Abstract

Abstract
The goal of the project "SmartVision: active vision for the blind" is to develop a small and portable but intelligent and reliable system for assisting the blind and visually impaired while navigating autonomously, both outdoor and indoor. In this paper we present an overview of the prototype, design issues, and its different modules which integrate a GIS with GPS, Wi-Fi, RFID tags and computer vision. The prototype addresses global navigation by following known landmarks, local navigation with path tracking and obstacle avoidance, and object recognition. The system does not replace the white cane, but extends it beyond its reach. The userfriendly interface consists of a 4-button hand-held box, a vibration actuator in the handle of the cane, and speech synthesis. A future version may also employ active RFID tags for marking navigation landmarks, and speech recognition may complement speech synthesis.

Abstract
Nowadays virtual communities are spread all over the web, providing users a cyber-place to share a common purpose and interact with each other around the world. These environments face new challenges in order to provide their users with better tools to interact and fulfill the environment's goals. In this context we propose a model to create regulated interaction environments based on the theater metaphor: the Social Theatres. A multi-layer software architecture (ASTeaS) was developed to support this web-based interaction model, allowing easy construction of such social interaction spaces and adaptation to users' devices. In this paper we discuss the usage of interaction regulation in virtual environments supported by the Social Theatres model, evaluating the users interaction in case study scenarios. © 2010 IEEE.

Abstract
Mass adoption of virtual world platforms for education and training implies efficient management of computational resources. In Second Life Grid and OpenSimulator, commonly used for this purpose, a key resource is the number of servers required to support educational spaces. Educational activities can take place at different altitudes over the same virtual land, for different classes. This way a single virtual world server can sustain several different educational spaces/classes, reducing the number of servers needed to make available different classrooms or other educational spaces. One issue whose importance is emphasized in such conditions is that of class privacy, bearing in mind that most privacy-management features of these platforms are land-based, not space-based. In this paper, we provide an overview of the issues to consider when planning privacy in these platforms and the methodologies that can be developed and implemented to ensure it at an adequate level, including the extra privacy possible in OpenSimulator regarding Second Life Grid. © 2010 IEEE.

Abstract
Technological advance over the last decades created an atmosphere in which the organizations are forced to look actively for new options for cost reduction, in addition to, simultaneously, seek advantages to compete more effectively in their markets. This context requires focused, swift, more flexible and more competitive organizations which must, many times, implement radical changes, in the way they conduct business, employ people and use technology. This work focuses the e-business maturity stages of Portuguese SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) and large enterprises. Our goal is to identify in which e-business maturity stage they are and explore the relationship between their e-business maturity and the associated constrains to e-business evolution (previously identified in an exploratory study).

Abstract
Web accessibility presents itself as one the most important factors for the equality of societies in the modern days. This document is a simple and clear snapshot of the accessibility status of the websites of the Banks with activity in Portugal. Economic activities are part of everyday life since always. The banking sector has a large dimension for a long time, and has been doing a major contribution to economic growth in Portugal. We present an evaluation of the Portuguese banks websites against W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0. The results that were obtained show a severe lack of accessibility in the evaluated websites, what can be translated in the existence of a great number of barriers to all citizens that present some sort of disability.