Adaptive mobile web services facilitate communication and learning Internet technologies

208 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON EDUCATION, VOL. 49, NO. 2, MAY 2006

Adaptive Mobile Web Services FacilitateCommunication and Learning

Internet TechnologiesEvangelos Sakkopoulos, Miltiadis Lytras, and Athanasios Tsakalidis, Member, IEEE

Abstract—The broad acceptance of mobile technology hasundoubtedly created new opportunities in communication. Theproposed environment attempts to enhance the information flowamong the members of a department and, furthermore, to pro-vide a test-bed mobile Web application for students undertakingInternet technologies courses. The key ideas are to support theeducational process to provide auxiliary access to educationalinformation sources, such as announcements, course schedules,grades, and user directory details. As a second system integrationstep, additional mobile Web services were introduced, such as ap-plication forms of the department’s administration office, projectassignment, and discussion groups. Technological evaluation andstudents’ feedback indicate that the proposed solution is bothefficient in communication perspective and effective for studentinvolvement in the mobile Web initiative. Future steps includemultimedia messages (MMS) integration and third-generation(3G)-based information delivery.

Index Terms—Internet technologies, mobile communication,mobile education, mobile Web services, Web development.

I. INTRODUCTION

T he WorldWide Web (www) is an enormous source of in-formation, which is renewed and increased continuously.

Since the amount of information changes and enlarges rapidly,many new challenges are created for mobile Web environments.Being able to access the wealth of information available on theWeb from a mobile device is valuable in many day-to-day situ-ations, e.g., when checking timetables, looking for product in-formation, checking e-mail, transferring money, or accessing anintranet while traveling. Mobile Web access is considered to bea key enabler for mobile Internet services. Even though manyof today’s mobile phones include Web browsers, accessing theWeb from a mobile device has not become as popular as ex-pected. Users often find that their favorite websites are not ac-cessible or not as easy to use on their mobile phones as on theirdesktop devices. In fact, users often feel that the use of mobileWeb access to seek for information is either time consuming orin vain. Even users with previous desktop Web browsing experi-ence face difficulties in coping efficiently with mobile applica-tions [1]. An elaborate discussion of the mobile era challengesinclude user distrust in mobile solutions, security concerns, andmobile technology limitations as presented in [4].

Manuscript received January 15, 2005; revised February 28, 2006.The authors are with the Computer Engineering and Informatics Department,

University of Patras, Patras-GR26500, Greece.Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/TE.2006.873985

However, the broad acceptance of mobile technology has un-doubtedly created new opportunities in communication. Thereare 1.5 billion mobile users in the world today, and sales arerising. For instance, mobile short messages (SMS) have metwide acceptance as a means for instant alerting in a cost-effec-tive way. In addition, taking into consideration that the vast ma-jority of mobile phones support Internet browsing, mobile Webservices have grounds to flourish. Particularly in Greece, mo-bile phone technology is very popular with an estimated usagepenetration at over 85% of the young population.

In parallel, a number of Web-based environments [2], [3] havebeen developed to support the learning process in many disci-plines and at all levels of the educational system. Unfortunately,the effective incorporation of such learning environments intomobile phone technology is still a challenge for educators, stu-dents, and developers.

In this paper, a mobile Web service solution to support edu-cation activities is proposed that utilizes mobile Web technolo-gies and SMS. The environment enhances the information flowamong the members of a department and provides a mobile Webapplication development platform for students undertaking In-ternet technologies courses.

The environment has been introduced to the department com-munity following a progressive penetration strategy. At first,the key idea is to support the educational process by providingauxiliary access to and mobile notifications about educationalsystem information sources. As a second step, extra mobileWeb services were introduced, such as application forms fordocumentations from the department’s administration office(hereafter referenced as the secretariat) project assignmentand thesis title announcements. Services were organized intogroups so that users would have the necessary time to inte-grate the new services into their “daily agenda.” Web services(WS) technologies1 enable simple Web applications to performquite complicated business logic processes. WS technologiesare utilized in the second group of services to interact withback-end systems that facilitate the secretariat and laboratories.Any mobile application submitted is received initially by acorresponding Web service, which next discovers the appro-priate WS processes transparently. WS discovery is extensivelydiscussed in [5].

