Motivated by applications in health care systems, this study focused on queueing network models with instances of simultaneous resource possession under capacity restrictions in different stages. Customers during service at certain nodes in the first-level or primary system may simultaneously need service from a second-level server. In this…

How do you dynamically customize the programming language available in a context within an existing system, without changing the underlying system? This dissertation introduces a language design approach that addresses this problem. The basic idea is to structure programs as systems of multiple interacting levels of abstraction, where all of the…

The Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, located on the National Naval Medical Center's campus in Bethesda, Maryland, is a medical education and research facility for the nation's military and public health community. In order to support its approximately 7,500 globally distributed users, the university's James A. Zimble Learning…

Describes a computer network developed at the School of Engineering at Rice University which links users to a supporting mainframe and other major computing facilities, and creates an electronic studio for students. Topics discussed include network planning, design, and maintenance; software and courseware used; and implications for other academic…

Discusses the issues influencing the design, implementation, and promotion of the Towers Perrin in-house text retrieval system. The discussion of factors influencing system design includes the organizational culture, the existing computer and communications network, and the availability of text retrieval software. Suggestions for in-house systems…

Discusses how the World-Wide Web (WWW) can be linked to the PAT system, a search engine supporting access to Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) encoded documents. Technical concepts are reviewed, and the operation of a PAT-to-Web gateway is explained using examples of how it is employed. (JKP)

Most electrical engineering and computer science undergraduate programs include at least one course on microcontrollers and assembly language programming. Some departments offer legacy courses in C programming, but few include C programming from an embedded systems perspective, where it is still regularly used. Distributed computing and parallel…

Presents a 10-step goal-oriented method for establishing an electronic college. Commitment to training, support, and motivation of people is advocated, as well as technological expertise. Each of the steps is described in detail using the "TowerNet" system from the Adult Education Department at Pennsylvania State University as a case…

Describes the planning and implementation of a library automation system which encompasses four campus locations of a community college, and includes automation of technical processes and full access to holdings and circulation records of all the libraries involved. Software and hardware considerations are discussed, and guidelines to automation…

The Information Services Plan (ISP) developed at Howard Community College (HCC), in Columbia, Maryland, is designed to ensure that the necessary data, equipment, and communications technologies will be available to enable the college to meet its strategic goals. The plan provides for analyses of the current information services operating…