Discusses factors to be considered when planning and implementing a local area network (LAN) for personal computers within a school or an organization. Topics addressed include reasons for networking, characteristics of LANs, organizing a LAN, workstations, disk servers, and file servers. (Contains six references.) (LRW)

A recent development in aviation is the personal computer aviation training device (PC-ATD). This article provides an overview of instructional multimedia for pilot training, specifically for enhancing situational awareness (SA), a state in which a pilot's perceptions match reality. Discusses how PC-based trainers can be used to familiarize pilots…

Describes how and why one company made a commitment to distance learning on the Internet and highlights factors to consider when making this decision. (JOW)

The seven articles of this theme issue deal with the use of computer-based interactive graphical representations. Studying their use will bring answers to users of static graphics in traditional paper-based media and those who plan instruction using graphical representations that allow semantically direct manipulation. (SLD)

Examines the potential for learning offered by computer technology and describes work of the German Institut fur Film und Bild in Wissenschaft und Unterricht (FWU), including database systems for audiovisual centers, electronic communication, digitization of media, and modularized media for interactive education and training. (LRW)

Electronic Performance Support Systems (EPSSs) are replacing traditional training in many settings. This article describes a package to determine the return on investment (ROI) of an EPSS used by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, applicable as well as to the calculation of ROI for other EPSSs. (Author/AEF)

An auditing course used reciprocal questioning (Socratic method) and computer-based instruction. Separate evaluations by 67 students revealed a strong aversion to the Socratic method; students expected professors to lecture. They showed a strong preference for the computer-based assignment. (SK)

Discusses a computer-based contraceptive decision aid used with adolescent female family planning clinic patients (N=949). Results show improved short-term knowledge of and confidence in oral contraceptive (OC) efficacy. Higher OC knowledge after one year and fewer pregnancies were seen in one group. Findings suggest the usefulness of informatics…

Describes a study that used innovation diffusion theory to investigate the effects of the allocation of computer coordinator work time on student computer use in academic subjects in grade 5 and grade 11. Findings suggest that teacher support is more critical than student support and that effects differ in different grades. (Contains 31…

Describes two alternative strategies for intranet implementation based on experiences at the University of Brighton (United Kingdom). Highlights include differing degrees of staff and student utilization; barriers to success; a unified strategy for effective intranet implementation; and how to manage organizational resistance to change.…

Discussion of computer-based online help systems for instructional software focuses on three types of learner support: for optimizing use of a computer program; for learning content; and for monitoring and enhancing learning. Proposes a multi-dimensional model of learner-support space defined by the intrusiveness of the delivery methods and…

Examines the effects of providing people with information about their own dietary fat intake on their attitudes towards dietary change and their fat consumption. No subsequent reductions in fat consumption were found. Results are discussed in relation to their implications for health promotion strategies that focus on the motivational effects of…

Notes that preparing manuals electronically is a growing requirement for technical writing professionals and that technical writers now often work concurrently with illustrators, designers, and engineers. Discusses how, using a desktop computer and adapting some software solutions, students can produce "professional" engineering diagrams and…

Describes a PC-based teaching module designed to instruct engineering students in transient one-dimensional conduction heat transfer analysis. The discussion considers problem formulation, nondimensionalization, discretization, numerical stability and the time-step restriction, program operation, and program verification. (MES)

Describes a study that investigated the function of gestures when high school students interacted with a computer-based modeling program. Suggests that because the learning process involves the learner's body, learning environments that do not support students' use of body and gesture can limit what and how they learn. (Author/LRW)