CONTENTS
UPFRONT - Copyright and Fair Use - at the Top of Many Agendas
FOCUS - "The Ever Changing Nature of Copyright and Fair Use: Where Are We Today?" by Lisa Livingston, UW-Madison
UW NEWS - New ICS 7 Keys VC Book, PK-16 Initiative RFP, TTT
LINES - May News Highlights
ED - Some Online Educators Turn to Bite-sized Instruction, The Senate Moves Closer to a Floor Debate on the Education Bill, Europe Votes $13.3 Billion to Challenge US Supremacy in eLearning, Education/Tech Leaders Join to Set IT Standards,
BIZ/GOV/ED - eLearning Concern: Quality Impatience, Ubiquitous Connectivity from Cisco? Industry/Government/Academia to Join Forces, Virtual Classroom is the Future, LMS Customer Satisfaction Management Results
TECH/TOOLS - Teleporting, the Next Step? Adobe eBook and Higher Ed, Computer Runs at Quantum Light Speed, Playstream EasyLink, Grads Develop Embedded Systems
READS/RESOURCES - Authoring Tools Report Now Available, Report Examines Technology Spending, Online Education Vol. 2, Education Resource Organizations Directory, Locating Conference Proceedings Made Easier
ISSUES/CHALLENGES - Bridging a Digital Gap, Finding Free Internet Access for Those Without, Accessible Web Pages
NEW ON THE LIST - Welcome to New Subscribers FYI - News, Events, Conferences
ENDNOTE - Creator of the World Wide Web is Still Creating! __________________________________________________________________________
NO DESIEN ISSUE IN JUNE - Vacation Time!! Back in July. __________________________________________________________________________
UPFRONT - As distance education continues to grow at a rapid rate, two legal areas that affect both course/program content and instructors are at the top of many of our agendas - Copyright and Fair Use. In this month's FOCUS article, Lisa Livingston, Director of the Instructional Media Development Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, discusses where we are today in the ever changing copyright and fair use environment.

Lisa was recently the coordinator of a successful May 6-9 Conference on Intellectual Property and the Digital Environment. The conference was held in Madison, WI at the Monona Terrace Convention Center and attracted participants from K-12, Higher Education and business, as well as attorneys and librarians from across the country. (Rosemary Lehman) __________________________________________________________________________
FOCUS
"The Ever Changing Nature of Copyright and Fair Use: Where Are We Today?"by Lisa Livingston, UW-Madison

Background of Copyright and Fair Use
Historically, change in the U.S. Copyright Law has mirrored change within our society. The advent, and then rapid growth, of video and other duplication technologies in the 1970s resulted in the first revision to the Copyright Law since 1909. In the late 1980s and the 1990s, the burgeoning use of the Internet, multimedia and other digital technologies energized our economy, changed the way we communicate and do business, but also stirred discourse about fair use, information access and copyright protection among the educational, proprietary and government communities. It was clear then that the same technology that stood to innovate teaching and learning also posed a large threat to copyright holders who feared the wholesale duplication and infringement of their works.

Initiatives like the National Information Infrastructure-Conference on Fair Use (NII-CONFU), the Educational Multimedia Fair Use Guidelines negotiations initiated by the Consortium of College and University Media Centers (CCUMC) and a series town meetings held across the country enabled intellectual property stakeholders to voice their concerns and opinions about information access in the digital environment.

These initiatives resulted in the resolution of a few important issues like the Statement on Use of Copyrighted Computer Programs (Software) in Libraries¹and Congressional adoption in a non-legislative report of the Educational Multimedia Fair Use Guidelines². However, they also highlighted the difficulty of reaching consensus on other significant issues, namely the preservation of fair use in the digital environment and access to copyrighted materials in synchronous and asynchronous distance education. In a move to seek a solution and separate distance education and some fair use issues from the then pending Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998, Congress charged the US Copyright Office with the task of studying these issues and reporting back its findings in six months. In May of 1999, after a holding a series of hearings and meetings with individuals representing both the copyright holder and educational communities, the Copyright Office submitted to Congress its Report on Copyright and Digital Distance Education: http://lcweb.loc.gov/copyright/disted/

The report addressed a numbers of issues that were near and dear to the education community's heart: the application of the Copyright Law in both synchronous and asynchronous distance education, prior copyright initiatives regarding distance education, licensing arrangements and what - if any - changes should be made in the Copyright Law. Further, the Report's 3 recommendations echoed changes in the Law that educators had long hoped for including the need to:

- clarify the meaning of transmission and to expand coverage of rights to the extent technologically necessary
- review the concept of "mediated instruction" particularly as it relates to asynchronous instruction
- eliminate the requirement of a physical classroom
- add safeguards (e.g., technological protection, PIN-required access) to counteract new risks to maintain existing nonprofit standards of eligibility
- expand the categories of works covered by section 110(2)
- require the use of lawful copies
- Amend section 112, the ephemeral recordings exemption to allow for asynchronous distance education under what would be the new section 110(2)

Again, this report was released by the U.S. Copyright Office in mid-1999. No formal efforts Were made to act on its recommendations until just recently.

