Discussion of middleware focuses on the Internet 2 Middleware Initiative. Topics include a description of middleware as a layer of software in a distributed system; middleware characteristics, including transparency, portability, reliability, scalability, and interoperability; and the Internet 2 Middleware Initiative which is focused on research…

From 1988 to 1996, employment in high-technology industries shifted toward services. Growth in these industries accounted for all of the net increase in research and development employment in the United States. (SK)

An overview is provided of current trends in virtual reality research and development, including discussion of hardware, types of virtual reality, and potential problems with virtual reality. Implications for education and training are explored. (Author/JKP)

Discussion of issues related to computer-assisted learning (CAL) and computer-based training (CBT) describes approaches to electronic learning; principles underlying courseware development to support these approaches; and a plan for creation of a CAL/CBT development center, including its functional role, campus services, staffing, and equipment…

Describes the InfoMall, a program led by the Northeast Parallel Architectures Center (NPAC) at Syracuse University (New York). The InfoMall features a partnership of approximately 24 organizations offering linked programs in High Performance Computing and Communications (HPCC) technology integration, software development, marketing, education and…

Discusses research issues related to using cognitive learning and instructional theory to design technology-based learning environments such as hypertext and hypermedia. A "Theory-to-Design" framework is described, and the framework is then used to analyze theoretical and design issues raised in a hypermedia research project. (Contains…

Explains the function of formative evaluation and the evaluation techniques that can be used in the various stages of educational computing research and development. Topics include computer software design; selecting evaluation standards; and a framework for formative evaluation, including theoretical models, expert consultation, and field…

Interface and instructional design guides almost completely ignore sound, and research suggests many promising instructional uses remain largely unexplored. Examines information processing and communication theoretical foundations for sound's systematic use in the instructional communication system and proposes a framework for a program of…

Report on a peer-reviewed, interactive electronic journal focuses on stages of its development; features of two available access points--an ASCII interface called EPS (Electronic Publishing Service) and a graphical interface called Guidon; advantages of Guidon access over simple electronic file transfer; and planned improvements. (Contains five…

Presents an overview of research issues that have confronted the Interactive Technologies Division (ITD) of the Children's Television Workshop (CTW) and proposes a model for integrating research into the software design process. Highlights include the role of research literature; and formative research relating to software, interactive compact…

Argues that there is a fundamental gap between the knowledge that the information systems development community values and that which cultural analysis yields. Suggests that developers, rather than trying to explain social behavior and knowledge with rules, should be concerned with the production of contesting rules and what the production tells…

Four articles respond to the Bader and Nyce position that it is unlikely cultural analysis will become a routine tool for information systems developers with these arguments: ethnographic work can aid software development; the problem lies with inappropriate application of social science methods; the problem is technique, not fundamentals; and…

In most computer-assisted-language-learning (CALL) projects, research forms an important part of the development process. However, this research frequently goes unnoticed by the academic community, and developers often fail to receive academic recognition for the research component imbedded in their development projects.(Author/ER)

This project established a metacognitive research and development framework (MRDF) and production process for the development of Web-based instructional science programming for early elementary and at-risk students. Mapped cognitive variables to metacognitive learning strategies for those variables, to metadata for the instructional design of the…

The Nordic Committee on Educational Software and Technology has been overseeing cooperative development and production of software and technology in all areas of education except the university since 1986. Costly duplication of effort has been avoided, and all the Nordic countries have access to more educational software than they could develop…