Furthermore, students involved have the initiative to under-stand the differences between the standard Web-based world

1Web Service Architecture Requirements. [Online] Available: http://www.w3.org/TR/wsa-reqs

0018-9359/$20.00 © 2006 IEEE

SAKKOPOULOS et al.: ADAPTIVE MOBILE WEB SERVICES 209

and mobile Web. The solution serves as a test-bed for studentswho have undertaken Internet technologies courses and/ orhuman computer interaction.

This paper is organized as follows. Section II provides themotivation for this work and presentation of related educationalmobile Web environments. Section III describes how this solu-tion affects the curriculum and the course itself, and the differentenvironment roles. In Section IV, the functional and operationalspecifications of the services are discussed, and snapshots ofthe environment are presented. Section V outlines a technologyand implementation overview. Section VI discusses work as-sessment and students’ feedback. Finally, Section VII concludesthe paper.

II. MOTIVATION AND RELATED WORK

An important foundation for effective courses in computerscience and engineering is to support and enhance communi-cation among the academic community and, especially, amongeducators and students. The latter is particularly important forpart-time students [6] and for distance learning curricula (asin open universities). Overall, the proposed approach can behelpful for educators and students who need the following:

• access to educational or Web resources when at their job;• access and notices of course and project announcements

or schedule changes;• department directory service for immediate contact list

availability;• academic information flow while being away from their

student home (family vacations, etc.) or on short-termvacations.

In particular, the proposed environment introduces a mobileaccess mechanism to the most important and updated infor-mation about curriculum and institution facilities, such as thesecretariat. The key approach is to take advantage of the widepenetration of mobile devices in the student population. To fa-cilitate the effective use of mobiles in the educational activities,last-generation Internet techniques are adopted.

Moreover, the environment can be utilized in the laboratory asa test-bed. Students have the opportunity to apply Web technolo-gies to an environment with business logic, which comes fromtheir everyday life. Therefore, students focus better on the differ-ences and the challenges of mobile technologies. In fact, duringthe two semesters that the environment has been launched, thesuccessful student development results are incorporated directlyinto the online system that provides the enhancements. As a re-sult, the students enthusiastically tested and accessed their ownfunctionality through mobiles. Student involvement maximizesmobile technology acceptance and satisfaction, which are fun-damental in the means–end objectives network for the solutionproposed in [8].

In addition, the challenges in the technological perspectiveurged the authors to focus on the mobile development course.The Wireless Application Protocol (WAP)-based approach isnot as simple as one may think at first. To avoid spending a longtime having developers perform hypertext (HTML) to wirelessmarkup language (WML) transformation on their own, an inte-grated development tool was utilized for automation (MS Visual

Studio .NET 2003). The use of such a tool also provided com-patibility with several new mobile devices and protocols with afair level of automation.

In terms of related literature, mobile education is in its firstyears of deployment. However, promising work has alreadybeen presented. Effectiveness and costs for mobile learning areconsidered in [7]. Partial results touching the effects of thiswork can be found in [9], where service provision is suggested,but no learning activity is proposed.

III. MOBILE WEB ENHANCEMENTS IN THE CURRICULUM

Introductory computer science laboratory courses were in-volved in this work. Instructors and students interacted withthe proposed mobile enhancements. The laboratories concernInternet technologies for students of the Technological Educa-tional Institute (TEI), Patras, Greece (TEI is a three-and-a-half-year higher education institute). Fifteen groups of students haveundertaken the course in two semesters. The proposed environ-ment was utilized by four groups interested in mobile Web appli-cations. Overall, 43 students have participated. A single groupwas chosen in the first semester, and after encouraging evalua-tion, three more groups were involved. The laboratory coursesare weekly and involve hands-on laboratory projects. Mobile In-ternet technologies have been introduced to students who hadparticipated in a relative course earlier to assure basic desktopWeb browsing and development skills. The course curriculumwas coupled by activities as shown in Table I.