New TEACH Legislation
On March 7, 2001, Senator Orrin Hatch, chairman of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee introduced S.487, the Technology, Education and Copyright Harmonization Act of 2001 (the TEACH Act). As introduced, the TEACH Act amended the Copyright Law allow for - under certain conditions - the instructional broadcasting of copyrighted works during digital distance education.

The bill was referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee held hearings on March 13, 2001. As was the case during CONFU meetings, the hearing offered intellectual property stakeholders an opportunity to voice their opinions about the copyright law and distance education and the text of the TEACH Act specifically. Following the hearings, individuals representing the copyright holder and education communities met with the intention of reaching consensus on TEACH. On May 17, 2001, with amendment language in place, the TEACH Act was adopted by the Senate Committee on the Judiciary.

So what does TEACH do? It addresses and adopts many of the recommendations made by the Register of Copyrights in the May 1999 Report on Copyright and Digital Distance Education. Specifically, TEACH makes the following revisions to the Copyright Law⁴: "Relating to the exemption of certain performances or displays for educational uses from copyright infringement provisions, to provide that the making of a single copy of such performances or displays is not an infringement, and for other purposes."

Some highlights include
- the copyrighted works broadcast or displayed are lawfully made and acquired.
- the performance or display is made by or at the direction of the instructor as part of regularly scheduled systematic instruction.
- the transmission is made only for students in the class and employees of government bodies as part of their employment
- the transmitting body/institution institutes copyright policies and provides informational material to faculty, students and staff regarding the U.S. Copyright Law.
- in the case of digital transmissions, the transmitting body/institution will technologically prevent transmission beyond the recipients and class session.
- "notwithstanding the provisions of section 106, and without limiting the application of subsection (b), it is not an infringement of copyright for a governmental body or other nonprofit educational institution entitled to transmit a performance or display of a work that is in digital form under section 110(2) to make copies or phonorecords embodying the performance or display to be used for making transmissions authorized under section 110(2), if:

(1) such copies or phonorecords are retained and used solely by the body or institution that made them, and no further copies or phonorecords are reproduced from them, except as authorized under section 110(2);
(2) such copies or phonorecords are used solely for transmissions authorized under section 110(2); and
(3) the body or institution does not intentionally interfere with technological measures used by the copyright owner to protect the work.'.

See the THOMAS website listed under "Related Internet Resources" of this article for the complete text of S.487.

Certainly the new TEACH Act doesn't address all of the education community's fair use and distance education needs. It does, however, go a long way in changing portions of the Copyright Law that many once thought restricted our ability to provide and support quality distance education in the digital environment.

¹ Lehman, Bruce; 1997. The Conference on Fair Use: Report to the Commissioner on the First Phase of the Conference on Fair Use, Appendix K. Washington, DC: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
² The Subcommittee on Courts and Intellectual Property, Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. House of Representatives. September 27, 1996
³ The Subcommittee on Courts and Intellectual Property, Committee on the Judiciary, U.S. House of Representatives. September 27, 1996
⁴ Thomas Legislative Information on the Internet Website:
http://thomas.loc.gov/home/thomas2.html - Search by word or phrase (e.g., Copyright) or by bill number (S. 487)

Related Internet Resources
C.E.T.U.S: The Fair Use of Copyrighted Works (includes a sample permission request letter)
http://www.cetus.org/fairindex.html

C.E.T.U.S: Ownership of New Works at the University: Unbundling Rights & the Pursuit of Higher Learning http://www.cetus.org/ownership.pdf

Copyright Clearance Center (CCC)
http://www.copyright.com/

Fair Use Guidelines for Educational Multimedia
http://www.indiana.edu/~ccumc/mmfairuse.html

FindLaw Internet Legal Resources
http://www.findlaw.com/

Intellectual Property Center
http://www.ipcenter.com/

An Introduction to Copyright, Fair Use, and Intellectual Property: A Tutorial Division of Information Technology, University of Wisconsin-Madison
http://pocahontus.doit.wisc.edu/copyright/copyrighthome.htm

Thomas Legislative Information on the Internet
http://thomas.loc.gov/home/thomas2.html Search by word or phrase (e.g., Copyright) or by bill number (e.g., S. 487)

University of Texas Copyright Tutorial
http://www.lib.utsystem.edu/copyright/

U.S. Copyright Office
http://www.loc.gov/copyright/

World Intellectual Property Organization: About Intellectual Property Link
http://www.wipo.int/about-ip/en/

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UW NEWS

NEW ICS 7 KEYS VC BOOK - A "newly revised and updated" publication, The Essential Videoconferencing Guide: 7 Keys to Success and its Companion Web Site of Resources is now available through Instructional Communications Systems (ICS), University of Wisconsin- Extension. This valuable guide and web site for teaching and training with interactive videoconferencing is an essential and practical resource for faculty, trainers and all members of distance education teams. The guide serves as a foundation for the ICS videoconferencing training sessions, CLICK: http://www.uwex.edu/disted/training and has been widely used statewide and nationally by universities, businesses and governmental agencies, as well as internationally in Mexico, Argentina, the Netherlands, Uruguay, Belgium, Spain and Saudi Arabia. For more information CLICK: http://www.uwex.edu/disted/videoconferencing/guide/ or contact Rosemary Lehman at: 608-262-7524; eMail: lehman@ics.uwex.edu

