Abstract: In order for agent technology to fulfill its promise, it must be integrated with other existing technologies In this paper we address one of the problems occurring in a real-world agent integration project— interaction between agents and non-agents The proposed solution is designed to provide non-agents (clients in particular) access to the agent services, without restricting the agents

Abstract: Web applications have very high requirements for numerous quality attributes. This article discusses some of the technological challenges of building today's complex Web software applications, their unique quality requirements, and how to achieve them.

Abstract: In this article, the authors discuss research findings of an evaluation of Web-based courses in which the researcher controlled for student input information-using Alexander Astin's (1993) Input-Environment-Outcome assessment model. Controlling for student characteristics decreased bias and minimized the chance of incorrectly attributing outcomes to the virtual environment. The results of this study support the view that students' satisfaction was influenced by the online environment and was not due to student characteristics.

Abstract: A query to a Web search engine usually consists of a list of keywords, to which the search engine responds with the best or "top" k pages for the query. This top-k query model is prevalent over multimedia collections in general, but also over plain relational data for certain applications. For example, consider a relation with information on available restaurants, including their location, price range for one diner, and overall food rating. A user who queries such a relation might simply specify the user's location and target price range, and expect in return the best 10 restaurants in terms of some combination-of proximity to the user, closeness of match to the target price range, and overall food rating. Processing such top-k queries efficiently is challenging for a number of reasons. One critical such reason is that, in many Web applications, the relation attributes might not be available other than through external Web-accessible form interfaces, which we will have to query repeatedly for a potentially large set of candidate objects. In this paper, we study how to process top-k queries efficiently in this setting, where the attributes for which users specify target values might be handled by external, autonomous sources with a variety of access interfaces. We present several algorithms for processing such queries, and evaluate them thoroughly using both synthetic and real Web-accessible data.

Abstract: A content management system for information delivery systems, including web based systems, that organizes the content of the information separately from the appearance of the presented information. The pages of the information are organized into documents and borders. Each border and document is further divided into an outline, organizing the content, and a template organizing the appearance. Individual content is stored in a native format enabling creators and maintainers to use familiar software tools for creation and maintenance. When retrieving the information, an assembly process gathers the content in accordance with the document's outline and formats the content in accordance with the document's template. The data structure allows triggers to be associated with content such that automated maintenance procedure can be implemented based on the activation of the triggers.

Abstract: Web-enabled business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce enhances interorganizational coordination, resulting in transaction cost savings and competitive sourcing opportunities for the buyer organization. However, organizations are uncertain whether this is an improvement over existing information technology, such as EDI. In particular, what is the value of B2B e-commerce to a buyer organization, and how can it be measured? What factors most affect the realization of the value of B2B e-commerce? Using the case of Web-based B2B procurement systems, a framework is proposed to quantify and measure the value of B2B e-commerce systems and identify the factors that determine it. The methodology is applied to help a major heavy-equipment manufacturer located in the midwestern United States evaluate the potential of its Web-based procurement system. The preliminary results indicate that, even though all stages of B2B procurement are affected by the Web, the value of Web-based procurement is most determined by the process characteristics, organization of business units, and the "extended enterprise."

Abstract: This study investigated Simon's behavioral decision-making theories of bounded rationality and satisficing in relation to young people's decision making in the World Wide Web, and considered the role of personal preferences in Web-based decisions. It employed a qualitative research methodology involving group interviews with 22 adolescent females. Data analysis took the form of iterative pattern coding using QSR NUD*IST Vivo qualitative data analysis software. Data analysis revealed that the study participants did operate within the limits of bounded rationality. These limits took the form of time constraints, information overload, and physical constraints. Data analysis also uncovered two major satisficing behaviors - reduction and termination. Personal preference was found to play a major role in Web site evaluation in the areas of graphic/multimedia and subject content preferences. This study has related implications for Web site designers and for adult intermediaries who work with young people and the Web.

Abstract: The rapid diffusion of Internet and open standard technologies is producing a significant growth of the demand of Web sites and Web applications with more and more strict requirements of usability, reliability, interoperability and security. While several methodological and technological proposals for developing Web applications are coining both from industry and academia, there is a general lack of methods and tools to carry out the key processes that significantly impact the quality of a Web application (WA), such as the validation & verification (V&V), and quality assurance. Some open issues in the field of Web application testing are addressed in this paper. The paper exploits an object-oriented model of a WA as a test model, and proposes a definition of the unit level for testing the WA. Based on this model, a method to test the single units of a WA and for the integration testing is proposed. Moreover, in order to experiment with the proposed technique and strategy, an integrated platform of tools comprising a Web application analyzer, a repository, a test case generator and a test case executor, has been developed and is presented in the paper. A case study, carried out with the aim of assessing the effectiveness of the proposed method and tools, produced interesting and encouraging results.

