bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Event Review
Authors: Loviscach Jörn
Published: April 2010

An annual and highly visible event of the HCI community, the Association for Computing Machinery’s Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI) demonstrated the state of the art and trends in user interface technology. Even though the April 2009 conference did not focus specifically on visual user interfaces, which form the focus of IJCICG, about two dozen of the contributions—ranging from posters to full papers—presented promising ideas or addressed vital but as yet mostly overlooked issues in graphicsbased interaction. This event review summarizes some of the most interesting of those aspects seen at CHI 2009, and provides a set of event-related references as context.
Aesthetic Expectations for Information Visualization
Authors: Ursyn Anna
Published: April 2010

This article explores the landscape of creative endeavors in the new media art and reflects on aesthetics of information visualization. When using computer based information visualization to show data interactively in many dimensions, the user can navigate across big data sets, find patterns, relationships, and structures that would be invisible if presented numerically. The authors also explore ways of combining information visualization techniques with the principles of creative design, enhancing artistic influences on the technical implementations, and raising the level of training in design. Finally, the authors offer suggestions for creating knowledge visualizations with the use of art and graphics to strengthen the readiness of computer scientists to fulfill aesthetic expectations and gain recognition from art world specialists for factual solutions done in visualization projects and new forms of art.
Tangible Interfaces for Art Restoration
Authors: Bonanni Leonardo , Seracini Maurizio , Xiao Xiao , Hockenberry Matthew , Costanzo Bianca Cheng , Shum Andrew , Teil Romain , Speranza Antony , Ishii Hiroshi
Published: April 2010

Few people experience art the way a restorer does: as a tactile, multi-dimensional and ever-changing object. The authors investigate a set of tools for the distributed analysis of artworks in physical and digital realms. Their work is based on observation of professional art restoration practice and rich data available through multi-spectral imaging. The article presents a multidisciplinary approach to develop interfaces usable by restorers, students and amateurs. Several interaction techniques were built using physical metaphors to navigate the layers of information revealed by multi-spectral imaging, prototyped using single- and multi-touch displays. The authors built modular systems to accommodate the technical needs and resources of various institutions and individuals, with the aim to make high-quality art diagnostics possible on different hardware platforms, as well as rich diagnostic and historic information about art available for education and research through a cohesive set of web-based tools instantiated in physical interfaces and public installations.
Perspectives on Cognitive Informatics and Cognitive Computing
Authors: Wang Yingxu , Baciu George , Yao Yiyu , Kinsner Witold , Chan Keith , Zhang Bo , Hameroff Stuart , Zhong Ning , Hunag Chu-Ren , Goertzel Ben , Miao Duoqian , Sugawara Kenji , Wang Guoyin , You Jane , Zhang Du , Zhu Haibin
Published: April 2010

Cognitive informatics is a transdisciplinary enquiry of computer science, information sciences, cognitive science, and intelligence science that investigates the internal information processing mechanisms and processes of the brain and natural intelligence, as well as their engineering applications in cognitive computing. Cognitive computing is an emerging paradigm of intelligent computing methodologies and systems based on cognitive informatics that implements computational intelligence by autonomous inferences and perceptions mimicking the mechanisms of the brain. This article presents a set of collective perspectives on cognitive informatics and cognitive computing, as well as their applications in abstract intelligence, computational intelligence, computational linguistics, knowledge representation, symbiotic computing, granular computing, semantic computing, machine learning, and social computing.
Giving Personal Assistant Agents a Case-Based Memory
Authors: Chen Ke-Jia , Barthès Jean-Paul A.
Published: April 2010

We consider Personal Assistant (PA) agents as cognitive agents capable of helping users handle tasks at their workplace. A PA must communicate with the user using casual language, sub-contract the requested tasks, and present the results in a timely fashion. This leads to fairly complex cognitive agents. However, in addition, such an agent should learn from previous tasks or exchanges, which will increase its complexity. Learning requires a memory, which leads to the two following questions: Is it possible to design and build a generic model of memory? If it is, is it worth the trouble? The article tries to answer the questions by presenting the design and implementation of a memory for PA agents, using a case approach, which results in an improved agent model called MemoPA.
Developing an Online Community to Promote Engagement and Professional Learning for Pre-Service Teachers Using Social Software Tools
Authors: McLoughlin Catherine , Lee Mark J.W.
Published: April 2010

