bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Innovative Thinking in Software Development
Authors: Aurum Aybüke
Published: May 2011

As we enter the third millennium, organizations have to cope with accelerating rates of change in technology and increased levels of competition on a global scale more than ever before. In order to stay competitive within this changing business environment, organizations are forced to constantly pursue new strategies to differentiate themselves from their competition, such as offering a stream of new products and services (Satzinger et al., 1999). Furthermore, there is growing recognition that an organization’s capability to deal with change, improve services and quality, cut costs, develop new products, and compete in a global market will depend upon the level of creative and innovative thinking of its workforce (Covey, 1989). In short, in order to remain competitive in an era of increasing uncertainty and market globalization, organizations must constantly be creative and innovative with their products and services.
Internet Support for Knowledge Management Systems
Authors: Jennex Murray E.
Published: May 2011

Organizations are building and maintaining systems for managing organizational knowledge and memory. Users of these systems may not be at the same location; in many cases they are distributed across large geographical distances and multiple offices. Key to this task is developing an infrastructure that facilitates distributed access and utilization of the retained knowledge and memory. Connectivity and easy to use interfaces are main concerns. Jennex (2000) found that using the Internet as a common communications platform (either as an Intranet or an Extranet) and Web browsers as an interface is a viable, low cost solution. Newell, et al. (1999) found that Intranets not only supported distributed knowledge processes but also enhanced users’ abilities to capture and control knowledge. Stenmark (2002) proposes that using a multiple perspective of the Internet— information, awareness, and communication—allows developers to build successful Internet-based knowledge management systems, KMS. This article discusses how the Internet can be effectively used as an infrastructure for knowledge management/organizational memory systems, KMS/OMS.
Interoperability of Information Systems
Authors: Nicolle Cristophe , Simon Jean-Claude , Yetongnon Kokou
Published: May 2011

An information system is a multilevel system characterized by a “data” level, a “behavioral” level, and a “communication” level. The data level represents the data stored by the system. The behavioral level represents management and production processes carried out by the system. The processes can interact with the data level to extract, generate, and store data. The communication level relates to the network used to exchange data and activate processes between geographically distant users or machines.
Knowledge Exchange in Electronic Networks of Practice
Authors: Teigland Robin , Wasko Molly
Published: May 2011

Communities of practice (CoPs) are regarded as essential building blocks of the knowledge economy, and organizations are promoting them as sources of competitive advantage and facilitators of organizational learning. Within organizations, CoPs have traditionally emerged through the mutual engagement in work by individuals who are either physically co-located or who frequently meet face-to-face (Orr, 1996; Wenger, 1998). In an effort to replicate traditional CoPs online and in response to hypercompetitive conditions and increasing complexity, numerous organizations have implemented online networks to facilitate knowledge sharing. We refer to these online social structures focused on knowledge exchange as “electronic networks of practice” (ENoPs).
Knowledge Management Systems Acceptance
Authors: Ericsson Fredrik , Avdic Anders
Published: May 2011

The importance of knowledge management has been recognized both in academia and in practice. In recent years, corporations have started talking about knowledge management, organizational learning, organizational memory, and computerized support. A few years ago, Microsoft®’s awareness of knowledge management and corporate memory was demonstrated by Bill Gates through his keynote speeches in the second and third Microsoft’s CEO summits that attracted quite a few CEOs and other corporate executives from Fortune 1000 companies. Gates (1998) outlined his vision through a term he coined “digital nervous system,” which is an integrated electronic network that can give people the information they need to solve business and customer problems. An effective digital nervous system should include access to the Internet, reliable e-mail, a powerful database, and excellent line-of-business applications, and should transform three major elements of any business: the relationships to customers and business partners—the e-commerce element; the information flow and relationships among workers within a company—the knowledge management element; and the internal business processes—the business operations element. The recent release of Windows® Tablet PC® edition is an example of a Microsoft tool that supports the concept of digital nervous system.
Legal Issues of Virtual Organizations
Authors: Cevenini Claudia
Published: May 2011

In the present economic context, organizations, especially of small and medium dimensions, can draw a substantial advantage by collaborating and setting up flexible, temporary ICT-enabled networks.
Managing the Organizational Impacts of Information Systems
Authors: Doherty Neil F. , King Malcolm
Published: May 2011

Information technology is now a ubiquitous and increasingly critical part of the fabric of the modern organization, supporting its day-to-day operations and all aspects of the decision-making process, as well as its strategic positioning. It is, therefore, not perhaps surprising that the implementation of a new technology or information system is likely to result in wide array of impacts to the organization as well as the working lives of individual employees. There is a growing consensus within the literature that many such impacts are not deterministic and cannot therefore be easily predicted prior to a system’s implementation (e.g., DeSanctis & Poole, 1994). The corollary of this is that many of the consequences of an information system’s implementation will be unanticipated (Robey & Boudreau, 1999). While some of these unanticipated consequences, or incidental side effects, may be of a positive nature, negative impacts are also quite common, as IT-induced organizational change often results in user resistance and, in extreme cases, possibly even system rejection (Martinsons & Chong, 1999).
Methods for Understanding IS Failures
Authors: Dalcher Darren
Published: May 2011