Abstract: A system and method for developing an application for serving a document to a client in a client/server network employs an Object Model which defines templates, extensions, documents, and content objects in a template inheritance model. The Object Model serves a document, such as a webpage of a Web site application, by combining the structure and content inherited from a template and extensions in the template hierarchy. The templates specify the structure of the document and include tags as placeholders for content objects to be incorporated in the document. Extensions descend from either a template or another extension, and can expand upon the number of tags specified in a parent, add additional formatting to the layout, and/or refine the definition of tags that already exist in the inheritance hierarchy. When a document is to be viewed or served, a page server retrieves the template hierarchy and incorporates all tagged content in the structure inherited from the template and its extensions. The Object Model provides a framework for developing Web sites and other applications that is more robust and simpler to manage than the traditional file directory model of conventional Web applications. This framework makes it possible to create complex and highly structured Web applications that are efficient to develop and easier to maintain, and without ever having to write source code.

Abstract: A method and system for escrow service for web-based transactions is web-accessible and accepts registrations from exchanges and/or portal partners. The completion of registration and transactions is allowed to entitled users who access the system via the web. The system maintains an internal banking engine to act as a deal manager, messaging service and accounts sub-ledger and escrows funds entrusted to it. The transaction process is composed of a number of transaction statuses, and reporting of those statuses to users is accomplished online and via web query. The system supports several methods of payment, such as credit cards, authorized Automated Clearing House (ACH) or equivalent direct debit/credit and wire transfer payments, and all funds movements are electronic. The system supports transaction level detail through its banking engine accounts; funds movements from its currency accounts, and escrows funds to currency based escrow accounts. Buyers completing goods/services inspections after delivery initiate settlements.

Abstract: Many of the Web applications around us are data-intensive; their main purpose is to present a large amount of data to their users Most online trading and e-commerce sites fall into this category, as do digital libraries and institutional sites describing private and public organizations Several commercial Web development systems aid rapid creation of data-intensive applications by supporting semiautomatic data resource publishing Automatic publishing is typically subject to the constraints of database schemas, which limit an application designer's choices Thus, Web application development often requires adaptation through programming, and programs end up intricately mixing data, navigation, and presentation semantics Presentation is often a facade for elements of structure, composition, and navigation Despite this frequently unstructured development process, data-intensive applications, based on large data sets organized within a repository or database, generally follow some typical patterns and rules We describe these patterns and rules using WebML as a conceptual tool to make such notions explicit WebML is a conceptual Web modeling language that uses the entity-relationship (ER) model for describing data structures and an original, high-level notation for representing Web content composition and navigation in hypertext form

Abstract: Purpose: To examine methodological issues associated with using the Internet and World Wide Web for scientific research, namely, issues related to the nature of the sample, the testing environment and environmental factors, privacy, and confidentiality, and response rates. Methods: Reviews of literature and personal observation and experience. Findings: Web-based research provides many advantages such as access to specific, sometimes difficult-to-find populations, speed of data access, and decreased costs for data collection and data entry. Such benefits are likely to increase as more nurse scientists use the Web for research purposes. Conclusions: Nurse researchers who use this technology must consider the methodological problems associated with Web-based methods. The research potential exists, but the methodological issues discussed in this paper are real and, if not addressed, they can seriously affect the validity of study findings.

Abstract: As the use of Web-based instruction increases in the educational and training domains, many people have recognized the importance of evaluating its effects on student outcomes such as learning, performance, and satisfaction. Often, these results are compared to those of conventional classroom instruction in order to determine which method is “better.” However, major differences in technology and presentation rather than instructional content can obscure the true relationship between Web-based instruction and these outcomes. Computer-based instruction (CBI), with more features similar to Web-based instruction, may be a more appropriate benchmark than conventional classroom instruction. Furthermore, there is little consensus as to what variables should be examined or what measures of learning are the most appropriate, making comparisons between studies difficult and inconclusive. In this article, we review the historical findings of CBI as an appropriate benchmark to Web-based instruction. In addition, we review 47 reports of evaluations of Web-based courses in higher education published between 1996 and 2002. A tabulation of the documented findings into eight characteristics is offered, along with our assessments of the experimental designs, effect sizes, and the degree to which the evaluations incorporated features unique to Web-based instruction.

Abstract: An application view control can be added to a Web service to allow the Web service to make requests into a resource such as en enterprise system through an integration system. The integration system can include a resource adapter that can invoke functionality in the enterprise system, as well as an application view component that acts as an interface through which the functionality can be exposed to the application view control. The application view component can allow the Web service to accomplish tasks such as subscribing to application view events. A callback object can be used to notify a client of the Web service that an event has occurred in the underlying resource.

Abstract: Computer-implemented methods and computer program products implement techniques for representing a project in a web application. The techniques include generating, through a Web server, a description of a project in HTML code, creating a graphic display of at least a portion of the project in the form of a chart in a browser, receiving user input manipulating the HTML element in the graphic display of the chart, and dynamically updating the graphic display of the chart in response to the user input with a plurality of instructions that manipulate the document object model of the browser. The browser includes a document object model and the chart includes a graphic representation of an HTML element.