The ten-week course includes two hours of class lecturing andpresentations and two hours of hands-on laboratories in groups.The students are taught to provide personalized solutions forthe different roles implemented in the environment. In partic-ular, different category groups include students as users, contentproviders, and tutors as privileged users, “academics,” and ad-ministration members.

IV. ADAPTIVE MOBILE WEB APPROACH

Different navigation and presentation of the set of predefinedcontents can be generated “on-the-fly” based on the characteris-tics of users in the system. A review about adaptive solutions canbe found in [10]. A detailed article that discusses future trendsof the adaptive Web technologies can be found in [11]. In theproposed system, students not only utilize personalization fea-tures, but also learn to design and implement a basic, role-basedadaptation functionality. Details about the adaptation techniquesenforced are described in the following material.

The profile records information about the activities and theknowledge state of a user. The profile used is based on the ideaspresented in [3]. The recorded actions in every category/func-tion are logged. The log statistics indicate that the correspondingcategory is valuable to the user. As a result, the significancefactor is proposed, which shows how interesting a specific cat-egory is to an individual user:

Factor of interest = number of movements in a function/

total number of movements


TABLE IPROPOSED EDUCATIONAL CALENDAR

The factor of interest is utilized to personalize functionali-ties on the mobile device so as to limit the length of the deliv-ered pages. As a consequence, categories with the higher factorare found first in the list of the presented functions. Every newcategory/function and those never accessed are presented low inthe list.

V. FUNCTIONAL AND OPERATIONAL SPECIFICATIONS DETAILS

In this section, the services delivered are described in detail.To create a clearer outline of the environment, a functional dia-gram is depicted in Fig. 1 for all supported roles. Views of theenvironment are presented as a paradigm in Fig. 2. The previewpages are presented using a mobile Web browser emulator. Thewhole system is developed in the Greek language. However,Fig. 2 includes translated data for demonstration purposes. Livedemonstration snapshots are also presented in Fig. 3, using dif-ferent mobiles.

The environment provides a simple lightweight page that isboth the initial front end and the authentication page. After au-thentication, the following informative services are availableacross all roles augmenting the remaining role-specific options.

• Announcements and Quicklinks—These have a generalsection, where the secretariat and the administrator onlycan add information, and a course section for the in-structor. The user may browse within the general sectionand the courses that he or she attends.

• Discussions—This section is a Web forum. One maybrowse the available posts and provide answers. Newtopics can be posted on any subject.

• Personal Details and Contacts—These services are avail-able as well. A user can update personal information orchange a password. Browsing department contacts is alsopossible.

A. Student-Specific Functionality

The user role that depicts the student facilities includes thefollowing options.


Fig. 1. Functional diagram for user, instructor, and administration. Rhombus indicates editing.

Course Enrollment and “Grades.” Students are able to en-roll in any course from the departments course list availableat the time of access (dependent on the semester). In the se-quel, students can choose courses to attend or change an olderenrollment.

In the “Grades” service, the user is able to view his or hergrades and scores to the courses chosen. If a course involvesprojects, then project scores are also available. Grades are avail-able through the course management facilities that can be filledin by instructors or directly through database interconnectionwith the secretariat systems.

Course Schedule. This allows choosing a day of the scheduleprogram to view.

Application Forms for documentation and Submitted Appli-cations. Students may apply for a series of documentation issuedby the secretariat. In the environment, services include requestsfor a) certificate of studentship and b) list of courses attendedand grades. Tracking of the submitted applications is availablefor applicants.

B. Academics Using the Mobile Web Services

The role of the educator/instructor and corresponding ser-vices are as follows.

Announcements and Quicklinks management allows moder-ation and editions. Moderation speeds up information dissemi-nation and limits spamming possibilities.

Grades management allows editing a project/student grade.A list of courses and a list of registered course projects and cor-responding users is available.

C. Management of the Mobile Web Services

The administrator role is created based on the tasks that thedepartment secretariat has to accomplish. In the sequel, uniqueservices in this role are presented.