PK-16 UW SYSTEM INITIATIVE RFP - The PK-16 UW System Initiative Proposals response date is November 15, 2001. The program will fund projects that provide professional development activities for PK-12 teachers on the integration of technology into the curriculum. In 2002-2003, $842,000 will be available on a competitive basis to the UW institutions. Working with the schools, especially on technology issues, is a major priority for UW System. On September 28, 2001, UW System will again sponsor a Grants Dissemination Conference. Look for information to be posted at CLICK: http://www.uwsa.edu/acadaff/grants/grntprg.htm The conference will feature investigators in concurrent presentations who will share grant results, program ideas and outcomes, and tips on preparing effective grant proposals. Additional sessions are scheduled on writing grants for UW System programs and on using on-line tools to locate funding opportunities. For more information CLICK: http://www.uwsa.edu/acadaff/pk16/rfp.htm If you have questions call: 608-263-3680.

TTT - the new issue of Teaching Technology Today is now on the Web at CLICK: http://www.uwsa.edu/olit/ttt/ Articles in this issue include:

* Case It!: Enhancing Case-based Learning in Biology Education Through Computer Simulation and Internet Conferencing, by Mark Bergland, Karen Klyczek, Kim Mogen, Douglas Johnson, Mary Lundeberg and Marlys Nelson, UW-River Falls. CLICK: http://www.uwsa.edu/olit/ttt/bergland.htm

* UW-Madison Engineering Class Studies Functionality of Palm Pilot for Student Users, by Jennifer Smith, TTT Editor, UW System. CLICK: http://www.uwsa.edu/olit/ttt/newman.htm

* Designing Chemistry Applications for the Palm Pilot, by Jeffrey Rosenthal, UW-River Falls. CLICK: http://www.uwsa.edu/olit/ttt/rosentha.htm (from Jennifer Smith, TTT Editor, UW System) __________________________________________________________________________
LINES
May News Highlights

- Several years ago, Internet startups (MP3.com, Napster, EMusic.com, etc.) challenged major music distribution companies. A recent announcement, however, that Vivendi Universal is buying MP3.com shows how radically things have changed. During the past few months a number of the leading music startups have been absorbed, either in whole or in part, by the very labels they set out to challenge. Industry analysts are predicting that the five major record companies could wind up actually consolidating their power in an Internet age that some analysts thought would "shake the labels to their core." This is not the "Internet democratization" that many had hoped for. (New York Times, 22 May 01)

- School and library requests for discounted Internet connections and wiring are now far outstripping the resources available for the eRate program, forcing federal officials to revisit how the funds are distributed. The eRate program is an excellent example of a government program that works. With help from eRate discounts, 98% of US public schools now have Internet connections, according to new statistics issued by the Education Department's National Center for Education Statistics. But only 77% of instructional classrooms have Internet connections, and the number drops to 60% for schools with the highest concentrations of poverty. (New York Times, 15 May 01)

- According to a recent Reuters report, Microsoft has put up most of a $48 million dollar investment in eLearning software maker Blackboard. The new round of financing brings the total raised since launch to $100 million and the company plans to reach profitability in the next year. Other major stakeholders in Blackboard are AOL Time Warner, the Internet Capital Group and Pearson Education, a unit of the media conglomerate Pearson Plc, publisher of the Economist and the Financial Times. For more on this latest funding CLICK: http://biz.yahoo.com/rf/010416/n16494835_2.html

- Tension over ownership of intellectual property remains the focus of debate. Adopting an IP policy, however, won't end discussion. Faculty and institutions still need to agree on the context in which the institution's name/logo may appear on an electronic course, and on how the institution's conflict-of-interest and conflict-of-commitment policies apply to developing online courses, especially when used outside of the institution. Well-known academic institutions are not likely to simply watch while their faculty become free agents, working for competing universities and for, for-profit eLearning businesses. (Wall St. Journal, 10 May 01)

- In a recent statement, Andrew Graham, Master-Elect of Balliol College, noted that the newly founded Oxford Internet Institute will allow academics from a wide variety of disciplines to discuss how the Internet is changing everyday life, as well as the potential harm it may incur. Members plan to develop policy based on their findings. Issues that the institute will focus on include: the borderless nature of the Internet and how it relates to traditional notions of the nation/ state, privacy and law enforcement. The belief is that this new Institute will be the first of its kind for the study of the Internet's societal impact. The cost of the institute will be $22 million, much of which is being funded by the Shirley Foundation. (Reuters, 6 May 01)