Researchers with a keen interest in information systems failures are faced with a double challenge. Not only is it difficult to obtain intimate information about the circumstances surrounding such failures, but there is also a dearth of information about the type of methods and approaches that can be utilised in this context to support such information collection and dissemination. The purpose of this chapter is to highlight some of the available approaches and to clarify and enhance the methodological underpinning that is available to researchers interested in investigating and documenting phenomena in context-rich and dynamic environments. The chapter concludes by introducing a new range of antenarrative approaches that represent future developments in the study of IS failures.
Modeling ERP Academic Deployment via AST
Authors: LeRouge Cynthia , Webb Harold
Published: May 2011

Many educators and industry leaders believe industry-academic collaboration can change learning processes and improve learning outcomes by providing opportunities and resources not otherwise attainable (Sikkel, Spil, & van de Weg, 1999; Wohlin & Regnell, 1999). In the case of deploying advanced information technologies (AITs; e.g., computer-aided software engineering tools, enterprise resource planning systems, and database tools) via industry-academic collaboration, each institution’s culture and unique organizational objectives influence collaborative relationships. The challenge in these relationships is to facilitate mutual understanding and clarify distinctions in addressing each organization’s goals. The aim of these relationships is the appropriation of AITs in a manner that enriches educational experiences while meeting industry needs.
Modeling Technological Change in Small Business
Authors: Tatnall Arthur
Published: May 2011

The introduction of a new information system into a small business, or upgrading an existing system, should be seen as an innovation and considered through the lens of innovation theory. The most widely accepted theory of how technological innovation takes place is provided by innovation diffusion, but most of the research based on this model involves studies of large organisations or societal groups. This article argues that another approach, innovation translation, has more to offer in the case of innovations that take place in smaller organisations (Burgess, Tatnall & Darbyshire, 1999; Tatnall, 2002; Tatnall & Burgess, 2004).
New SQL Standard in Database Modeling
Authors: Pardede Eric , Rahayu J. Wenny , Taniar David
Published: May 2011

Relational Database (RDB) is arguably the most widely used repository for database applications. Since the 1970s, we have witnessed the relational data model, from which the RDB is originated, evolving. The progress aims to answer the increasing requirement in database applications. One of them is the requirement to deal with complex structure of real world problems. Unlike its Object-Oriented Database (OODB) counterpart, the RDB, for example, does not have facilities to store large structured objects, semi-structured data, and so forth.
One-to-One Video-Conferencing Education
Authors: Chan Hock Chuan , Tan Bernard C.Y. , Tan Wei-Ping
Published: May 2011

Businesses today must be fast and flexible, responsive to customers, and cost effective in their operations. They must collaborate more frequently with partners to build virtual organizations and supply-chains that reduce times-to-market and costs. E-business is the use of the Internet along with other electronic means and technologies to conduct within-business, business-to-consumer, business-to-business, and business-to-government interactions. A basic model of an e-business is the e-shop model, which is based on providing a self-service storefront to a customer by displaying the company catalogs and product offers on a Web site. An e-procurement model focuses on the buying aspect of the business. A typical architecture for e-procurement consists of a browser-based self-service front-end to the corporate purchasing system or its ERP. The supplier catalogs are presented to end-users through a single unified catalog, thereby facilitating a corporate-wide standard procurement process. Online auction models have also received much attention for automating dynamic trading. Other models are based on creating value-chain businesses, such as service provisioning of specific functions for the value-chain, and electronic payments or logistics.
Optical Music Recognition with Wavelets
Authors: George Susan E.
Published: May 2011

The aim of optical music recognition (OMR) is to “recognise” images of music notation and capture the “meaning” of the music. When OMR is successful it will be able to automatically extract a logical representation of printed or handwritten music captured in an image. There are a variety of reasons why OMR is required. Chiefly, it is convenient for swift input of music notation and might be subsequently edited, performed, used as a search or other. There are many stages before that final high-level interpretation can be made and recognition of the primitive symbols contained in the notation is primary. One of the biggest challenges in OMR is the super-imposition of music notation symbols – notes and other – upon stave lines in the music image. This article examines a general-purpose knowledge-free method in the wavelet transform, to deal with super-imposition in images of typeset music.
Organization and Management Issues of End User Computing
Authors: Chen Jason C.H. , Holt Robert W. , Sun D. Bruce
Published: May 2011

