Bulletin of Applied Computing and Information Technology

	03:01
	May 2005

Bulletin of Applied Computing and Information Technology.
Vol 3, Issue 1 (May 2005).
ISSN 1176-4120.

Editorial

ICT: Multiple Perspectives

Dr Christo Potgieter ( itbcp@wintec.ac.nz )  

Every person reading this journal is an eager advocate for the cause of Information and Communications Technology (ICT). We are passionate about the abilities of IT to serve mankind in business, factories, schools and homes. We just love seeing how computers are used, knowing that we also understand plentiful how it works.

Views

ICT Research: Paradigms and Challenges Ahead

Dr John Hughes ( john.hughes@uts.edu.au )  

For a student embarking on a research career in computer and information sciences the world must appear a very daunting place. The orderliness that existed in the past seems very distant. Back in 1976, Peter Wegner asserted that “information as the central idea of computer science is both scientifically and sociologically suggestive”.

Articles

Embedding Multiple Constraints into Apriori Algorithm

Russel Pears & Sangeetha Kutty ( rpears@aut.ac.nz )

To improve the efficiency of frequent pattern mining recent studies have focused on a constraint-based approach,suggesting a number of techniques to incorporate constraints into mining algorithms.This paper proposes a novel approach to combining constraints known as "tough" and embedding them into Apriori (a popular mining algorithm).

Integrating RFID Technology into a Drug Administration System

Bryan Houliston ( bryhou80@aut.ac.nz )

The research work described in this paper investigates whether RFID technology can functionally replace barcodes in the Injectable Drug Administration and Automated Anaesthetic Record System (IDAS) system.

E-Commerce Website Design: Keeping It Ximple

Michel Jouvernaux ( Michel.Jouvernaux@wintec.ac.nz )

XML was carved out of SGML as a basic building block of the “Semantic Web” of tomorrow. A radical change in the techniques underlying web site design might be needed. This paper demonstrates that for the small to medium size e-Commerce venture, XML may well be the future with a simple 2 tier architecture.

Insurance Sites Capability Evaluation

Vien Coelho ( coelhovl@hotmail.com )

Recent research shows that insurance companies fail to meet the expectations of their site visitors.This paper examines the current situation of the New Zealand online insurance market by evaluating web sites using a pre-defined web site evaluation model tailored to the insurance industry in New Zealand.

Microsoft Excel: 21st Century Abacus or End-User Development Tool?

Roanne R. Birch ( roanne.birch@aut.ac.nz )

End-user development of Information systems is of interest to end-users, business organizations, academics, students, educators and trainers. Microsoft Excel is being widely used in organizations by business professionals. A study is proposed, with the aim to find out more details about the use of Microsoft Excel in an organizational context.

The Impacts of Flexible Facilitation in Collaborative Learning

Nant Jiramahapoka ( nanjir93@aut.ac.nz )

People who work together for a common task need to work in harmony. The facilitator plays an important role to provide necessary rules and effective resources. This study aims to investigate the impact of process facilitation on the decision outcomes of Internet-based group work.

Efficacy of Pair Programming in Completing Programming Tasks

Praveen Sadasivan ( Prasad78@aut.ac.nz )

This report documents an experiment conducted at Auckland University of Technology (AUT), involving eight students completing a Collaborative Computing course, and touches on the personal experience of the researcher who was also a participant in the experiment. The results of this study are mostly in line with similar prior work.

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Reports

Free Computing Courses in New Zealand: A Report Summary

Trish Brimblecombe ( t.brimblecombe@whitireia.ac.nz )In New Zealand, free courses in basic computer training have been available since 2000. The summary of the full report published here presents the major findings which might be useful forboth educational institutions and government departments and agencies. For access to the full report, contact the author.

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Correspondence

From the Editors' Mailbag

Krassie Petrova & Michael Verhaart ( krassie.petrova@aut.ac.nz )

In our previous issue of the Bulletin (BACIT Vol 2, Issue 3) we published an article by William Harvey, entitled "Flight Simulation Scenery Technologies".

Editorial Board