- Scientists at the Los Alamos National Research Laboratory in New Mexico are connected around the globe through a scientific paper archive. They post papers targeted to specific areas of research. The papers can then be accessed without charge from 16 worldwide designated sites. The Web archive receives two million hits weekly from institutions outside the United States that include Africa, Iran and Cuba. The 10-year-old archive has become indispensable to foreign research institutions that would otherwise be excluded from the front lines of science. Without this Web archive, geographically isolated and previously undocumented researchers would have virtually no way to contribute to global scientific progress. (New York Times, 1 May 01)

- A conference at Santa Clara University recently explored the impact of technology on our sense of self. "Technology and Us - A Vision for the Future," included participants from the fields of education, business and journalism. According to journalist David Halberstam, Internet interaction methods are eroding important relationships, i.e. family ties and hometown links and fostering disconnection in the workplace. Head of ThirdAge Media, Mary Furlong, was more optimistic, stating that Internet groups help older adults widen their self-identity in the fast-changing world of technology. Editor of the journal "Technology and Culture," John Staudenmaier, remarked that another plus was that Internet users are more wary of the validity of information. (SiliconValley.com, 26 Apr 01)

- Academic programs about the Web, already present at the graduate level, are emerging in undergraduate studies. The courses deal with instruction employing Internet tools, security issues and applications, Web design, eCommerce and the social aspects of the Web. Only a handful of colleges and universities have organized these programs into areas of concentration or degree programs. Head of communications at the U of Illinois-Chicago is confident that his university will soon have a Ph.D. program on Internet studies. (Associated Press, 22 Apr 01)
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ED

SOME ONLINE EDUCATORS TURN TO BITE-SIZED INSTRUCTION - Bit Learning is one of several online education firms promoting a new trend in Web-based learning: the bite-sized lesson. The firm believes that some students do not want to wade through a large amount of course material, much of which they may have already covered in other classes. The firm offers bits of material, what vice president Cheryl Waldrup calls the "granular model," which can be as short as two or three minutes. Students take self-assessment tests before beginning a new course to determine what material they already know and what they need to learn. Columbia University Teachers College psychology professor Deanna Kuhn said the granular model may work well for computer-related subjects but is less than ideal for complex graduate and undergraduate courses. "If we get it down to micrograin - much shorter than a class session - you lose some of the structure," she said. The University of Nebraska at Lincoln offers some bite-sized content, although not for credit. The university's department of agronomy and horticulture provides 15- to 20-minute long online lessons to help students master individual topics. (Chronicle of Higher Education Online, 3 May 01 - Edupage, 7 May 01)

THE SENATE MOVES CLOSER TO A FLOOR DEBATE ON THE EDUCATION BILL - Senate Democratic leaders stated last week that they would be willing to sort out their partisan differences about education financing on the Senate floor, according to the New York Times, a move that clears the way for the education debate to begin. Democratic leader Senator Tom Daschle of South Dakota told the Times he was confident that at least a few Republicans would side with them, and that Democrats were prepared to make their arguments and offer amendments to increase education financing on the floor, if agreement was not reached. Democrats want an $8.8 billion increase in the education budget this year. President Bush has proposed a $2.6 billion increase. Republicans argue that education needs reform rather than more funding. "Money is a part of the answer," majority leader Senator Trent Lott of Mississippi told the Times. "We need to put more funds, both at the local and state level, into education. But we need fundamental reform." Read more on the New York Times website at CLICK: http://www.nytimes.com/2001/04/26/politics/26EDUC.html (E-News From UCEA #42, 2 May 01)

EUROPE VOTES $13.3 BILLION TO CHALLENGE US SUPREMACY IN eLEARNING - The European Commission's announcement in Stockholm last month, that it intends to challenge US supremacy in eLearning, has been followed by adoption of a $13.3 billion "eLearning Action Plan" designed to bootstrap its higher education institutions and public sector workforce education providers to globally competitive status. The three-year plan targets funds to overcome Europe's IT worker shortage, to develop virtual universities, to implement lifelong learning policies and programs in participating countries and to hasten the roll-out of promising educational technologies such as digital television and the wireless campus, among other priorities. An unusual provision of the plan is equality of digital access for all European universities. Disadvantaged institutions are to be given the financial help and technical assistance they need to achieve parity. Those with advanced technology will receive research support. Read the Plan online on the European Commission website CLICK: http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/en/com/cnc/2001/com2001_0172en01.pdf (E-News From UCEA # 42, 2 May 01)