To support students undertaking an initial teacher training program, a communities of practice model (Wenger, 1998) was implemented, supported by a social software-based technology framework, to enable mutual engagement, joint enterprise, and a shared repertoire. Participants formed peer-to-peer mentoring relationships, creating and sharing web log (blog) entries and voice recordings of critical incidents while on their practicum. Data from the students’ discourse was analyzed to explore issues and patterns that were indicators of a learning community. This data, together with data collected from post-practicum focus group discussions in which students reflected on the benefits of these media for peer mentoring and support, attests to the relevance and effectiveness of the adopted approach to developing a socio-professional community to support the development of pre-service teachers. The authors believe that best outcomes are achieved when activities are structured, when students are adequately trained in using the technologies, and when instructors or experts are available to scaffold reflection processes as the need arises.
Introducing ICT-Services in a University Environment
Authors: Heilesen Simon B.
Published: April 2010

This case discusses the development and management of ICT-services at a Danish university. A special characteristic of the case is that the development has taken place on the basis of participatory design and voluntary adoption. On the one hand, this approach furthers the adoption of ICT-services. On the other hand, it may hamper the development of a uniform and universally accepted set of services. Some concrete examples of ICT-services are discussed from the point of view of factors favorable to the adoption of technological innovations. These include services for administration, communication, education, and integration. One lesson learned is that developing services for education is a cultural challenge as much as it is a technological one, and that the rate of adoption tends to be slower.
A Formal Approach to Evaluating Medical Ontology Systems using Naturalness
Authors: An Yoo Jung , Huang Kuo-Chuan , Chun Soon Ae , Geller James
Published: April 2010

Ontologies, terminologies and vocabularies are popular repositories for collecting the terms used in a domain.It may be expected that in the future more such ontologies will be created for domain experts. However, there is increasing interest in making the language of experts understandable to casual users. For example, cancer patients often research their cases on the Web. The authors consider the problem of objectively evaluating the quality of ontologies (QoO). This article formalizes the notion of naturalness as a component of QoO and quantitatively measures naturalness for well-known ontologies (UMLS, WordNet, OpenCyc) based on their concepts, IS-A relationships and semantic relationships. To compute numeric values characterizing the naturalness of an ontology, this article defines appropriate metrics. As absolute numbers in such a pursuit are often meaningless, we concentrate on using relative naturalness metrics. That allows us to say that a certain ontology is relatively more natural than another one.
Modeling a Classification Scheme of Epileptic Seizures Using Ontology Web Language
Authors: Ghosh Bhaswati , Ghosh Partha S. , Sikder Iftikhar U.
Published: April 2010

Ontology-based disease classification offers a way to rigorously assign disease types and to reuse diagnostic knowledge. However, ontology itself is not sufficient for fully representing the complex knowledge needed in classification schemes which are continuously evolving. This article describes the application of SWRL/OWL-DL to the representation of knowledge intended for proper classification of a complex neurological condition, namely epilepsy. The authors present a rigorous and expandable approach to the ontological classification of epileptic seizures based on the 1981ILAE classification. It provides a classification knowledge base that can be extended with rules that describe constraints in SWRL. Moreover, by transforming an OWL classification scheme into JESS (rule engine in Java platform) facts and by transforming SWRL constraints into JESS, logical inferences and reasoning provide a mechanism to discover new knowledge and facts. The logic representation of epileptic classification amounts to greater community understanding among practitioners, knowledge reuse and interoperability.
Global Account Management (GAM)
Authors: Hollensen Svend , Wulff Vlad Stefan
Published: April 2010

Global account management (GAM) has become a critical issue for many multinational corporations that compete in a fast changing global market environment. In this article, we approach GAM from a benchlearning perspective, synthesize selected literature and examine an award winning case study in order to underline the importance of multilevel relationships in strategic business-to-business relationships. The purpose of this study is to address various issues related to multilevel relationships in strategic partnerships (e.g. the recruitment of the global account manager and his supporting team, turf wars and compensation) and suggest organizational solutions based on best-practice examples.
Cryptopometry as a Methodology for Investigating Encrypted Material
Authors: McGrath Niall , Gladyshev Pavel , Carthy Joe
Published: April 2010

When encrypted material is discovered during a digital investigation and the investigator cannot decrypt the material then he or she is faced with the problem of how to determine the evidential value of the material. This research is proposing a methodology titled Cryptopometry. Cryptopometry extracts probative value from the encrypted file of a hybrid cryptosystem. Cryptopometry also incorporates a technique for locating the original plaintext file. Since child pornography (KP) images and terrorist related information (TI) are transmitted in encrypted formats, the digital investigator must ask the question Cui Bono?—who benefits or who is the recipient? By following Cryptopometry, the scope of the digital investigation can be extended to reveal the intended recipient. The derivation of the term Cryptopometry is also described and explained.
Digital and Inter-Generational Divide
Authors: Ferri Paolo
Published: April 2010

