Computing word-of-mouth trust relationships in social networks from Semantic Web and Web 2.0 data sources

Social networks can serve as both a rich source of new information and as a filter to identify the information most relevant to our specific needs. In this paper we present a methodology and algorithms that, by exploiting existing Semantic Web and Web2.0 data sources, help individuals identify who in their social network knows what, and who is the most trustworthy source of information on that topic. Our approach improves upon previous work in a number of ways, such as incorporating topic-specific rather than global trust metrics. This is achieved by generating topic experience profiles for each network member, based on data from Revyu and del.icio.us, to indicate who knows what. Identification of the most trustworthy sources is enabled by a rich trust model of information and recommendation seeking in social networks. Reviews and ratings created on Revyu provide source data for algorithms that generate topic expertise and person to person affinity metrics. Combining these metrics, we are implementing a user-oriented application for searching and automated ranking of information sources within social networks

Bridging the Gap Between Traditional Metadata and the Requirements of an Academic SDI for Interdisciplinary Research

Metadata has long been understood as a fundamental component of any Spatial Data Infrastructure, providing information relating to discovery, evaluation and use of datasets and describing their quality. Having good metadata about a dataset is fundamental to using it correctly and to understanding the implications of issues such as missing data or incorrect attribution on the results obtained for any analysis carried out. Traditionally, spatial data was created by expert users (e.g. national mapping agencies), who created metadata for the data. Increasingly, however, data used in spatial analysis comes from multiple sources and could be captured or used by nonexpert users – for example academic researchers ‐ many of whom are from non‐GIS disciplinary backgrounds, not familiar with metadata and perhaps working in geographically dispersed teams. This paper examines the applicability of metadata in this academic context, using a multi‐national coastal/environmental project as a case study. The work to date highlights a number of suggestions for good practice, issues and research questions relevant to Academic SDI, particularly given the increased levels of research data sharing and reuse required by UK and EU funders

The role of social networks in students’ learning experiences

The aim of this research is to investigate the role of social networks in computer science education. The Internet shows great potential for enhancing collaboration between people and the role of social software has become increasingly relevant in recent years. This research focuses on analyzing the role that social networks play in students’ learning experiences. The construction of students’ social networks, the evolution of these networks, and their effects on the students’ learning experience in a university environment are examined

Adapting the 23Things programme for health librarian professional education

In the UK, as elsewhere, continuing professional development is seen to be a necessary professional activity. However resourcing is problematic and funding varies between employing agencies. The 23Things programme has evolved to address these constraints. In particular it reduces the time for staff to be absent from core functions and makes maximum use of peer support. Within a common structure the programme delivers development to personnel at all professional levels. Activities are learner defined and relevant to their personal context. The pace of progress is learner determined. Cambridge University Medical Library (CUML) has designed its own 23Things programme. While conforming to the general model of 23Things, CUML adapted the programme in three ways. 1. to meet the specific learning needs of the library staff 2. to select topics and tasks related to the subject focus of the library 3. to include a new strand of professional development called Follow That.. Follow That... was designed to foster better understanding of each team members role in delivering core services in the library, and to improve the integration and awareness of expertise within a relatively large team This paper will describe the way in which the programme was set up, the selection of tasks and activities, and the pitfalls encountered. Also included will be an overall evaluation of the programme from the perspective of the participants and the programme designers