EDUCATION/TECH LEADERS JOIN TO SET IT STANDARDS - Leading education and technology organizations recently announced their support of the Managed Learning System Research and Development Lab, part of a new vendor-neutral program to set the standards for technology in education. While initially funded by Intel, Dell, Microsoft, OneNet, SAP Public Services, Inc., EdVISION and Riverdeep, the lab is now open to sponsorship and use by other education providers and vendors to ensure interoperability. The Managed Learning System (MLS) is a program of JES & Co., a non-profit developer of education technology solutions and integration. Version 1.0 of the MLS spec is the result of more than three years of integration and prototype development, including the deployment of a fully operational system for the state of Oklahoma. With version 1.0 operating in Oklahoma, the MLS Program will focus on soliciting participation from additional technology and education leaders, revising the current specification and publishing a 2.0 version in 2002. For more information, CLICK: http://www.jesandco.org (Syllabus e-News, Resources and Trends, 1 May 01)
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BIZ/GOV/ED

eLEARNING CONCERN: QUALITY IMPATIENCE - According to Elliott Masie of the Masie Institute, people will often say, "But when will eLearning be awesome!" Masie believes that we have to look at the field as an ever improving art and science and to place quality into that context. "Web pages from five years ago are jokes when we look at them today, but they were exciting and business enabling five years ago. We've learned how to use the medium and have begun to understand the human response to technology." In the same way, says Masis, eLearning is getting better and better. We have to consider several things when judging the quality of eLearning: - Don't Just Compare eLearning to the Classroom! Look at what it can do on it's own, where it can reach people that will never get to the classroom and how it can change the process of how we share knowledge. Look at if a telephone call is never as good as seeing and hugging a good friend, yet that does not destroy my perception of its value and quality. - Separate Technology from Methodology: Some of the constraints of eLearning are more in the technology arena, with the new process of sharing media like voice and video over the net. Let's judge quality from a technology perspective and then also judge quality from the experience of learning activities perspective. - Quality May be Cultural and Generational: What one person gets all excited about may be very different than another person of a specific age, position or culture. I love to ask what people really like about eLearning experiences and what do they hope it will "grow into" in the years ahead. (Elliott Masie, TechLearn Trends #204, 30 May 01)

UBIQUITOUS CONNECTIVITY FROM CISCO? - Through its recently acquired Aironet 350, Cisco is developing plans to market a wireless LAN to hospitals, hotels, airlines and educational institutions - enabling the technologies in areas that have previously been restricted. Cisco is also in discussion with developers that would create dual-mode types of devices that would enable the use of 802.11 LAN technology and 3G networks. At present, the University of North Carolina has already installed Cisco's wireless network, while preserving the campus architectural character. Cisco's Long-Reach Ethernet (LRE) technology is also in development. This technology brings broadband to complexes and individual buildings that are otherwise impossible to upgrade. This solution transmits data at high speed over already existing telephone wiring. (InfoWorld.com, 17 May 01)

INDUSTRY/GOVERNMENT/ACADEMIA TO JOIN FORCES - Three federal agencies joined forces with industry and academia for a two-day conference this month to foster teamwork and collaboration to meet a critical need: drawing and retaining young engineers and scientists to the Huntsville area. The first Education and Employment for Technological Excellence in Aviation, Missiles, and Space was held May 15-16 in Huntsville, AL. A key goal of the conference was to encourage research colleges and universities from a four- state area - Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee and Georgia - to partner with industry and government to build a "high-tech corridor" in the region. The event addressed future research and technology needs, and promoted educational opportunities and workforce development initiatives for engineers, scientists and students. To encourage participation by colleges and universities, Marshall, AMCOM, and the Space and Missile Defense Command will jointly offer up to $1 million in grant money. For more information, CLICK: http://www.tabes.org/ (Syllabus e-News, Resources and Trends, 7 May 01)

VIRTUAL CLASSROOM IS THE FUTURE - Businesses and educational institutions in the United Kingdom are looking for ways to implement eLearning, which can mean a substantial reduction in costs. Cisco's classroom programs, for example, cost as much as $1,800 per worker, while Web-based classes are approximately $120 per worker. Dow used to pay about $80 million for health and safety training for its employees; that figure fell by $30 million after the company incorporated Internet and multimedia-based courses in its program. Sony likewise uses eLearning methods to train its repair engineers. Wolverhampton University in the United Kingdom uses its Wolverhampton online learning framework, or Woolf, to offer career development in the West Midlands area. The Internet can magnify the reach of traditional classroom teaching as well - for instance, by connecting students to a Webcast of a live class. (Sunday Times Online, 29 Apr 01 - Edupage, 4 May 01)

LMS CUSTOMER SATISFACTION MANAGEMENT RESULTS - Which Learning Management Systems (LMS) are receiving the highest levels of real-world customer approval? Find out this summer, when the results from the first independent, industry-wide Customer Satisfaction Study are announced. The study will showcase the top customer- pleasing Learning Management Systems providers in terms of: - Overall satisfaction with the vendor - Satisfaction with the product - Satisfaction during pre-sales - Satisfaction during implementation - Satisfaction with support - Confidence that the vendor can meet future needs This report is based on evaluations from more than 200 LMS customers who rated 72 different systems over a four-month time frame Results will be released in an upcoming dispatch. If you would like to be notified when this report is available, CLICK: http://www.brandon-hall.net/lmscss-notify/index.html (News and Notes from brandon-hall.com, 4 May 01) _________________________________________________________________________
TECH/TOOLS