Digital divide can be considered a macro economical index representing the social differences and the separation between the North and the South of the world. Since the first definition of digital divide, it has been shown that it is also a great and unrecognized problem in the developed countries, especially in the field of education. “Digital disconnection” is a key problem for School and University as institutions. In this article, the above questions are widely analyzed with a special attention on the spreading gap between digital natives (i.e., young students), and digital immigrants (i.e., parents, teachers and policymakers in the school).
Bebras Contest and Digital Competence Assessment
Authors: Cartelli Antonio , Dagiene Valentina , Futschek Gerald
Published: April 2010

The article is made of two parts. The first part discusses the importance of informal education environments supported by IT/ICT in students’ learning, followed by reports of some international competitions and the role they have in improving students’ interest and use of Informatics and related disciplines. At the end of the section, it describes the Bebras contest, an international competition supporting students’ Information and Communication Technology competences with emphasis on cross discipline competences, which are useful to solve real life problems. In the second part of the article, the outcomes of a research study on the features of a framework for digital competence assessment are reported. Based on this, some criticisms emerging from the analysis of the answers that students gave to a questionnaire built on the guidelines of the mentioned framework are analysed. They are integrated by the comments that teachers, colleagues and researchers made on the structure of the hypothesized framework. At last, a new model for digital literacy assessment is proposed. In the conclusion, the necessary elements for making the last framework effective are outlined and its suitability for the construction of the yearly questionnaire of the Bebras contest is discussed.
Using Ontology Languages for Conceptual Modeling
Authors: Bera Palash , Krasnoperova Anna , Wand Yair
Published: April 2010

Conceptual models are used to support understanding of and communication about application domains in information systems development. Such models are created using modeling grammars (usually employing graphic representation). To be effective, a grammar should support precise representation of domain concepts and their relationships. Ontology languages such as OWL emerged to define terminologies to support information sharing on the Web. These languages have features that enable representation of semantic relationships among domain concepts and of domain rules, not readily possible with extant conceptual modeling techniques. However, the emphasis in ontology languages has been on formalization and being computer-readable, not on how they can be used to convey domain semantics. Hence, it is unclear how they can be used as conceptual modeling grammars. We suggest using philosophically based ontological principles to guide the use of OWL as a conceptual modeling grammar. The paper presents specific guidelines for creating conceptual models in OWL and demonstrates, via example, the application of the guidelines to creating representations of domain phenomena. To test the effectiveness of the guidelines we conducted an empirical study comparing how well diagrams created with the guidelines support domain understanding in comparison to diagrams created without the guidelines. The results indicate that diagrams created with the guidelines led to better domain understanding of participants.
Supporting Public Decision Making - A Progressive Approach Aided by an Ontology
Authors: Salles Maryse
Published: April 2010

This paper discusses a number of results from the CAVALA project, a project which was set up to design a method for defining assessment indicators in relation to territorial economic development policies. An analysis of the particularities of the field and the specific context is proposed. With these particularities in mind, we preferred a progressive approach in the implementation of decision-making tools and we included the construction of an ontology as a prerequisite. The phases leading up to the design of this ontology are explained. An analysis of the texts that set out the Regional Council’s policy on economic development allowed us to identify the existence of competing visions of the world (doxai). The co-existence of these doxai made it necessary for us to construct a polydoxical ontology, that is, integrating several discrete doxai. This choice generated specific methodological problems for which we are able to provide an insight. An illustration is given via an excerpt from the ontology consisting of two doxai for the concept of “territory.”
Intelligent Decision-Support Systems for e-Tourism
Authors: García-Crespo Ángel , Colomo-Palacios Ricardo , Gómez-Berbís Juan Miguel , Chamizo Javier , Rivera Ismael
Published: April 2010

The Internet has disrupted traditional tourism in which a promising landscape of intelligent service provision has erupted by applying a new lattice of cutting-edge technologies. Thus, the different actors of the tourist services are in a new environment and they should operate in a coordinated manner to increase the value of tourism, to keep current tourists and attract new ones. One of the major players of this technological disruption are Semantic Technologies, which have profited from the combined use of pervasive elements and recommender systems to bring added value to tourist actors. Based on previous works, this paper presents a new module that enables SPETA II to act as a recommender not only for tourists, but to destination management organizations and tourist service providers. Searches, decisions and preferences of tourists are used to “pull” tourist service providers and destination management organizations to create and adapt services based on new recommendations.
Deploying Decision Support Systems Using Semantic Web Technologies
Authors: Ludwig Lars , O'Sullivan David
Published: April 2010