End-user computing (EUC) or as it is commonly termed, end-user development (EUD), is a concept and capability granted by advancement in technology that allows participants in a business environment to utilize information technology (IT) by developing applications of their own. Traditional methodology required a software program to be developed by trained programmers in the analysis and design stages of the systems development life cycle, where a user had to accept the program as an individual entity with unalterable characteristics. EUC/EUD now enables this person to customize the program around his/her specific demands. The framework of EUC establishes empowerment and capabilities so that anyone can develop entire information systems (IS) with little or no help from professional systems analysts or programmers, along with accessing data and creating reports (Laudon & Laudon, 2003). EUC/EUD is a topic in the IT environment that cherishes a progressive history spanning from the mid-1970’s to what it as today.
Outsourcing Information Technology in Australia
Authors: Beaumont Nicholas
Published: May 2011

Outsourcing information technology (IT) has been defined as passing IT functions previously performed in-house to outside contractors (Hancox & Hackney, 2000). Outsourcing has spawned variants, especially insourcing—two departments of one organization formalizing their supply relationship.
Parallel and Distributed Multimedia Databases
Authors: Geisler S. , Kao O.
Published: May 2011

Sensing and processing of multimedia information is one of the basic traits of human beings. The development of digital technologies and applications allows the production of huge amounts of multimedia data. The rapidly decreasing prices for hardware such as digital cameras/camcorders, sound cards and the corresponding displays led to wide distribution of multimedia-capable input and output devices in all fields of the everyday life, from home entertainment to companies and educational organisations. Thus, multimedia information in terms of digital pictures, videos, and music can be created intuitively and is affordable for a broad spectrum of users.
Portable Portals for M-Commerce
Authors: Clarke III Irvine , Flaherty Theresa
Published: May 2011

In the new decade, the call for information technology will be information, anytime, anyplace, and on any device. Accordingly, e-commerce is poised to witness an unprecedented explosion of mobility, creating a new domain of mobile commerce. Mobile commerce, or m-commerce, is the ability to purchase goods anywhere through a wireless Internet-enabled device (e.g., cellular phone, pager, PDA, etc.). Mobile commerce refers to any transaction with monetary value that is conducted via a mobile network. It will allow users to purchase products over the Internet without the use of a PC. Non-existent a year ago, m-commerce is now the buzzword of the marketing industry (King, 2000).
Privacy-Dangers and Protections
Authors: Friedman Willian H.
Published: May 2011

It is no wonder that the average citizen is concerned about the difficulty of guarding one’s privacy. Now, your own cell phone can reveal your ever-changing whereabouts by means of “location technology” (Lagesse, 2003). Chips that receive coordinates from global positioning satellites now make it possible to locate persons, cars, merchandise, in short, whatever we value. Like most new technology, it is easy to see advantages as well as drawbacks. Some positives of location technology are that ambulances, police and fire services can reach victims more quickly; driving suggestions can be delivered in real time to motorists (thus helping to avoid traffic tie-ups and prevent getting lost); advertisers can inform potential customers of the existence of a nearby hotel, store or restaurant; stores utilizing RFID (see the KEY TERMS section for explanations of possibly unfamiliar terms) can trace merchandise movement to reduce waste, replenish inventory, and stem shoplifting. Some negatives are that nefarious agents can also use location technology to track their prey; location-tracking history can be subpoenaed by one’s legal adversaries; and it is inevitable that corporations and government will have an interest in conducting such monitoring (Griffin & Whitehead, 2001, 2002).
Promotion of E-Government in Japan and Its Operation
Authors: Kitagaki Ikuo
Published: May 2011

In Japan, e-government has been considered since 2001 as one of the strategies of so called “e-Japan” (Ohyama, 2003). It had been decided that e-government shall be constructed within the fiscal year 2003. Preparation in terms of the legal system and technological developments made steady progress towards that goal. The construction of e-government should alleviate residents’ burdens in terms of bureaucracy, enhance service quality rationalization, lean and transparent administrative agencies, countermeasures for natural calamities, more participation in policy making and administration by residents and so forth. Various tasks have been carried out at many places. For example, in autumn of 2002 a “basic residential register network” was established. Its initiation enjoyed broadly smooth operation. Residents had received administrative services only within certain jurisdiction limits until then. Now they are free to enjoy access to any administrative services from anywhere in Japan thanks to this e-system. Some local authorities introduced electronic tenders to enhance transparency of administration. Some local authorities adopted an electronic voting system in part of their areas. This paper explains the details of how the construction of the e-government came about and the status of its operation.
Public-Key Cryptography
Authors: Stickel Eberhard
Published: May 2011

Secure transmission of private information is a crucial issue in today’s highly computerized world. Cryptographic algorithms are used to provide privacy of message transmission and to certify authenticity of sender and/or receiver of a message and message integrity as well as undeniability of transmitted messages (Menezes et al., 1996).
Relating Cognitive Problem-Solving Style to User Resistance
Authors: Mullany Michael J.
Published: May 2011