TELEPORTING, THE NEXT STEP? - What will a media room of the future look like? The University of Houston's Allen Teleport Version 2.0 has been developed as a working model. At present it is serving as a lab and multimedia hub for the university's architecture students and professors. Outfitted with up-to-the-minute multimedia computing features and Internet tools, the teleport is designed for the exchange of class lectures and discussion of concepts with academic partners around the globe. Originally developed in 1979 by architect Doug Michels for underwriter E. Rudge Allen, Teleport was initiated for the area of telecommuting. Michels predicted that the system would someday be used in interactive cars or serve as the center of a virtual city. For now, the current system acts as "the perfect laboratory for experimentation, collaboration and playful invention," Michels said. (Futurist, June 01)

ADOBE eBook AND HIGHER ED - A partnership between Adobe Systems, Inc. and a number of higher education institutions will explore both the use and impact of eBooks on the academic environment. Students and educators at the partnering campuses will be able to experience course materials in eBook form (pdf format.) These institutions will receive both Adobe's software and training to create, encrypt and distribute their course materials content, while Adobe will take this opportunity to learn and examine the way in which eBooks are being adopted in academic institutions. Partnering institutions include: MIT Sloan School of Management, Occidental College, Miami-Dade Community College Medical Center Campus, Mills College, Scottsdale Community College, University of Maryland University College, University of Utah Center for Advanced Medical Technologies, Tufts University and University of Wisconsin. For more information, CLICK: http://www.adobe.com.

COMPUTER RUNS AT QUANTUM LIGHT SPEED - Researchers at the U of Rochester have developed a computer that creates interference patterns from light. The computer operates at speeds that allow tasks to be performed nearly instantaneously. According to a recent news release from the American Institute of Physics, this breakthrough could lead to computers that operate even more quickly than quantum computers. Quantum computers are operated by manipulating small physics particles, while conventional computers operate through electrons. (USA Today, 16 May 01)

PLAYSTREAM EASYLINK - A new technology, PlayStream EasyLink, enables users to link from their Web sites to major streaming media formats through a single hyperlink without losing quality of delivery, features or capability. At present, no universal standards exist in the streaming media industry for linking to media files from Web pages or eMail. For that reason, PlayStream decided to develop a technology that eliminates the need for the creation of standards for the major formats - RealNetwork's RealMedia, Microsoft's WindowsMedia and Apple Computer's QuickTime. With PlayStream, users who have an online account can upload their media, review daily updated online media reports and manage their streaming media account online using their Web browser. PlayStream users are also able to stream major formats from a single account and may link any format from their account with a single hyperlink. For more information CLICK: http://www.PlayStream.com

GRADS DEVELOP EMBEDDED SYSTEMS - Graduate students at the University of Southern California recently demonstrated their final projects from their Intelligent Embedded Systems course. Included in the projects were: a Web-based remote control for home entertainment systems and a handheld-based baby monitor, capable of tracking breathing activity. Assistant professor Gaurav Sukhatme, the course instructor, said that embedded systems will one day overtake the desktop model of the computer. "The computer (in the future) will be everything with a microchip in it," he said. He also said that the course gives computer-science students a chance to develop code that must interact with an actual physical object. The projects each use a camera or other form of sensory input device, many of which are connected to Palms or other handheld devices. (Wired News, 28 Apr 01) ___________________________________________________________________________
READS/RESOURCES

AUTHORING TOOLS REPORT NOW AVAILABLE - With hundreds of authoring technologies and tools available today, the task of choosing one for your organization may seem daunting. "Authoring Tool Strategies" is a practical, hands-on report from brandon-hall.com that will help you make critical choices in determining an authoring strategy and selecting the right technology to meet your organization's content needs and goals. Written by Brandon Hall and Bryan Chapman, eLearning Analyst with brandon-hall.com and 18-year instructional design veteran, this report shares the secret to choosing an authoring tool: having a clear understanding about your own technology restrictions, instructional needs and business requirements. For more information CLICK: http://www.brandon-hall.com/auttoolstrat.html (News and Notes from brandon-hall.com, 21 May 01)

REPORT EXAMINES TECHNOLOGY SPENDING - A report from the Lumina Foundation for Education suggests that studies showing higher education technology spending between $2.7 and $4.4 billion per year may not fully capture the total cost of technology at colleges and universities. Based on a survey of state finance officers and experts and institutional representatives on technology financing, "Funding the 'Infostructure:' A Guide to Financing Technology Infrastructure in Higher Education" concludes that, because most colleges and universities lack appropriate plans and policies to finance technology, the amount of money spent on technology in higher education is unknown. Many colleges and universities fund technology as an add-on, not as an ongoing part of institutional planning. Written by Jane Wellman and Ronald Phipps, senior associates at The Institute for Higher Education Policy in Washington, D.C., the report suggests policies to help colleges and universities finance technology, provides a common language to describe the elements of the technology infrastructure and presents innovative funding options to help institutions keep pace with rapidly changing technology. For a complete copy of the report, visit CLICK: http://www.luminafoundation.org/Publications/new agenda.htm Select the link for "Funding the 'Infostructure:' A Guide to Financing Technology Infrastructure in Higher Education." (Syllabus e-News, Resources and Trends, 16 May 01)