Decision support systems are deployed in a wide variety of business applications using a variety of core technologies and programming languages. One of the more promising technologies to evolve in recent year has been the semantic web. The semantic web aims to create more intelligent and machine readable web pages and online applications. The technologies, programming languages and methods of the semantic web are now maturing and standards have emerged that allow semantic web technology to be deployed broadly across information technology industry and the programming community in particular. This paper outlines a set of requirements for programmers considering the development of decision support systems using semantic web technology. Current strategies across the research community are surveyed that deploy semantic web applications. From the discussion of these strategies, ten basic requirements are derived. These requirements combine technological, psychological and philosophical research ideas. By crossing traditional research boundaries, a broad perspective on deploying decision support systems that utilize semantic web technologies is created.
Web Services in Distributed Information Systems
Authors: Zhao Xia , Wang Tao , Liu Enjie , Clapworthy Gordon J.
Published: April 2010

Distributed information systems are growing rapidly in response to the improvement of computer hardware and software and this is matched by the evolution of the technologies involved. This article focuses mainly on Web Services technology and discusses related technical issues including availability, performance and composition. It also introduces Grid, agents and Semantic Web technologies that can work together with Web Services to serve different business goals.
Towards a More Scalable Schema Matching
Authors: Sellami Sana , Benharkat Aïcha-Nabila , Amghar Youssef
Published: April 2010

With the development and the use of a large variety of DB schemas and ontologies, in many domains (e.g. semantic web, digital libraries, life science, etc), matching techniques are called to overcome the challenge of aligning and reconciling these different interrelated representations. Matching field is becoming a very attractive research topic. In this article, the authors are interested in studying scalable matching problem. The authors survey the approaches and tools of large scale matching, when a large number of schemas/ontologies and attributes are involved. They attempt to cover a variety of techniques for schema matching called Pair-wise and Holistic. One can acknowledge that this domain is on top of effervescence and scalable matching needs many more advances. Therefore, they propose our scalable schema matching methodology that deals with the creation of a hybrid approach combining these techniques. Their architecture includes a pre-matching approach based on XML schemas decomposition. As shown by their experiments, their proposed methodology has been evaluated and implementing in a PLASMA (Platform for LArge Scale MAtching) prototype.
The Sicilian Grid Infrastructure for High Performance Computing
Authors: Iacono-Manno Carmelo Marcello , Fargetta Marco , Barbera Roberto , Falzone Alberto , Andronico Giuseppe , Monforte Salvatore , Muoio Annamaria , Bruno Riccardo , Primo Pietro Di , Orlando Salvatore , Leggio Emanuele , Lombardo Alessandro , Passaro Gianluca , De Francisci-Morales Gianmarco , Blandino Simona
Published: April 2010

The conjugation of High Performance Computing (HPC) and Grid paradigm with applications based on commercial software is one among the major challenges of today e-Infrastructures. Several research communities from either industry or academia need to run high parallel applications based on licensed software over hundreds of CPU cores; a satisfactory fulfillment of such requests is one of the keys for the penetration of this computing paradigm into the industry world and sustainability of Grid infrastructures. This problem has been tackled in the context of the PI2S2 project that created a regional e-Infrastructure in Sicily, the first in Italy over a regional area. Present article will describe the features added in order to integrate an HPC facility into the PI2S2 Grid infrastructure, the adoption of the InifiniBand low-latency net connection, the gLite middleware extended to support MPI/MPI2 jobs, the newly developed license server and the specific scheduling policy adopted. Moreover, it will show the results of some relevant use cases belonging to Computer Fluid-Dynamics (Fluent, OpenFOAM), Chemistry (GAMESS), Astro-Physics (Flash) and Bio-Informatics (ClustalW)).
Credential Management Enforcement and Secure Data Storage in gLite
Authors: Tusa Francesco , Villari Massimo , Puliafito Antonio
Published: April 2010

This article describes new security solutions for Grid middleware, and specifically faces the issues related to the management of users’ and servers’ credentials, together with storing and secure data transmission in the Grid. Our work, built on Grid Security Infrastructure (GSI), provides new capabilities (i.e. smart card Grid access, and strong security file storage XML-based) to be used on top of different Grid middlewares, with a low level of changes. This work is currently implemented on gLite and accomplishes the access to Grid resources in a uniform and transparent way. These improvements enable the Grid computing toward the new processing model known as business services.
The Dynamics of Content Popularity in Social Media
Authors: Papadopoulos Symeon , Vakali Athena , Kompatsiaris Ioannis
Published: April 2010

