engineering is done. This article discusses the important role that aesthetics can play in engineering, and in particular in software engineering, and how it can contribute to achieving engineering objectives.
Agile Methodology Adoption
Authors: McAvoy John , Sammon David
Published: May 2011

Discussions on agile software development methodologies have a tendency to develop into an argument between proponents of agile methods and proponents of more traditional process-oriented methodologies. The terminology used in these debates is often unhelpful, and in many cases are inaccurate and biased representations. It needs to be accepted that there are no “silver bullets” providing universal solutions (Jeffries, 2001). Bearing this in mind, the decision to adopt a particular software development methodology is a difficult one, and the decision to choose an agile method is no exception. In theory, as in practice, definitions and descriptions of the various agile methods are presented, yet the factors considered in the decision to adopt, or not adopt, an agile method are not addressed. While agile methodologies try to avoid the excessive use of procedures or tools (Beck & Fowler, 2001), one agile methodology, dynamic systems development method (DSDM), does recommend the use of appropriate tools during the development process (Coesmans, 2003). However, it appears that none of the available agile methodologies suggest a tool to assist decision makers at the project initiation phase, therefore, the debate on agile suitability is usually a debate on agile versus traditional methods (DeMarco & Boehm, 2002), rather than an examination of the suitability of agile methods for a particular project. While the “agile debate” rages, individual projects are not adequately assessed prior to the adoption of a method.
Ambient Intelligence in Perspective
Authors: Byrne Caroline , O’Grady Michael , O’Hare Gregory
Published: May 2011

Ambient intelligence (AmI) is a relatively new and distinct interpretation of the mobile computing paradigm. However, its recognition that embedded intelligence, either in actuality or perception, is an essential prerequisite if mobile computing is to realize its potential distinguishes it from other mobile usage paradigms. Though stressing the need for intelligence, and implicitly the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) techniques, AmI does not formally ratify any particular approach and is thus technique agnostic. In this article, we examine the constituent technologies of AmI and provide a brief overview of some exemplary AmI projects. In particular, the question of intelligence is considered and some strategies for incorporating intelligence into AmI applications and services are proposed. It is the authors hope that a mature understanding of the issues involved will aid software professionals in the design and implementation of AmI applications.
Assessing ERP Risks and Rewards
Authors: Bradley Joseph
Published: May 2011

Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems claim to meet the information needs of organizations. These off-the-shelf software packages replace hard to maintain solutions created by IS departments or older off-the-shelf packages that often provided only piecemeal solutions to an organization’s information needs. ERP systems evolved from material requirements planning (MRP) systems and manufacturing resources planning (MRP II) systems. ERP serves the entire enterprise, not just manufacturing and inventory control as with its predecessors. ERP integrates information for the entire organization in a single database. But ERP implementations are often complex and experience serious problems. Failures, abandoned projects, and general dissatisfaction have been well publicized in the business press. ERP systems are “expensive and difficult to implement, often imposing their own logic on a company’s strategy and existing culture” (Pozzebon, 2000, p. 1015).
Building and Management of Trust in Networked Information Systems
Authors: Mezgár István
Published: May 2011

