E-learning is emerging as the new paradigm of modern education. Worldwide, the e-learning market has a growth rate of 35.6%, but failures exist. Little is known about why many users stop their online learning after their initial experience. Previous research done under different task environments has suggested a variety of factors affecting user satisfaction with e-Learning. This study developed an integrated model with six dimensions: learners, instructors, courses, technology, design, and environment. A survey was conducted to investigate the critical factors affecting learners' satisfaction in e-Learning. The results revealed that learner computer anxiety, instructor attitude toward e-Learning, e-Learning course flexibility, e-Learning course quality, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and diversity in assessments are the critical factors affecting learners' perceived satisfaction. The results show institutions how to improve learner satisfaction and further strengthen their e-Learning implementation.

http://water-msc.org/en/knowledge_base/successful_e_learning.pdf

What drives a successful e-Learning? An empirical investigation of the critical factors influencing learner satisfaction

A system for integrating video programming with the vast information resources of the Internet. A computer-based system receives a video program with embedded uniform resource locators (URLs). The URLs, the effective addresses of locations or Web sites on the Internet, are interpreted by the system and direct the system to the Web site locations to retrieve related Web pages. Upon receipt of the Web pages by the system, the Web pages are synchronized to the video content for display. The video program signal can be displayed on a video window on a conventional personal computer screen. The actual retrieved Web pages are time stamped to also be displayed, on another portion of the display screen, when predetermined related video content is displayed in the video window. As an alternative, the computer-based system receives the URLs directly through an Internet connection, at times specified by TV broadcasters in advance. The system interprets the URLs and retrieves the appropriate Web pages. The Web pages are synchronized to the video content for display in conjunction with a television program being broadcast to the user at that time. This alternative system allows the URLs to be entered for live transmission to the user.

Enhanced video programming system and method for incorporating and displaying retrieved integrated Internet information segments

Newness and distinctiveness is claimed in the features of ornamentation as shown inside the broken line circle in the accompanying representation.

Display screen or portion thereof with graphical user interface

Value Sensitive Design is a theoretically grounded approach to the design of technology that accounts for human values in a principled and comprehensive manner throughout the design process. It employs an integrative and iterative tripartite methodology, consisting of conceptual, empirical, and technical investigations. We explicate Value Sensitive Design by drawing on three case studies. The first study concerns information and control of web browser cookies, implicating the value of informed consent. The second study concerns using high-definition plasma displays in an office environment to provide a “window” to the outside world, implicating the values of physical and psychological well-being and privacy in public spaces. The third study concerns an integrated land use, transportation, and environmental simulation system to support public deliberation and debate on major land use and transportation decisions, implicating the values of fairness, accountability, and support for the democratic process, as well as a highly diverse range of values that might be held by different stakeholders, such as environmental sustainability, opportunities for business expansion, or walkable neighborhoods. We conclude with direct and practical suggestions for how to engage in Value Sensitive Design.

/pdf/value-sensitive-design-and-information-systems-417whwvbvm.pdf

Value Sensitive Design and Information Systems

We are interested in desiging systems that support communication and collaboration among large groups of people over computing networks. We begin by asking what properties of the physical world support graceful human-human communication in face-to-face situations, and argue that it is possible to design digital systems that support coherent behavior by making participants and their activites visible to one another. We call such systems “socially translucent systems” and suggest that they have three characteristics—visbility, awareness, and accountability—which enable people to draw upon their experience and expertise to structure their interactions with one another. To motivate and focus our ideas we develop a vision of knowledge communities, conversationally based systems that support the creation, management and reuse of knowledge in a social context. We describe our experience in designing and deploying one layer of functionality for knowledge communities, embodied in a working system called “Barbie” and discuss research issues raised by a socially translucent approach to design.