Social Bookmarking Systems (SBS) have been widely adopted in the last years, and thus they have had a significant impact on the way that online content is accessed, read and rated. Until recently, the decision on what content to display in a publisher’s web pages was made by one or at most few authorities. In contrast, modern SBS-based applications permit their users to submit their preferred content, to comment on and to rate the content of other users and establish social relations with each other. In that way, the vision of the social media is realized, i.e. the online users collectively decide upon the interestingness of the available bookmarked content. This article attempts to provide insights into the dynamics emerging from the process of content rating by the user community. To this end, the article proposes a framework for the study of the statistical properties of an SBS, the evolution of bookmarked content popularity and user activity in time, as well as the impact of online social networks on the content consumption behavior of individuals. The proposed analysis framework is applied to a large dataset collected from digg, a popular social media application.
Measuring the Acceptance of Internet Technology by Consumers
Authors: Amoroso Donald L. , Hunsinger Scott
Published: April 2010

This research reviews studies using the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to create a modified model and instrument to study the acceptance of Internet technology by consumers. We developed a modified TAM for the acceptance of Internet-based technologies by consumers. We retained the original constructs from the TAM and included additional constructs from previous literature including gender, experience, complexity, and voluntariness. We developed a survey instrument using existing scales from prior TAM instruments and modified them where appropriate. The instrument yielded respectable reliability and construct validity. The findings suggest that the modified TAM is a good predictor of consumer behavior in using the Internet. We found that attitude toward using the Internet acts as a strong predictor of behavioral intention to use, and actual usage of Internet technologies. Future researchers can use the resultant instrument to test how consumers adopt and accept Internet-based applications.
Internet Marketing & SMEs
Authors: Doiron Daniel John
Published: April 2010

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have been adopting the internet at a feverish pace. Recent studies have shown that up to 85% of SMEs in industrialized countries have web sites, yet less than half are utilizing these web sites to securely transact with their customers. Consumer media consumption is moving away from traditional media, like newspapers, to the internet. These revelations coupled with the growth of tools and techniques available to support online marketing, make it a perfect time for SMEs to market their web sites and ultimately succeed online. In this chapter we will present and support the hypothesis that SMEs should stop investing in their web site’s design and functionality and start investing in efforts to market their web sites online, no matter how lousy their web site may be in comparison to today’s standards. With the support of two case studies, illustrating the successful utilization of internet marketing by two very different SMEs, we will relate how a SME can effectively market their web site online. We will also discuss the tools and techniques available to help an SME successfully begin a journey of internet marketing.
Small Business Sales Growth and Internationalization Links to Web Site Functions in the United Kingdom
Authors: Williams Robert , Packham Gary P. , Thomas Brychan C. , Thompson Piers
Published: April 2010

The potential of the Internet to both geographically expand customer bases and provide a source of growth has led to a rapid embracement of the Internet by a majority of small businesses in the United Kingdom. However, many studies suggest that much of this adoption takes the form of simple websites representing little more than an electronic brochure. This paper investigates the level of Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) website adoption and functionality and how this relates to growth aspirations, specifically the geographical expansion of customer bases. The possibility that IT skills shortages could explain the gap between the Internet’s potential and the extent of involvement by a vast majority of UK SMEs is explored.
E-Business Among Ethnic Minority Businesses
Authors: Beckinsale Martin
Published: April 2010

A small but growing body of evidence (SBS, 2004; Beckinsale & Ram, 2006) has indicated that Ethnic Minority Businesses (EMBs) have not adopted Information Communication Technology (ICT) at comparable rates to their non-EMB counterparts predominantly Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs). With EMBs accounting for almost 10% of businesses in the UK the economic impact as ICT adoption continues to further develop across mainstream markets could be highly significant. Existing UK ICT policies have also failed to engage with EMBs until the NW ICT Adoption Pilot in 2004. The current, limited body of research is fragmented, provides limited understanding and coherence on reasons of low ICT adoption and lacks exemplars upon which policy considerations may be made. Firstly, the chapter will examine and review the existing body of literature. Secondly, EMB cases that have developed ICT to a degree where they are engaging in eBusiness activity are analysed and discussed. The findings provide a number of options and guidance for EMB owners. Finally, the recommendations point to the need for improved ICT awareness, better business support provision nationally and the importance of generation and education as key drivers.
An Empirical Study of the Impact of Brand Name on Personal Customers' Adoption of Internet Banking in Hong Kong
Authors: Cheng T.C.E. , Yeung W.H.
Published: April 2010

