EUNIS97, Grenoble (France) 9-11 September 1997
Ref: 060501
Hypermedia Technology for Lecture Courses:
Selection Strategy, Development and Realization
Introduction
The structure of university education expects an unity research and education activities both on the part of professorial teaching composition, and with students. One more distinctive part of university style of education is possible to united education and research from the level of waking students selection to university, the level of unceasing professional improvement a professor teaching and research composition. Naturally that all infrastructure elements, ensuring
operation of university as a whole and a department in particular are created and developed according to united " selection rules".
Information components, on the technological level - Information Computer Network (ICN) - are actively increasing elements of infrastructure of the department. At a rate of university tasks network facility, on source ideologies present itself distributed system, oriented on experimental and computing procedures, added by the database with information reference and search subsystems. This concept was taken for the base created and developed on the function system structure of information education process support, oriented on the extension of spectrum of research facilities applicable when studying of general and special physics discipline and humanitarian cycles.
1. ICN of Physics Department at MSU
On the modern stage of integration of Physics Department at MSU in the world scientific community, currently unceasing telecommunication system development, as at a rate of the department ICN infrastructure and its access to global Internet ensuring functioning to the work of the professors and researchers with international information and computing resources. Under developing should understand not only equipping Physics Department with computers
and software, as well as literate usage, information filling and active use ICN of the department, introducing the modern information technologies to the education and research activity. Thereby, speech goes not on purely technical problems, but on the essential realignment scientifically methodical style of activity professorial teaching and research personnel, on radical change in organizations of cognition process, technologies of acting the scientific studies and educating the students.
High speed performance computer network are in use on Physics Department since 1992 [1,2]. ICN structure is divided into several local groups to internal network, with output on fiber - optics ( 100 Mbps) and coaxial - cable (10 Mbps) links to external channels. Internal network of the department comprises of at present time near 400 computers in local network on IP and more than 500 computers on UUCP.
According to the program of ICN development, passes a connection on fiber optics links of the three remote building as a part of the department ICN. Each of the remote buildings creates an own local network, falling into united. Now all 32 subdivisions of the Physics Department have a direct access to global Internet. For raising network reliability in the nearest future provided creation an ring network structure with transition on the topology 10baseT, using twist pair as a transport media, with the realization of speed 100 Mbps. Under given topology is ensured high intolerance, broad possibilities of checking and control of the network condition. Constantly developing architecture of network is accompanied operative on modern technologies of ICN with phased rearranging the most busy traffic segments of network.
Integration with global Internet at present time based on two MSU links to the Europe: through the NPI of MSU to Germany (1 Mbps) and to France (256 kbps) and one link to US through the central MSU node with the connection to Moscow Backbone.
Fig. 1 Universities centers supported by the MSU overland satellite station.
At January 1994 within the framework of the federal program "Universities of Russia" was established the computer network of Russia universities - RUNnet, which primary task is a maintenance of united information space of Universities of Russia and integrate with world science and education community. Federal Moscow region node of RUNnet are located at MSU. Physics Department is an antenna equipment operator of high speed performance (till 2
Mbps) link with such powerful regional education and scientific centers, as Novosibirsk, Ekaterinburg, Nizjni Novgorod, Perm, Ulianovsk and others (Fig. 1) through the overland satellite station, located on the Physics Department building.
On transport characteristics ICN of Physics Department is divided into: local area network, UUCP network and external links. Local network is based on topologies Ethernet 10Base5 with use as a transport media fine coaxial cable and consists of several segments, united through the Central Department Node. Maximum segment length is 200 m under 30 computers in it. For longer segments use repeaters and 4 subnodes with the routers. Exchange protocol is TCP/IP that allows a natural integrate the ICN infrastructure to the global Internet community.
Fig. 2. Block diagram of training support segment of ICN of Physics Department.
Segment, physically realized information training support on logical solution is an independent subnode of ICN, based on three lecture department auditoriums (300 sits each), consist from Server group", Auditorium group", "Working group" and Multimedia computers classes (Fig. 2). In 1996/97 academic years this segment used as transport media the fine coaxial cable and was built on topologies Ethernet 10Base5. How has shown a practice to its usages, forecaster increase of the used information resources and conducted on separate segments of functioning with experimental devices in the on-line mode, transport parameters and level protection inhere are on the upper level of limit. Is it in the nearest future plans is a reconstruction of segment with transition on the single mode fiber optics link together with use in some parts transport media based on twist pair.
Thereby, developed and realized on Physics Department ICN infrastructure allows to realized the whole spectrum of modern information technology for support research and education activities.
2. Information training subsystem: purposes and tasks
According to accepted concepts, ICN is a natural element of scientific activity, seriously changing distribution of the accents in the planning and processing the physics research. Full-fledged entering a information support in the training process can be reached under the simultaneous presentation both forms, and contents of network resources. Here under the form is understood technology of remote access to hardware and software of physics research centers, databases, information search systems. At the selection "contents" of network resources, proposed attention of students, we are intelligently refused from use or development of large number of our own made simulation programs, having shifted accent on adaptation for the concrete training courses research or technologys programs. Such approach allows when
functioning on the training material not only to explain strictly essence of fundamental physics phenomenas, as well as preview modern tools of investigations in considered area, ledge-fumes to the culture of data gathering and processing.
