IT Evaluation Research Articles

A SIMPLIFIED APPROACH TO LIMING AND ITS EVALUATION

Lime requirement is based on determination of soil acidity and CEC in a representative sample of soil from the land profile (regularly from topsoil). Acidity is measured in a suspension of soil and 0.2 M KCl solution at a 1:1 ratio (w/v); CEC determination is a part of the multinutrient soil test KVK-UF. A desired range of soil pH values is defined in relation to CEC value (mmol+ kg−1). Desired pH values of soil are calculated from these relations: pH(lower)=2.9×CEC0.14, pH(upper)=3×CEC0.146. A difference between the defined and calculated desired pH is used as the basis for determining lime requirement (CaCO3 t ha−1), and is dependent upon soil buffering capacity, which is closely related to CEC. Information on the depth of sampled profile, bulk density of soil, and skeleton proportion (particles>2 mm) is used for further specification of lime requirement. Recommendation of a maximum single lime application rate related to CEC is also a part of the liming model. To evaluate the liming model function 15-week incubation experiments with differentiated rates of CaCO3 and CaO (equivalent to 1.5 to 9.0 t CaCO3 ha−1) were carried out on seven soils with naturally low pH. The goal of these observations was to determine changes in soil acidity (pH-H2O, 0.01 M CaCl2, 0.2 M KCl and 1 M KCl), concentrations of extractable aluminum, accumulation of mineral nitrogen forms (NH4 + and NO3 −) and organic solutes in soil, and availability of nutrients from the soil by means of plant tissue analyses (barley and mustard). The liming rates providing for the lower desired pH value were fully sufficient with respect to the appropriate depression of aluminum. Liming, also considerably decreased manganese availability. There was a large depression of boron availability in all soils when low liming doses below the lower pH value were applied. Liming rates that exceeded the desired pH range were related to an increase in nitrification, which was especially high in soils with the extremely low starting pH value. The experimental results also indicate the usefulness of information on the value of Mn soil test and the boron status in the soil in order to specify the liming rate.

Editorial

Editorial

From the Editors

Welcome to this second issue of Volume 33. This issue marks the inaugural debut of our technical editor, Gina Green, who has done a marvelous job taking the manuscripts from the point of acceptance to the point of publication. A special thanks is in order for Gina and also for Carrolle Kamperman, who provided Gina some welcome assistance. In addition, Laurie Schatzberg helped make the transition as smooth as possible. Preparing a manuscript for publication is quite an arduous task that requires a keen attention to details. We appreciate the efforts of Gina, Carrolle and Laurie to bring this issue together.We are pleased to include three papers, each one of which offers compelling data on an important IT topic, including IT Evaluation, IT Sourcing, and IT Service Quality. The papers offer an international perspective, with one based upon a survey of IT executives predominantly from the United Kingdom, one based upon a case study of a Canadian firm, and one based upon survey responses from IT users in the United States.The first paper, "Measuring Organizational Effectiveness: An Overview and Update of Senior Management Perspectives," by Seddon, Graeser, and Willcocks, provides a scintillating look at the methods currently used by organizations to evaluate IT projects, to evaluate a specific IT, and to evaluate the IT function. Using responses from senior IT managers in the Europe and the US, the authors examine ten questions related to IT evaluation. This paper should be of interest to both researchers and practitioners. In addition, for those who frequently face such questions from MBA students as "how should an IT application be evaluated?" this paper is a gem. One of the insights of the paper, is that the increased use of outsourcing has led to increased rigor of IT evaluation. This leads us nicely to the second paper in this issue.In "A Resource-Based Analysis of IT Sourcing," Roy and Aubert examine the relationship between the sourcing mode for IS, the value of the resources used in systems development activities, and the presence of the resources within the firm. The authors provide a framework based on the resource-based theory of the firm that helps explain when outsourcing is a desirable option versus when internal governance or partnerships are appropriate. The authors describe the case of Desjardins-Laurentian. The company tried two suppliers, experienced two failures, and eventually settled on internal governance and later, a partnership with a third supplie.The third paper in this issue, "Sources of Dissatisfaction in End-User Support: An Empirical Study" by Shaw, DeLone, and Niederman, explores the end-user support factors that correlate with user satisfaction. A unique aspect of this paper is that it divides end-users into various groups and offers a separate analysis of satisfaction for each group. Measuring service quality as the gap between perceived importance and performance for each support factor, the authors found that service quality gaps and user satisfaction vary across groups. The groups they considered were: faculty, non-IS staff, and students. Knowledge of the inter-relationships among group membership and factors influencing satisfaction can be useful in allocation decisions in the area of end-user support.