This chapter explores cognitive problem-solving style and its impact on user resistance, based on the premise that the greater the cognitive difference (cognitive gap) between users and developers, the greater the user resistance is likely to be. Mullany (1989, 2003) conducted an empirical study demonstrating this. This study contradicts the findings of Huber (1983) and supports Carey (1991) in her conclusion that cognitive style theory, as applied to IS, should not be abandoned. Mullany’s findings, in fact, are the opposite. Kirton (1999, 2004) supported Mullany’s results. In particular, Mullany made use of Kirton’s (2004) adaption–innovation theory. The emergent instrument, called the Kirton adaption–innovation inventory (KAI; Kirton, 1999, 2004), was used by Mullany as his measure of cognitive style.
Similarity Web Pages Retrieval Technologies on the Internet
Authors: Chen Rung Ching , Tsai Ming Yung , Hsieh Chung Hsun
Published: May 2011

In recent years, due to the fast growth of the Internet, the services and information it provides are constantly expanding. Madria and Bhowmick (1999) and Baeza-Yates (2003) indicated that most large search engines need to comply to, on average, at least millions of hits daily in order to satisfy the users’ needs for information. Each search engine has its own sorting policy and the keyword format for the query term, but there are some critical problems. The searches may get more or less information. In the former, the user always gets buried in the information. Requiring only a little information, they always select some former items from the large amount of returned information. In the latter, the user always re-queries using another searching keyword to do searching work. The re-query operation also leads to retrieving information in a great amount, which leads to having a large amount of useless information. That is a bad cycle of information retrieval. The similarity Web page retrieval can help avoid browsing the useless information. The similarity Web page retrieval indicates a Web page, and then compares the page with the other Web pages from the searching results of search engines. The similarity Web page retrieval will allow users to save time by not browsing unrelated Web pages and reject non-similar Web pages, rank the similarity order of Web pages and cluster the similarity Web pages into the same classification.
Software Agents in E-Commerce Systems
Authors: Seitz Juergen
Published: May 2011

The Internet introduces a new global marketplace for a large number of relatively unknown and often small companies often offering substitutive or complimentary products and services. The merchants profit from reduced costs, reduced time, and unsold stocks. Customers are attracted by increasing convenience and fast fulfillment.
Staying Up-to-Date with Changes in IT
Authors: McGill Tanya , Dixon Michael
Published: May 2011

Information and communications technology (ICT) has been changing rapidly over a long period, and this rate of change is likely to continue or increase (Benamati & Lederer, 2001a; Fordham, 2001). This rapid rate of change has produced many opportunities for organizations but has also brought with it many challenges (Benamati & Lederer, 2001b; Lederer & Mendelow, 1990). Among these challenges is the struggle for organizations to obtain personnel with the appropriate knowledge and skills in order to meet their ICT needs (Byrd & Turner, 2001; Doke, 1999). This is mirrored by the continual requirement for information technology (IT) professionals to keep up-to-date with the skills required by organizations (Benamati & Lederer, 2001a; Klobas & McGill, 1993).
Strategically-Focused Enterprise Knowledge Management
Authors: Mockler Robert J. , Dologite Dorothy G.
Published: May 2011

Many of the knowledge management systems, such as the ones described in this entry, were originally computer information systems to which were added knowledge expertise that complemented the information and data communicated. As use of the Internet expanded and intranets within companies were developed, many new knowledge expertise exchange systems were established. As seen in the following discussions, many knowledge systems are therefore mixed, that is, integrated with traditional information and decision support systems, as at the consulting firm, while many, such as Xerox’s, focus specifically on expertise knowledge storage and transfer and so can be designated focused knowledge management systems. Expert knowledge-based systems generally are pure knowledge systems (Mockler, 1992; Mockler & Dologite, 1992).
Students' Perceptions of Online Courses
Authors: Simon Judith C. , Brooks Lloyd D. , Wilkes Ronald B.
Published: May 2011

An increasing number of traditional colleges and universities, responding to marketplace pressures, are offering online courses and degree programs. According to Weil (2001), 54% of U.S. higher education institutions offer e-learning courses. Many AACSB-accredited business schools provide courses and complete degree programs online. New schools have been created that exist solely in cyberspace (Peltz, 2000). Students can complete undergraduate online degree programs in fields as diverse as nursing, business, engineering, and technology.
Technology Planning in Schools
Authors: Mackey Julie
Published: May 2011