• Discussion management—Categories in discussion mate-rial can only be created by the administrator. Editions anddeletions are also allowed through this service.

• Schedule management—This is important, especially forvisiting academics who might need a last-minute changein the place or time of their lecture.

• Course management—This allows updates and editionsconcerning the courses available on mobiles. Users mayperform changes on the course availability in the differentsemesters, manage the secretariat applications for courseregistration, and insert a new course.

• Application management—Documentation requests in-clude student certificate (validated copy of student card)and student grades. The secretariat receives a list ofpending requests. After processing, the system alerts therequester to fetch the documentation.

• User management—Contacts are supplied through themain secretariat system, and in the mobile interface,


Fig. 2. Preview browser: (1) schedule, (2) contacts, (3) discussions, and(4) discussion response.

only the contact’s attribute selection is available with noediting facilities.

The secretariat may use the facilities for prompt moderationin the discussion service to accelerate publishing posts and an-nouncements and to change schedule on time.

VI. TECHNOLOGY AND IMPLEMENTATION OVERVIEW

A. Implementation Framework for Mobile Web ServiceLearning Environment

In this section, the technological background of the solution ispresented. The environment has been developed on PCs usingPentium 4 processors and above 512-MB main memory. Thesoftware is based on the .NET Framework technology to max-imize integration effect with Microsoft technology-based ser-vices preexisting in the department.

Contrary to the traditional browsers, mobile browsers supporta different rendering dependent on the screen type and markuplanguage interpreter. In the solution, support for WML, HTML,and compact HTML (cHTML) is offered. Initially, developers

and students in the laboratory used mobile controls in the vi-sual tool. The underlying framework transforms the content au-tomatically into the supported markup of the mobile browserrequesting it. Even in devices supporting the same markup lan-guage, different elements may be used to reach a specific func-tionality. (Consider cases where a different screen size is usedand, as an example, wrapping of text is deactivated to preventlong downscrolling.)

The system implements a three-tier architecture and utilizesSQL Server 2000 as a database management system (DBMS).The DBMS is interconnected with back-end systems of the sec-retariat to retrieve contact information about users and coursedetails. Business logic is built using C# .NET, though any of the18 .NET compatible languages could be utilized.

B. SMS Supporting Media Gateways

The SMS can be used to deliver a wide range of informationto mobile phone users from weather, flight information, newsheadlines, lottery results, to jokes. Essentially, any informationthat fits into a short message can be delivered by SMS. Suc-cessful mobile services should be simple to use, on time, per-sonalized, and localized. In the system, SMS delivery is lim-ited to a) grade delivery notifications and b) application to thesecretariat documentation process outcomes because of limitedbudget to cover SMS costs.

However, the deployment of more services can be severelyhindered if there is insufficient SMS Gateway capacity andexpandability. SMS gateway selection criteria include platformscalability, availability and reliability, connectivity, and pricing.A number of SMS gateways vendors are available, such asNokia, Ericsson, and Motorola. However, the cost to use adirect connection to such a carrier gateway is not currentlyaffordable. As a result, a software SMS server is utilized,which supports an acceptable throughput of over 800 messagesdelivered within an hour.

VII. MOBILE WEB SERVICES EVALUATION

AND USER FEEDBACK

Evaluation results are examined to determine the qualityof the proposed environment. Two main phases are followed:verification and validation of the outcomes. Verification refersto building the environment properly, i.e., substantiating that asystem correctly implements its specifications, while validationrefers to building the right system, i.e., substantiating that asystem performs with an acceptable level of accuracy. Duringthe verification phase, two software architects experts experi-mented on the proposed environment using test cases. As thegoal of the tests was to achieve cross-sectional assessment, testscenarios were designed to cover a broad range of potentialuser inputs.

