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This volume contains a selection of the papers to be presented at ‘Information Online & On Disc 99’, the ninth Australasian Conference and Exhibition held at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre, Darling Harbour, Sydney, Australia, from 19 to 22 January 1999. The Conference Executive and Programme Committees thank the speakers whose papers appear in this collection for assisting in the publication of these proceedings by making their papers available before the conference. We also thank all the speakers who have contributed their knowledge and expertise to make this a stimulating and informative conference.
Continuing the traditions that began with the first conference in this series, the 1999 Conference presents leading edge developments in the online information industry from Australia and around the world. While at the 1997 Conference the Internet took a forefront position, only two years later it has become so much a part of the information professional’s life that now many of the papers reflect the challenges of managing ‘it’, rather than letting ‘it’ manage us. Issues include access and rights, sustaining sites, improving access via gateways, verification and authentication, search engines and directories, integration with existing library information systems, and using the technology of the Internet to be more innovative in tasks such as serving remote library users. The focus on the Internet is reflected in the Web Showcase, a new highlight for the Conference, which focuses on building sustainable Web sites. The web-like, intertwined nature of the Internet leads inevitably to cross-fertilisation from other disciplines and this is reflected in the papers, for example, those on electronic commerce and knowledge management.
In response to suggestions on the evaluation forms from the previous conference we have added, where possible, subject focus sessions, where subject specialists update us on the most recent online information in their area.
Papers are arranged in their order of presentation at the conference.
The program and these proceedings are a result of the hard work of the members of the Programme Committee, whom I thank. They are:
Enid Roberts, Conference Convenor, contributed her expertise and broad knowledge of the field to the development of the program, as did other members of the Executive Committee. Wael Foda, Conference Manager, ACMS and his staff also provided limitless assistance and expertise. All these people are gratefully acknowledged.
Michael Wyatt of Keyword Editorial Services efficiently and expertly edited the proceedings, and Alan Walker has indexed them. Many thanks also to them.
Mary Anne Kennan
Programme Convenor
Frank Lowy Library
Australian Graduate School of Management
(at The University of New South Wales and
The University of Sydney)