Authoring System

The paper analyses business networks originating from three markets: Chinese, Russian, and West European. So far, little attention has been given to the fact that business networks in particular markets may be dissimilar because of differences among institutions. The paper advances a model where institutions are assumed to influence five major characteristics of business; (1) the processual aspects of the network, (2) the structural aspects of the network, (3) the function of firms and relationships in the network, (4) the meaning of strategy and planning, and (5) social relationships in the context of inter-firm relationships. The analysis builds on three types of substances of institutionscognitive, normative, and regulative, which in turn are specified according to different aspects. The cognitive substance of business networks is explored through the aspects of self, time, and causality. The normative substance is explored through the aspects of achieved versus ascribed status, inner versus outer direction, universalism versus particularism, and trust. The regulative substance is specified as an authority system and a sanction system. The analysis demonstrates that, as institutions differ in these three markets, the business among them also differs in terms of the five characteristics, and this variation calls for different strategies for firms operating in these markets.

This research paper presents a framework and solution for improving the efficiency of the authorization processing of credit card transactions using multi-threading and shared-memory pool techniques. Through the use of both techniques, a prototype of a real-time multi-threaded authorization system has been developed with Java platforms to overcome the slow sequential authorization processing of a single-threaded model of current credit card authorization systems. Via multi-threading technique, it allows parallel execution of the validation functional units involved during the authorization process of credit card transaction through multiple threads. It also enables a separate thread to be executed in the background of the process to perform data synchronization maintained in the shared-memory pool with the main system database. Shared-memory pool has been used to provide a global point of access to the card information kept in the random access memory. During the authorization process, the respective worker thread performs a binary search to obtain the authentication data from the shared memory instead of the system database to hasten the authorization process of credit card transactions. Performancetesting has been carried out to measure the efficiency of a fixed number of credit card authorization processes running between the single-threaded and the multi-threaded authorization systems in a workstation using similar hardware capabilities. Specially-embedded tools are incorporated in the payment gateway applications to obtain the length of end-to-end execution.

This article describes an authorization model suitable for cloud computing that supports hierarchical rolebased access control, path-based object hierarchies, and federation. The authors also present an authorization system architecture for implementing the model.

Abstract. This paper consists of an in-depth summary and analysis of the research and development state of the art for intelligent tutoring system (ITS) authoring systems. A seven-part categorization of two dozen authoring systems is given, followed by a characterization of the authoring ...

This paper contends that satisfaction with management above immediate supervision is a key component of overall job satisfaction. We demonstrate that early job satisfaction researchers regarded this construct as very important, and that practitioners continue to regard the construct as very important. Yet, the visibility of this construct in current academic research is hampered by the absence of a comprehensive and theoretically based measure of the construct. In the present paper, we define the construct and formulate a nomological network for it. We subsequently describe the development of the Satisfaction with Upper and Middle Management (SUMM) scale, and we assess the validity of its scores via four independent samples. Results support our contention that satisfaction with management should be related to the traditional job satisfaction facets, but also that, because it is the facet of job satisfaction that pertains to the organisation's collective authority system, it should explain incremental variance (beyond these traditional facets) not only in global job satisfaction but also in organisational commitment and organisational justice. Implications and avenues for future research are discussed.

Design of collaborative learning (CL) scenarios is a complex task, but necessary if the goal of the collaboration is learning. Creating well-thought-out CL scenarios requires experience and knowledge about different learning/ instructional theories and practices related to collaboration. Inexperienced designers, who may not have all the needed knowledge to formulate pedagogically sound collaborative learning plans, may have difficulties to design CL activities. Thus, although CL has shown to be effective, it is not often used in classroom adequately. To tackle this problem, this paper presents an ontology for CL, that aims at modeling not only the learning activities, but also the rationale for their configuration in pedagogical terms. This ontology allows modeling the expected interactions among students as well as the mechanisms that promote or enhance collaboration structured across several sessions and involve individual and collaborative activities. Finally, the paper discusses an application of the presented ontology to support the design of pedagogically sound CL scenarios.