Abstract: Developers typically measure a Web application's quality of service in terms of response time, throughput, and availability. Poor QoS translates into frustrated customers, which can lead to lost business opportunities. At the same time, company expenditures on a Web site's IT infrastructure are a function of the site's expected traffic. Ideally, you want to spend enough, and no more, allocating resources where they will generate the most benefit. For example, you should not upgrade your Web servers if customers experience most delays in the database server or load balancer. Thus, to maximize your ROI, you must determine when and how to upgrade IT infrastructure. One way to assess IT infrastructure performance is through load testing, which lets you assess how your Web site supports its expected workload by running a specified set of scripts that emulate customer behavior at different load levels. I describe the QoS factors load testing addresses, how to conduct load testing, and how it addresses business needs at several requirement levels.

Abstract: Students, faculty, and researchers have become increasingly comfortable with the Internet, and many of them are interested in using the Web to collect data. Few published studies have investigated the differences between Web-based data and data collected with more traditional methods. In order to investigate these potential differences, two important factors were crossed in this study: whether the data were collected on line or not and whether the data were collected in a group setting at a fixed time or individually at a time of the respondent's choosing. The Visions of Morality scale (Shelton & McAdams, 1990) was used, and the participants were assigned to one of four conditions: in-class Web survey, in-class paper-and-pencil survey; take-home Web survey, and take-home paper-and-pencil survey. No significant differences in scores were found for any condition; however, response rates were affected by the type of survey administered, with the take-home Web-based instrument having the lowest response rate. Therefore, researchers need to be aware that different modes of administration may affect subject attrition and may, therefore, confound investigations of other independent variables.

Abstract: A relevant consequence of the expansion of the web and e-commerce is the growth of the demand of new web sites and web applications As a result, web sites and applications are usually developed without a formalized process, and web pages are directly coded in an incremental way, where new pages are obtained by duplicating existing ones Duplicated web pages, having the same structure and just differing for the data they include, can be considered as clones The identification of clones may reduce the effort devoted to test, maintain and evolve web sites and applications Moreover, clone detection among different web sites aims to detect cases of possible plagiarism In this paper we propose an approach based on similarity metrics, to detect duplicated pages in web sites and applications, implemented with HTML language and ASP technology The proposed approach has been assessed by analyzing several web sites and Web applications The obtained results are reported in the paper with respect to some case studies

Abstract: Professed and suspected members of hate organizations have been involved in a number of highly publicized violent episodes in recent years. It has been suggested that there are connections between web sites operated by extremist organizations and select episodes of violence (including the Littleton, Colorado, school shooting and Benjamin Smith’s 1999 Independence weekend Midwest shooting spree). The proliferation of the internet in the lives of the American public raises new possibilities for this medium’s use by groups and individuals preaching hate and intolerance. This exploratory study examines the web sites operated by a sample of recognized extremist organizations to better understand how the internet is used to transmit ideologies and facilitate communication. Issues explored include the types of resources extremist sites made available to general users, categories of information provided to users, methods of communicating within the group, and mechanisms used to appeal to specific audiences.

Abstract: System and methods are disclosed that provide users of mobile digital devices the opportunity to obtain a permanent record of the service rendered at the mobile device for all modes of web based services, location based services, services originating at the mobile device and not related to the location of the device, services originating via a voice portal, web based services originating via voice communication. Services include location independent services, such as tickets and coupons, and location based services, such as obtaining directions/or and maps to the nearest store or hotel or to a given location, obtaining traffic information, and receiving location-based coupons at the mobile device.

Abstract: Advances in new information technology and the drastic growth of the Internet over the past decade have considerably changed the end-user computing environment. Therefore, it is appropriate to review the measures of user satisfaction with information systems technology, especially in a web-based environment, which accounts for a major component of the end-user computing environment. The objective of this research was to develop and validate an instrument for measuring user satisfaction in a web-based environment. Doll and Torkzadeh (1988) developed an instrument that measured user satisfaction with information systems. This research tested the validity and reliability of the End-user Computing Satisfaction (EUCS) instrument on users of Internet portals. We found that a revised instrument with some changes to the EUCS instrument is still valid in measuring user satisfaction.

Abstract: In this paper, we describe a tool able to perform intelligent analysis of Web browser logs using the information contained in the task model of the application. We show how this approach supports remote usability evaluation of Web sites.

Abstract: Web applications are the legacy software of the future. Developed under tight schedules, with high employee turn over, and in a rapidly evolving environment, these systems are often poorly structured and poorly documented. Maintaining such systems is problematic.This paper presents an approach to recover the architecture of such systems, in order to make maintenance more manageable. Our lightweight approach is flexible and retargetable to the various technologies that are used in developing web applications. The approach extracts the structure of dynamic web applications and shows the interaction between their various components such as databases, distributed objects, and web pages. The recovery process uses a set of specialized extractors to analyze the source code and binaries of web applications. The extracted data is manipulated to reduce the complexity of the architectural diagrams. Developers can use the extracted architecture to gain a better understanding of web applications and to assist in their maintenance.

Abstract: A system and method of the present invention supplies a user of a web-based application with relevant interactive help/training content that corresponds to an object or page of the web-based application that the user's cursor is pointing to. The help/training content may include instructions, policies, procedures, tips and other information that may be dynamically updated and delivered to the user. The relevant help/training content may be displayed in a separate browser window where general information related to a page or pages as well as specific information related to a particular object may be provided.