Thanks to rapidly developing information and communication technologies, the complexity of networked organizations has become very high, so the representation of their structure and the description of their operation and their control need new technologies, new approaches. The availability of individuals independently from location and time means mobility, and that is an important attribute of today’s society. This mobility can be achieved by using different types of mobile wireless networks as wireless wide area networks (WWANs, e.g., GSM, GPRS, and UMTS), wireless local area networks (WLANs, e.g., WiFi 802.11a-g), and wireless personal area (or pico) network (WPAN, e.g., Bluetooth, IrDA2). In spite of the application of high-tech approaches, tools, and methodologies, there is a common point in all of the organizations: human beings make most of the important decisions, and they operate and use systems. Experience shows that improper application of this human factor can make operation very inefficient even in the case of the technically most advanced systems. The lowest level of connection among systems is made through protocols; the highest contact level is among decision makers, users namely among human beings. A very important element of this human contact is trust. In a networked organization, trust is the atmosphere, the medium in which actors are moving (Castelfranchi & Tan, 2001). Only trust can bridge cultural, geographical, and organizational distances of team members (and even of firms) from turning to unmanageable psychological distances. Trust is the base of cooperation, the normal behavior of the human being in the society. The ability of enterprises to form networked systems depends on the existing level of trust in the society and on the capital of society (Fukuyama, 1995). As the rate of cooperation is increasing in all fields of life, the importance of trust is evolving even faster. Lack of trustworthy security services is a major obstacle to the use of information systems in private, in business (B2B), as well as in public services. Trust is intimately linked to consumers’ rights, like security, identification, authentication, privacy, and confidentiality. Secure identification, authentication of the users, and communication security are main problems in networked systems. Information management (IM) is a fuzzy term covering the various stages of information processing from production to storage and retrieval to dissemination towards the better working of an organization, where information can be from internal and external sources and in any format. The role of trust in these processes is definitive as human-to-human and human-to-system communication forms the base of information management.
Building Police/Community Relations through Virtual Communities
Authors: Baim Susan A.
Published: May 2011

Over the past two decades, police departments around the globe have been involved in a slow, but steady transition from call-based policing to community-oriented policing. The former approach, while effective at closing cases once a crime has occurred, does little to develop crime prevention partnerships between officers on the beat and the citizens of local communities. Community-oriented policing serves to increase awareness of issues and potential problems before they occur, thus assisting police departments to provide a more proactive approach to stopping crime within their communities. One of the greatest difficulties in developing effective community-oriented policing programs is establishing solid, two-way communications links between police officers and the populations that they serve. Information flow to the police and suggestions back to the citizenry often fall victim to the same constraints—lack of time to interact effectively and lack of a ready-made mechanism to deliver the information in a timely manner. To reduce or eliminate these constraints, interactive police department Web sites and virtual communities (that involve both police officers and citizens) can provide actionable and measurable performance increases in the efficiencies and the effectiveness of community-oriented policing efforts. Although the IT hardware, software, and design expertise needed to create interactive Web sites and virtual communities are readily available, online efforts at community-oriented policing will remain more of a theoretical interest than a broad-scale application until police departments truly understand the needs and the wants of the citizens within their local communities. This article explores a service-learning approach for use in a university classroom that combines IT applications with current research practices in the use of citizen satisfaction surveys conducted for local police departments. Examples are drawn from three primary-based research studies involving police departments that are turning away from call-based policing practices and proactively moving toward community- oriented policing practices.
CAD Software and Interoperability
Authors: Cruz Christophe , Nicolle Christophe
Published: May 2011

Decisions taken during the conception phases in huge architectural projects influence a lot the cost and the schedule of the building construction. To ease this decision-making, many mock-ups have been used as a project prototype. This prototyping is useful to test and to improve the conception of projects. Nowadays, collaborative sites that appear on the Web greatly improve the flexibility of the framework’s actors of a distant project [Aliakseyeu, Martens, Subramanian, Vrouble, & Wesselink, 2001; Balaguer & DeGennaro, 1996; Klinker, Dutoit, Bauer, Bayes, Novak, & Matzke, 2002). Digital mock-ups are used to represent future 3D elements of the final product. Digital mock-ups are known to be often employed in the architectural field. Indeed, the visualization of the future buildings in 3D by architects and engineers is a way to facilitate the testing of the choices, the scheduling of costs and processes, and the completion dates. In the architectural field, all types of activities have developed tools for special prototyping: structural analysis, thermal and fluidic networks, and so forth. Unfortunately, this development is completely chaotic. Sometimes existing tools in the same type of activity cannot exchange information. Moreover, information stored by tools is in most cases bound by a set of files that contain only geometrical descriptions of the building. Not every actor of a project has necessarily the same knowledge as the other actors to understand and to interpret information. Thus, the collaboration between the actors as well as the data interoperability seems to be difficult to evolve without a new kind of tool. The following section presents two examples of platforms using digital mock-ups to handle conception data. The section “Collaborative Web Platform” focuses on our solution through the presentation of the Active3D collaborative platform. The section “Interoperability Demonstration” presents the Active3D platform as a central point of collaboration with the help of use-cases examples. The last section concludes on the work being undertaken.
Client Expectations in Virtual Construction Concepts
Authors: Barima O.K.B
Published: May 2011