This study investigates whether brand name has an impact on personal customers’ adoption of Internet banking (IB) in Hong Kong. Based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) with proper adaptation to the online environment, we propose a model comprising an external factor, namely brand name, and three constructs of technology adoption, namely perceived credibility, perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use to assess customers’ intention to use IB. In addition, we investigate the difference in the brand name’s effect on customers’ adoption of IB between banks with larger market shares and banks with smaller market shares. We collected data through a questionnaire survey and analyzed the data using structural equation modeling (SEM) to investigate the inter-relationships between the constructs and assess the overall explanatory power of the model. The results provided support for the model and confirmed its robustness in predicting the impact of brand name on personal customers’ adoption of IB in Hong Kong.
Emerging Collaboration Routines in Knowledge-Intensive Work Processes
Authors: Sari Burak , Loeh Hermann , Katzy Bernhard R.
Published: April 2010

This article aims to identify how knowledge workers develop their own collaboration strategies and techniques for getting their work done in complex, dynamic knowledge intensive work environments. Three case studies have been conducted to explore the nature of routines in different collaborative working settings as they provide sufficient detail to better understand the actual state and problems regarding collaborative work processes among knowledge workers. Evidences from these cases show that coordination and control of projects, tasks, information, and little support by collaboration tools in all work patterns seem to be the biggest issues and there is a need for better understanding of collaboration culture as well as harmonious and integrated redesign of collaboration routines with new collaborative working environment technologies. The analysis of the cases also shows that there are considerable differences in ways of how actors communicate and coordinate their work which leads varying degrees of quality in knowledge intensive work. The results can be used to achieve a smoother collaborative working phase through innovative technical developments.
Gaining Insight into Cognitive Structure Using GALILEO Method
Authors: Moon Junghoon , Rhee Cheul , Kang Hyunjeong , Sanders G. Lawrence
Published: April 2010

In this article we introduce a multidimensional systems evaluation technique for tapping into the group cognitive structure. The objective is to illustrate how GALILEO assists in mapping the multidimensional cognitive domain of user evaluations in order to subsequently identify strategies to build customer loyalty and lock-in with e-commerce websites. A popular approach for understanding the structure of relationships between constructs is Multi-Dimensional Scaling (MDS). GALILEO is a very powerful multidimensional scaling technique developed by researchers in the area of communications and cognitive science but has not been applied to systems evaluation. The main goal of this study is to demonstrate the GALILEO method as a tool for evaluating emerging and existing technology and service innovations. The power of the GALILEO approach is illustrated by examining key dimensions of two leading e-commerce websites – Amazon.com and BN.com (Barnes & Noble).
Validation of the B2E Portal User Satisfaction (B2EPUS) Scale
Authors: Tojib Dewi Rooslani , Sugianto Ly Fie , Martin Liesl , Cloete Eric
Published: April 2010

This article discusses the validation of the Business-to-Employee (B2E) Portal User Satisfaction (B2EPUS) scale in the South African context. The results indicate that the scale remains reliable and valid outside its country of origin and is applicable to other industries, particularly mining, petrochemical, consulting, and retailing. Industry practitioners can confidently employ the scale when measuring the success of their B2E portal implementations.
The Nature of Trust in Virtual Entrepreneurial Networks
Authors: Anderson Alistair R , Steinerte Elina , Russell Ellina O.
Published: April 2010

The purpose of this article is to explore the nature of trust in virtual entrepreneurial networks by asking the research question, “What types of trust can be found in these networks?”. The authors argue that globalisation, the pervasion of ICT, and the growth of entrepreneurial e-trade encourage the use of virtual networking by entrepreneurs. Networks are seen as a social device to extend and embed entrepreneurs, but depend on trust for governance and operation. Through a critical thematic analysis of literature on trust and virtual networks, the authors propose a conceptual theoretical model of multidimensional trust, with emphasis on its relational characteristics. The authors find that trust largely depends on close contact among entrepreneurs for its development. Only swift trust, which is a limited form, is likely to exist in purely virtual networks. Practical implications of this theoretical article can be based on the authors’ argument that entrepreneurs must augment virtual networks with more personal contacts to realise the full benefits of networking.
ICT and Gender Issues in the Higher Education of Entrepreneurs
Authors: Zutshi Ambika , Creed Andrew
Published: April 2010

Rapid technological innovations are currently occurring in higher education with differential effects on academics, students and ICT. This article, through literature review and author experiences, highlights the potential misperceptions of gender and related learning styles resulting from increased adoption of ICT in higher education. The authors emphasise the need for a collaborative approach between educators, learners, and the people and organisations that drive technological innovation, which contrasts the competitive forces that now abound. The authors also acknowledge the implied positions in dialogues about gender. One response is to initiate understanding at the strategic level and utilise the advances in ICT technologies that enhance connectedness in the educational experience. To improve the education of entrepreneurial managers and leaders, future policies must address the effects and accessibility of online education to meet employer and global technological requirements with equitable outcomes.
Reducing the Perceived Risk of E-Government Implementations
Authors: Whitmore Andrew , Choi Namjoo
Published: April 2010