We describe a plan-authoring system called PASSAT (Plan- Authoring System based on Sketches, Advice, and Templates) that combines interactive tools for constructing plans with a suite of automated and mixed-initiative capabilities designed to complement human planning skills. PASSAT is organized around a library of predefined templates that encode task networks describing standard operating procedures and previous cases. Users can select

The need for e-learning systems that support a diverse set of pedagogical requirements has been identified as an important issue in web-based education. Until now, significant R&D effort has been devoted aiming towards webbased educational systems tailored to specific pedagogical approaches. The most advanced of them are based on the IEEE Learning Technology Systems Architecture and use standardized content structuring based on the ADL Sharable Content Object Reference Model in order to enable sharing and reusability of the learning content. However, sharing of learning activities among different web-based educational systems still remains an open issue. On the other hand, existing Learning Management Systems (LMS) provide authoring tools that are only tailored to the capabilities of the specific system in hand. The open question is how web-based educational systems should be designed in order to enable reusing and repurposing of learning activities. In this paper we first discuss the limitations of the current state-of-the art learning systems and authoring tools and investigate the use of the Learning Design framework as a mean to address those limitations. Then, we present a highlevel architecture of a SCORM compatible authoring and runtime system that utilizes the Learning Design principles to provide the means for designing activity-based learning systems. Finally, we discuss the use of ASK-LDT, an authoring system developed based on the proposed architecture, in the design of complex learning activities.

The need for e-learning systems that support a diverse set of pedagogical requirements has been identified as an important issue in web-based education. Until now, significant R&D effort has been devoted aiming towards web-based educational systems tailored to ...

This paper shows a development of an RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) user authorization (access control system) using wireless ZigBee communication network. The system is designed with the topology of one Master and multiple Slave nodes. Idea is to manage a data base on the Master node which is connected to the Slave nodes through a wireless link. Slave node consists of an RFID reader, LCD touch screen and XBee wireless module. Master node communicates with the LabView application through an Ethernet interface. A program development is shown for both nodes, including all the peripheral modules. The proposed system's major advantage over the existing systems is wireless communications. Wireless network uses XBee wireless modules and can be formed as a mesh network, where an end node server as a router, thus extending the range of the network.

Developing adaptive internet based learning courses usually requires a lot of programming efforts to provide session management, keeping track of the learners current state, and adapting the interface layout to specific requirements. NetCoach is designed to enable authors to develop adaptive learning courses without programming knowledge. In this paper, we describe the adaptive, the adaptable, the interactive, and the communicative features of NetCoach. Both authors and tutors are supported in many ways to develop and manage courses via an online interface. Experiences with NetCoach courses in different domains and settings have shown that learners profit from the adaptive features.

Authorization systems today are increasingly complex. They span domains of administration, rely on many different authentication sources, and manage permissions that can be as complex as the system itself. Worse still, while there are many standards that define authentication mechanisms, the standards that address authorization are less well defined and tend to work only within homogeneous systems. This paper presents XACML, a standard access control language, as one component of a distributed and inter-operable authorization framework. Several emerging systems which incorporate XACML are discussed. These discussions illustrate how authorization can be deployed in distributed, decentralized systems. Finally, some new and future topics are presented to show where this work is heading and how it will help connect the general components of an authorization system.

Nous avons découvert à Bournemouth (Grande-Bretagne) le rôle capital de la culture de l’apprenant comme motivation pour celui-ci, et dans cette culture, l’informatique tient une place centrale. La réalité virtuelle (RV) pour l’Internet se fonde sur deux langages-machine, le VRML et Java. Ce sont des langues industrielles pures, relayées par des langues pédagogiques en direction du grand public. La possession de ces langues ouvre un monde virtuel de masse qui représente une industrie et un commerce au développement exponentiel. Mais la pratique de la VR sur l’Internet rend largement caduques les approches de Vygotski (zone de proche développement) et de Lacan (l’Autre et l’Autorité voient leur position systémique dans le carré du sujet totalement déplacée). Nous franchissons une limite en pédagogie, fondée sur l’autocentrage et le giovannisme de l’apprenant : première étape d’une révolution didactique. Cela démultiplie le processus d’acquisition du savoir et tous les dangers envisageables ne sont que des résistances d’arrière-garde.

This paper describes novel concepts for the interactive composition of artistic real-time graphics, so-called live visuals. By establishing two fundamental techniques dealing with the structured media integration and the intrinsic design process, we significantly increase the efficiency of interactive editing in live visuals applications. First, we present a media manager that supports the user in both retrieval and utilization of automatically annotated digital media. The computer-assisted application of individual media items permits the interactive control of non-linear editing (NLE) of video in real-time. Second, we optimize the design process by introducing the design tree, which collects and organizes the artist's work in an intuitive way. Design tree operations provide interactive high-level editing methods which allow for exploration, combination, reuse, and evolution of designs before and particularly during the performance. We examined the effectiveness of our techniques on numerous long-lasting live performances from which representative examples are demonstrated.