Measuring organizational IS effectiveness

This paper reports the views of 80 senior IT managers about IT evaluation approaches, and the benefits that IT provides for their organizations. Their views were obtained through a survey mailed to medium to large organizations in both Europe and the US. The survey sought answers to three questions: How does the senior IT manager's organization assess the value of its (1) overall IT investment portfolio? (2) individual IT projects and applications? (3) IT function? Questions for the survey were based on a thorough review of prior research into IT evaluation. The paper provides a summary of that prior work and compares current findings to prior research. Consistent with prior research, the paper concludes that many firms do not conduct rigorous evaluations of all their IT investments, and offers a tentative explanation of why it might be rational to skip formal evaluations in some circumstances. It also posits five push factors to explain occasions when more lasting improvements in IT evaluation practice have occurred.

Host specificity of the cassava green mite pathogen Neozygites floridana

Tests were conducted on the hostspecificity of a Brazilian isolate of thefungus Neozygites floridana, a potentialbiological control agent for the cassava greenmite, Mononychellus tanajoa, in Africa.Five insect and two mite species, mostly fromthe cassava agroecosystem, were evaluated forsusceptibility to N. floridana, namelyEuseius concordis, E. citrifolius, Phenacoccus herreni, Stethorus sp., Aleurothrixus aepim, Apoanagyrusdiversicornis, and Bombyx mori.Individuals of each species were exposed tocapilliconidia (the infective stage of thefungus). None of the tested individuals wasfound with hyphal bodies (the vegetative stageof the fungus), whereas 73 to 94% of thecassava green mites in the controls becameinfected. Non-germinated capilliconidia were,however, found attached to several individualsin most species. N. floridana appears tobe safe for exportation. Further evaluation ofits performance against M. tanajoa inAfrica is therefore desirable.

Development and Testing of an Instrument for Measuring the User Evaluations of Information Technology in Health Care

We use task-technology-fit model to develop an instrument for obtaining user evaluations of IT in health care. Our results indicate that task-technology fit along with individual characteristics have an impact on user evaluation of the IT in health care. We modify the original task-technology fit model for adequate domain coverage in health care industry. The contribution of our study is toward development and testing of an instrument for measuring user evaluation of IT in health care. The proposed model is successfully tested using a survey of 156 respondents from the eastern United States.

Moving IS evaluation forward: learning themes and research issues

“Value for IT money” has been and is an issue. There is concern that poor evaluation procedures mean it is difficult to select projects for investment, to control development and to measure business return after implementation. This concern has been matched by increased activity in researching IT evaluation. The purpose of this paper is to consider what is now needed to make further progress. We do this by drawing together diverse findings from three major research projects, conducted by the authors between 1989 and 1998, in the context of the literature. We suggest five “learning themes”, concepts which we believe would better inform future research and practice. These are: more extensive use of the theory of evaluation as a frame for classifying present prescriptions and discovering new ones; closer attention to multiple relationships among stakeholders; the development of more complex models of decision making; more emphasis on “whole life” studies of project dynamics and, finally, further exploration of the role of evaluation in management learning.

居住地域における公共生涯学習施設の機能分担と施設評価に関する研究 : 学校施設開放を含めた生涯学習空間計画のあり方

居住地域における公共生涯学習施設の機能分担と施設評価に関する研究 : 学校施設開放を含めた生涯学習空間計画のあり方

`Cybernomics' and IT productivity:: Not business as usual?

The paper argues that a more detailed understanding of the fundamental technology shifts from the 1960s to post-2000 provides an important starting point for exploring the underlying economic implications of these technologies. This more detailed understanding of the differing economics underlying types of IT investments will, in turn, have a number of profound implications for how IT investment cases are made, assessed and monitored. After so many years' experience of assessing IT investments in organisations, there still remains much uncertainty and confusion about the reliability, operationalisability and relevance of IT evaluation practices. A major reason can be found in the fact that the period 1994 – 2000 marks a period when three different eras of technology coincide and a fourth may well be emerging. After outlining these four eras, and their underlying economics, the paper proceeds to examine the implications of the argument for contemporary IT evaluation practices.

SYNTHESIS OF A CON FORMATIONALLY RESTRAINED 4-ARYLTHIOPHENE-3-HEPTENOIC ACID AND ITS EVALUATION AS AN HMG COENZYME A REDUCTASE INHIBITOR

Article SYNTHESIS OF A CON FORMATIONALLY RESTRAINED 4-ARYLTHIOPHENE-3-HEPTENOIC ACID AND ITS EVALUATION AS AN HMG COENZYME A REDUCTASE INHIBITOR was published on April 1, 1998 in the journal Heterocyclic Communications (volume 4, issue 2).

