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Describes a networked virtual environment, a type of virtual reality most commonly known as a “MUD” or a “MOO”, which was used at an internationally‐attended scientific conference held on the Internet. Interviews with conference attendees indicated enthusiasm for the effectiveness of the medium, and revealed how the virtual environment can be modified to improve conferencing efficacy. Such alterations included: novel input‐output control management; automation of conference registration; control of anonymous or guest connections; simplification of conference center topography; an improved methodology for recording discussion sessions; use of moderated rooms to compensate for network lag; and providing buffers to update late arriving participants. Concludes that networked virtual environments provide an inexpensive means for effective international conferencing on the Internet.

The Internet environment, with its packet‐switched network and lack of resource reservation mechanisms, has made the delivery of low bit‐rate real‐time communication services particularly difficult and challenging. The high potential transmission delay and data packet loss under varying network conditions will lead to unpleasant and unintelligible audio and jerky video play‐out. The Internet TCP/IP protocol suite can be extended with new mechanisms in an attempt to tackle such problems. In this research, an integrated transmission mechanism that incorporates a number of existing techniques to enhance the quality and deliver “acceptable” real‐time services is proposed. These techniques include the use of data compression, data buffering, dynamic rate control, packet lost replacement, silence deletion and virtual video play‐out mechanism. The proposed transmission mechanism is designed as a generic communication system so that it can be used in different systems and conditions. This approach has been successfully implemented and demonstrated using three separate systems that include the Internet Phone, WebVideo and video‐conferencing tool.

Contends, contrary to some media portrayals of the Internet as a surfer’s playground without signposts, that the Internet does offer some direction to serious researchers seeking operations and production management information. Attempts to decipher the Internet as a medium for information gathering and to explain how it may be used as a resource for those in the operations management field. Aims to assist the Internet novice to find his or her point of embarkation and to introduce the more experienced user to new sources of useful data. Considers how the Internet may be used to promote the operations and production management discipline, and suggests ways in which both academics and practising managers may participate and so benefit.

The growth in the use of networked technologies provides educators with mechanisms to add value to learning experiences where learners and educators are geographically distributed. Increasingly, placements are used within the more vocational disciplines to provide students with a reflective learning experience within the context of the work environment. Such remote learning can be supported through the use of networked technology, enabling a high degree of interactivity and helping learners to enhance their learning styles. A case study is presented that considers the design and implementation of such networked support, focusing on the learner’s evaluation of this experience. The results from this study identify that networked technologies, such as audio conferencing and Web‐based support, have a beneficial role in the learning experience, and that considerable advantages can be derived from their use for placement‐based learners.

This paper describes research into use of Online Remote Construction Management (ORCM) on road construction projects, from the perspective of an industry representative in the research project. The aim of ORCM is to use advanced electronic communication technologies to enhance online real‐time communication between the parties to a construction project, and thus improve the project delivery process. It aims to maximize the use of time of personnel and reduce paperwork. A typical trial construction project in the Queensland Department of Main Roads, with which the author was employed at the time of writing this paper, is described. This site used a Web‐based system to manage communications. Observed benefits from using ORCM and issues in implementation are discussed. While the process is promising, there needs to be additional review into the attendant risks and cultural issues, and the ways in which these matters are addressed.

To highlight India's efforts in raising literacy levels through distance education (DE) by utilizing various technological choices, including information technology (IT), available in the country.

This article discusses the education scenario, emergence of correspondence courses/open universities, government initiatives for IT enablement of education and DE, participating institutions and technology choices available in India. It examines the preparedness of participating institutions, status of networks facilitating virtual classrooms, technological solutions, educational channels, etc., for the spreading of DE in India.

The paper strongly suggests the need for digital libraries (DLs) and their integration, and the initiation of INTEND‐OPENET as an exclusive network for DE.

The needed policy guidelines to use IT for education are now in place in India. The backbone for developing DLs already exists. Declining prices of PCs and networking devices makes it economically feasible to use IT to deliver quality education to previously unreachable populations and to enhance the quality of education.

This paper offers practical solutions for the spread of DE for policy makers and implementers, participating institutions and distance learners.

Applications offered to end‐users as value‐added services play a vital role in the success of Internet telephony service providers. Today’s standard frameworks for developing them have several shortcomings that motivate the need for novel frameworks. Web services are an emerging paradigm for program‐to‐program interactions over the Internet. This paradigm is a prime candidate for application development in Internet Telephony because it may aid in addressing the drawbacks of today’s standard frameworks. This paper presents a case study that gives insights in the suitability of Web services as a standard framework for the development of conferencing applications in Internet Telephony. The case study includes the definition and the implementation of a novel Web service for conferencing, the implementation of the conference server in a SIP environment, the development of several conferencing applications (including a game), and performance evaluation. Based on this case study, we conclude that Web services are very promising for conferencing application development in Internet Telephony, especially as the performance can be significantly improved with the emerging techniques that are briefly discussed in the paper.

This article presents opportunities for the effective utilization of the Internet with regard to the banking industry. It is shown that the appropriate application of today’s cutting‐edge technology can lead to a momentous competitive advantage for banks. This is illustrated by a scenario focussing on the potentials of “Advising via Internet”.