Perceived risk has been identified by the literature as a limiting factor in e-government adoption and success. However, there has been little effort spent examining how and why perceived risk comes to differ from actual probabilistic risk and the means by which the gap can be reduced. These questions were examined by applying the Social Amplification of Risk Framework to the case of e-government in the United States. Several factors that are known to exacerbate perceived risk were identified from the literature and shown to be in place in the United States. The presence of these factors suggests that more effective risk communication is required in order to realign perceived risk with probabilistic risk. Recommendations on how to improve e-government risk communication through technical and human means are provided.
E-Government Implementation Perspective
Authors: Shareef Mahmud Akhter , Kumar Vinod , Kumar Uma , Chowdhury Abdul Hannan , Misra Subhas C.
Published: April 2010

Though many countries are still just beginning to grasp the potential uses and impacts of Electronic-government (EG), advances in technologies and their applications continue. Observing the proliferation of EG, countries are increasingly turning to the Internet to market their EG system to gain a competitive advantage. However, the effectiveness and efficiency of such online government systems largely depends on the mission of implementing EG. For successful adoption and implementation of EG, it is essential that a country first identify an explicit objective and a specific strategy. We have examined implementation strategies of EG of seven diverse countries whose objectives and mission for implementing EG differ significantly. However, they have the following strategies in common: i) extensive application of information and communication technology (ICT) in the public sector; ii) overall reformation of the public sector; iii) development of a better quality service structure; and iv) more cohesive integration of citizens with government.
Aspects of Information Communications Technology for Better Medical Control
Authors: Nakajima Isao , Tomioka Yasumitsu
Published: April 2010

The 3G mobile phone has propagation problems in urban areas and experiences severe congestion after major disasters in supporting mobile eHealth. We expect a Quasi-zenith satellite with nationwide coverage. In near future, the data transmission of image of pharygoscopy, motion picture of light reflex, 12-leads ECG, automated ultrasonic echo and vital signs from ambulances shall be performed to assist medical control. For example, Thrombolytic agents are reportedly effective even when injected into a vein, if injected in the early stages of acute myocardial infarction, which will reduce medical costs, resulting in high-quality services available uniformly across the nation. This paper describes Japanese aspects of mobile eHealth to support ambulatory applications.
An Ontology Driven Multi-Agent Approach to Integrated e-Health Systems
Authors: Ying Weir , Wimalasiri Jaminda S. , Ray Pradeep , Chattopadhyay Subhagata , Wilson Concepción S.
Published: April 2010

One aim of an integrated e-Health system is to improve the quality of healthcare by providing transparent access to patient information. The current health information management environment has numerous systems with varying techniques for representing and managing patient data. The increasing mobility of patients results in patient information being spread across these systems. Presented in this paper is a conceptual architecture for the interoperability of e-Health systems. This architecture uses multiple cooperating software agents that actively access, recognize, and associate the information in distributed, heterogeneous e-health systems. Using a layered ontology structure we show how ontology based multi-agent systems can be used to resolve discrepancies in terminology and/or structure. This involves a case study in a distributed Electronic Health Record (EHR) environment.
Patient-Centered E-Health
Authors: Burkhard Richard
Published: April 2010

Book Review
Linguistics-Based Modeling Methods and Ontologies in Requirements Engineering
Authors: Lautenbacher Florian , Bauer Bernhard , Sieber Tanja , Cabral Alejandro
Published: April 2010

Developing new software based on requirements specifications created by business analysts often leads to misunderstanding and lack of comprehension, because of the different backgrounds of the people involved. If requirements specifications instead have a clearly defined structure and comprehensive semantics, this obstacle can be resolved. Therefore, we propose to structure the requirements specifications using existing linguistics-based modeling methods and annotate the used terms with ontologies to enhance the understanding and reuse of these documents during the software engineering process.
Semantic User Interfaces
Authors: Tilly Károly , Porkoláb Zoltán
Published: April 2010

Semantic User Interfaces (SUIs), are sets of interrelated, static, domain specific documents having layout and content, whose interpretation is defined through semantic decoration. SUIs are declarative in nature. They allow program composition by the user herself at the user interface level. The operation of SUI based applications follow a service oriented approach. SUI elements referenced in user requests are automatically mapped to reusable service provider components, whose contracts are specified in domain ontologies. This assures semantic separation of user interface components from elements of the underlying application system infrastructure, which allows full separation of concerns during system development; real, application independent, reusable components; user editable applications and generic learnability. This article presents the architecture and components of a SUI framework, basic elements of SUI documents and relevant properties of domain ontologies for SUI documents. The basics of representation and operation of SUI applications are explained through a motivating example.
Semantics for Accurate Conflict Detection in SMoVer
Authors: Altmanninger Kerstin , Schwinger Wieland , Kotsis Gabriele
Published: April 2010

