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Purpose - This paper seeks to present six key articles from the archives of Internet Research within a research framework, covering infrastructure, organization, commerce, governance, linking, and interface. Design/methodology/approach - The six articles are introduced, summarized, and used to focus attention on each of the core areas of research that impacted the growth of the Internet. Findings - The prism of time is one of the most powerful tools of observation available to scientists and researchers. Palaeontologists think in terms of aeons, archaeologists consider millennia a mere starting-point, even the biologists, chemists, and physicists have centuries of prior research to consider. Internet Research, the Journal, is only 20 years old - and the field only slightly older than that. Yet what decades those have been. Six articles from the early years of Internet Research epitomize much of the innovation, excitement, challenges and vision that would reshape the world. While tremendous advances in technology have been made in the past 20 years, a number of the original issues and challenges remain unresolved. Practical implications - The paper serves to frame the historic articles within a broader research context. Originality/value - The paper provides a conceptual framework for researchers seeking insights into some of the early formative research on the Internet and web. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose — The purpose of this paper is to present a multi-faceted summary and classification of the existing literature in the field of quality of service for e-government and outline the main components of a quality model for e-government services. Design/methodology/approach — Starting with fundamental quality principles the paper examines and analyzes 36 different quality approaches concerning public sector services, e-services in general and more specifically e-government services. Based on the dimensions measured by each approach the paper classifies the approaches and concludes on the basic factors needed for the development of a complete quality model of e-government services. Findings — Based on the classification of literature approaches, the paper provides information about the main components of a quality model that may be used for the continuous monitoring and measuring of public e-services' quality. The classification forms the basis for answering questions that must be addressed by the quality model, such as: What to assess?; Who will perform the assessment? and How the assessment will be done? Practical implications — This model can be used by the management of public organizations in order to measure and monitor the quality of e-services delivered to citizens. Originality/value — The results of the work presented in this paper form the basis for the development of a quality model for e-government services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to discuss the USA's movement to a digital network infrastructure which may be threatened by the unavailability of high-speed network channels to some sources of information. Design/methodology/approach - One reason for unavailability is fear by network intermediaries that they face legal liability for carrying harmful messages. Yet changing the law to require network intermediaries to provide equal access to their services raises First Amendment questions. Findings - A mechanism should be established for providers of network services to inform potential customers of the terms on which they handle traffic. An electronic forum for notices of access policy would be one way to implement this recommendation. Originality/value - Uncertainty about equal access, tort liability and First Amendment privileges adversely affects commercialization of the Internet. Commercialization must begin with acceptance of three goals for digital electronic network policy: encouraging a diversity of information products, preventing suppliers of information content from being foreclosed from access to markets, and allowing persons suffering legal injury, because of information content, to obtain compensation based on fault. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Considers the world-wide emergence of "educational superhighway" policies: government programmes aiming to connect school systems to the Internet - and explores their relevance to education. By examining the key actors and motives behind educationa l Internet initiatives the paper argues that such policies are primarily economically not educationally driven. The implications of this are then considered in the light of increasing global information priorities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the 1994 spring semester, twelve students, enrolled in Columbia University's graduate program in public policy and administration and explored the new phenomenon of civic networking for a workshop in applied public policy analysis. Each workshop is required to be sponsored by a governmental client, which in this case was the US National Commission on Libraries and Information Science. The commission was interested in ascertaining the range of activities sponsored by the networks and in determining their involvement or lack of involvement with local public libraries. Participating in this project were representatives of twenty-four civic networks, who answered telephone queries covering a range of topics dealing with network services, users, goals, funding, governance, technical design, social benefits, government information provision, evaluation, and definition. This paper summarizes the findings of the students' investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Public Advisory Council on Information Highway Policy (PACIHP) project is discussed in terms of activities, difficulties, successes, impact, motivations, and background. This paper is presented in two parts. The first part details how project organizers have attempted to involve the online community in the policy-making process, the techniques used, and the community's and policymakers' response to the initiative. Some preliminary observations about the project's impact are also discussed. The second part presents an overview of the Canadian regulatory and political environment. The specific trends identified have contributed to the authors' concerns, providing some of the motivation for the project. In conclusion, thoughts on the future of computer-mediated communication and its potential for democratizing politics are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The main objective of this study is to develop a framework for: identifying the reasons for using e-commerce; understanding the implications of e-commerce in companies; and implementing and applying