In this paper we introduce our new software tools – collaborative PowerPoint applications using Instant Message and Meta data as a Web Service – which are suitable in the usage of virtual education. The message-based collaborative PowerPoint applications make it efficient in long distance learning and education. We use the error-tolerant NaradaBrokering messaging service as the message environm...

New technologies and approaches in cell biology research necessitate new venues for information sharing and publication. JCB continues its support of innovation in publishing with the launch of Tools, a new article type for the description of methods and high-throughput datasets, and of a new interface for the JCB DataViewer for hosting high-content screening datasets in their entirety.

T echnological advances have almost always led to accelerated progress in the life sciences. The invention of the light microscope paved the way for the discovery of cells as the building blocks of life, and bacteria as the causes of many infectious diseases. The electron microscope allowed biologists to peer into cells themselves and directly observe viruses. The unravelling of the structure o...

Software organizations manage new software engineering tools through initiatives aimed at improving software processes and products. Each new initiative raises a number of engineering and management questions. As engineers we are feature and system oriented; we tend to focus on what a new tool can be used for. As managers we are effect and process oriented; we concentrate on how to implement th...