Information and communication technology (ICT) planning as it relates to schools can be defined as the process of identifying the information and communication technologies used to support the educational and administrative goals of schools and of deciding how these technologies will be developed and managed (Lederer & Sethi, 1988; Smits & van der Poel, 1996). This article presents a model reflecting the evolution of ICT planning maturity in schools and identifies the factors that influence and characterize integration between ICT planning and educational strategy. The model suggests a common evolutionary pathway for ICT planning in schools and provides a foundation on which to propose a “stages of growth” model for characterizing and evaluating ICT planning in these settings.
Text Mining in the Context of Business Intelligence
Authors: do Prado Hércules Antonio , Moreira de Oliveira José Palazzo , Ferneda Edilson , Wives Leandro Krug , Silva Edilberto Magalhães , Loh Stanley
Published: May 2011

Information about the external environment and organizational processes are among the most worthwhile input for business intelligence (BI). Nowadays, companies have plenty of information in structured or textual forms, either from external monitoring or from the corporative systems. In the last years, the structured part of this information stock has been massively explored by means of data-mining (DM) techniques (Wang, 2003), generating models that enable the analysts to gain insights on the solutions for organizational problems. On the text-mining (TM) side, the rhythm of new applications development did not go so fast. In an informal poll carried out in 2002 (Kdnuggets), just 4% of the knowledge-discovery-from-databases (KDD) practitioners were applying TM techniques. This fact is as intriguing as surprising if one considers that 80% of all information available in an organization comes in textual form (Tan, 1999).
The Social Contract Revised
Authors: Skovira Robert Joseph
Published: May 2011

Corporate and personal behaviors express responsibility and obligation in doing business. Usually, accountable and obligated actions are explicitly given in legal contracts. The legalized versions that enforce responsibility and obligation are dependent upon moral expectations framed by a social contract.
Traversal Pattern Mining in Web Usage Data
Authors: Yao Jenq-Foung (J.F.) , Xiao Yongqiao
Published: May 2011

Web usage mining is designed to discover useful patterns in Web usage data, i.e., Web logs. Web logs record the user’s browsing of a Web site, and the patterns provide useful information about the user’s browsing behavior. Such patterns can be used for Web design, improving Web server performance, personalization, etc.
Trends in Information Technology Governance
Authors: Peterson Ryan R.
Published: May 2011

Information technology (IT) governance has been a perennial item on the corporate agenda of many organizations. Ever since IT proved to be more than an administrative tool, researchers and practitioners have pondered its governance. Defined as the locus of IT decision-making authority (Brown & Magill, 1994; Sambamurthy & Zmud, 1999), discussions concerning IT governance have flourished for more than four decades across research communities and boardrooms. Posed as a question of centralization during the 70s, IT governance drifted towards decentralization in the 80s, and the recentralization of IT decision-making was a 90s trend.
Trust in Technology Partnerships
Authors: Blomqvist Kirsimarja
Published: May 2011

Technology partnerships are seen as a key element both in knowledge creation for technological development itself and in leveraging the value of technological knowledge (Bidault & Cummings, 1994; Teece, 1987; Ford, 1998). Complementary knowledge is generally regarded as a source for competitiveness (Doz & Hamel, 1998; Powell, 1998; Nahapiet & Ghoshal, 2000). Potentially, the focus on core competencies enables relatively stronger competitiveness (cumulative learning, focused use of critical resources) and ability to gain synergistic benefits and scale by leveraging different knowledge bases and networks (Miles, 2000; Blomqvist, 2002).
Usability of Online Learning Systems and Course Materials
Authors: Furtado Elizabeth
Published: May 2011

Human-computer interaction (HCI) aims to design and develop high-usability interactive systems (ISs) focusing on users’ needs and ergonomic principles, among others. The usability of an IS refers to how easy it is to use and to learn. Similarly, software engineering (SE) aims to design and develop high-quality ISs focusing on schedule, budget, communication, and productivity. The quality of an IS refers to how satisfied the system clients and/or users are, verifying whether the system is performing exactly what was requested.
User Experiences of the E-Commerce Site with Standard User Interface
Authors: Liu Shin-Ping , Tucker Dennis
Published: May 2011

The future of economic competitiveness for most enterprises relies on entrance and active participation in the e-commerce market (Vestal, 1999). E-commerce offers speed, convenience and often cost-effectiveness for today’s busy shopper, but most e-commerce sites are still too hard to use. Zona Research (1999) found that 62% of online shoppers had given up at least once while looking for products, and 42% had turned to traditional channels to make their purchases. These statistics are astounding. In addition, according to Nielsen and Norman (2000), users fail when they try to purchase products on an e-commerce site about a third of the time. In reality, what happens is not just that the user fails, but that the site fails and does not sell a thing. Is “lost-in-hyperspace” primarily a psychological or an engineering problem? In other words, is “lost-in-hyperspace” a problem for users, or is it a symptom of poor design, which itself may be a psychological problem for authors of e-commerce sites?
User Perceptions and Groupware Use
Authors: Green Gina , Day John , Lou Hao , Van Slyke Craig
Published: May 2011