ONLINE EDUCATION, VOL. 2 - This volume makes public the best of the proceedings from the 2000 Sloan Summer Workshop on Asynchronous Education Online. The workshop brought together more than 30 practitioners and administrators working at online programs funded by the Sloan Foundation. Papers report on benchmarking procedures and policies at leading distance learning academic institutions such as Penn State and the University of Maryland University College. The section on Faculty Satisfaction draws conclusions from surveys with faculty at several programs and provides insight on how to design faculty incentive programs. The section on Cost Effectiveness outlines how to measure cost effectiveness and allocate funds for online learning initiatives. The section on Learning Effectiveness helps answer the question of whether or not people learn as well online as they do on campus. This is a must-read resource for anyone serious about designing and implementing an asynchronous learning program in line with larger institutional goals (ISBN#0-9677741-1-X). For more information CLICK: http://www.scole.olin-babson.org (Virtual University Gazette, May 01)

EDUCATION RESOURCE ORGANIZATIONS DIRECTORY - Education Resource Organizations Directory (EROD) is a "metasite" provided by the U.S. Department of Education at no cost to users. The site indexes over 4,000 sites that offer information and assistance on a wide range of education-related topics. Resources are arranged and searchable by state and region, type of organization, title, subject and description. The site also includes a form to submit suggestions for additions to the directory (ISSN 1521- 92750). EROD is available at CLICK: http://www.ed.gov/Programs/EROD/ (CIT INFOBITS #34, Apr 01)

LOCATING CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS MADE EASIER - It is important for purposes of research, but often difficult, to locate published conference proceedings. To assist with this problem, the National Standards Information Organization (NISO) has published a standard on "Title Pages for Conference Publications" (ANSI/NISO Z39.82-2001). NISO is the only US group accredited by the American National Standards Institute to develop and promote technical standards for use in information delivery services. With the standard, publishers and editors will better be able to prepare uniform title pages, making it easier for users to both find and cite conference proceedings. The standard applies to all disciplines, all conferences and all formats (e.g. printed, video and Web) and to published conference proceedings in various manifestations (e.g. papers, abstracts and summaries) and to all languages. A copy of the standard is available in pdf format at CLICK: http://www.techstreet.com/cgi-bin/pdf/free/283165/Z39-82.pdf
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ISSUES/CHALLENGES

BRIDGING A DIGITAL GAP - The University of Pennsylvania's Center for Community Partnerships has launched a program to close the digital divide in the West Philadelphia area. A $171,000 federal grant is helping to fund the three-year project, which will place university students in West Philadelphia schools and churches to provide lessons on computers and technology. The program will also provide training that can be used to seek tech-related jobs and will recycle old university computers. "The idea is to combine academics with real, practical community services," said Paul Vinelli, a University of Pennsylvania graduate who is the project's coordinator. The program has drawn student volunteers from work-study programs, and a group of students is taking part through the AmeriCorps program. The University of Pennsylvania is one of six universities to receive a grant from the Corporation for National Service. (Philadelphia Inquirer, 3 May 01 - Edupage, 4 May 01)

FINDING FREE INTERNET ACCESS FOR THOSE WITHOUT - Although 98% of public schools in the US are wired for Internet connections, access for many low-income students disappears when school ends. To help close this gap, a group of nonprofit organizations is working to keep those students connected during the summer. These organizations are building and distributing a directory - in both English and Spanish - of more than 20,000 locations nationwide that offer free Internet access. The ConnectNet database, launched in late March, is zip code searchable and and delivers detailed maps showing the locations of free access points in a given area. Its Spanish language counterpart Conectado, also operates a toll-free telephone number: 866-583-1234. The Kaiser Family Foundation is promoting the effort through a series of television advertisements, directed at teenagers, that will air in English and Spanish throughout the summer. America Online's AOL@School is working with ConnectNet providing operators to staff the toll free number and is creating a virtual summer camp that will include free teacher training on how to make full use of the Internet. The AOL Time Warner Foundation has made "a big grassroots push to make sure every place that touches kids knows about this," said foundation Vice President B. Keith Fulton. "Anybody who has technology centers is reaching out. Really for the kids we're trying to reach, we're going through TV and other popular community centers." For the full article CLICK: http://www.digitaldividenetwork.org/content/stories/index.cfm?key=136

ACCESSIBLE WEB PAGES - Many organizations are beginning to mandate or recommend that their web pages, including web course materials, follow accessibility guidelines to increase access to people with disabilities and to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. For example, the University of Wisconsin-Madison policy endorses the web accessibility guidelines of the World Wide Web Consortium, known as W3C. Several months ago the university stated that all web pages published or hosted by the university must comply with the W3C guidelines by January 2002. Such guidelines can also benefit others by improving ease of navigation, faster download time and alternative media formats. If you're looking for accessibility resources, here are some to check out: -

World Wide Web Consortium's Web Accessibility Initiative, CLICK:
http://www.w3.org/WAI/

- Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0, CLICK:
http://www.w3.org/TR/WAI-WEBCONTENT/
- Summary of webpage accessibility checkpoints in table format, CLICK:

http://www.w3.org/TR/WAI-WEBCONTENT/full-checklist.html

- Federal IT Accessibility Initiative (Section 508) CLICK:
http://www.section508.gov/

- Bobby, a free tool that analyzes webpages for accessibility, CLICK:
http://www.cast.org/bobby/

- National Library of Medicine and National Institute on Aging, CLICK:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/checklist.pdf (from Bruce Dewey, UW-Madison DE Certificate Program) _________________________________________________________________________
NEW ON THE LIST - Welcome to new subscribers:
Betty Sanders, Paul Till, Jim Scalise, Emma Liu, I RC, Wayne Lamble, Kelley Bernard, Donna Austin, Juliette Leary, Peter Evans, Bobby Fenner, Anna Namhel, Mary Campbell, Aaron Simpson, Luan Feranni, Merideth Nicholson, Dan Stephanopolis, Terry Ann Wilson, Tom Lynons Stuart Lesconelli and Guillermo Palavecino, __________________________________________________________________________
FYI - News, Events, Conferences

* FUTURE OF FAIR USE - June 1, 2001 is the early registration deadline for the "Future of Fair Use" seminar, sponsored by The Center for Intellectual Property and Copyright at University of Maryland University College (UMUC) on June 15. You may register online (see URL below) or register by phone: 301-985-6426 or 1-800-283-6832, extension 6426. For complete information and to register online CLICK: http://www.umuc.edu/distance/odell/cip/workshop_6-01/

* 2001 A DIGITAL ODYSSEY - the 19th Annual Conference of the National University Telecommunications Network (NUTN) is scheduled for June 16-19, 2001 at the Denver Marriott City Center Hotel, Denver CO Register for this 4-day event at CLICK: http://www.odu.edu/dl/nutn

* THE 17th ANNUAL DL CONFERENCE - This conference on Distance Teaching & Learning is scheduled for August 8-10, 2001 at the Marriott Madison West in Madison, WI. Come join in the dialogue at this leading national/international forum. The conference offers nearly 140 presentations, keynotes and workshops, panel discussions and information sessions. New this year are two all-day advanced seminars on Wednesday and an emerging technologies panel of Internet2 experts with live "virtual presentations" via this network. Register now at CLICK: http://www.uwex.edu/disted/conference/registration.htm

* THE WSES INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE - will be held in Malta, September 1-6, 2001 at the New Dolmen Resort Hotel. Papers are requested in the areas of: Speech, Signal and Image Processing; Multimedia, Internet and Video Technologies; Simulation, Robotics, Distance Learning and Intelligent Communications Systems. Deadline for papers is June 30, 2001. For more information CLICK: http://www.worldses.org/wses/conferences/malta

* THE BEIJING CHINA INTERNATIONAL HI-TECH CONVENTION - will take place Sept. 21-23, 2001 ( registration deadline is August 20, 2001 ) at the Beijing, China International Hi-Tech Convention and Exhibition Center. It is organized by the China International Enterprise Cooperative Corp., Ministry of Education, PRC and Ministry of Foreign Trade & Economic Corp., PRC and sponsored by over 20 organizations and administrations. In the past four events, there were 50,000 visitors and 4,000 companies. It is estimated that over 5,000 companies and 65,000 visitors will participate in 2001. For details about registration contact: SUCG, 730 Mill Circle, Alpharetta, GA 30022. call: 678-393-1848 or 1846; fax: 678-393-1847; or eMail: sucg@att.net, Attention: Mr. Lin

* GWETC 2001 - The 2001 Governor's Wisconsin Educational Technology Conference (GWETC 2001) will be held October 29-31 at the KI Center in Green Bay, WI. Mark your calendars now and visit the Web site at CLICK: http://www.gwetc.org Information about keynote speakers and special events will be posted in the July DESIEN issue.
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ENDNOTE CREATOR OF THE WWW IS STILL CREATING! Remember Tim Berners-Lee? Tim was the creator of the World Wide Web. According to Tim, the next big thing will be called "The Semantic Web," an extension or enhancement of the Web to provide more "intelligent" responses. He talks more about this interesting concept in a fascinating article in Scientific American. You can find the article at CLICK: http://www.TeachingOntheNet.org/redirect.cfm?site=9 When Tim created the Web ten years ago, he worked for a nonprofit organization. At the time, he had two choices: 1) he could charge for the Web and become a billionaire, but not everyone would have access to the Web; or 2) he could make the Web free, not become rich, but everyone would have access to it. He chose to make it free. To find out more about Tim, read his book, Weaving the Web. This book is available at: http://www.TeachingOntheNet.org/redirect.cfm?site=11 Tim Berners-Lee and others at the World Wide Web Consortium are also working on a variation of XML for math symbols. Check this out at CLICK: http://www.TeachingOntheNet.org/redirect.cfm?site=10 (TeachingOntheNet, 24 May 01, elern@lern.org) Tim continues to create! ____________________________________________________________________________
NO DESIEN ISSUE IN JUNE - Vacation Time!! Back in July. ____________________________________________________________________________
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