A Method to Assess Expected Net Benefits of EDI Investments

In this paper we analyze how small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operating in the Port of Rotterdam can be supported in the assessment of electronic data interchange (EDI) investments in terms of expected net benefits. In contrast to many other industry sectors, where a dominant hub actor is able to enforce wide-scale adoption of EDI by spoke SMEs, port communities need more ex-ante insights into the benefits that may accrue from EDI before they decide to allocate part of their scarce monetary resources to investments in this technology. There is a need for a cheap method of quantifying bottom-line savings from EDI in a traceable way.A literature survey shows that none of the existing IT evaluation methods satisfies these criteria. Therefore, we developed a new tool, called Edialysis, which aids in the decision-making process in terms of whether investments in EDI may yield a positive net present value, given a context-specific set of interorganizational communication scenarios.This paper discusses the method's scope, design, and underlying plan. In addition, a case study conducted at a forwarder operating in the Port of Rotterdam illustrates the results one may obtain from the Edialysis application.

パネル化した外断熱構法とその評価 : 北海道における木造住宅外断熱構法に関する基礎的研究 その5

パネル化した外断熱構法とその評価 : 北海道における木造住宅外断熱構法に関する基礎的研究 その5

A Methodology for the Evaluation of IT for Strategic Implementation

The integration of business strategic planning and IT has been raised as one of the most important issues facing management in the 1990s. At the same time, there have been spectacular failures when business ventures have sought to exploit information technology. So how does business management go about applying information technology in order to maximize the possibility of gaining success, while minimizing the possibility of failure? Most literature concerned with information technology and evaluation focuses on the evaluation of benefits from the use of a technology. The limited amount of literature which considers the ‘front end’ of the process of selection, as well as implementation of information technology, is more concerned with identifying the business problem areas, the actions of competitors or how to set priorities between projects, than looking at the potential utility of a new or emergent technology. This paper presents a practical methodology which can be used by management to evaluate an information technology and to determine its apparent suitability for their business at this particular time. Its strength lies in the capability of IS management and line managers to quickly and cost-effectively identify the major opportunities for the application of technology to business problems.

A methodology for the evaluation of IT for strategic implementation

The integration of business strategic planning and IT has been raised as one of the most important issues facing management in the 1990s. At the same time, there have been spectacular failures when business ventures have sought to exploit information technology. So how does business management go about applying information technology in order to maximize the possibility of gaining success, while minimizing the possibility of failure? Most literature concerned with information technology and evaluation focuses on the evaluation of benefits from the use of a technology. The limited amount of literature which considers the ‘front end’ of the process of selection, as well as implementation of information technology, is more concerned with identifying the business problem areas, the actions of competitors or how to set priorities between projects, than looking at the potential utility of a new or emergent technology. This paper presents a practical methodology which can be used by management to evaluate an information technology and to determine its apparent suitability for their business at this particular time. Its strength lies in the capability of IS management and line managers to quickly and cost-effectively identify the major opportunities for the application of technology to business problems.

A COMMUNITY ACTION PROJECT ON ALCOHOL: COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION AND ITS EVALUATION

A COMMUNITY ACTION PROJECT ON ALCOHOL: COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION AND ITS EVALUATION

BILIARY EXCRETION OF CS-807, AND ITS EVALUATION IN SURGICAL INFECTION

BILIARY EXCRETION OF CS-807, AND ITS EVALUATION IN SURGICAL INFECTION

居住性からみた床のかたさの評価方法に関する研究 : (その2)床のかたさ測定装置の設計・試作および床のかたさの評価指標,評価方法の提示

居住性からみた床のかたさの評価方法に関する研究 : (その2)床のかたさ測定装置の設計・試作および床のかたさの評価指標,評価方法の提示

A LABORATORY STUDY OF A NEW CEPHEM ANTIBIOTIC, AC-1370 AND ITS EVALUATION IN THE TREATMENT OF RESPIRATORY INFECTIONS

A LABORATORY STUDY OF A NEW CEPHEM ANTIBIOTIC, AC-1370 AND ITS EVALUATION IN THE TREATMENT OF RESPIRATORY INFECTIONS

ChemInform Abstract: FACILE PREPARATION OF PLATINUM SOLS BY SODIUM BOROHYDRIDE REDUCTION AND ITS EVALUATION IN THE PHOTOSENSITIZED REDUCTION OF WATER TO HYDROGEN

Chemischer InformationsdienstVolume 14, Issue 51 Preparative Inorganic Chemistry ChemInform Abstract: FACILE PREPARATION OF PLATINUM SOLS BY SODIUM BOROHYDRIDE REDUCTION AND ITS EVALUATION IN THE PHOTOSENSITIZED REDUCTION OF WATER TO HYDROGEN Y. OKUNO, Y. OKUNOSearch for more papers by this authorY. CHIBA, Y. CHIBASearch for more papers by this authorO. YONEMITSU, O. YONEMITSUSearch for more papers by this author Y. OKUNO, Y. OKUNOSearch for more papers by this authorY. CHIBA, Y. CHIBASearch for more papers by this authorO. YONEMITSU, O. YONEMITSUSearch for more papers by this author First published: December 20, 1983 https://doi.org/10.1002/chin.198351038AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article. Volume14, Issue51December 20, 1983 RelatedInformation

「論文試験とその評価」について

「論文試験とその評価」について