Building Cost-Efficient Computer-Aided Learning Environments via Virtualization and Service-Based Software

With increasing and various pedagogical activities are conducted within them, computer-aided learning environments play significant roles in educational institutes, enterprises, and organizations. The cost of operating computer-aided learning environments inevitably goes up along with increasing demands from instructors and learners. Consequently, it is a critical issue to figure out how to provision these pivotal environments more cost-efficiently without compromising service level and users experience. This article elaborates how the two key enabling techniques of cloud computing: system virtualization and web service could be applied to create an agile computeraided learning environments with improved cost-efficiency.