Anyone who spends time on a university campus will notice the number of students working collaboratively on projects. These students often encounter problems finding a place with both space and equipment to support their work. Collaboration usually is also a bit noisier than other coursework. Although the library is often a main meeting place…

Describes how to assemble a functional, cost-effective multimedia production workstation in the Microsoft Windows environment. Recommendations for the selection of various components of the workstation are given, including computer requirements, sound card, video capture card, and authoring system. (LRW)

Explores how one university saved money and avoided wasted time when buying computer desks for dorm rooms. Buying considerations discussed include how the desks were to be used, the space required, desk durability, cable friendly features, and accessory necessity. (GR)

Questionnaires and computerized observations were used to measure purposes for visiting the academic library and uses made on its workstations. The research was done among 1004 users in Israel. The findings show that non-library uses are the major activity on academic library workstations and that libraries with large number of workstations are…

In this comparison, NewMedia lab looks at 10 Pentium II workstations preconfigured for demanding three dimensional and multimedia work with OpenGL cards and fast Ultra SCSI hard drives. Highlights include costs, tests with Photoshop, technical support, and a sidebar that explains Accelerated Graphics Port. (Author/LRW)

The authors have created a software system called the CAVEman, for the visual integration and exploration of heterogeneous anatomical and biomedical data. The CAVEman can be applied for both education and research tasks. The main component of the system is a three-dimensional digital atlas of the adult male human anatomy, structured according to…

Many of the findings from ergonomics research on visual display workstations are relevant to the design of interactive learning stations. This 1993 paper briefly reviews ergonomics research on visual display workstations; specifically, (1) potential health hazards from electromagnetic radiation; (2) musculoskeletal disorders; (3)vision complaints;…

Lists 15 principles for working safely with equipment. Describes phases of an ergonomic hazards program to identify and prevent problems and causes of cumulative trauma disorders in the workplace. (SK)

Running multimedia on a network, often difficult because of the memory and processing power required, is becoming easier thanks to new protocols and products. Those developing network design criteria may wish to consider making use of Fast Ethernet, Asynchronous Transfer Method (ATM), switches, "fat pipes", additional network…

This study found that the provision of ergonomic workstations for 12 older persons with age-related macular degeneration who used low vision devices significantly increased the participants' reading speed and decreased their discomfort when reading.

Explains File Transfer Protocol (FTP), an application software program that allows a user to transfer files from one computer to another. The benefit of the rapid operating speed of FTP is discussed, the use of FTP on microcomputers, minicomputers, and workstations is described, and FTP problems are considered. (four references) (LRW)

Discussion of using document-management software to locate, acquire, and process articles for storage in an academic scholar's personal collection focuses on a study that examined the feasibility of using either DB/TextWorks or PageKeeper. Results favor PageKeeper due to a lower cost, ease of use, and other features. (Author/LRW)

A library building consultant discusses ways in which public libraries can plan for the participation of their libraries in the National Information Infrastructure (NII). With participants ranging from schools to agencies of local government, large volumes of information will be passing through the NII network. Public libraries will be engaged in…

Describes a motor rehabilitation workstation based on a microcomputer and equipped with a set of sensory input devices (touch plate, touch screen, electrodes to acquire electromyographic activity, and force-sensitive foot plates) that allows rehabilitation professionals to assess and treat patients in a multimedia environment. Discusses the…

Presents an overview of the hardware and software required to network CD-ROMs in schools. Topics include network infrastructures, networking software, file server-based systems, CD-ROM servers, vendors of network components, workstations, network utilities, and network management. (LRW)