Virtualization

As used here, the term virtualization connotes the development of capabilities that make
it possible for people to function at a distance from needed resources or to interact with
simulated representations of objects and environments much as they would with the real
things. Capabilities of these types are basic to such ideas and phenomena as
telecommuting, computer-supported cooperative work, and virtual or artificial realities.
Telecommuting

Whether information technology, generally, has yet had a significant

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impact on productivity in the workplace is a matter of some debate (see Chapters 1 and
8). The picture is clouded in part by (a) the difficulty of measuring productivity—
especially white-collar productivity—in completely unambiguous ways and (b) the fact
that information technology, by virtue of its pervasiveness, has many indirect effects that
are hard to isolate and track.

There seems little doubt, however, that information technology, particularly computer-
based communication networks, has the potential to enhance productivity greatly. The
need to maintain large inventories of materials, parts, and finished products has a
negative effect on productivity because it represents a major component of the cost of
getting products into the hands of users. "Just-in-time" manufacturing reduces the need
for such inventories, but it depends on fast and effective communication techniques. The
substitution of the transmission of information for the movement of people and material
is another way in which computer networks can contribute to increased productivity,
because this means the delivery of the same services at the expenditure of fewer natural
or economic resources.

Using computer networks to enable people to work at home or in "virtual offices" outside
traditional centralized office buildings has been of interest for some time. The idea of
teleworking, or "telecommuting," was promoted by Nilles et al. (1976) shortly after the
first oil crisis of the early 1970s, partly on the grounds that bringing jobs to people
electronically, rather than transporting people to jobs, would have the doubly beneficial
effect of conserving energy and saving transportation costs. It would also help the
environment by reducing air pollution from vehicle emissions, traffic congestion, and
office space requirements.
According to one estimate, perhaps as many as 15 or 16 million people in the United
States could be considered teleworkers as of 1989 (Martin, 1989). However, the
percentage of the workforce, especially the white-collar workforce, that could work from
home is believed to be many times larger than is currently doing so (Harkness, 1977;
Kraut, 1987). How fully the potential for telework will be realized will depend, in part,
on how effectively a variety of human factors issues are addressed. Some of these issues
have to do with the design of devices and software—the tools that make telework
technically feasible. Others, however, relate to less tangible, but no less important,
aspects of the work situation that help determine not only productivity but worker
satisfaction.

Telework has become a symbol of liberation to some people and of isolation to others
(Huws et al., 1990). How it is perceived depends on the individual worker's
circumstances and the details of the arrangement between worker and employer. Among
the issues that appear to contribute to worker satisfaction with telework are whether the
worker is considered an independent contractor or a company employee, whether work is
monitored

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electronically, and how compensation is determined. This is not to suggest that all
workers prefer the same arrangement (Chamot and Zalusky, 1985; Gregory, 1985).
Telework situations differ from more traditional work arrangements in many respects,
some obvious, some subtle; studies are needed to provide a better understanding of the
variables that determine productivity and job quality from the worker's point of view.
Computer-Supported Cooperative Work

With the help of computer networks, colleagues can cooperate at a distance in ways that
were impossible until fairly recently. People in widely separated locations can
collaborate, for example, in real time on writing a paper; all the authors can critique the
same draft and have the benefit of all the critiques as soon as they are made. They can, in
effect, share the same "writing surface" despite their geographical separation.

Network technology has the potential to bring expertise to bear on problems that are
located someplace other than where the expert or experts happen to be. A team of
experts, all located at different places, might collaboratively address a problem requiring
their expertise. In theory, at least, high-resolution displays, coupled with tele-operator
control technology could make it possible for a remotely located surgeon not only to give
advice to on-site personnel but even to perform operating procedures.

How far such innovation can be taken remains to be seen. There is little doubt that the
ubiquity of computer networks will make expertise, like many other things, less
constrained by space and time than it now is. The effectiveness with which
geographically separated individuals will be able to collaborate, via computer networks,
on complex tasks that draw on their combined skills will depend, to no small degree, on
how well the many human factors issues relating to the design of the underlying systems
are resolved.
Telepresence

The telephone created a telepresence of sorts. When two people talk on the phone, they
are in each other's presence in a real, if rudimentary, sense, even if they are located half a
world away from each other. The higher the quality of the voice transmission and the
fewer the interruptions, the greater the sense of presence is. Film and television can also
create a sense of presence; watching a film or televised event, one can sometimes get the
sense of "being there" to the extent of forgetting that what one is looking at is a picture on
a screen.

One goal of virtual reality technology is to increase the sense of presence considerably
beyond what the current state of the art of communication

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technology permits. It would add, for example, the sense of touch and would also give the
recipient of the sensory information the ability to move the sensing devices around in the
experienced context. By moving one's head and eyes, for example, one would cause the
optical sensors to move in a corresponding way. This would give the recipient control
over where to look, much as one would have if at the remotely located scene.

As the bandwidth of computer networks continues to increase, it will be possible to

transmit an increasingly detailed and veridical representation of a physical situation to a
remotely located individual. It seems unlikely, however, that it will be possible, at least
anytime soon, to represent most nontrivial situations in sufficient detail that one could not
tell the virtual reality from the real thing. Fortunately, this degree of realism is not
necessary for most applications, but the question of how real (in appearance) is real
enough is open and probably must be answered on a case-by-case basis. Representations
of reality that would be more than adequate for some applications might be inadequate
for others. There is a need for work on the question of how to determine the degree of
fidelity required in specific instances.