Nick Ryan, Jason Pascoe and David Morse
N.S.Ryan@ukc.ac.uk, JasonPascoe@acm.org D.R.Morse@ukc.ac.uk
Computing Laboratory, University of Kent at Canterbury, Canterbury, Kent, CT2 7NF, UK
Wireless and infra-red networking clearly offer considerable scope for increasing the flexibility of computer use in higher education. Many thoughts on such potential developments have been based on a view of the future in which the majority of users are equipped with laptops that can provide a portable equivalent of our current desktop environments. Users can move between areas covered by infra-red or wireless access points without having to wait for fixed terminal to become available.
We approach mobility from a different perspective. There are many situations in which a complete desktop environment is not needed, and users might be better served by network access from handheld systems. Examples include people in a meeting conducting queries on teaching and administrative databases, or note-taking and access to reading lists whilst browsing library shelves. We might take laptops to meetings, but the latter is an inherently mobile activity for which bulky laptops and keyboard entry are poorly suited.
However, our main interests stretch well beyond the campus boundary. The paper will present a brief summary of work on the JTAP funded Mobile Computing in a Fieldwork Environment project. In this, we have been investigating the application of mobile and context-aware computing methods to fieldwork activities, usually far away from the campus. Whilst we have achieved a great deal with stand-alone systems, we are increasingly aware of a need for both local ad hoc field networking and communication with central systems back at base.
We have identified a need, but are less certain of appropriate solutions. The paper will raise more questions than we can answer, but this is perhaps inevitable, given that our primary intention is to draw attention to potential academic computing requirements beyond the campus.
PowerPoint97 slides in .ppt format.