One of the difficulties in English teaching lies in the correct use of primary and secondary lexical accents. French learners of English encounter particular difficulties in perceiving the stressed syllables and more particularly in encoding information on stress which is rarely necessary in French. They consequently have difficulties in producing primary and secondary accents when they speak. As the source of the problem seems related to attention, the dual coding of information on the word using sound and visual annotations is a potential solution. SWANS is an authoring system which enables the semi-automatic generation of multimedia documents in which accents are marked visually and sound is synchronized. This article presents SWANS, the hypotheses that underlie its development and the empirical evaluation of a model.

Capturing and exploiting knowledge is at the heart of several important problems such as decision making, the semantic web, and intelligent agents. The captured knowledge must be accessible to subject matter experts so that the knowledge can be easily extended, queried, and debugged. In our previous work to meet this objective, we created a knowledgeauthoring system based on graphical assembly from components that allowed acquisition of an interestingly broad class of axioms. In this paper, we explore the question: can we expand the axiom classes acquired by building on our existing graphical methods and still retain simplicity so that people with minimal training in knowledge representation can use it? Specifically, we present techniques used to capture ternary relations, classification rules, constraints, and if-then rules.

In this paper we investigate the task of text simplification for Brazilian Portuguese. Our purpose is three-fold: to introduce a simplification tool for such language and its underlying development methodology, to present an on-line authoring system of simplified text based on the previous tool, and finally to discuss the potentialities of such technology for education. The resources and tools we present are new for Portuguese and innovative in many aspects with respect to previous initiatives for other languages.

This chapter describes some approaches that have been proposed for access and usage control in grid systems. The first part of the chapter addresses the security challenges in grid systems and describes the standard security infrastructure provided by the Globus Toolkit, the most used middleware to establish grids. Since the standard Globus authorization system provides very basic mechanisms that do not completely fulfill the requirements of this environment, a short overview of well-known access control frameworks that have been integrated in Globus is also given: Community Authorization Service (CAS), PERMIS, Akenti, Shibboleth, Virtual Organization Membership Service (VOMS), Cardea, and PRIMA. Then, the chapter describes the usage control model UCON, a novel model for authorization, along with an implementation of UCON in grid systems. The last part of the chapter describes the authorization model for grid computational services designed by the Grid Trust project. This authorization model is also based on UCON.

Prior knowledge is an important factor that influences the interaction with a hypertext and the learning gain. Our authoring system NetCoach provides a way to assess the users' prior knowledge and to adapt the course in different ways. We describe how the adaptation mechanism assesses the user's knowledge with test items, infers the user's current learning state from this information, and finally adapts accordingly. An evaluation study with an adaptive HTML course demonstrates that this kind of adaptation might reduce the completion time, but retains the learning gain.

The need for e-learning systems that support a diverse set of pedagogical requirements has been identified as an important issue in web-based education. Until now, significant R&D effort has been devoted aiming towards web-based educational systems tailored to specific pedagogical approaches. The most advanced of them are based on the ADL Sharable Content Object Reference Model in order to enable sharing and reusability of the learning content. However, sharing of learning activities among different web-based educational systems still remains an open issue. In this paper we first examine the limitations of the current state-of-the art authoring tools and investigate the use of the Learning Design framework as a mean to address those limitations. Then, we propose a high-level architecture of a learning activities generator and the supporting SCORM compatible authoring system that utilizes the Learning Design principles to provide the means for designing web-based pedagogical scenarios. Finally, we introduce the ASK-LDT, an authoring system developed based on the proposed architecture.

This paper describes novel concepts for the interactive composition of artistic real-time graphics, so-called live visuals. By establishing two fundamental techniques dealing with the structured media integration and the intrinsic design process, we significantly increase the efficiency of interactive editing in live visuals applications. First, we present a media manager that supports the user in both retrieval and utilization of automatically annotated digital media. The computer-assisted application of individual media items permits the interactive control of non-linear editing (NLE) of video in real-time. Second, we optimize the design process by introducing the design tree, which collects and organizes the artist's work in an intuitive way. Design tree operations provide interactive high-level editing methods which allow for exploration, combination, reuse, and evolution of designs before and particularly during the performance. We examined the effectiveness of our techniques on numerous long-lasting live performances from which representative examples are demonstrated.

