Setting up a wireless network is easy enough. Place a few access points in strategic areas, then watch the network traffic fly! That approach may hold up reasonably well for a few dozen users, but there's no way it would support a schoolwide 1-to-1 program. Once students take to it with their wireless devices, "they're going to kill it,"…

Information technology (IT) professionals face markedly different kinds of challenges in developing countries from the ones in developed countries. Based on the research literature and our fourteen years of fieldwork in Iringa, Tanzania, we have identified eight groups of technical characteristics of IT work that significantly affect the work of…

Examines major network structures and provides criteria for selecting the best layout. Describes daisy-chain, star, bus, tree, ring, and token ring topologies. Discusses factors to consider when connecting computers, including user needs, printing demands, modem and file sharing, user grouping, the physical plant, and connective equipment. (AEF)

Local area networks (LANs) are systems of computers and peripherals connected together for the purposes of electronic mail and the convenience of sharing information and expensive resources. In planning the design of such a system, the components to consider are hardware, software, transmission media, topology, operating systems, and protocols.…

Examines common CD-ROM networking architectures: via existing operating systems (OS), thin server towers, and dedicated servers. Discusses digital video disc (DVD) and non-CD/DVD optical storage solutions and presents case studies of networks that work. (PEN)

Described are some of the ways in which computers can enter invisibly into people's lives. The social issues that embodied virtuality will engender are discussed. The hardware and software, connected by wires, radio waves, and infrared that will allow this to occur are described. (KR)

Creative applications of computer networks are discussed. Products and services of the future that come from imaginative applications of both channel and computing capacity are described. The topics of entertainment, transactions, and electronic personal surrogates are included. (KR)

Technologies that enhance the ability to create and understand information have led to changes in the traditional legal concepts of property, ownership, originality, privacy, and intellectual freedom. The importance of government addressing such issues and investing in development of a high-capacity computer network is discussed. (KR)

This report presents recommendations on interactive video transmission standards, equipment, room designs, and service plans for member institutions of the Midwestern Higher Education Commission (MHEC) and reviews MHEC's efforts to find and contract for such services with vendors. The report describes the MHEC objective of establishing a dial-up,…

The demands placed on the networks transporting the information and knowledge generated by the increased diversity and sophistication of computational machinery are described. What is needed to support this increased flow, the structures already in place, and what must be built are topics of discussion. (KR)

The changes in the relationship between the computer and user from that of an isolated productivity tool to than of an active collaborator in the acquisition, use, and creation of information, as well as a facilitator of human interaction are discussed. The four paradigms of computing are compared. (KR)

The infrastructure created by fusing computing and communications technologies is described. The effect of this infrastructure on the economy and society of the United States is discussed. The importance of knowing the value and role of information is emphasized. (KR)

The ways in which computer networks are forging new kinds of markets and new ways to manage organizations are described. Discussed are the results of these innovations, which include changes in corporate structure and management style. (KR)

Discussed is how globally networked, easy-to-use computers can enhance learning only within an educational environment that encourages students to question "facts" and seek challenges. The strengths and weaknesses of computers used as amplifiers for learning are described. (KR)

Discussed are how computer networks can affect the nature of work and the relationships between managers and employees. The differences between face-to-face exchanges and electronic interactions are described. (KR)