Meeting the expectations of clients through better service delivery has been a key concern of the construction industry over the years (Hui, 2005; Shen & Liu, 2004 ). One recommendation often suggested in recent studies to support the delivery of construction works to the construction client is the use of information and communication technology (ICT) (Weippert, Kajewski, & Tilley, 2003). In recent times the virtual construction concept has emerged where construction actors may rely on modern ICT tools to operate irrespective of time and space, to attain common value delivery goals in construction projects. For example, highly skilled construction parties may be in different physical geographic locations in the world, but they may use modern ICT tools to collaborate to achieve common project goals. The virtual construction concept has the potential to provide cost and time savings to the construction client, and it is also likely to play an important role in the delivery of construction works (Barima, 2003). A key party to the construction delivery process is the construction client, and it may be important to know the client’s expectations in the use of the virtual construction concept. This knowledge may provide understanding on the potential expectations of construction clients and also assist construction service providers to improve on their value delivery systems to their clients. This chapter explores the potential expectations of construction clients in the virtual construction project environment. First, the background to this study is provided via review of previous literature, then the research methodology and key findings of this exploratory study are presented, before recommendations for future studies and the conclusions are given.
Cognitive Research in Information Systems
Authors: Tan Felix B. , Hunter M. Gordon
Published: May 2011

The existence and significance of cognition in organizations and its influence on patterns of behaviour in organizations and organizational outcomes are increasingly accepted in information systems (IS) research (Barley, 1986; DeSanctis & Poole, 1994; Griffith, 1999; Griffith & Northcraft, 1996; Orlikowski, 1992, 1994 #208). However, assessing the commonality and individuality in cognition and eliciting the subjective understanding of research participants either as individuals or as groups of individuals remain a challenge to IS researchers (Orlikowski & Gash, 1994). Various methods for studying cognition in organizations have been offered - for example, clinical interviewing (Schein, 1987), focus groups (Krueger, 1988), discourse-based interviewing (Odell, Goswami & Herrington, 1983). This article proposes that cognition applied to making sense of IT in organizations can also be explored using Kelly’s (1955) Personal Construct Theory and its methodological extension, the Repertory Grid (RepGrid). The RepGrid can be used in IS research for uncovering the constructs research participants use to structure and interpret events relating to the development, implementation, use and management of IS in organizations. In the context of this article, cognition is considered to be synonymous with subjective understanding: “the everyday common sense and everyday meanings with which the observed human subjects see themselves and which gives rise to the behaviour that they manifest in socially constructed settings” (Lee, 1991, p. 351). Research into cognition in organizations investigates the subjective understanding of individual members within the organization and the similarities and differences in the understandings among groups of individuals (Jelinek & Litterer, 1994; Porac & Thomas, 1989). In IS research, it is the personal constructs managers, users and IS professionals use to interpret and make sense of information technology (IT) and its role in organizations. The discussion here outlines the myriad of ways the RepGrid can be employed to address specific research objectives relating to subjective understanding and cognition in organizations. It illustrates, from a variety of published studies in IS (see Table 1), the flexibility of the RepGrid to support both qualitative and/or quantitative analyses of the subjective understandings of research participants.
Combining Local and Global Expertise in Services
Authors: Salmela Hannu , Pärnistö Juha
Published: May 2011