A. Evaluation of Services and Environment

Among the validation methodologies available, the qualita-tive validation was chosen. A follow-up validation is conductedby the students in the laboratory courses involved. Twenty-onestudents, participating in the mobile Web involving activities,


Fig. 3. Live snapshots using different mobile devices.

were provided with selected design/testing and development ex-ercises, which were previously identified by the authors. Theprimary objectives were to assess both user interface and envi-ronment efficiency and effectiveness. The students were askedto score in a tablelike questionnaire the following criteria of thesystem.

Section A: Learning and understanding mobile Web applica-tion design, development and technological functionality.

1. How do you initially find the provided services’ descrip-tion-handouts?

2. What is your understanding of the difference betweenclient-side and server-side mobile operations while usingand developing for the environment?

3. How do you find developing with simulators before im-plementing on the “real” system?

4. What is your understanding on the transformation processof standard to mobile Web applications?

5. How do you find the use of the SMS software in thelaboratory?

6. How well do you believe the utilization of the environ-ment has helped you in developing mobile Web applica-tions in the laboratories?

7. Do you feel ready to develop a mobile Web application onyour own?

Section B: Friendliness and overall impact of the course andthe environment.

8. How do you find the environment’s rendering on the realmobile devices?

9. How do you find the efficiency and presentation of thestudent services?

10. How do you find the efficiency and presentation of theadministrative services?

11. Did you find the laboratory exercises on the mobile envi-ronment useful in understanding the presented topics?

12. How do you find communication based on SMS?13. How do you find the course’s duration?14. Would you recommend this course as efficient and helpful

to other students?

The students assessed each criteria based on 0–10 scale,which corresponds to the following verbal continuum of re-sponses (0–4 = unacceptable–inadequate; 4.1–6 = poor; 6.1–10= acceptable–adequate). Students were highly motivated bythe presence of the mobile simulators and even more by theutilization of the software SMS server [Q3: 8(avg) and Q5:9.6(avg)]. Students seem to prefer even more laboratory hoursin order to spend extra time in developing and customizing fea-tures for the environment [Q13: 6.5(avg)]. Unfortunately, at themoment, low laboratory infrastructure prevents the expansionof the course duration. Results are also positive concerning thedistinction of the client-side and server-side operations, whileboth using and developing for the environment [Q2: 7.2(avg)].Students also find it possible, though perhaps difficult, todevelop a mobile Web application independently on their own[Q7: 6.3(avg)]. In the case study, such a result was expected,because no other course works with mobile network imple-mentations in the department. Students with better background


in networking and Web development are expected to developeven more robust abilities. The provided services are clearlypresented according to the assessment [Q9: 8.2(avg), Q10:9(avg)]. (Students utilized the student services themselves,and they learned all about the administration services whiledeveloping for the system.) Overall, after two semesters, thecurrent environment has been rated as acceptable, with 8.6(avg)for understanding and 8.9(avg) for user friendliness.

B. Discussion of Testing Technologies for the Mobile WebServices

While developing the environment and after the deployment,one can access the provided services using a number of dif-ferent technologies, described below. Therefore, the robustnessof the application needs to be validated using multiple devicesand simulators to ensure proper compatibility for the maximumof devices.

Use of a typical desktop browser: In the first steps of devel-opment where debugging is inevitable, desktop browsers onlypresent full tracing information about exceptions.

Emulator-based access: In a second-level device, specificemulators are utilized. Emulators are a cost-effective meanswhen used for the development and initial testing phase.

Wireless access: After configuring the mobiles to access theInternet wirelessly, the Web application was tested online. Mostmobile devices allow for storing the address (URL) to easefollow-up visits. Tests resulted in minimization of the authen-tication form to request user password only. (The user nameis provided implicitly.) Other minor design changes includedwrapping arrangements for mobiles with limited space (threeline screens).

C. SMS Incorporation Discussion

Short messages can be extremely useful in distributing in-stant information; however, budget limitations have preventedthe authors from implementing a full-scale solution. SMS-basedsolutions make students aware instantly of lecture venue/timechanges or cancellations and inform students when grades anddocumentations are ready to be collected from the secretariat.After passing a questionnaire to 43 students for potential SMS-based services, the following services have been proposed, andthe resulting answers are outlined in Fig. 4:

1. notice for student pay checks available for collection inthe finance office;

2. course-based announcements sent;3. meeting requests sent to specific interest student group;4. notice about changes or server crashes in ongoing labora-

tory experiments;5. interactive text voting (student elections, radio/TV sta-

tion) enabled;6. job information sent for short-term involvement in the

institution.

