The project-oriented and Agile approaches have motivated a new generation of software engineers. Within the academic curriculum, the issue of whether students are being sufficiently prepared for the future has been raised. The objective of this work is to present the project-oriented environment as an influential factor that software engineering profession requires, using the second year course ‘Software Development and Management in Agile Approach’ as a case-study. This course combines academic topics, self-learned and soft skills implementation, the call for creativity, and the recognition of updated technologies and dynamic circumstances. The results of a survey that evaluated the perceived value of the course showed that the highest contribution of our environment was in the effectiveness of the team-work and the overall development process of the project.

People's posting behaviors in social networks was perceived as ambiguous, with concerns misaligned with people's public postings. To address this gap, we suggest a model that offers new insights into the relationship between perceptions and actual behaviors. We define a quantitative marker for agility, the frequency in which people update their audience selection when posting information in online social networks, and evaluate the factors that contribute to the variability of agility between different users. We analyzed the posting behavior of Facebook 181 participants, as well as their answers to open and close questions. We find that frequent changes in privacy settings are correlated with high social privacy and with institutional privacy concerns, whereas social concerns were found to be more prominent. Agility was negatively correlated with low public sharing. Our findings show that users use privacy settings to effectively mitigate privacy concerns and desires for creating and strengthening social connections. We discuss how agility can be used to design and to evaluate new user interfaces for managing privacy in social settings.

Installing security applications is a common way to protect against malicious apps, phishing emails, and other threats in mobile operating systems. While these applications can provide essential security protections, they also tend to access large amounts of people's sensitive information. Therefore, individuals need to evaluate the trade-off between the security features and the privacy invasion when deciding on which protection mechanisms to use. In this paper, we examine factors affecting the willingness to install mobile security applications by taking into account the invasion levels and security features of cyber-security applications. To this end, we propose a visual language that depicts the coverage of different security features as well as privacy intrusiveness levels. Our user study (n=300) shows that users assessing security applications find their trade-off balance in highly secure apps with a medium level of privacy invasion. The results indicate that a low privacy invasion might signal that the security application provides less security. We discuss these findings in the context of understanding the trade-off between privacy and security.

The main goal of this study was to evaluate the impact of an animation and visualization of data structures (AVDS) tool on both perceptions and objective test performance. The study involved a rigorous experiment that assessed the usability, acceptability, and effectiveness of the AVDS tool in solving exercises. A total of 78 participants responded to questionnaires and were exposed to the AVDS tool, after which they completed a performance test, half (39) with the AVDS tool (the experimental group) and half (39) without the tool (the control group). Findings showed that the usability of AVDS was good; the experimental group even perceived AVDS usability as excellent. The results show that perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and attitudes toward usage jointly led to positive intention to use the AVDS tool. Furthermore, perceived ease of use was a key factor influencing participants’ intention to use AVDS. In addition, the AVDS system improved test results and provided flexibility in use, enhancing learning experience and performance.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a highly informative diagnostic method; however, its quality heavily depends on the patient’s immobility. Even minimal movements, such as breathing, can cause artifacts that complicate image interpretation, not to mention more significant movements, such as twitching or shivering. Given the high cost of the procedure, repeated scanning is undesirable. The aim of this study was to prepare patients for MRI procedures using specialized training software designed to minimize involuntary movements and improve diagnostic quality. The software tracked participants’ movements in an MRI simulator and reproduced characteristic scanning sounds. The Farnebäck optical flow algorithm detected even the slightest movements captured by the camera, allowing for the evaluation of movements during training sessions and improving patient readiness for actual scanning. A pilot study conducted on a group of 10 students aged 21–27 years demonstrated a significant reduction in the average number of movements during testing—from 27.7 in the first test to 8.3 in the second, corresponding to an average decrease of 19.4 movements. Additionally, two participants showed a noticeable reduction in anxiety levels after the first test, which likely contributed to the decrease in movements, emphasizing the importance of psychological preparation in enhancing training effectiveness. The study results suggest potential improvements in the quality of diagnostic images, which can increase their diagnostic value and enhance patient comfort during actual scanning, reducing the likelihood of repeated procedures.

Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) describes different ways to communicate that supplement or compensate for the impairment of individuals with complex communication needs. AAC can utilize computerized devices, with visual scene display (VSD) or video visual scene display (VVSD) as a communication mode. Recent literature insufficiently tackles the differences between the two modes of presentation. To address this issue, we developed a user-friendly application that can display both video clips and photographs with embedded hotspots. The efficiency of VSD vs. VVSD was evaluated by measuring the perceptions and the performance of adults with ASD during conversation. Findings showed that VVSD has advantages over VSD in improving communication. However, further research with a larger sample size is required.