Since the 1990s, services characterized by a considerable geographical distance between the service person and the customer have become increasingly commonplace. Banks and insurance companies are introducing call centers or service centers to complement, or even replace, the old regional service organization. In the information and communication technology (ICT) sector, companies such as Fujitsu and IBM provide part of the end-user support for their clients from a few centralized call centers. Telecommunications operators have established call centers to serve their customers in conducting basic business transactions. To a large extent, the change in the 1990s can be attributed to ICT development. As call centers and local offices have equal access to all the information, many of the services that previously had to be provided locally can now come from a call center. Furthermore, this decade will bring new technologies that will further enhance capabilities to serve customers over long distances. They will, for instance, provide increasingly rich media for interaction between customers and remote service personnel. This article investigates factors that need to be considered when moving service production from regional offices to service centers. The empirical part of the study comprises a longitudinal analysis of the ways how Fujitsu Invia, a European IS company within Fujitsu Group, has transformed its service organization. The company has moved a long way from local, site-specific service units to national service centers, and ultimately to a few global centers that provide services to thousands of computer users worldwide. In retrospect, it can be said that the decision to centralize service production turned out to be very successful. However, the reasons why Fujitsu Invia decided to return part of the end-user support closer to customer sites illustrates the complexities associated with centralizing services that were previously produced locally.
Contactless Payment with RFID and NFC
Authors: Pasquet Marc , Vacquez Delphine , Reynaud Joan , Cuozzo Félix
Published: May 2011

The radio frequency identification (RFID) reading technology enables the transfer, by radio, of information from electronic circuit to a reader, opened up some interesting possibilities in the area of e-payment (Domdouzis, Kumar, & Anumba, 2007). Today, the near field communication technology (NFC) opens up even more horizons, because it can be used to set up communications between different electronic devices (Eckert, 2005). Contactless cards, telephones with NFC capacities, RFID tag have been developed in industry and the services (Bendavid, Fosso Wamba, & Lefebvre, 2006). They are similar, but, some major differences explain the specificity of these three applications and the corresponding markets. The label, or marker, is a small size electronic element that transmits, on request, its numerical identification to a reader. The RFID identification makes it possible to store and recover data at short distance by using these miniature markers or labels (see Figure 1) associated to the articles to identify. The cost of the label is only few centimes. An RFID system is made of labels, readers connected to a fixed network, adapted software (collection of information, integration, confidentiality...), adapted services, and management tools that allow the identification of the products through packing. Contactless smartcards (see Figure 2) contain a microprocessor that can communicate under a short distance with a reader similar to those of RFID technology (Khu-smith & Mitchell, 2002). The originality of NFC is the fact that they were conceived for the protected bilateral transmission with other systems. NFC respects the standarda ISO-14443 (Bashan, 2003) and thus, can be used as a contactless card. It can be used as a contactless terminal communicating with a contactless card or another NFC phone (ISO-18092). Services available through NFC are very limited today, but many experiments are in progress and electronic ticketing experiences (subways and bus) started in Japan.
Content-Based Retrieval Concept
Authors: Chan Yung-Kuan , Chang Chin-Chen
Published: May 2011

Because of the demand for efficient management in images, much attention has been paid to image retrieval over the past few years. The text-based image retrieval system is commonly used in traditional search engines (Ratha et al., 1996), where a query is represented by keywords that are usually identified and classified by human beings. Since people have different understandings on a particular image, the consistency is difficult to maintain. When the database is larger, it is arduous to describe and classify the images because most images are complicated and have many different objects. There has been a trend towards developing the content-based retrieval system, which tries to retrieve images directly and automatically based on their visual contents. A similar image retrieval system extracts the content of the query example q and compares it with that of each database image during querying. The answer to this query may be one or more images that are the most similar ones to q. Similarity retrieval can work effectively when the user fails to express queries in a precise way. In this case, it is no longer necessary to retrieve an image extremely similar to the query example. Hence, similarity retrieval has more practical applications than an exact match does.
A Content-Sensitive Approach to Search in Shared File Storages
Authors: Richly Gábor , Hosszú Gábor , Kovács Ferenc
Published: May 2011