In collaborative software development, the utilization of Version Control Systems (VCSs) is a must. For this, a multitude of pessimistic as well as optimistic VCSs for model artifacts emerged. Pessimistic approaches follow the lock-edit-unlock paradigm whereas optimistic approaches allow parallel editing of one resource, which are therefore the preferred ones. To be flexible for the ever increasing variety of modeling environments and languages such tools should be independent of the modeling environment and applicable to various modeling languages. Those VCS characteristics may implicate a lack of information for the conflict detection method by virtue of firstly receiving solely the state of an artifact without concrete editing operations and secondly due to unavailable knowledge about the semantics of a modeling language. However, in optimistic VCSs concurrent changes can result in conflicts and inconsistencies. In environment and language independent VCSs inconsistencies would even arise more often due to information losses. Hence, accurate conflict detection methods are indispensable for the realization of such VCSs. To tackle this task, the “Semantically enhanced Model Version Control System” SMoVer is presented. With SMoVer it is possible to specify the semantics of a modeling language, needed for conflict detection in order to provide more accurate conflict reports than other current environment and language independent VCSs. In this work, it is exemplified how semantics of a specific modeling language can be specified in SMoVer, how those specifications can improve the accuracy of conflict reports and finally how those can be presented to modelers.
Internet-Based Protest in European Policymaking
Authors: Breindl Yana
Published: April 2010

European Institutions, especially the European Parliament, are venues of access for digital activist networks wishing to influence policymaking on issues of intellectual property rights, internet regulation and the respect of civil rights in digital environments. We refer to these networks as “digital activism”. They are more or less loosely rooted in hacker culture and are intensively making use of online tools to organize and consolidate a collective identity and build a transnational public sphere. This study focuses on the “no software patents” campaign led by this movement that aimed at influencing the directive on the patentability of computer implemented inventions (2002-2005). By discussing the advocacy techniques—both online and offline—that were developed by this digital activist network, we provide an insight into power struggles that are currently taking place in Europe, but also in other regions of the world.
Empirical Analysis of Political Spaces on the Internet
Authors: Calderaro Andrea
Published: April 2010

The Internet has largely been greeted as a technology able to create new spaces of political debate. In order to investigate the issue, scholars have paid attention to how transnational social movements use new information technologies. This has been done mainly exploring the use of the World Wide Web (WWW). However, new political spaces do not take place just on the WWW, and by consequence, research in this field cannot solely carry out Web analysis to explore the role played by the Internet in creating political debate. In looking at other areas of the Internet to understand the creation of new political space, other analytical approaches need to be adopted. The Internet also includes tools other than the WWW, such as E-Mailing Lists, collaborative on-line software, Peer-to-Peer Networks, Instant Messaging tools, and so forth. This paper explores the role that E-Mailing Lists play in creating new political spaces. To explore if and how this happens, I illustrate this crucial point with an analysis of the use of E-Mailing Lists by social movements. The case I will use is that of the organization of the protest during the G8 Summit held in Genoa in July 2001.
The Way is the Goal Interview with Maqui, Indymedia London / IMC-UK Network Activist
Authors: Milan Stefania
Published: April 2010

Indymedia UK was created in 1999; right after the first Independent Media Center was set up in Seattle in November that year to allow participants to the anti-WTO demonstrations to report from the streets. But it emerged from an earlier website, created by a group of activists to report from the occupation of the City of London in June 18, 1999. Since 1999, the website has kept growing, incorporating technological developments and responding to the organizational needs of social movements. This interview recounts the birth and developments of the Indymedia London website and of the group running it. It was collected between February and November 2008 using the method of online asynchronous interviewing, and is part of an extensive research project on emancipatory communication practices carried out in the period 2006-2008.2
Current Challenges in Embedded Communication Systems
Authors: Isoaho Jouni , Virtanen Seppo , Plosila Juha
Published: April 2010

This article defines and analyses key challenges met in future embedded systems in networked multimedia and communication applications. Self-awareness, interoperability and embedded security are used to characterize different aspects of designing and implementing next generation embedded systems. The dynamic nature of applications and implementations as well as possible technological faults and variations need to be considered in system verification and modeling. A new design layer needs to be added to current NoC platforms in order to build procedures that take into account dynamic system reconfigurations, fault-tolerance aspects and flexible portability. Increased modularity and networked implementations create a need for trust management mechanisms between system components and technology for analyzing validity and correctness of received application and system configuration information.