Additional services that can be considered for deploymentinclude 1) contacting a specific student (saving on telephonecharges) and 2) notifying information about latest student unionevents and sending promotional material.

Fig. 4. Proposed new SMS-based educational alerts.

VIII. CONCLUSION AND FUTURE STEPS

Overall, the proposed environment enables mobile access toinstitutional resources and, therefore, elevates the communica-tion quality among members of an academic institution, espe-cially for part-time curricula. Furthermore, the solution facili-tates Internet technologies laboratory courses as a test-bed. Themost popular services were announcements and grades. Studentfeedback indicated that SMS-based query submission for con-tact retrieval would be helpful. The proposed approach broughtstudents’ attention to the importance of cost efficiency in themobile communication world. Students realized that massiveSMS transmission policies have to be carefully evaluated be-fore applied. Educators may adopt the proposed approach for anupper division computer science class (junior- or senior-level)or beginning graduate class. In this case, the curriculum is taughtduring the fourth or fifth semester. Teaching the curriculum hasresulted in the well-prepared attendance of students to the labo-ratory courses, because students were particularly interested indeveloping applications that have the chance to finally be placedonline. Evaluation has shown that instruction to students withbackground in Web programming leads to increased skills ofmobile Web development. The curriculum has already receivedencouraging comments by fellow educators, who have showninterest in adopting the solution in other departments.

Future steps include the introduction of multimedia messages(MMS) to increase interactivity and provide short scanned doc-ument images of formal documents, such as a copy of studentID and bus reduction ticket card. Additional work includes thetransformation of the environment for third-generation (3G)mobiles services support to enable simple interactive audiovi-sual presentations and lectures. Students without a computerinfrastructure and part-time students would have an alternativeopportunity to receive educational material on mobiles devices.


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Evangelos Sakkopoulos received the Computer Engineering and Informaticsdiploma degree, the M.Sc. degree in computer science and technology, and thePh.D. degree from the Department of Computer Engineering and Informatics,University of Patras, Greece, in 2001, 2003, and 2005, respectively.

Currently, he is a Research Associate of Research Unit 5 Internet andMultimedia Technologies at the Research Academic Computer TechnologyInstitute (RACTI). His research interests include Web Engineering, WebServices, e-learning, Web searching, Internet technologies, and mobile Web.He has published more than 30 papers in international journals and conferencesin these areas.

Miltiadis Lytras received the Informatics diploma, M.B.A., and Ph.D. degreesfrom the Department of Management Science and Technology of the AthensUniversity of Economics and Business (AUEB), Athens, Greece, in 1995, 1998,and 2004, respectively.

Currently, he is a Research Associate of Research Unit 5 Internet and Multi-media Technologies at the Research Academic Computer Technology Institute(RACTI). His research focuses on e-learning, knowledge management, and se-mantic Web and his work has appeared in more than 35 publications.

Dr. Lytras is the Founder of the Semantic Web and Information Systems Spe-cial Interest Group in the Association for Information Systems.

Athanasios Tsakalidis (M’97) received the Diploma degree in mathematicsfrom the University of Thessaloniki, Greece, the Diploma degree in computerscience, and the Ph.D. degree from the University of Saarland, Saarbuecken,Germany, in 1973, 1981, and 1983, respectively.

He is currently a Full Professor of the Department of Computer Engineeringand Informatics, University of Patras, Greece. He is also Vice-Director and R&DCoordinator of Research Academic Computer Technology Institute (RACTI).His research interests include data structures, graph algorithms, computationalgeometry, expert systems, GIS, medical informatics, databases, multimedia, in-formation retrieval, and bioinformatics.

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Adaptive mobile web services facilitate communication and learning Internet technologies