Guide to using virtual tools is tailored to researchers’ needs

September 22, 2009 (New York, NY) –Virtual and e-research tools can significantly aid and improve research projects across a wide range of disciplines and domains. In Virtual Research Environments: From Portals to Science Gateways, to be released in North America by Neal-Schuman on November 1, 2009, author Robert Allan provides comprehensive instruction for building effective virtual research environments (VREs) that are designed to satisfy researchers’ driving motivations and practical requirements.

The book is divided into thirteen chapters and begins with an introduction to e-research tools and their functionalities, usability, and key technical components. Next, Allan explains best practices for creating, characterizing and managing data and digital information, and explores the essential collaborative tools, security guidelines, and different domains involved in virtual research.

Allan outlines VRE architecture and infrastructure, and explains how and when to implement specific components like grid resources, web services, desktop tools, and portals. Three real-life research projects from various disciplines are described in detail. Each one offers practical examples for appropriately applying different tools. The book concludes with the top ten e-research requirements, along with expert insight into the impact of e-research and its future development.

There are a number of helpful illustrations, tables, and charts, and the book’s appendices provide comprehensive lists of e-research portals, gateways, tools, services, and a complete glossary of key terms.
Virtual Research Environments: From Portals to Science Gateways provides research and information professionals with a host of practical and proven guidelines for organizing and deploying successful e-research projects.

Virtual Research Environments: From Portals to Science Gateways
ISBN 978-1-84334-562-6.
Chandos Publishing 2009.
6 x 9. 250 pp. $99.95.

About the Author
Robert Allan is the leader of the HPC and Grid Technology Group in the Computational Science and Engineering Department at STFC’s Daresbury Laboratory in the UK. He received a PhD in atomic physics at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne and is a member of the Institute of Physics and the European Physical society.

About Neal-Schuman Publishers and Chandos Publishing
Founded in 1976, Neal-Schuman Publishers is based in New York City with offices in London, UK. Neal-Schuman is a leading publisher of professional and academic titles in all areas of library and information studies. Since June 2009, Neal-Schuman has also been the exclusive North American distributor for titles from the United Kingdom’s Chandos Publishing, a division of Woodhead Publishing Limited. Chandos books are a leading, highly practical source of authoritative information for professionals and researchers worldwide.

For More Information and/or Cover Art
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sarah.eisenberg@neal-schuman.com
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