The increasingly complex, global nature of work tasks has led to increased interest in virtual teams that interact across space, time, and organizational boundaries to achieve organizational objectives (Bell & Kozlowski, 2002; Roebuck & Britt, 2002). One of the factors thought to contribute to the popularity of virtual teams is the availability of groupware systems (Townsend, DeMarie & Hendrickson, 1998). While some groupware systems, such as electronic mail, have become almost ubiquitous in many organizations, other groupware applications have not enjoyed similar acceptance (Briggs, Adkins, Mittleman, Kruse, Miller & Nunamaker, 1999; Orlikowski, 1993). Because of the importance of groupware to the success of virtual teams, it is important to understand why this innovation has not successfully diffused.
Web Search via Learning from Relevance Feedback
Authors: Meng Xiannong , Chen Zhixiang
Published: May 2011

Recently, three general approaches have been taken to increase Web search accuracy and performance. One is the development of meta-search engines (e.g., MetaCrawler, www.metacrawler.com) that forward user queries to multiple search engines at the same time in order to increase the coverage and hope to include what the user wants in a short list of top-ranked results. Another approach is the development of topic-specific search engines that are specialized in particular topics. These topics range from vacation guides (www.vocations.com) to kids’ health (www.kidshealth.com). The third approach is to use some group or personal profiles to personalize the Web search. Examples of such efforts include GroupLens (Konstan et al., 1997).
Web Tools for Molecular Biological Data Analysis
Authors: Tsunoda Denise Fukumi , Lopes Heitor Silvério , Vasconcelos Ana Tereza
Published: May 2011

Bioinformatics means solving problems arising from biology using methods from computer science. The National Center for Biotechnology Information (www.ncbi.nih.gov) defines bioinformatics as: “…the field of science in which biology, computer science, and information technology merge into a single discipline...There are three important sub-disciplines within bioinformatics: the development of new algorithms and statistics with which to access relationships among members of large data sets; the analysis and interpretation of various types of data including nucleotide and amino acid sequences, protein domains, and protein structures; and the development and implementation of tools that enable efficient access and management of different types of information.”
Wireless Middleware
Authors: MacGregor Kenneth J.
Published: May 2011

Middleware is not a new concept in distributed computing. It was first accepted as a term used to describe distributed software architecture during the 1990s and has evolved significantly since then with the increase in computer networking and the resulting use of distributed systems. The following is aA definition of middleware that was proposed by Emmerich (2000) and embodies the concepts of middleware: “Middleware is a layer between network operating systems and application components which facilitates communication and coordination of distributed components” (p.120).
Women in the IT Profession
Authors: Beise Catherine , Moody Janette , Myers Martha , Woszczynski Amy
Published: May 2011

Women have been involved with information technology (IT) since the 19th century, when Ada the Countess of Lovelace served as the first programmer of Charles Babbage’s analytical engine. Grace Murray Hopper’s contributions to COBOL and computing several decades ago are considered so significant that an annual conference is held in her honor (see www.gracehopper.org). In fact, the earliest computer programmers tended to be women more often than men (Panteli, Stack & Ramsay, 2001). As the IT field progressed, however, it evolved into what many still view as a male-dominated domain, some say due to its increasing association with power and money (Tapia, Kvasny & Trauth, 2003). Today, women are estimated to make up nearly half of World Wide Web users (Newburger, 2001), but this has apparently not translated into a proportionate participation in IT careers.
Anonymity-Featured Group Support Systems and Creativity
Authors: Klein Esther E.
Published: May 2011

Until recently, creativity has been a neglected research topic (Steinberg & Lubart, 1999), although it is a central concern for schools and universities. Steinberg and Lubart have defined creativity as “the ability to produce work that is both novel (i.e., original, unexpected) and appropriate (i.e., useful, adaptive concerning task constraints)” (p. 3). Teachers in classrooms challenge students to generate creative ideas so as to foster independent thinking.
Building Trust for Interactive E-Learning
Authors: Xu Yuefei , Korba Larry
Published: May 2011

Learners, tutors and service providers are the basic players in an e-learning system. Similar to the situation in traditional campus education, “trust” composes the interaction baselines between each of these players. Although the establishment processes are different, the requirements and importance of “trust” are the same whether the situation is traditional education or remote e-learning.
Challenges and Opportunities of Computer-Based Learning for Senior Citizens
Authors: Zaphiris Panayiotis , Kurniawan Sri
Published: May 2011

This entry starts with an argument on how computer-based learning (CBL) can benefit senior citizens, then reviews the effects of aging on CBL. It finally discusses how the CBL material should be designed for senior citizens to facilitate their learning experience.
Collaboration in Online Communications
Authors: Ingram Albert L. , Hathorn Lesley G.
Published: May 2011

