2 Tsiknakis M, Katehakis DM, Orphanoudakis SC. An open, component-based information infrastructure for integrated health information networks.

The advent of mobile devices has provided a new direction to the current models of elearning. While current models warrant students to access educational resources using a desktop computer with Internet technology, mobile devices extend the concept to directing educational resources to students" devices and added a new dimension of "anyhow", realizing mobility. This research looks at the tertiary students view point to understand how mobile technology can be utilized in an effective and efficient manner in order to realize educational strategies. Students" opinions were extracted using a focus group discussion and the preliminary results are reported in this paper.

Effective and efficient training is a key factor in determining the success of end user computing (EUC) activities in organisations. This study examines the influences of two application interfaces, namely icons and menus, on training outcomes. Training outcomes were measured in terms of effectiveness, efficiency and perceived ease of use. Effectiveness included the keystrokes used to accomplish tasks, the accuracy of correct keystrokes, backtracks and errors committed. Efficiency included the time taken to accomplish the given tasks. Perceived ease of use rates the ease of the training environment including training materials, operating system, application software and associated resources provided to users. To measure training outcomes, an experiment was conducted with 159 users. The study found that icon interfaces were more efficient and effective for end user training and menu interfaces were more easy to use in the given training environment. The findings appear to indicate that when the tasks become complicated, icons are limited in representing this complexity and menus appear to be providing better solutions for tasks accomplishments. There is a need for training designers to consider application interfaces when designing EUC training programmes.

Traditional technology adoption models identified ‘ease of use’ and ‘usefulness’ as the dominating factors for technology adoption. However, recent studies in healthcare have established that these two factors are not always reliable on their own and other factors may influence technology adoption. To establish the identity of these factors, a mixed method approach was used and data were collected through interviews and a survey. The survey instrument was specifically developed for this study so that it is relevant to the Indian healthcare setting. Authors identified clinical management and technological barriers as the dominant factors influencing the wireless handheld technology adoption in the Indian healthcare environment. The results of this study showed that new technology models will benefit by considering the clinical influences of wireless handheld technology, in addition to known factors. The scope of this study is restricted to wireless handheld devices such as PDAs, smart telephones, and handheld PCs.

The drive to understand and to improve the adoption of self-service, technology-based teaching and dynamic learning environments has created interest in recent years. Owing to the availability, flexibility and convenience of wireless devices, learning/training programs appear to be providing benefits to instructors and students alike. Over the years, wireless technologies have improved communication capabilities, videoconferencing, data management and live discussion forums. The reduction in the cost of hardware and Internet services and the increased capabilities of wireless devices in conjunction with the capabilities of the World Wide Web are popular among students and academics. While universities, Technical and Further Education colleges and other training providers realise the potential role played by wireless technologies in dynamic learning environments, users of those technologies have indicated conflicting outcomes, claiming a failure of wireless technologies in learning environments. What appear to be consistent factors in the success or failure of such technologies is the context in which these applications are used, the specific applications for learning and teaching, infrastructure and change management. The literature indicates that sophisticated applications and features are constantly being developed for the wireless learning environment. Australian institutions are using wireless technologies for specific objectives in educational environments, but the adoption of those technologies is a complex and technical process. This exploratory research reports outcomes of a preliminary discussion with students about the influence of wireless technologies on learning purposes. The prime focus of the discussion was to extract themes that can identify factors that have an impact on the adoption of wireless technologies in learning environments in order to develop an initial conceptual model.