Visualizing information structure plays an increasing role in hypertext systems. Empirical evidence shows that such visualizations support the users or readers of hypertext systems. The following study investigates whether such information visualizations in the form of two-dimensional graphical overview maps also support the writers of hypertext documents. It also seems plausible to assume that the process of writing text changes when graphical overview maps integrated into hypertext systems are used. We also analysed the relationship between the authoring process and the character of the "nished documents. In general, it can be said that visualizing the information structure inherent in a document plays an important role in hypertext authoring. It was the only innovative feature of the hypertext authoring system we developed which was used intensively by almost all the authors. In contrast to that, the "nished documents were rather traditional. Authors did not exploit the novel features of hypertext/hypermedia systems like, e.g. introducing pictures, movies or sounds. On the basis of the analysis of the hypertext authoring process guidelines can be formulated to support writers of hypertext documents.

Current hypertext systems have no intelligent means for finding specific information. When searching for specific information (as opposed to browsing), users can get disoriented in large hypertext documents and may end up following a path that takefs them farther away from the information they seek. This paper describes an information retrieval system called HRS (Hyper- text Retrieval System) that allows

In this paper we investigate the task of text simplification for Brazilian Portuguese. Our purpose is three-fold: to introduce a simplification tool for such language and its underlying development methodology, to present an on-line authoring system of simplified text based on the previous tool, and finally to discuss the potentialities of such technology for education. The resources and tools we present are new for Portuguese and innovative in many aspects with respect to previous initiatives for other languages.

Automatic speech recognition is used in a system to offer first-level, computer-based exercises in the Japanese language for beginning high school students. Implementing a preprototype version of the Subarashii system identified strengths and limitations of continuous speech recognition technology in supporting open dialogue practice, in which utterance choices are not written on the screen. Lessons learned from this implementation have led to novel methods in the development of materials for computerbased interactive spoken language education.

Exploiting lessons learned is a key knowledge management (KM) task. Currently, most lessons learned systems are passive, stand-alone systems. In contrast, practical KM solutions should be active, interjecting relevant information during decision-making. We introduce an architecture for active lessons delivery systems, an instantiation of it that serves as a monitor, and illustrate it in the context of the conversational case-based plan authoring system HICAP . When users interact with HICAP, updating its domain objects, this monitor accesses a repository of lessons learned and alerts the user to the ramifications of the most relevant past experiences. We demonstrate this in the context of planning noncombatant evacuation operations.

The need for e-learning systems that support a diverse set of pedagogical requirements has been identified as an important issue in web-based education. Until now, significant R&D effort has been devoted aiming towards web-based educational systems tailored to specific pedagogical approaches. As a response to pedagogical concerns towards standardization and interoperability needs, Educational Modeling Languages (EMLs) were introduced. These languages attempt to provide a formal way of representing the educational process in a commonly agreed manner. Nevertheless, still there exist very few web-based educational systems that support EMLs. One of the key issues to be considered when designing web-based educational systems to support EML is the adoption of easy-to-use tools for the definition of learning scenarios. In this paper we present the ASK Learning Designer Toolkit (ASK-LDT), a learning scenarios graphical authoring system that utilizes the IMS Learning Design specification.

Knowledge Societies also named Social Learning Networks (SLN) allow interaction and collaboration between individuals (instructors and students), who share their connections under a scheme of learning communities around common learning interest. In this paper, we present Zamná, a Knowledge Society implemented as an adaptive learning social network. A community of Instructors and Learners can create, display, share and assess communities, intelligent tutoring systems or adaptive courses in a collaborative environment. The communities and courses are tailored to the student’s learning style according to the learning style model of Felder-Silverman. The identification of community’s and student’s learning style is performed using self-organizing maps. The main contribution of this paper lies at the integration of Artificial Intelligence with SLN.

In this paper we suggest a new approach for authoring tangible augmented reality applications, called 'immersive authoring.' The approach allows the user to carry out the authoring tasks within the AR application being built, so that the development and testing of the application can be done concurrently throughout the development process. We describe the functionalities and the interaction design for the proposed authoring system that are specifically targeted for intuitive specification of scenes and various object behaviors. Several cases of applications developed using the authoring system are presented. A small pilot user study was conducted to compare the proposed method to a non-immersive approach, and the results have shown that the users generally found it easier and faster to carry out authoring tasks in the immersive environment.