/pdf/social-translucence-an-approach-to-designing-systems-that-1jfgg5xfi8.pdf

Social translucence: an approach to designing systems that support social processes

A system and method provides each networked computer user with a user interface displaying visual representations of selected other computer users, generally of those workers in the user's workgroup, and further provides communication mechanisms for efficiently and easily contacting any of the displayed workers. The visual representations of the other users are frequently updated to indicate the activity level of these users. These activity level cues help users predict if the other users are likely to be available for an interaction. The user interface also includes a display portion and mechanism for storing data files and the like so that all workgroup members may accumulate a set data files commonly used by the workgroup, and may transfer files in this manner to other workgroup members. The data files may be stored in association with specific interactive discussion windows, known as chat rooms, or directly in the user interface.

System and method providing a computer user interface enabling access to distributed workgroup members

A computer system and method provide networked computer users with information about which other users are task proximate to the user, thereby facilitating spontaneous communications regarding task-related, or other, issues. The information about other users is displayed in a user interface window on each computer that presents a visual representation of each user who is task proximate to the user operating the computer. Task proximity to other users may change as the user context switches between applications, and the user interface window is updated accordingly. Task proximity is determined individually by different applications. One exemplary system architecture for providing the information includes a person object representing each user, and storing the visual representation of the user. An encounter window on each computer displays the visual representations. A number of encounter-aware applications may execute on each computer. An encounter server on each computer provides communication between the encounter-aware applications of the positions of each user, position being determined, for example, by the function the user is using, the data, and the time. At least one encounter-aware application includes a match object that accepts information from the encounter servers about user positions and determines the task proximity of the users. The match object informs the encounter server of the task proximity of the user. The encounter server then updates the appropriate encounter window. The encounter windows further provide a number of communication mechanisms so that users can efficiently contact those other users who are task proximate.

System and method enabling awareness of others working on similar tasks in a computer work environment

Much of the support for communication across distributed communities has focused on meetings and intentional contact. However, most interactions within co-located groups occur when people happen to run into each other. Such unintended interactions should also be supported among distributed communities. We conducted a study of the communication patterns of a large, distributed organization and found that people tend to disseminate information using formal techniques, even though people usually receive information informally. We then designed a system called Piazza that is intended to support the range of communication styles evident in large communities, paying particular attention to adchessing the problems revealed in our study. Piazza allows people to be aware of others who are doing similar tasks when they are using their computers, the~by enabling unintended interactions. It also supports intentiomd contacts and planned meetings. We discuss issues for analysis in an upcoming use study.

https://interruptions.net/literature/Isaacs-CSCW96-p315-isaacs.pdf

Piazza: a desktop environment supporting impromptu and planned interactions

A multimedia display and editing system for editing multimedia projects on a display screen. A computer display screen is presented to the user which provides three different views of multimedia information. The first view is the Player which resembles a virtual video recorder with a display monitor. The second view is a story board which is very similar to a traditional story board. The third view is the Strip Viewer which presents the user with a time-line based view of the multimedia information. On the Strip Viewer display is an innovative screen tool referred to as a "Splinder", which is used for editing the beginning and ending points of displayed multimedia tracks. The Splinder splits two segments of multimedia information. The Splinder can be used to edit the ends of the two multimedia information segments.

Methods and apparatus for displaying and editing multimedia information

Computer technology is available to build video-based tools for supporting presentations to distributed audiences, but it is unclear how such an environment affects participants' ability to interact and to learn. We built and tested a tool called Forum that broadcasts live audio, video and slides from a speaker, and enables audiences to interact with the speaker and other audience members in a variety of ways. The challenge was to enable effective interactions while overcoming obstacles introduced by the distributed nature of the environment, the large size of the group, and the asymmetric roles of the participants. Forum was most successful in enabling effective presentations in cases when the topic sparked a great deal of audience participation or when the purpose of the talk was mostly informational and did not require a great deal of interaction. We are exploring ways to enhance Forum to expand the effectiveness of this technology.

Trevor Morris

Papers

System and method providing a computer user interface enabling access to distributed workgroup members

System and method enabling awareness of others working on similar tasks in a computer work environment

Piazza: a desktop environment supporting impromptu and planned interactions

Methods and apparatus for displaying and editing multimedia information

A forum for supporting interactive presentations to distributed audiences