The article presents a novel approach to search in shared audio file storages such as P2P-based systems. The proposed method enables the recognition of specific patterns in the audio contents, in such a way it extends the searching possibility from the description-based model to the content- based model. The targeted shared file storages seam to change contents rather unexpectedly. This volatile nature led our development to use real-time capable methods for the search process. The importance of the real-time pattern recognition algorithms that are used on audio data for content-sensitive searching in stream media has been growing over a decade (Liu, Wang, & Chen, 1998). The main problem of many algorithms is the optimal selection of the reference patterns (soundprints in our approach) used in the recognition procedure. This proposed method is based on distance maximization and is able to choose the pattern that later will be used as reference by the pattern recognition algorithms quickly (Richly, Kozma, Kovács & Hosszú, 2001). The presented method called EMESE (Experimental MEdia-Stream rEcognizer) is an important part of a lightweight content-searching method, which is suitable for the investigation of the network-wide shared file storages. This method was initially applied for real-time monitoring of the occurrence of known sound materials in broadcast audio. The experimental measurement data showed in the article demonstrate the efficiency of the procedure that was the reason for using it in shared audio database environment.
Contributions of Information Technology Tools to Project's Accounting and Financing
Authors: Gelbard R. , Kantor J. , Edelist L.
Published: May 2011

“According to the Standish Group CHAOS Report 2003, each year in the USA there are approximately 175,000 projects in IT application development that spends $250 Billion. Among these, 31.1% of projects will be cancelled, 52.7% of projects will cost 189% of their original estimates, only 52% of required features and functions make it to the released product, and time overruns occur in 82% of the cases. In financial terms $55 billion dollars is wasted in these projects.” (Madpat, 2005). This chapter suggests an innovative platform to analyze software projects in order to overcome the difficulties that are shown through the statistics. The first layer of the platform is based on costing theories in order to handle the cost overruns. At the second layer are the project management tools, and on the third layer is the software engineering. The last two layers give the needed information on the project scope and the development efforts. Connecting those three layers gives a better perspective on the projects, which is the best platform for decision making. Cost management of a project is defined by the PMBOK (project management body of knowledge) (PMI, 2004) as one of the nine core activities of projects management. This activity is defined as an assembly of processes that include planning, estimating, budgeting, and controlling of project costs so that the process will be executed within the budget framework that has been designated for it. However, although it defines costing as a core activity, it does not provide the methodologies for the application mode of the costing (Kinsella, 2002). The challenge in project management is described as “the effective allocation of resources within the framework of time, cost and delineation constraints that are balanced against the quality demands and nature of relations with the customer” (Kerzner, 2003. p.5). Hence, cost management should be viewed as part of the project management challenge. Software projects can be analyzed through software engineering tools, CASE (computer-aided software engineering tools), that assist in the analysis and characterization of the software project and in the evaluation and measurement of the work productivity in the project. Cooper and Kaplan (1998) analyze the integration between costing systems and operational systems. The integration that Cooper and Kaplan introduce, like the classic costing methods, does not provide a response to the project structure and the features of a software project (such as estimation difficulties, risk management, and lifecycle). This chapter recommends integrating costing systems and operational systems of software projects; the projects management tools and the software engineering tools.
Creating Order from Chaos
Authors: Wickramasinghe Nilmini , Bali Rajeev K.
Published: May 2011

Recently, the world has witnessed several large scale natural disasters: the Tsunami that devastated many of the countries around the rim of the Indian Ocean in December 2004, extensive flooding in many parts of Europe in August 2005, hurricane Katrina in September 2005, the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in many regions of Asia and Canada in 2003, and the earthquake disaster in Pakistan towards the end of 2005 . These emergency and disaster situations (E&DS) serve to underscore the utter chaos that ensues in the aftermath of such events, the many casualties and loss of life, not to mention the devastation and destruction that is left behind. One recurring theme that is apparent in all these situations is that irrespective of the warnings of the imminent threats, countries have not been prepared and ready to exhibit effective and efficient crisis management. This paper examines the application of the tools, techniques, and processes of the knowledge economy to develop a prescriptive model that will support superior decision making in E&DS and thereby enable effective and efficient crisis management.