Fig. 3. Courses of physics cycle with introduced by the information support.
Physics Department URL servers is shown.
Information providing of education in the auditorium regime processing or under remote access to material now is realized on Physics Department on the whole "educational vertical" - from the system of underuniversity teaching secondary school, students to the system of professional training courses for teaching personnel. On the Fig. 3 is presented realized for 1997/98 academic year "tree" of information support, first of all oriented on the physics courses,
technics and technology of modern physics experiment. During 1997/98 academic year on-line mode processing information support consists 32 hours per week for physics profile cycles and 38 hours per week with the account of
mathematical and humanitarian cycles.
3. Information lecture cycles support
Introduction of hypermedia support in lecture cycles in the first step of realization the information providing program of education process is connected with the high efficiency of auditorium work, allowing combine a qualify usage hardware part of the information system, ensuring professional explanation of material and broad envelopment of student auditorium ( near 200 students).
Hypermedia facilities for lectures we were divided on three classes:
Each of these classes stands out a number of categories.
Interactive class:
Illustrative class:
Informative Class:
Selected to each concrete lecture and systematizing material gathered in separate Web directory with the context page and are afforded in common access.
4. Information support out of classes
Continuing an information support of lecture courses is to show - preparing the material, provided to clients (students, schoolboys, teachers) in out-line mode. At the development of formats of presentation of material was taken into account established at present transport media features, typical configurations of computers and modems, which turned to students account. There are in view of not only university links, but, first of all connection from the homes nodes. Addressing to this service client can, depending on parameters its link, use HTTP -, FTP - protocol, or from the September 1997 - mailing-list.
Below is a list of materials for specified a type of service:
All facility are submitted in Russian language.
5. Realization of program of interactive distant access
Development of elements of interactive distant access system is conducted with the emphasis of experimental physics studies priority, technology of gathering and processing the experimental data, operating with search systems, shaping the databases. At present time following five distant service elements are developed:
Thereby, interactive remote service affords for the students full spectrum of exploratory facilities, to which it can appeal both with educational purposes and conducting strictly scientific studies in the laboratory.
6. Unification of presentation of hypermedia resources
As a rule, lecturers developing and selecting their own hypermedia modules. Variety of tasks of different courses, bridge of operative switching between different applications and exhibits has required an entering the coordinated restrictions on types simultaneously (in session of functioning) downloaded applications. These restrictions are basically imposed device features of technical accompanying facilities (LCD- panels and the workstation). Distinctive structure of workstation hardware must have the next configuration:
Functioning the lectures workstations goes under Window's NT or Win95 depending on desires of lecturer. In separate events, define connected by resources, provided transition to X-Windows. Browser - Netscape Navigator or Communicator with the additional programs-helpers.
Base operation system for developers of programs resources and interfaces hardware- programs module is installed by UNIX (Free BSD); for the development the modules of video graphic support is recommended system Windows NT, programs packages for data analysis and graphics results presentation - Mathematica, MathCad, programs packages of graphic processing - Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Premier, Adobe Illustrator. System of digitization
of video signal is built on the base of card-converter MiroVideo.
Selected standards allow us to use an extensive bank of the exploratory program module, practically exclude a barrier when turning from educational using software programs to strictly scientific studies. Standards debugging exhibits is provided on stage of their making by using the united facilities with NFS server, containing specially selected and testing programs packages.
Summary
Designed and pass an annual experimental usage system of information support an education cycle. Main attention of at the point development and introducing a system spared for adaptation technics and technologies modern experimental and basic research to scholastic tasks of university course general and special physics disciplines, in the first place needing for the modern interactive information support. During 1996/97 academic year in lecture courses were approved following elements of information supports:
Generalization of developments for lectures courses is presented in the manner of constantly complemented directories global information resources (hypermedia-directories) and with August 25, 97 will be on the common access. Technical and technological aspects of information providing, established during present elaboration, recommended to introduction for physics and research departments at Universities and secondary Schools of Russia.
URLs of MSU Physics Department WWW- and FTP-servers, affording results of present development to common access:
References
- Sadovnichy V.A., Vasenin V.A., Sandalov A.N., Smeliansky R.L. " Computer Information Network of Moscow State University", Nato meeting on Advanced Information Technology, Moscow, 1994, p. 25.
- Sandalov A.N., Trukhin V.I. " Computer Network of Physics Department at MSU for Science and Education (Present Status). EUNIS'95, Trends in Academic Information Systems in Europe, 6-8 November 1995, Duesseldorf.
Physics Department, Moscow State University,
Moscow, Russia
E-mail: dean@phys.msu.su,
sandalov@phys.msu.su,
suhareva@gateway.phys.msu.su
Copyright EUNIS 1997 Y.E.