Special Issue of JISeB, Journal of Information Systems and E-Business Management, published by Springer

Topic: Agent-based Information Systems

Guest Editors: Prof. Riyaz Sikora (rsikora@uta.edu) and Prof. Chris S. Langdon (csl@ebizstrategy.org)

REVIEW IN PROGRESS! Updates

Thank you for your submission to the Special Issue on Agent-based Information Systems of the Journal of Information Systems and e-Business, published by Springer.

The response to our call for papers was overwhelming! Quality and quantity of submissions exceeded our expectations, which supports the observation that agent-based techniques and methods have become popular and beneficial in academia and practice. However, as a result of the strong response our review process has been delayed and we apologize for it.

We have received 18 submissions for approximately 4 slots, which sets the acceptance rate at 22%. This makes the review process very competitive and requires great efforts and diligence.
As of now, 4 submissions have been rejected, 1 manuscript has been accepted after revisions.
We will be able to inform all remaining authors about the outcome toward the end of next week, June 28-July 2.

We would again apologize for the delay in replying and we trust that this has clarified the status of the review process, however, if you wish to discuss any points we have not clarified, or need any further information, you may wish to contact us accordingly (rs & csl).

Original Call for Papers

Objective
The agent metaphor, long in study in artificial intelligence, has recently become popular in mainstream computing largely due to its suitability for open environments such as the Internet. Open environments are increasingly becoming commonplace in applications such as manufacturing, virtual enterprises, and ubiquitous information access. Moreover, we are already witnessing the emergence of new kinds of distribution channels, supply chains, and dynamic markets that use new kinds of intelligent distributed computational processes in the form of agents.

Intelligent agents are increasingly considered as useful in dealing with the staggering variety and volume of data in distributed and heterogeneous environments. Agents and agent-related technologies are also becoming important because they let software components interoperate within modern applications like e-commerce and information retrieval. This has become especially relevant since most large-scale information systems applications of today assume that components will be added dynamically and that they will be autonomous (serve different users or providers and fulfill different goals) and heterogeneous (be built in different ways). This special issue will provide an opportunity for IS/IT researchers to showcase their current work on agent related topics.

Topics
We welcome any research that demonstrates how a (business) problem can be solved using an agent-based, computational method, such as multi-agent and complex adaptive system modeling. SIGABIS is committed to promoting innovative research conducted according to generally accepted standards of rigorous scientific analysis. Contributions can be theoretical or experimental. We recommend that authors follow a typical format to present their work (research problem and question, approach, model, experimental design and instrument validation/model validation, results, conclusion). Computational modeling and simulation experiments in general and agent-based methods in particular are very innovative approaches to solving complex problems. It is therefore helpful to establish instrument reliability and validation.
Contributing papers may deal with any combination of the following issues and areas, but are not limited to it.

Issues
· Coordination, cooperation, and competition
· Learning
· Search
· Evolution, emergent behavior, and adaptation

Application Domains
· Supply chain and channel management
· Knowledge management
· Data mining
· E-commerce and e-business
· Mobile commerce
· Group decisions
· Business networks
· Communication languages

About the Journal
The Journal of Information Systems and e-Business Management is an international journal that focuses on the core tasks of Information Systems Management, the conceptual analysis, design, and deployment of information systems, as well as on e-business related topics. The central aim of the journal is to publish original, well-written, self-contained contributions that elucidate novel research and innovation in information systems management and e-business which advance the field fundamentally and significantly.

Submission Details
Articles submitted to the journal should be original contributions and should not be under consideration for any other publication at the same time. Authors submitting articles for publication should follow the submission guidelines of ISeB for preparing the manuscripts. Submissions should be sent to one of the two guest editors of this Special Issue. Electronic submissions are preferred and they should be either in PDF or Word format. For further details about submission guidelines, please refer to the following address: http://link.springer.de/link/service/journals/10257/instr.htm.

Important Dates
Paper Submissions: Sunday, 1 February 2004
Notification of Acceptance: 1 July 2004
Camera Ready Submission: To be announced
Tentative Publication: October 2004

This Call for Papers is also available for download: CFP.
(Please make sure to check this Web page for any updates prior to the paper submission deadline!)

(Created by: csl, 10/31/03; last modified by: csl, 06/27/04.)