Collaboration and cooperation have become firmly established as teaching methods in face-to-face classes (e.g., Johnson, Johnson, & Smith, 1998). They are also rapidly becoming widespread in online teaching and learning in both hybrid (mixed traditional and online) course and distance courses. The methods are likely to be most effective if they are firmly grounded in how people actually work together. Some groups collaborate more successfully than others. Frequently, instructors may place students into groups in the expectation that they will collaborate without a clear idea of what collaboration is or how to recognize and encourage it. We must define what we mean by the terms, both so that we can use the techniques successfully and so that we can research them accurately.
Communicating Across Boundaries
Authors: Harper Dennis
Published: May 2011

Directing a Technology Innovation Challenge Grant as well as a Preparing Tomorrow’s Teachers to Use Technology (PT3) Project, plus 35 years of experience in student and teacher education has led me to conclude that teachers need know-how in communicating across boundaries. These boundaries can be found, for example, between teachers and students, teachers and the administration, teachers and parents, and teachers and the political system. The three most important competencies necessary to achieve communication “across boundaries” are: 1) using modern technologies to communicate, 2) the ability to learn from students, and 3) the ability to become agents of change.
Computer-Aided Language Learning
Authors: Laghos Andrew , Zaphiris Panayiotis
Published: May 2011

Gamper and Knapp (2002) define Computer-Aided Language Learning (CALL) as “a research field which explores the use of computational methods and techniques as well as new media for language learning and teaching” (p. 329). In more general terms, CALL can be thought of as the use of computers to help learn languages. As a sub-category of Computer-Aided Learning (CAL), CALL deals exclusively with learning languages. Specific examples of CALL tools and utilities include games, tests, exercises, and word processing, and their use in a CALL session is determined by the syllabus, software, teacher, or learner.
A Computer's Teacher Power
Authors: Bigleow Donald N.
Published: May 2011

Just as steam displaced sails on ships; and the automobile, the horse; and just as TV has, to an unknown degree, replaced wholesale dependence on daily newspapers, among other things, so the computer will continue to change the nature of American life. Of more importance: it can help American education. Already, this technology is in many schools, here and there, even if somewhat haphazardly—too often dependent upon the influence of an individual or business company to one degree or another—whose “baby” it really is. Just as the first railroads built different width tracks so that other trains could not run on them, each computer-related program is moving at its own speed, on its own tracks.
Contextual Design of Online Learning Technologies
Authors: Notess Mark
Published: May 2011

Contextual design is a human-centered methodology for designing information systems from a rich understanding of customer work practice (Beyer & Holtzblatt, 1998). This article explores the application of contextual design to online learning systems development. Beginning with definitions of Instructional Systems Design (ISD) and contextual design, this chapter then offers a detailed description of the latter, and concludes by considering its relevance to the design of online learning technologies.
The Cooperation Solution for Universities
Authors: Knust Michaela , Hagenhoff Svenja
Published: May 2011

E-learning gained a significant foothold in the field of higher education in the US and Europe during the last decade of the 20th Century. For the last couple of years, media-based teaching has increasingly supplemented university lessons. However, the production and further development of e-learning materials have significant cost potentials, which are much higher than face-to-face lectures (Seibt, 2001). Due to the lack of financial resources, state-run universities, in particular, need to find ways to finance the development and maintenance of such expensive, high-quality e-learning materials. Charging tuition fees is one commonly used method of financing higher education throughout Europe and the US (Eicher & Chevaillier, 2002b). In Germany, however, students do not have to pay tuition fees for their primary academic education at state-run universities. Only further education comes at a cost. Given the high demand for further education, we assume that we can potentially cross-subsidize the primary academic education with proceeds from further educational products and study programs.1 However, when considering intensified activities in the further education sector, one needs to verify whether the existing university structures are able to meet the challenges involved.
Copyright with an International Perspective for Academics
Authors: Marshall Stephen
Published: May 2011

He who receives an idea from me, receives instruction himself without lessening mine; as he who lights his taper at mine, receives light without darkening me. (Jefferson, 1813) Copyright has emerged in the 21st century as one of the hot topics reported on regularly by media. Hardly a month goes by without discussion about the impact of the Internet, in particular on the intellectual property rights of publishers and by implication the creators of content that they ostensibly represent. People who make digital copies of various types of media are cast as the new “pirates” of the digital frontier, often with quite extreme rhetoric: No black flags with skull and crossbones, no cutlasses, cannons, or daggers identify today’s pirates. You can’t see them coming; there’s no warning shot across your bow. Yet rest assured the pirates are out there because today there is plenty of gold (and platinum and diamonds) to be had. Today’s pirates operate not on the high seas but on the Internet, in illegal CD factories, distribution centers, and on the street. The pirate’s credo is still the same—why pay for it when it’s so easy to steal? The credo is as wrong as it ever was. Stealing is still illegal, unethical, and all too frequent in today’s digital age. (RIAA, 2003)
Creating an Electronic Student Teaching Portfolio
Authors: Shaw Patricia A. , Slick Susan
Published: May 2011