The need for e-learning systems that support a diverse set of pedagogical requirements has been identified as an important issue in webbased education. Until now, significant R&D effort has been devoted aiming towards web-based educational systems tailored to specific pedagogical approaches. As a response to pedagogical concerns towards standardization and interoperability needs, Educational Modeling Languages (EMLs) were introduced. These languages attempt to provide a formal way of representing the educational process in a commonly agreed manner. Nevertheless, still there exist very few web-based educational systems that support EMLs. One of the key issues to be considered when designing web-based educational systems to support EML is the adoption of easy-to-use tools for the definition of learning scenarios. In this paper we present the ASK Learning Designer Toolkit (ASK-LDT), a learning scenarios graphical authoring system that utilizes the IMS Learning Design specification.

This paper describes the work done on advanced fault management strategies at a system of systems level on the start authorization process in a vehicle. The start authorization system in a vehicle is a complicated and critical vehicle process. It manifests itself as a complex multi-stage process which involves several stages of verification and validation amongst various distributed automotive systems through the exchange of messages and signals on a common network. The behavior of the start-up process in a vehicle is inferred: 50% from interaction of signals in the data in a start up process and 50% from expert knowledge already gathered from vehicle specifications and functionality testing. A model is constructed to diagnose vehicle no-start faults in a vehicle. With data collected from real vehicles, the start authorization process is benchmarked and a nominal behavior is established. In a vehicle no-start condition, the start-up process differs greatly from this nominal behavior and the different failure modes are identified to advise the driver of the root cause of the problem.

In trust negotiation and other distributed proving systems, networked entities cooperate to form proofs that are justified by collections of certified attributes. These attributes may be obtained through interactions with any number of external entities and are collected and validated over an extended period of time. Though these collections of credentials in some ways resemble partial system snapshots, these systems currently lack the notion of a consistent global state in which the satisfaction of authorization policies should be checked. In this paper, we argue that unlike the notions of consistency studied in other areas of distributed computing, the level of consistency required during policy evaluation is predicated solely upon the security requirements of the policy evaluator. As such, there is little incentive for entities to participate in complicated consistency preservation schemes like those used in distributed computing, distributed databases, and distributed shared memory. We go on to show that the most intuitive notion of consistency fails to provide basic safety guarantees under certain circumstances and then propose several more refined notions of consistency which provide stronger safety guarantees. We provide algorithms that allow each of these refined notions of consistency to be attained in practice with minimal overheads.

This paper presents a solution for conceptually modeling the training domain knowledge of computer-assisted instructional environments. Conceptual organization of the training domain knowledge, with learning stages phasing, can constitute a solution to the problem of adapting the instructional system interaction to users with different cognitive style and needs.

Exploiting lessons learned is a key knowledge management (KM) task. Currently, most lessons learned systems are passive, stand-alone systems. In contrast, practical KM solutions should be active, interjecting relevant information during decision-making. We introduce an architecture for active lessons delivery systems, an instantiation of it that serves as a monitor, and illustrate it in the context of the conversational case-based plan authoring system HICAP . When users interact with HICAP, updating its domain objects, this monitor accesses a repository of lessons learned and alerts the user to the ramifications of the most relevant past experiences. We demonstrate this in the context of planning noncombatant evacuation operations.

Pervasive computing leads to an increased integration between the real world and the computational world, and many applications in pervasive computing adapt to the user's context, such as the location of the user and relevant devices, the presence of other people, light or sound conditions, or available network bandwidth, to meet a user's continuously changing I want to thank my parents for their love and consistent encouragement.

SUMMARY The <e-Aula> platform is a new experimental e-learning environment that adheres closely to IMS Global Learning Consortium, Inc. e-learning standards in order to facilitate their applicability in different learning scenarios. <e-Aula> is equipped with an integrated ...

This diploma thesis discusses the impact of authoring systems on multidimensional documents. A first part illustrates concepts on multidimensional documents and how to represent them. Another issue is navigation through n-dimensional documents. The second part of the work implements a prototype of a multidimensional authoring system, named MDAT (Multidimensional Authoring Tool). MDAT helps teachers in creating their own interactive courses on the Web. Students, at the other hand, are supported with a navigational aide to keep orientation in these documents.