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Remote communities often face a range of problems related to distance, service provision, high costs, and economic uncertainty. Many of these problems are structural and a direct result of their location on a periphery. In recent decades many remote settlements have looked to the tourism sector to supplement existing local economies. Numerous tools variously described in the literature as theories, models, and frameworks have been suggested as approaches for assisting local economies develop tourism. In searching for solutions, it is not unusual for researchers to advocate a standalone theory, model, or framework as a preferred approach. However, this method ignores the complexity of the real world and that solutions usually require a multidimensional approach based on combining various theoretical tools. This paper proposes an open architecture approach that utilizes a number of theories and models that can be selectively and collectively used to assist remote settlements develop a tourism sector. This approach was tested in Cooktown, Australia. One outcome was the identification of a range of deficiencies in the strategies currently used by the destination.

Baumschlager & Eberle's design works can be characterized as typological, regional, tectonic and highly crafted, using both modern and traditional technology. Their work provides a reference for study, the findings of which may bridge the gap between Open Building research and theory on one hand, and the skillful architectural practice on the other. This paper analyzes their conceptual and methodological approaches. It concludes that the quality of architectural work relies on the interpretation of the particular social, cultural and technological conditions of the specific place in which a building is situated. They generated an open plan typology and operable façade systems to deal with changing needs of the users and even any uncertainty in the design and construction process. They conceptually and technically divided a building into five separate systems according to different life spans of materials, to accommodate a diversity and change of needs, and at same time maintain the long lasting and sustainable structure including the façade. The buildings they designed are the product of their unique design management, which aimed at motivating all the people involved in the building process, without undermining the role of the architectural profession.

The purpose of this paper is to present a model of the architectural design process as a set of interlinked conversations, to explain the role of the artifacts of the design process in facilitating these conversations, and to demonstrate alternative perspectives on the architectural process enabled by such a model.

Applying concepts and terms of Pask's Conversation Theory, the conventional architectural process is analyzed in terms of the nature of the conversations and artifacts at play within each phase. The implications of a rethinking of the architectural process in terms of Conversation Theory are extrapolated.

A Conversation Theory perspective on the architectural design process reveals the arbitrariness of the convention of the building as a final and fixed product. The introduction of a new class of artifacts in the design process could support a more sustainable and open approach to architecture.

The conceptualization of the software dimension of a building as an “entailment mesh” preserving and perpetuating the shared concepts constructed through the design process contributes new concepts to the discourse of responsive architecture.

Digital library research has attracted much attention in the most developed, and in a number of developing, countries. While many digital library research projects are funded by government agencies and national and international bodies, some are run by specific academic and research institutions and libraries, either individually or collaboratively. While some digital library projects, such as the ELINOR project in the UK, the first two phases of the eLib (Electronic Libraries) Programme in the UK, and the first phase of DLI (Digital Library Initiative) in the US, are now over, a number of other projects are currently under way in different parts of the world. Beginning with the definitions and characteristics of digital libraries, as proposed by various researchers, this paper provides brief accounts of some major digital library projects that are currently in progress, or are just completed, in different parts of the world. There follows a review of digital library research under sixteen major headings. Literature for this review has been identified through a search on LISA CD‐ROM database, and a Dialog search on library and information science databases, and the resulting output has been supplemented by a scan of the various issues of D‐Lib Magazine and Ariadne, and the websites of various organisations and institutions engaged in digital library research. The review indicates that we have learned a lot through digital library research within a short span of time. However, a number of issues are yet to be resolved. The paper ends with an indication of the research issues that need to be addressed and resolved in the near future in order to bring the digital library from the researcher‘s laboratory to the real life environment.

Examines research work aimed at exploring and developing a new, object‐oriented system design and operation concept, and new system software and hardware design concepts which could be used to design and build an open, flexible and reconfigurable material handling system in a Computer Integrated Manufacturing [CIM] environment that could cope with changes imposed by the market on today’s manufacturing industries. Looks at the design of a reconfigurable and flexible conveyor system and outlines the benefits of using a 3‐D CIM reference model when developing CIM hardware and software control. Concludes that the proposed new conveyor system helps resolves the need for an assembly system which can achieve rapid and flexible responses to meet the challenge set by changing customer requirements.

The aim of this paper is to report results of the impact of the information and communication technology (ICT) platform and telecare services developed by the MonAMI consortium on the quality of life (QOL) of older people in three European communities.

In a three‐month trial, the MonAMI technology was installed in the homes of older people with various needs, in the cities of Stockholm, Sweden; Zaragoza, Spain; and Kosice, Slovakia. Evaluation criteria and instrumentation were developed to assess the effects of the services on users' perceived QOL in the domains of independence, physical health, psychological wellbeing, social networking, and physical environment.

A total of 62 users, with a mean age of 79 years, participated in the trial. Results demonstrate that the MonAMI services had some positive, significant effects on users' QOL. For instance, users with a higher number of disabilities at baseline reported greater confidence in keeping intruders from entering their home compared to users with fewer disabilities (OR=2.51, 0.01 p<0.05). However, overall findings show that healthier, more independent users perceived more benefits from the services compared to users who report more health problems and are less independent.

The complexities of conducting the MonAMI trial led to a small, heterogeneous sample of users over a short time span. This in turn created difficulties in observing the potential effects of the services and achieving significance on some indicators of QOL.

This paper provides quantitative analyses around the impact of telecare services; suggests important directions for further research; and highlights the methodological challenges of evaluating ICT‐based care services in a community setting.

Recommendations for increased resource sharing between libraries have been emerging from a range of sources in recent years. However, the majority of local library management systems currently in use do not inter‐operate, so resources are fragmented and there is no unified access. The situation is complicated by organisational and business issues. This was the basis for the fifth MODELS (Moving to Distributed Environment for Library Services) workshop, which explored more effective management of access and resource sharing, and the development of a supporting systems framework. The focus was on public library developments and cross‐sectoral cooperation. The paper develops some of the key issues, together with discussion of the emerging MODELS Information Architecture.

Ricardo Hitec Ltd is pioneering the development of sensor‐controlled robotic systems suitable for use in a variety of environments including hazardous areas typical of the oil exploration, nuclear, and process industries, or industrial applications where physical limitations prevent operator access.

NDLTD, the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations, supports and encourages the production and archiving of electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs). While many current NDLTD member institutions and consortia have individual collections accessible online, there has until recently been no single mechanism to aggregate all ETDs to provide NDLTD‐wide services (e.g. searching). With the emergence of the Open Archives Initiative (OAI), that has changed. The OAI’s Protocol for Metadata Harvesting is a robust interoperability solution that defines a standard method of exchanging metadata. While working with the OAI to develop and test the metadata harvesting standard, we have set up and actively maintain a central NDLTD metadata collection and multiple user portals. We discuss in this article our experiences in building this distributed digital library based upon the work of the OAI.