Over time, student and teacher portfolios have taken several forms for a variety of purposes. Initially portfolios were created in many educational settings to document learning. Portfolios were used as one means of assessment in course work or for senior graduation exhibitions. As calls for educational reform continued to be heard in forums ranging from local school board offices to the Oval Office, teacher accountability has become an issue of paramount importance. Parents and politicians alike want assurance that the most competent teachers are providing quality educational experiences for students. Thus, teacher assessment has become a “hot” political topic throughout our country.
Creating and Sustaining Online Learning Communities
Authors: Paoletti Jo B.
Published: May 2011

What is an online community? Is any Web-based course, e-mail list, or membership-based discussion forum an online community? What is the relationship of online communities to traditional, face-to-face communities? In what ways are they same; how are they different?
Critical Barriers to Technolgy in K-12 Education
Authors: Sweeney Christine
Published: May 2011

Those who are fortunate enough to be associated with K-12 education during this first decade of the 21st century will witness tremendous evolutionary—even revolutionary—changes throughout those institutions. The interrelated dynamics of public education, the IT industry, and the evolving “digital society” are already combining to produce a variety of entirely new models for K-12. Although those models are indeed emerging, significant change will come at a pace that is perhaps somewhat slower initially than some would prefer. K-12 education is, after all, an institution rich in tradition and culture, and often slow to change. Nonetheless, as the presence and reach of new technologies—the Internet in particular—reach critical mass, that pace will quicken, and by the year 2010, school age children will enjoy an educational experience profoundly different from anything previously known. Profound change usually occurs when not one, but several change agents come together, either deliberately or coincidentally, and interact—often sparked by some sort of catalyst. This type of interaction is occurring throughout public education today. In this case, the change agents at work include K-12 institutions, the evolving IT industry, and the rapidly emerging digital society.
Critical Elements in Effective Teaching in the New Millennium
Authors: Irvine Gretchen
Published: May 2011

These are my views derived from a long career teaching in the P-12, system as well as a decade spent preparing teachers at Augsburg College. The areas that are critical for effective teaching include the ability to: build and maintain relationships; show an excitement about learning; make learning meaningful and relevant in the classroom; build the skills of learners by planning, facilitating, and assessing learning; establish the importance of service by connecting with families and the broader community; and finally, inspire students to be global citizens.
Curriculum Development in Technology-Enhanced Environments
Authors: Keppell Mike , Au Eliza , Ma Ada , Chan Christine
Published: May 2011

As teacher-educators, we are acutely aware of our responsibilities in nurturing the knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs of pre-service teachers. As part of our interest in improving our teaching, learning, and assessment practices, we have been participating in an action-research project on technology-enhanced assessment over the last 12 months. Throughout this collaboration, we have become aware of our assessment practices and have been delighted that this has also resulted in a questioning of our current learning design for our modules and further clarity in our own thinking about why we teach the way that we do. The process of action-research has forced us to examine our educational beliefs and how these motivate our teaching and learning. This article focuses on why as teacher-educators it is our obligation to articulate our theories of teaching and learning. It is essential that we articulate these often-implicit theories not only as a means of engaging in dialogue with other teacher-educators, but also as a means of engaging in dialogue with our own students who are pre-service teachers. This cascading waterfall of dialogue and explicitness may allow pre-service teachers to gain insight into the decisions we make as teacher-educators and the rationale we use in our teaching. This obligation has important ramifications for the education of children in the Hong Kong setting, as pre-service teachers may see these explicit rationales as a guide to their own teaching within the early childhood, primary, and secondary settings.
Dimensions of Student Satisfaction on Online Programs
Authors: Askar Petek , Dönmez Oktay , Kizilkaya Gonca , Çevik Volkan , Gültekin Kerem
Published: May 2011

This research studies on the evaluation of online courses are usually conducted for investigating the differences between face-to-face and Web-based environments with respect to achievement. Most of the findings indicated “no significant difference” (Russell, 1999). However, only looking at achievement as a quality measure is reducing the complex phenomena into a single variable. Therefore, an analysis of the system with its components is needed.
Distance Learning Rehabilitation of Autistic Reasoning
Authors: Galitsky Boris
Published: May 2011

Recent psychological studies have revealed that autistic children can neither reason properly about mental states of themselves and others, nor understand emotions (Leslie, 1987; Perner 1991; Pilowsky, Yirmiya, Arbelle, & Mozes 2000). Autism is a multifactor disorder that is characterized by impaired social interaction and communication, combined with repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior, and affects up to 1% of school-aged children in some geographic areas. In this article we are concerned with the strategies of rehabilitation of reasoning to improve communication skills of children with autism.