Web 2.0 and micro-businesses: An exploratory investigation

This is the author's final version of the article. This article is (c) Emerald Group Publishing and permission has been granted for this version to appear here. Emerald does not grant permission for this article to be further copied/distributed or hosted elsewhere without the express permission from Emerald Group Publishing Limited.This article was chosen as a Highly Commended Award Winner at the Emerald Literati Network Awards for Excellence 2013.Purpose – The paper aims to report on an exploratory study into how small businesses use Web 2.0 information and communication technologies (ICT) to work collaboratively with other small businesses. The study had two aims: to investigate the benefits available from the use of Web 2.0 in small business collaborations, and to characterize the different types of such online collaborations. Design/methodology/approach – The research uses a qualitative case study methodology based on semi-structured interviews with the owner-managers of 12 UK-based small companies in the business services sector who are early adopters of Web 2.0 technologies. Findings – Benefits from the use of Web 2.0 are categorized as lifestyle benefits, internal operational efficiency, enhanced capability, external communications and enhanced service offerings. A 2×2 framework is developed to categorize small business collaborations using the dimensions of the basis for inter-organizational collaboration (control vs cooperation) and the level of Web 2.0 ICT use (simple vs sophisticated). Research limitations/implications – A small number of firms of similar size, sector and location were studied, which limits generalizability. Nonetheless, the results offer a pointer to the likely future use of Web 2.0 tools by other small businesses. Practical implications – The research provides evidence of the attraction and potential of Web 2.0 for collaborations between small businesses. Originality/value – The paper is one of the first to report on use of Web 2.0 ICT in collaborative working between small businesses. It will be of interest to those seeking a better understanding of the potential of Web 2.0 in the small business community.WestFocu

Developing front-end Web 2.0 technologies to access services, content and things in the future Internet

The future Internet is expected to be composed of a mesh of interoperable web services accessible from all over the web. This approach has not yet caught on since global user?service interaction is still an open issue. This paper states one vision with regard to next-generation front-end Web 2.0 technology that will enable integrated access to services, contents and things in the future Internet. In this paper, we illustrate how front-ends that wrap traditional services and resources can be tailored to the needs of end users, converting end users into prosumers (creators and consumers of service-based applications). To do this, we propose an architecture that end users without programming skills can use to create front-ends, consult catalogues of resources tailored to their needs, easily integrate and coordinate front-ends and create composite applications to orchestrate services in their back-end. The paper includes a case study illustrating that current user-centred web development tools are at a very early stage of evolution. We provide statistical data on how the proposed architecture improves these tools. This paper is based on research conducted by the Service Front End (SFE) Open Alliance initiative

What Are We Doing with the Website: Transition, Templates, and User Experience in One Special Collections Library

[Excerpt] At the Eberly Family Special Collections Library (SCL), we have found that our website is often the first place a researcher will look to learn about our repository. Our online web presence is a business card, our chance to make a positive first impression. While our library, among others, has devoted time and resources to the development of new access tools and discovery layers, we have learned that our online presence also needs updates, revisions, and improvements. New tools and access points are valuable, but we can also improve existing tools even as we look forward to new developments in access and discovery. Through conscious efforts to include end users’ feedback in our website design decisions, we create more effective online tools. Our website is a crucial component of our efforts to direct users to our collections, and to publicize our services and programs. In this same vein, our end users can contribute to this design partnership through dedicated user experience testing. The SCL experimented with collaborative decision-making with its website committee, as well as with user experience testing in order to support our requests for additional web development work from the Libraries’ Information Technology department (I-Tech). Through this process, our library gained a more holistic understanding of the needs of online special collections and archives users; we also learned how to communicate more effectively between the department who worked with end users (SCL) and the department performing the actual web development work (I-Tech). While development work was limited to working within the mandatory web template, our user experience testing and the efforts of our internal website committee resulted in a better online experience for our stakeholders, based on the feedback we received from usability testing. Although our website is always a work in progress, we feel that we were able to develop practical ways to adjust to a website migration within in a dispersed and hierarchical information technology environment

Education in cartography: what is the status of young people's map-reading skills?

Due to recent technological progress, maps have become more popular than ever before. This is especially true for young people, who interact with these technologies on a daily basis. Therefore, it is essential that these potential map users possess sufficient knowledge and skills to process the content of cartographic products. A user study was conducted during which pupils (aged 11-18years) and geography students (>18years) had to solve a number of cartography questions using topographic maps. The data were analyzed statistically, taking into account a number of potentially influencing factors (user characteristics) on the participants' results: age, gender, youth club membership, knowledge about the area, among others. The results show a rising trend in the pupils' scores with increasing age, which can be explained by education in cartography at school. Geography students perform much better, but no influence of any other user characteristics was detected. For pupils, knowledge about the area and gender might be considered as influencing factors. However, the detected influence of gender depends on the scoring system