e-commerce successfully for improved organizational competitiveness and success. Design/methodology/approach - A structured questionnaire was designed, pre-tested, modified, and used to capture data on e-commerce in Hong Kong. Based on the feedback from the pilot-test, the questionnaire was modified and a final questionnaire was developed and mailed to companies in Hong Kong. In the survey, conducted with Hong Kong companies, the perceived benefits and perceived barriers of e-commerce implementation are discussed. Findings - The conceptual model based on the analysis of literature and some reported case experiences is developed using the current issues that have been highlighted as important e-commerce success factors of implementation. The major factors that influence the application and implementation of e-commerce are: perceived usefulness of web; perceived barriers of the internet for e-commerce; usage of the internet; and perceived benefits of the internet for e-commerce. In addition to this, country-specific factors such as culture, technology competency, government policy, educational level, influence the level of application of e-commerce. Practical implications - The framework is the result of the validation of the theoretical model, together with the conclusions of the empirical analysis conducted in Hong Kong. The empirical analysis supported some of the assumptions of the theoretical model, whereas others were not supported. Based on the feedback received from respondents, the model has been revised to reflect these practical considerations. Originality/value - Little research has been done to address the perceived benefits and potential barriers to e-commerce implementation in Hong Kong. This study is a timely and important one in that examines the current status of e-commerce implementation in Hong Kong. A generic framework is presented with the objective of supporting the application and implementation of the internet for e-commerce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The practical application of enterprise mobilization is the use of a wireless network system and equipment to allow employees to update information on demand. This study employs a case study method, using in-depth interviews of 29 corporate managers and experts to understand the current state of mobilization in the life insurance industry. The study suggests a conceptual framework for mobilization in the life insurance industry, and formulates possible research propositions incorporating a number of variables. The study also suggests a total of ten key success factors for the implementation of mobilization in the life insurance industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Founded on IT diffusion and assimilation theory, a survey study of 54 Canadian travel agencies has allowed us to identify various factors determining the assimilation of electronic commerce by small enterprises in the form of informational, transactional, and strategic implementation of a Web site. The results indicate that informational implementation and transactional implementation are determined by the environmental context (business partners' influence and environmental uncertainty), whereas strategic implementation is determined by the travel agencies' marketing strategy (in terms of distribution and communication), the organizational context (type of ownership, nature of business), and the characteristics of electronic commerce (perceived advantages and technology attributes). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Web retailing is expected to grow at aggressive rates in future years, but lack of trust on the part of potential customers can impede this growth. So, as transactions through the Internet develop and mature, success will largely be dependent on gaining and maintaining this trust. It has been suggested that the quality of the user interface of the Web site is a determinant of the initial establishment of trust. Describes a study where 66 subjects were asked to perform some predefined book purchasing task in a series of sites with varying interface quality. A strong relationship between interface quality and trust was found and some components of user interface quality were more important than others. Discusses the implications for Web site design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By 2016, Botswana aspires to triple its 1994 per capita income and to completely diversify its economic base. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) objectives, as spelt out in the SADC Policy document, emphasise the attainment of enhanc ed development and economic growth, poverty alleviation, and support of the socially disadvantaged through regional integration. Since telecommunications have long been recognised as the engine for economic growth, the aspirations of SADC and Botswana ar e consistent with the SADC Protocol on Transport, Communications, and Metrology, which aims at developing a reliable, efficient, vibrant, consumer-driven telecommunications sector. We examine the focus of the World Bank and the International Telecommunic ations Union, in global telecommunications development. We then discuss the efforts of Botswana and other SADC states in ensuring that they take advantage of the private sector finances to build reliable, sophisticated public telecommunications networks for entry into the Global Information Infrastructure (GII). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The information highway is a management issue with the same importance as information technology applications and information technology management. Deals with some critical issues which arise in the evolution of an information highway age and its alignment with the evolving management perspectives and strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Relies on critical theories of technology and democratic disclosure to construct normative communication principles for the development of the national information infrastructure. Suggests that efforts to privatize the information highway, which are currently underway, undermine the network's long-range potential to encourage citizen-to-citizen discussion of public issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The past year has seen increased effort across the country to expand networking services in rural areas. This note describes the "rural datafication" activities that CICNet, a regional network in the midwest, is currently pursuing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the impact of global information on the national information infrastructure in Africa. Establishment of information networks for full Internet connectivity; Arguments on the promotion of human development in the global information; Benefits of information revolution.